tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11835991308676539022024-03-25T09:58:43.608-04:00From One Book LoverTo another: ........sharing the love of reading and books.Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07364752277483354507noreply@blogger.comBlogger558125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-62963166786199162452024-01-13T00:00:00.004-05:002024-01-13T00:00:00.146-05:00The Personal Librarian Didn't Speak to Me<p> I recently read <i><a href="https://www.authormariebenedict.com/the-personal-librarian.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Personal Librarian</a></i> for a book club. I had tried a year or so ago, and the narration didn't grab me, so I stopped after two chapters. However, I persevered for the book club.</p><p>Persevere I did. I was not fond of this book, which <span style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">felt like an exercise in caution.</span></p><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSiOzdTJkV664_Z_uoAfAIXSG25IlUoL6CG6geGLlmCGN7xqp1ctR-GOLCtvQuQ14JXcP-YYs-Fpw7mSVcZklefbtu6bZxA-n7HjKkWpNstCAExbAAImCb422kW2KcW0I6UFeo3FTrcio9w_eWIHu-zu91CN2EG558eoqTxTccb-aUCLyd-hyBuKrL64o/s350/personal%20librarian%20cover.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="233" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSiOzdTJkV664_Z_uoAfAIXSG25IlUoL6CG6geGLlmCGN7xqp1ctR-GOLCtvQuQ14JXcP-YYs-Fpw7mSVcZklefbtu6bZxA-n7HjKkWpNstCAExbAAImCb422kW2KcW0I6UFeo3FTrcio9w_eWIHu-zu91CN2EG558eoqTxTccb-aUCLyd-hyBuKrL64o/s320/personal%20librarian%20cover.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>The words of Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray words did not bring Belle to life for me. Instead, their words <i>told</i> me what Belle may have felt. </span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">Belle’s passion and excitement did not make it onto the page for me. I felt only constraint. Nearly every scene included Mama’s imagined or real admonishments, to the point of tedium.</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1915; font-family: "Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1915; font-family: "Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px;" /><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">Intellectually, I recognized Belle’s personal and social constraints. I tried to appreciate and sympathize, but it's hard to sympathize with caricature. </span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">The book showed me nothing. I was not transported to the back room of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the ever-expanding Morgan Library, the taut drama of a woman outbidding men at high-stakes auctions when she couldn’t even leave the house without a chaperone for decorum’s sake, or the “back room” dealings in posh British restaurants. I wasn't whisked to Italy in the arms of my cad, er, lover, after an awkward meeting with his wife. I felt no embarrassment, tension, challenge, boldness, recklessness.</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1915; font-family: "Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1915; font-family: "Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px;" /><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">Belle de Costa Greene was a fascinating character when described by Morgan Library Exhibition Project Curator Erica Ciallela at a recent book club meeting. Belle sounds fascinating, brave, intelligent, and amazing, and I will visit the Morgan Library to find out more about this amazing woman. </span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1e1915; font-size: 16px;">However, this book was all on the page for me, which was not as enjoyable as I had hoped it would be. If you had a different experience, <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I would like to hear about it, so drop me a note and we'll chat</a>.</span></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-31399034451806504272024-01-07T00:00:00.005-05:002024-01-07T00:00:00.137-05:00The Year in Reading, 2023 Edition<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUifTaCxl4VVW4tbPJdPswJEy7Fe5uieASJHg99XVmXRIub8o7sMWWedRZNJTbHDlgVeZxr1ZXVGhD6GBGmDCdkueLR-PYz0wYCqqU4XUb2z0hcc7t_FT53W9SSho9BMxwqDlJLKuoEUAH3i7IdGjXORAKbyQEbqWBTT2vuzvQtCNY_1l4AiC_SZ3Dwo/s3029/book%20haul%202023%20print.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3029" data-original-width="2945" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUifTaCxl4VVW4tbPJdPswJEy7Fe5uieASJHg99XVmXRIub8o7sMWWedRZNJTbHDlgVeZxr1ZXVGhD6GBGmDCdkueLR-PYz0wYCqqU4XUb2z0hcc7t_FT53W9SSho9BMxwqDlJLKuoEUAH3i7IdGjXORAKbyQEbqWBTT2vuzvQtCNY_1l4AiC_SZ3Dwo/s320/book%20haul%202023%20print.png" width="311" /></a></div>2023 was a busy reading year for me. I got into the triple digits, discovered some great cozy reads, and lured another unsuspecting person into the World of Books.<p></p><p>My husband was a perfectly normal person who would read books when the mood struck. Then he discovered Andy Weir, began listening to audiobooks, joined a book club, and installed bookshelves in the living room for his growing collection. It's fun to hear him say, "You'd like this book I read." It wasn't an instantaneous transition, but it has stuck long enough to be a part of his personality now.</p><p>But back to the topic at hand: I read 102 books. (Goodreads calculates the average book length at 264 pages.) </p><p>I indulged in <i>Escargot</i> and met <i>The Knight Owl; </i>encountered octopuses, an ogress, Christopher Marlowe, and an alien with a Scottish accent; and discovered Dark Academy. