We went from 100 degree days without a drop of rain to tropical storms and floods. Gotta love 2020.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
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We’re hunkered down here waiting for Isaias to pass. It would be a perfect day to read all day if it weren’t for this job thing they want me to do.
Bad weather is excellent for good reading. One of my favorite bookish memories is staying up all night in a shaky little cottage on Cape Cod listening to the wind howl and reading Bird Box. I’m not sure I would have liked that book at all if it weren’t for the weather.
Are you in the path of the storm? What are you reading today?
One of my favorite new walking hobbies is to read all of the signs sprouting up in my neighbors’ yards. I guess since we can’t really get together and talk right now we turned to messages in our lawns.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
Last week I was was in Wolfeboro, NH visiting my family. We were playing it pretty safe cooking our own meals, taking long walks, and swimming at an isolated section of lake, but at one point I did sneak away to visit a bookstore I heard was open. (Shout out to The Country Bookstore.)
It was great to be back. You know that feeling of being in a bookstore and finding books you didn’t even know you were interested in? Man, I had missed that.
The bookstore itself was great for browsing. I was the only one in there at the time (the bookseller told me they had been doing insane amounts of mail order.) The books were laid out nicely so that I didn’t have to touch everything just to see the titles. They had a great big kids’ section, and a wide variety of adult topics as well. In short, bookworm heaven.
I have mixed feelings about entering any kind of building at this point, and spend most of my time outside or in my very own house. My garden is producing so even my trips to the grocery store are getting rarer. But, for one brief 20 minute period of time, I felt normal and happy again. Thank you The Country Bookstore.
Meet Daisy. Brother Oliver is too fast to get a good picture yet.
Two good things happened since we last met up. One, my library opened for curbside pick up! Two, we adopted two kittens who are adorable and love to lay around with me while I read. We also took a very socially distant trip out of town to go hiking, and that meant audiobooks in the car. So, a good month for reading.
(Note, I was worried to leave my city which is filled with pretty serious social distancing mask wearers to go someplace that didn’t have as good of a reputation, but it was fine. No confrontations I’m happy to say.)
And how is it mid-July already?
The Color Purple by Alice Walker - I read this a long time ago, and picked it back up again early last month. So much good stuff here. You need to read it if you haven’t.
“I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.”
A $500 House in Detroit - I thought I was getting a HGTV style makeover book, but what I got was a really interesting look at race and class in Detroit around 2008.
Parable of the Sower - I read this for a reading challenge not knowing that a dystopian novel set in the year 2025 would seem so believable based on the year 2020. This is the second book I’ve read by Octavia Butler, and I will be reading more. (The other book, Kindred, was also really good.)
Ten Days In A Mad House - In 1887 journalist Nellie Bly had herself committed to a “mad house” so that she could report on the conditions. Once you read about the conditions and the ease of commitment in those days you will be amazed by how brave she was.
I weirdly ended up reading three books set in Chicago last month.
Rodham - A book about what might have happened to Hillary if she hadn’t married Bill. I thought this book was super clever, and have recommended it to a bunch of people (including you!)
Becoming - I loved the behind the scenes looks at the White House, and the very real struggles the Obamas had raising two kids with two working parents. This might have been bad timing though, because to me a lot of the things we worried about in 2008-2016 just seem so quaint.
A Raisin In The Sun - I love this play, and read it often. This was the first “grown up” book I read when my mom took me to see it in Boston as a high schooler. The struggles in this play just poke my heart.
Mary Anne Saves The Day - Yup, I’m 42 years old and read a Baby-Sitters Club graphic novel in preparation for watching the Netflix series. So sue me.
Anne of Windy Poplars - Still reading through Anne’s books. I enjoy them, but they’re feeling more and more like filler that LMM’s publisher talked her into writing.
Twisted Twenty-Six - These books are always the same, and I always enjoy them. This was the first one I’ve ever done as an audiobook, and I liked the narrator.
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My step count is way down this week because of the heat. I need to come up with a better schedule, but is there any good schedule in the time of COVID-19? I’m already getting up at 4:30 so I can get work in before my kids get up. Whatever, I’ll figure it out, because my brain doesn’t function without walks.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
I was looking for an image of five stars and this picture of cookies came up.