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcACqnh62RJ3BIQWSxZZBm1SIkRwWyGRVUe-jxZxulrSMBzQcRirADid7Nex9LARynZAodk2YZcW13Lvmkj4bJxwTCXMhXs6Cd-9__QQspqfvifMcszsbSGiIONL2kkfiYkadxFkBE-cY9lUluXyjJos1tH9gWPSJQH25OCEjlkIIYMyP5K94AgrThfpc/s630/code%20name%20verity%20cover.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="420" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcACqnh62RJ3BIQWSxZZBm1SIkRwWyGRVUe-jxZxulrSMBzQcRirADid7Nex9LARynZAodk2YZcW13Lvmkj4bJxwTCXMhXs6Cd-9__QQspqfvifMcszsbSGiIONL2kkfiYkadxFkBE-cY9lUluXyjJos1tH9gWPSJQH25OCEjlkIIYMyP5K94AgrThfpc/w133-h200/code%20name%20verity%20cover.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br />I read popular books, including <i>Demon Copperhead</i> and <i>Lessons in Chemistry</i>. I discovered <i>Howl's Moving Castle</i> and met Mel Brooks (on the page). I re-read a few books (including <i>Ninth House; The Princess Bride; A Lot Like Christmas;</i> <i>Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret;</i> and <i>Forever....</i>). <p></p><p>I mixed media like mad: audiobooks, e-books, print books, graphic novels, picture books, books with line drawings and photos, and books where the images were all in my head. Some books I read in two or three formats. </p><p>Nearly half were from My (Public) Library. Nearly a quarter were from my own shelves<i> (several are pictured, above)</i>, and many others were consumed via my e-reader and mobile phone.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5yH1X3cq4py7gMjNrTrEThKGA1UPafmkxK4CBLnjZfd1FQWjS0wNveRWruLtrRCVKFyB74F49WV-LQBFUPCevQCCSXOOF-JVs-DdVltZzadF03FbmO96nBnKxzSDpb4Keln7njMn1c17tBWsU0K4T06inLTpikNWHWeF2LHf_eSwvrMRzkhGyEZjxAQk/s1195/knight%20owl%20cover.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="968" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5yH1X3cq4py7gMjNrTrEThKGA1UPafmkxK4CBLnjZfd1FQWjS0wNveRWruLtrRCVKFyB74F49WV-LQBFUPCevQCCSXOOF-JVs-DdVltZzadF03FbmO96nBnKxzSDpb4Keln7njMn1c17tBWsU0K4T06inLTpikNWHWeF2LHf_eSwvrMRzkhGyEZjxAQk/w162-h200/knight%20owl%20cover.png" width="162" /></a></div><br />My first 2023 read was <i>Upgrade </i>by Blake Crouch.<p></p><p>My final read of the year was <i>What You are Looking For Is in the Library </i>by Michiko Aoyama. </p><p>My least favorites were <i>Atlas Six </i>and<i> Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow</i>.</p><p>The ones I have talked about the most include <i>Of Time and Turtles</i>,<i> Finding the Mother Tree</i><i>, Light from Uncommon Stars</i><i>, Remarkably Bright Creatures</i><i>, </i>and<i> Demon Copperhead. </i>Each of these books ripped out my heart and gave it back to me better than it was before. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwp4PPmaZyqYI7CH-uwWPlK85-ASqX3SXumDhqb2fNOBuTBMquLpVdeKXElXls35ygHARtlDTtavGS5OjnkWlytD_0YCcgiaETnEpeERbRQFnWt3JjYnLbxATA2WogWARVlSEFAJcfVBEaWsF_DiVvqEmCRcC9KdLFKuNexNgHthw2P-ty-NtnMDz3H7Q/s1920/lullaby.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1279" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwp4PPmaZyqYI7CH-uwWPlK85-ASqX3SXumDhqb2fNOBuTBMquLpVdeKXElXls35ygHARtlDTtavGS5OjnkWlytD_0YCcgiaETnEpeERbRQFnWt3JjYnLbxATA2WogWARVlSEFAJcfVBEaWsF_DiVvqEmCRcC9KdLFKuNexNgHthw2P-ty-NtnMDz3H7Q/w133-h200/lullaby.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>I have gifted <i>The Ogress and the Orphans, Horse, Warrior Girl Unearthed, Lessons in Chemistry, </i>and<i> The Magician's Daughter.</i><p></p><p>One author managed to wow and underwhelm me with two (very) different tomes.</p><p>I finished <i>The Invisible Library</i> series and started a few others (<i>The Glass Library, Wolf Hall, Witches of Brooklyn, Alex Stern</i>) (though, technically,<i> Ninth House </i>was a re-read).</p>I don't know if I'll ever again read this much in a single year, but it was a wild ride I enjoyed immensely.<div><br /></div><div><a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">What did you read in 2023 we're not talking enough about? Tell me!</a><p><b>Chris' 2023 Reads</b></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-4b8f1bf8-7fff-d75c-c0d7-bcfd6630fcd1"></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>What You Are Looking For Is In The Library </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Golden Rage </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Untold Story (The Invisible Library, #8) </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Medici Manuscript</i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Just Because </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Of Time and Turtles </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Simon and the Bear </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Shortest Day </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Upside Down Hanukkah </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Seven Spools Of Thread </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Shortest Day of the Year </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>A Lot Like Christmas </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Skull </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Bookshops & Bonedust </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Witches of Brooklyn: Spell of a Time </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>This Book is Gay </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Yellowface </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; 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white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Road to Roswell </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Sputnik’s Guide to Life on Earth </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; 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vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Magician's Daughter </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>What an Owl Knows </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; 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text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>All About Me!</i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Trespass series: The Tiger Came to the Mountain </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; 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font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>A Tip for the Hangman </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The 1619 Project </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Wehr Wolf</i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Ogress and the Orphans </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Trayvon: Ten Years Later</i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Black Cake </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Come From Away: Welcome to the Rock: An Inside Look at the Hit Musical</i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Shadowy Horses </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Remember How I Love You: Love Letters From an Extraordinary Marriage </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The Dark Archive </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Less is Lost </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Remarkably Bright Creatures </i></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Upgrade </i></span></p></li></ol></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-92030596420246400172023-07-17T00:00:00.002-04:002023-07-17T00:00:00.153-04:00Summer Reading: What's Your Library Got to Do With It?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOC8-FzDvlbUrrQuuHNLHJwYkkl0i79aUZtZmL5x_BqnSJBYUhfabFIP9R0ukJqucc8piZCDh4ETOtbBkp1cseheiBUlQd0bUJe5NIMvRRPHbgT63DmA_INydy52h4v8b0w9rrEZFnU40Bang5B50nl7-XR6GOtx7l4CY0sL5EX4upsWRVxFcJ1VAmSjs/s640/norwalk%20library%20exterior.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="365" data-original-width="640" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOC8-FzDvlbUrrQuuHNLHJwYkkl0i79aUZtZmL5x_BqnSJBYUhfabFIP9R0ukJqucc8piZCDh4ETOtbBkp1cseheiBUlQd0bUJe5NIMvRRPHbgT63DmA_INydy52h4v8b0w9rrEZFnU40Bang5B50nl7-XR6GOtx7l4CY0sL5EX4upsWRVxFcJ1VAmSjs/w539-h309/norwalk%20library%20exterior.png" width="539" /></a></div><br />As a child, I couldn't wait for the Summer Reading Program to begin at the Norwalk Library. I was a voracious reader, and I unfurled my competitive flag with a crisp <i>snap</i>. Whatever came my way, I was going to win.<p></p><p>And Reader, that I did. I always read the most, answered every weekly quiz correctly, and practically camped out in the Children's Section. The carpeted circle ringed with full bookshelves was my oasis. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXB9B8D8FGhoD86p0jlu7tcnwVBwIBcL280zYiFA-OM_SWPieYfC1-6g4kdQX8ty6znhR0Zd6lT0ywk4SMx9mFM1c5DuiTn3gWUcxaUSA7CPglstAqf_lUNy3dPO-HeNeQmYOeeQxhUXxWihImWSK8vyPmictbsQpQWDYGngiXTWmvm-fsZpv_Rw5WMeU/s600/norwalk%20library%20children's%20circle.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="542" data-original-width="600" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXB9B8D8FGhoD86p0jlu7tcnwVBwIBcL280zYiFA-OM_SWPieYfC1-6g4kdQX8ty6znhR0Zd6lT0ywk4SMx9mFM1c5DuiTn3gWUcxaUSA7CPglstAqf_lUNy3dPO-HeNeQmYOeeQxhUXxWihImWSK8vyPmictbsQpQWDYGngiXTWmvm-fsZpv_Rw5WMeU/s320/norwalk%20library%20children's%20circle.png" width="320" /></a></div>My Librarians loved me, but they gently reigned me in. They explained why they left my name off the quiz winner list: others loved to see their names as much as I did. They redirected my energy by seeking my input on book displays, and I made a few of my own, propping up books or leaving them in the reading area. They found me new books to devour, escorting me from time to time over to the Adult Section.<p></p><p>I finally realized it was time to grow beyond the Children's Section — which meant <i>No More Summer Reading Program.</i> </p><p>Until I realized I could make one myself as an adult. </p><p>So I did.</p><p>For a few years, From One Book Lover provided an Adult Summer Reading Program from Memorial Day to the autumnal equinox. I published what others were reading, listed my own Summer Reading Books, critiqued my reads, and bought a book for whoever read the most. It was a blast. Much like my experience in the Children's Section, my participants were frequent fliers on my blog — I got them, and they got me.</p><p>Then the world changed, and between the pandemic and Life, I got a little lost. The program and my passion took a back seat to Other Things. I still read, but my program took a hiatus.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-koxbJ-uACcFG9hYrtlw7IhkvDpy8yk3T9ko2_SYtBcU9NCmZaLKT59AYBmWGhPWMSHxh_GTETWm7HYdUaiMr18SFYUh4VVz9Y0xTvhJqeCeFFOQh7iH4onrbwP-mZCu-vUw4FF1WmM1EePoikBQRKFuBDWIVO6mBZ0j17S1tT_gzkEfRG-OJz-xqyU/s670/fairfax%20library%20exterior.