I use LibraryThing.com to track what I’ve read, tags, and star ratings. Any book I read starts with three stars. Three stars to me is a good, average book. The good thing about LibraryThing is that you can give half star ratings. So from three stars I either go up or down a half star at a time. When I get to about two stars I usually won’t finish. Four stars is a really good book. Five stars is an amazing book that I will read again.
My favorite book of 2020 so far
I’ve read some great books in 2020 so far, but the one that I liked the best, the one that reminded me why Iove/need to read was Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes. This book is truly unforgettable.
Best Re-read of 2020
I started The Stand on the beach last July, and finished it in February of this year, just before everything fell apart. It was a pretty weird experience to feel like I was living the Stephen King book I just read.
My favorite audiobook so far
This is another book from early this year. I really hope that after this mess is over we consider how our low wage workers are being treated, and how much we need them.
A great 2020 non-fiction read
This spring and summer it’s been all the books from and about the 60’s and 70’s that have appealed to me. Travels With Charley is one of those. I’s amazing to me how many battles we’re still fighting now that our parents were fighting then.
I’m nervous to see what the rest of this year brings, but I’m interested to see what turns my reading life will take. I wonder if any of these will be on my best of 2020 lists?
Last week featured a quick trip to the mountains. I got used to the lower temperatures there, and now walking at home feels like walking through soup. Still going though!
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
We’re halfway through the year
We’re halfway there guys. While I gave up on my 2020 reading goals long, long ago I didn’t stop tracking and I’m surprised to say I’m not actually doing too bad.
This year I set three goals:
Read 200 books (around 16 or 17 books a month) - So far I’ve read 102 books this year
Read books that take place in 20 different countries - I’m at lucky 13 right now
Read 20 new to me cookbooks and cook at least one recipe from each one - This has been the hardest one considering my lack of access to specialty ingredients, but I’m up to 6.
Of my 102 books 16 have been re-reads, 33 have been audiobooks, and 26 have been non-fiction. (Some of these categories overlap.)
I must admit that there are a lot of books I read in March and April that I barely remember. But around May I started loving books again. I never buy books, but this month I have been, probably more than I’ve been reading. Buying books from independent stores, books by BIPOC authors, and buying books that will give my kids something to do feels like a positive step I can take to help the world. So I’ve been going with it, and dropping them in local Little Free Libraries when I’m done. It’s part of my COVID-19 routine now. And this week my library opened again for curbside pickup. I got some of the books I put on hold in March, and while those books don’t appeal to me much now I was happy to see my library again. I hope they feel okay about working again, and that they feel protected.
On Friday I’ll tell you my favorite books of the year so far.
A few weeks ago I wasn’t in a mood for summer reading, but then I bought one book. And then I bought about 15 more. And now I’m in a summer reading mood again. This one is next up, but I’m also looking forward to all sorts of back list reading, the books I bought as part of #BlackoutBestSellerList, and some classics I’m reading as part of a buddy read. Bring on the backyard reading!
After a long cold spring, it seems like summer is finally here. This is when my best walking starts!
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
I’m back on the walking bandwagon, and feeling better for it.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
25 year old beach chairs in heavy rotation here now that it’s summer.
In May I finally got my reading mojo back. I’ve been reading a lot this year, but because I felt like I should, not because I was particularly interested in anything. In May I got interested again.
I’ve been watching a lot more TV than usual as well, trying to make sense of what’s going on in the world. Local (Washington, DC) news had become something of a joke, but now seeing the reporters filming scenes live and broadcasting them has totally changed my opinion on them. There are so many awful and sad images coming out, but also images of hope and change. It’s been leading me to read a lot of books from and about the 1960’s.
Note: I’m trying to move away from using amazon.com affiliate links, and using bookshop.org instead. This is my first experiment. I miss the little pictures amazon gives you, but am having fun taking my own. Here’s my shop if anyone is interested. Definitely a work in progress.
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes - This novel about the Bravo Company, a unit of young Marines during the Vietnam War, is unforgettable. Karl Marlantes is a veteran himself, and the details he incorporated into this book were visceral and captivating.
All the Beautiful Girls by Elizabeth Church
The Good House by Ann Leary - Someone described this to me as unreliable narrator without all the murder which is a good and accurate description. I listened to this on audio and loved the pitch perfect Massachusetts accent.
All The Beautiful Girls by Elizabeth Church - Vegas show girls in the late 1960’s- loved it. Loved the descriptions of the costumes and the behind the scenes drama. (Trigger warning sexual and physical abuse)
Travels With Charley by John Steinbeck - In 1960 John Steinbeck took his dog Charley around the country in a motor home to reconnect with the American people. This book was surprisingly relevant: living life as the only Democrat in a family of Republicans, racial tensions, and good found in surprising places. A short book that was worth reading.