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="670" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-koxbJ-uACcFG9hYrtlw7IhkvDpy8yk3T9ko2_SYtBcU9NCmZaLKT59AYBmWGhPWMSHxh_GTETWm7HYdUaiMr18SFYUh4VVz9Y0xTvhJqeCeFFOQh7iH4onrbwP-mZCu-vUw4FF1WmM1EePoikBQRKFuBDWIVO6mBZ0j17S1tT_gzkEfRG-OJz-xqyU/s320/fairfax%20library%20exterior.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />Then, My Library did something spectacular: they expanded the Summer Reading Program to include Adult Readers. <p></p><p>I signed up right away and learned about Beanstack, which we use to list what we read and participate in activities. It's easy once you get the hang of it. (Full disclosure: Beanstack ate my review of <i>D: A Tale of Two Worlds</i> — twice! — so I proceed with caution on that front.) I racked up buttons and titles, buoyed by my community. In the end, we met in person to talk about books, hold a raffle, and eat cake. My Inner Child was delighted, and my Adult Self was home.</p><p>My Library didn't stop there: they added a winter reading program. (I aced that, too.) (Hey, I told you I was competitive.) The virtual program launches were heartwarming and exciting: I saw other readers and recognized a few names. I kept Overdrive and Libby hopping. I combed the shelves virtually and in person for new-to-me reads. I engaged fellow readers in and out of the program. And I was again able to see My Librarians.</p><p>I finished this year's program pretty quickly and received my goodies. (Thank you, program sponsors!) I will be at the program wrap-up party at My Library next month, and not just for the cake (though let's be honest, it's a worthy draw). I hope to see some familiar faces and get a few more book recommendations. </p><p>It's nice to have a community again and to be back in My Library. The post-pandemic hours are more limited, so I don't haunt My Library as much as I'd like, but I am getting back into my Library Groove, and it makes me happy.</p><p>If Your Library doesn't have a summer reading program, reach out to Your Librarians. If funding is an issue, engage your local government about their budget so they know you want them to prioritize Your Library. </p><p>If that doesn't work, start your own program with your besties and new friends. It doesn't have to be big, just engaging. In today's world, your community has no boundaries. <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i>Reach out to me and we'll talk books</i></a>. You are not alone.</p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-89803480437517290102022-07-05T00:00:00.009-04:002022-07-08T08:43:16.875-04:00Summer Reading: How's it Going?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjpl-ZElni4weihUPvWSlc4lSQg_jcyQLwG1ObJEwBetFmrc4dQq5TPE4A77NNjBde40tL7xrYZY00yQavrnUTWHJ2DBFl_lqy1MlKaEVIeR7RvG1JrJ-8urWe4G5H_xR8u7ALLjJB5skVp2SrIX1d82O918OwSIq9iEkBxHmUInIn6Ueiey86FzwI/s612/hello%20summer%20reading1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Hello Summer Time graphics people reading while sitting on books" border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="612" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjpl-ZElni4weihUPvWSlc4lSQg_jcyQLwG1ObJEwBetFmrc4dQq5TPE4A77NNjBde40tL7xrYZY00yQavrnUTWHJ2DBFl_lqy1MlKaEVIeR7RvG1JrJ-8urWe4G5H_xR8u7ALLjJB5skVp2SrIX1d82O918OwSIq9iEkBxHmUInIn6Ueiey86FzwI/w649-h306/hello%20summer%20reading1.jpeg" width="649" /></a></div><br />Everyone in the Book World has been heralding "summer reading" since March. Hopefully, you've taken up the torch (or, perhaps, <i>flashlight</i>) for the cause.<div><p></p><p>What are you reading?</p><p>Myself, I've been bouncing all over the place. I've read fiction and non-fiction, listened to audiobooks, uploaded books to my e-reader, lugged hardbacks and paperbacks to the park, on vacation, and my backyard.</p><p>Here are a few of my favorites:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKQw_cPGzJeXNozKelfyk5Nic0WZd9sXpXOVAIHf1uwJm20nHEqWGY74qULg_ARFKo5BFccd53cnBvxO3joLaySCyf-jvRB3MNSSm0H0TMZsjZ_CGEugHnoO4C59rhzk3296EXLVB0nOUBJj2L-tyZbJk65zaiYSqEC2vfmzVCX0q9tNE5bnxr7EK/s500/ghost%20fleet%20cover.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ghost Fleet book cover" border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvKQw_cPGzJeXNozKelfyk5Nic0WZd9sXpXOVAIHf1uwJm20nHEqWGY74qULg_ARFKo5BFccd53cnBvxO3joLaySCyf-jvRB3MNSSm0H0TMZsjZ_CGEugHnoO4C59rhzk3296EXLVB0nOUBJj2L-tyZbJk65zaiYSqEC2vfmzVCX0q9tNE5bnxr7EK/w133-h200/ghost%20fleet%20cover.jpeg" title="Ghost Fleet" width="133" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.ghostfleetbook.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ghost Fleet</a> </b>— What will World War III look like? This book supposes the event to take place at an unspecified time in the late 2000s. An archnemeses of the United States takes it upon themselves to restructure the world order, and we meet the key players on both sides. It read like a movie in my head. The characters were diverse and powerful, and the story riveting. Written in 2014 by military-technology experts, we got a glimpse of how it might go down. If you read the e-book, you can skip the embedded footnotes, which add nothing to the story but are an interesting read after the action is over. Thanks to My Library for hooking me up with this great book! <i>(P.S. Visit <a href="https://www.ghostfleetbook.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ghostfleetbook.com</a> on your laptop computer.)<br /></i><p></p><p><b><br /></b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8E4SUxd9cNlunHn2o2-YHhXzvyDAouqxnf1gPYO6MCeYDCVCO9kPk9ccDIsJFhzEX825QyaDGnN53o00XHla7L_4J0MZh84nMN3nJAOZWEc8xemfTCR_HBk8qbSw1fdgE9X1u_-keOv3U3-JXXJobTgnZsscrqbLyUVdnnhnLd6QmPCtj7Fb02pFI/s450/when%20women%20were%20dragons.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img alt="When Women Were Dragons book cover" border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="291" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8E4SUxd9cNlunHn2o2-YHhXzvyDAouqxnf1gPYO6MCeYDCVCO9kPk9ccDIsJFhzEX825QyaDGnN53o00XHla7L_4J0MZh84nMN3nJAOZWEc8xemfTCR_HBk8qbSw1fdgE9X1u_-keOv3U3-JXXJobTgnZsscrqbLyUVdnnhnLd6QmPCtj7Fb02pFI/w129-h200/when%20women%20were%20dragons.jpeg" width="129" /></b></a></div><b><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/695825/when-women-were-dragons-by-kelly-barnhill/9780385548229" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">When Women Were Dragons</a> </b>— This book surpassed all of the hype it's received thus far. In the hands of trusted YA author Kelly Barnhill in her first adult-fiction novel, the title is literal: women are turning into dragons, coming to a head in the U.S. during the Great Dragoning of 1955. The story is told from the perspective of Alex, a young girl whose family is affected, and Professor H.N. Ganz. The story alternates between first-person narrative and occasional excepts from federal committee hearing minutes on the phenomenon. It's an interesting look at America of the 1950s — yes, dragons aside, it really was like that — and an opportunity to speculate on our society now.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8pBlJn4oMlEsaQQTOw4ZFeeHikraMMQa65Nd_LnUhSJlYrC0kMvZ29zr1s7UkyYRZb-wJTMCFKdsz9YB5uhEyhbh3j29IA4jPytm-1cT3TAgXn_3emxgoIHA4g3J3HxTV9xfVOxNgifo8zjZSeM17JOo5jKos_KTUIw9hgJ504bXm7hyO-963DX0k/s450/love%20and%20saffron.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Love and Saffron book cover" border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="306" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8pBlJn4oMlEsaQQTOw4ZFeeHikraMMQa65Nd_LnUhSJlYrC0kMvZ29zr1s7UkyYRZb-wJTMCFKdsz9YB5uhEyhbh3j29IA4jPytm-1cT3TAgXn_3emxgoIHA4g3J3HxTV9xfVOxNgifo8zjZSeM17JOo5jKos_KTUIw9hgJ504bXm7hyO-963DX0k/w136-h200/love%20and%20saffron.jpeg" width="136" /></a></div><p></p><p><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/679108/love-and-saffron-by-kim-fay/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b>Love and Saffron</b></a> — If you read <i>84, Charing Cross Road</i>, you'll love this book. (If you haven't read <i>84, Charing Cross Road</i>, you really need to rectify that soon.) Joan writes a fan letter to a newspaper columnist she admires, Imogene, and includes a package of saffron and a recipe. The two exchange letters, share secrets, and connect in very real ways. I laughed, I cheered, and the final page made me sob good tears.<br /></p><p>Let me know in the comments what you're reading, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">send me a message</a>.</p><p>Happy reading!</p></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-81379509847959458662021-11-16T00:00:00.071-05:002021-12-05T19:55:48.695-05:00Summer Reading: How Time Flies!<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2mvM6mL3xY/YLPvpKeoZeI/AAAAAAACAL0/bQOt8iopHeA5IPOCDBvRlLu6s-UuxArDgCPcBGAYYCw/s470/Summer%2BReading%2Blogo%2B2021%2B470x280.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="470" height="191" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2mvM6mL3xY/YLPvpKeoZeI/AAAAAAACAL0/bQOt8iopHeA5IPOCDBvRlLu6s-UuxArDgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Summer%2BReading%2Blogo%2B2021%2B470x280.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Summer reading may have been over for a brief time — but time is fluid these days, and why not let your mind wander back to times of warmer weather (in the northern hemisphere) and longer days.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I read a few good books, a few meh books, and one or two that didn't do the trick for me.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Let's start with the ones I disliked so much I stopped reading them. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">People really like Glennon Doyle, but with <i><b>Untamed</b></i>, I skipped ahead to find something that didn't sound like heady new love and platitudes. I surrendered and stopped listening after about 70 percent.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><b>Stranded</b></i> should have been my jam, but I could not stand the thoughtless, selfish, and reckless central character Sophie. Sure, if I was in the same situation, I may fight against a new reality that shoots me back a century into a completely different society. However, I doubt I would willfully, blatantly, and thoughtlessly offend and jeopardize my protective host. I gave it a surprisingly long time to find its groove, and the elements were intriguing, but I just couldn't get past the main character.</span></li></ul><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zzR0q_v-mj8/YZHKr5BQRtI/AAAAAAACATs/p8Rwn-FI0mErCJb2aBVebj9kVBKZKtIrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/hail.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="265" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zzR0q_v-mj8/YZHKr5BQRtI/AAAAAAACATs/p8Rwn-FI0mErCJb2aBVebj9kVBKZKtIrQCLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/hail.