Mosquitoland by David Arnold - Mim Malone runs away from home in order to save her mother in Cleveland. I hated the father in this book, but loved the main character Mim and her little band of helpers she meets along the way.
My Daily Routine According To My Daughter
Anne of the Island by LM Mongomery - I’m reading one of these a month for a book club I’m in. This one I thought started out slow, but I loved the ending.
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend - I started listening to this with my kids, and when they bailed I kept going. I quite enjoyed Morrigan and her adventures. Typical of books like this none of the grown ups ever tell the kids anything so they have to figure it out on their own.
The Moffats by Eleanor Estes - A sweet old-fashioned book reminiscent of The Five Little Peppers or The Railway Children.
I haven’t written this week because I haven’t known what to say, but then it started to feel like by not saying anything I was also saying something. But really, I don’t know what to say. I only know that my friends, co-workers, and neighbors are in pain. That said I can always recommend a book.
Here are several books that I’ve read that have led to empathy and understanding for the situation happening in our country right now.
Note: Links here are affiliate links to amazon.com, but there are several lists going around right now of excellent black owned indie bookstores if you’d like to purchase any.
Between the long weekend and a day of migraines that left me flat on my back I got almost no walking done let alone posting about it.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
Another week of walking. It’s getting old to tell you the truth.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
Now that the weather is getting better, and the hateful wind has stopped I’m really enjoying my walks.
Here’s what I’ve been listening to and seeing this week.
Note: Links to amazon.com are affiliate links. Thanks for your support.
April shower + May flowers
Where the heck did this month go? Hard to believe time could go by so fast when I haven’t really been outside my house. I did read a whopping 19 books last month, so I guess my concentration issues are officially over. Here are some of my favorites from the month.
Gourmet Rhapsody by Muriel Barbery - This book didn’t get great reviews, but the stuck alone dreaming of all the food I couldn’t have vibe was quite relatable. Sometimes you just find the right book at the right time, you know?
Garvey's Choice by Nikki Grimes - Another right book at the right time. This short verse YA book reminded me to take interest in what my kids are interested in, not just what I want them to be interested in. This was a super important lesson for this first time homeschooler.
Anne of Avonlea by Lucy Maude Montgomery - Another Anne book, and I loved it just as much as the first. It’s been hard to keep myself to just one of these a month so I can stay on schedule with my buddy read!
Ramona's World by Beverly Cleary - I love, love, love listening to the Ramona books read by Stockard Channing. These were the first chapter books I read as a kid, and listening to one I hadn’t read before was like crawling under a warm blanket.
Devotions by Mary Oliver - Another right book at the right time- when there aren’t that many places to go beyond my backyard Mary Oliver’s poetry about the birds and other creatures in her yard were very soothing.
“And who will care, who will chide you if you wander away from wherever you are, to look for your soul?
Quickly, then, get up, put on your coat, leave your desk!”
Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner - This novel covered everything from the 1950’s to just before the 2016 election. At times it felt a bit like Weiner was trying too hard to fit everything in, but overall a good story.
The Lost Boys of London by Mary Lawrence - This was a good sit on the couch with tea mystery. See my full review here.
The Time Between by Karen White - I originally thought I would be reading this book on my vacation to Edisto Island, but since it was April 2020 I ended up reading it in my basement huddled under a blanket. Still, it would have made a good beach book- love story, cute kid, misunderstood family dynamics, etc. My only issue was that the male love interest who happened to be the main character’s boss thought nothing of giving her the day off to baby-sit his kid. There’s no way he could do that and not have full on office wide revolt.
I can’t wait to see what everyone else has been reading to pass the time!
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Like a lot of people I’ve been baking a lot. I love to get up on Sunday morning and enjoy a treat, a mug of tea, and a book while it’s still quiet. I thought it might be fun to share some of the goodies I’ve been making.
In all of these I had to make a few substitutions, leave something out, or added a bit of something I had a lot of because I can’t exactly just run to the store.
Rhubarb is going nuts in my garden, so I’ve been using that a lot in my treats. Some favorites are:
I’ve also been enjoying just plain toast. It’s so good with butter and cinnamon isn’t it?
What have you been cooking lately?
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