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />If you had different experiences with these books, <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">let me know</a> — I am always up for a conversation about why and how a book works with a different reader. </span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Now, here are a few titles totally worth the time:</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Project Hail Mary</i></b> is as good as everyone said it was. I read in print and will listen to it soon because there are some dialog elements that must be heard.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vhepu_OrNJQ/YZHK5Q5-NrI/AAAAAAACATw/kwxb17Qz4NMKiyYNgzz3sJA5NHEAb3fQQCLcBGAsYHQ/s450/hooked.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="296" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vhepu_OrNJQ/YZHK5Q5-NrI/AAAAAAACATw/kwxb17Qz4NMKiyYNgzz3sJA5NHEAb3fQQCLcBGAsYHQ/w131-h200/hooked.jpeg" width="131" /></a></div><b><i>Hooked</i> </b>examines food addiction and the role of food manufacturers in our health, or the lack thereof. I read Michael Moss’ previous book about the processed food industry, and this title did not disappoint.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Firekeeper’s Daughter</i></b> was a stunning debut decades in the making about an Ojibwe woman’s experience with methamphetamines in her Indigenous community. I got lost on my run more than once listening to this amazing book.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLrleQkaa6M/YZHLEm-1zhI/AAAAAAACAT0/aTPUGatSukkNFlQl5blz7K-MB5iEUnKYACLcBGAsYHQ/s406/firekeeper.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="269" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLrleQkaa6M/YZHLEm-1zhI/AAAAAAACAT0/aTPUGatSukkNFlQl5blz7K-MB5iEUnKYACLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/firekeeper.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I read a great anthology, <b><i>Come On In:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> S</span></i></b></span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>tories about Immigration and Finding Home</i></b>, that featured contemporary stories examining current U.S. immigration for people all around the globe. <i>(Always have a short story anthology on hand for those times when a book is needed but a long-form book just won't do.)</i></span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">I found some very interesting graphic novels, and embraced my inner art lover. <b><i>Old Souls</i></b> has me rethinking the Afterlife</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, and <i><b>The Big She-Bang</b></i> was as empowering as it was eye-opening.</span></li></ul><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YIb3kmifNsc/YZHLS5y_l6I/AAAAAAACAT8/tnPYlqu7aUs-nTcFpGR48cbB6EWFPN9vACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/come.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1350" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YIb3kmifNsc/YZHLS5y_l6I/AAAAAAACAT8/tnPYlqu7aUs-nTcFpGR48cbB6EWFPN9vACLcBGAsYHQ/w132-h200/come.jpg" width="132" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I enjoyed two very different novels that are among my favorites of the year so far. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>The Once and Future Witches</i></b> offered a much different world with a chance at deep and lasting sisterhood; and <b><i>They Both Die at the End</i></b>, which was published a few years ago that found a second wind thanks to Booktok, made my little municipal heart curious about managing people's foreknowledge of death.</span></li></ul><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />I read a good number of books during my Summer Reading Season (from the Friday before Memorial Day and the Sunday following the autumnal equinox). Here is the complete list, with symbols indicating print books (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">📖)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, audiobooks (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">🎧)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, library loans (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">🤓)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, e-books (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">📲)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, youth books (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">👧)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">, and graphic novels (</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">🖼)</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l0QjjKsneX8/YVCVksnRuuI/AAAAAAACASQ/eFCUC-__oJQsSg0yg6JcKfJW3rAXNq4NwCPcBGAYYCw/s500/phone%2Bbooth.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="334" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l0QjjKsneX8/YVCVksnRuuI/AAAAAAACASQ/eFCUC-__oJQsSg0yg6JcKfJW3rAXNq4NwCPcBGAYYCw/w134-h200/phone%2Bbooth.jpg" width="134" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World 📖🎧🤓 <br /></span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is How You Lose the Time War 📖🎧🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">After the End of the World 📲</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Any Way the Wind Blows 📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Firekeeper’s Daughter 🎧🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bearded 📲🖼👧</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">This Land is My Land: A Graphic History of Big Dreams, Micronations, and Other Self-Made States 📖🖼🤓</span></li><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b2QAFTiIZS4/YZHLt21GkGI/AAAAAAACAUI/i5tu4xGLsEQTaPfVmAkzGxUJb-2zUzf2wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/once.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b2QAFTiIZS4/YZHLt21GkGI/AAAAAAACAUI/i5tu4xGLsEQTaPfVmAkzGxUJb-2zUzf2wCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h200/once.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Lions of Fifth Avenue 📲🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of us 📲🤓👧<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Texts from Jane Eyre 📲</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">While We Can’t Hug 📲👧</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Big She-Bang: The Herstory of the Universe According to God the Mother as told to Marisa Acocella 📖🖼🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">In the Heights: Finding Home 🎧📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Final Girl Support Group 📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Okay Witch and the Hungry Shadow 📲🖼🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The City of Ember: the graphic novel 📖🖼🤓<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U5238cH-iZA/YZHMRdCcFlI/AAAAAAACAUQ/S2vdwRd0pVgxF9DsCV6MK-i_RmzCp3_KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/final.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1356" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U5238cH-iZA/YZHMRdCcFlI/AAAAAAACAUQ/S2vdwRd0pVgxF9DsCV6MK-i_RmzCp3_KQCLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/final.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br /></span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Old Souls 📖 🖼🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Handmaid’s Tale graphic novel 📖🖼🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bloodlust & Bonnets 📖🖼🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">How to Sleep Soundly Tonight: 250 Simple and Natural Ways to Prevent Sleeplessness 📖 🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Come On In: Stories About Immigration and Finding Home 📲</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Once and Future Witches 🎧</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Tooth and Claw 📲📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">They Both Die at the End 📲</span></li><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9XoTZSO0NwM/YZHMoMp9b8I/AAAAAAACAUY/WgqYY_mcb3MuROTAyx3K21tyWKKOI535gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/tooth.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1310" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9XoTZSO0NwM/YZHMoMp9b8I/AAAAAAACAUY/WgqYY_mcb3MuROTAyx3K21tyWKKOI535gCLcBGAsYHQ/w128-h200/tooth.jpg" width="128" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Rivals 2! More Frenemies Who Changed the World 🎧<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Stranded (DNF 50%) 📲</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kaddish.com 📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Untamed (DNF) 🎧🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue 📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Hooked 🎧🤓</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Night Library 📖 👧</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">In the Heights: The Complete Book and Lyrics 📖</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Anne of Green Gables: A Graphic Novel 📖🖼🤓</span></li><li><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oMa06RdOVgw/YZHMxHynTpI/AAAAAAACAUc/c-3-5WWxHXcK9h1d246qG_0OzKmKERgJACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/early.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1385" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oMa06RdOVgw/YZHMxHynTpI/AAAAAAACAUc/c-3-5WWxHXcK9h1d246qG_0OzKmKERgJACLcBGAsYHQ/w135-h200/early.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"> A Good Marriage 📲</span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Project Hail Mary 📖<br /></span></li><li><span style="font-family: georgia;">Early Morning Riser <span class="s1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">🎧</span> </span></li></ol><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Why, yes, I read some books in multiple formats. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I use My Library as often as possible to curb my book-buying binges and let the government carry some of the financial burden of my obsession. Plus, their collection is much bigger than mine, and I always discover a new delight with every visit to the library or download from Overdrive or Libby.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mPpYaPFqdjY/YZHNOoYqhDI/AAAAAAACAUo/QXHIxtRWtRsdNRplwRHEa1cKmgxyzgapQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/after.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mPpYaPFqdjY/YZHNOoYqhDI/AAAAAAACAUo/QXHIxtRWtRsdNRplwRHEa1cKmgxyzgapQCLcBGAsYHQ/w133-h200/after.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i> (Full disclosure: I like listening with Libby and browsing/managing e-books with Overdrive.)<br /></i></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I did not list all of my favorites: <i>Early Morning Riser</i> was another home run by Katherine Heiny, <i>Kaddish.com</i> made me ponder honor and obligation, <i>After the End of the World</i> was a perfect addition to the Carter & Lovecraft series, and <i>Rivals 2!</i> was a delightful learning experience with stories and enemies across the ages.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I need to carefully plan the rest of the year's reading, so I can finish the tomes I am reading with friends and indulge in a few stories for my own enjoyment. I will keep you apprised of what I'm reading, and I hope you'll do the same.</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-86574538971946766062021-09-28T00:00:00.014-04:002023-07-16T12:28:28.939-04:00Review: The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World<p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 2px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l0QjjKsneX8/YVCVksnRuuI/AAAAAAACASM/ulPKWskJ-yor8BXVjMuY2drUNsPseS8PACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/phone%2Bbooth.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="334" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l0QjjKsneX8/YVCVksnRuuI/AAAAAAACASM/ulPKWskJ-yor8BXVjMuY2drUNsPseS8PACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/phone%2Bbooth.jpg" width="214" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I picked up <i><a href="https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/phone-booth-at-the-edge-of-the-world_9781419754302/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World</a></i> on a whim: the cover is exquisite, and the title intrigued me. I knew nothing beyond the blurb: the phone booth was real, and the author’s name did not appear to be traditional Japanese. <br /></span><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In fact, the Italian novelist, Laura Imai Messina, was born and raised in Rome. The book was written in Italian and translated into English. Messina earned advanced college degrees at Japanese universities and has lived in Japan for 15 years. Her husband is Japanese, and they have two children. Messina’s middle name translates from Japanese to “new residence” or “new well.” She does not appear to be native Japanese, but I trusted her to tell the story. I am glad I did.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is such an understated, gorgeously written book, I am at a loss as to where to start. It is filled not just with loss — people travel to Bell Gardia to connect with lost loved ones — but with love, hope, surprises, and acceptance. Grief is a personal journey, and in our own grief we often seal ourselves away from others. Bell Gardia gives people a safe, private place to mourn, and to discover they are not alone. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yui lost her mother and daughter in the 2011 Japanese tsunami, and divides her life in “before” and “after.” Her once-dyed black hair marks the passage of time, as the blonde grows out and is gradually cut away. Her isolation is self-imposed. She doesn’t speak about her loss: not because she doesn’t feel it keenly every day, but because she sees how it changes people who learn about it. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Tokyo radio show host learns about the “wind phone” through a caller to her show. When she sets out to find the wind phone, she arrives at the town without a specific address, expecting visible directions. Instead, she sees a man walking around the windswept village with a map and instinctively knows he also seeks the phone. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Takeshi is the first of the wonderful characters Yui encounters in this book. Each character is lovingly drawn, and often tells their own story — or details are revealed by Bell Gardia’s owner and guardian, Suzuki-san, who often shares tea with his visitors. Everyone’s loss is different, and each character responds to that loss differently. The author weaves a ribbon through the stories that, from time to time, take us beyond the story’s “now,” and those teasers of the future are as lovingly told as the current-day narrative.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The chapters alternate between narrative and… more: a drawing, a list, or a character’s intimate thoughts and observations. I both listened and read the printed copy, and I liked hearing the proper pronunciation of Japanese words. The “more” chapters were easy to understand on audio, even when they were pictures or visual elements.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">As I read this book, I wondered if I chose wrongly, if this book was too much for now — but realized I couldn’t answer that for anyone else. If anything, this book showed me that everyone has their own path. Myself, it took me six months to start reading the book after I purchased it, and I am glad I read it. There were surprises, revelations, and unanticipated story arcs and character development. I enjoyed <i>The Phone Booth at the Edge of the World</i>, and felt safe and warmly embraced as I read.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">If you didn’t read it, what about the book put you off? If you did read it, did you finish it? What kept you reading, or where did you stop? Comment below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">let me know</a>!</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-37268145212997773642021-08-08T00:00:00.013-04:002022-04-03T12:36:12.188-04:00Review: the Invisible Life of Addie LaRue<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Vhwyq0G1pk/YNDnlvNaVYI/AAAAAAACANA/BMEl5lk_yRMzFu0JZvxLtt55BcWz5MRhwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/addie%2Blarue.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1357" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Vhwyq0G1pk/YNDnlvNaVYI/AAAAAAACANA/BMEl5lk_yRMzFu0JZvxLtt55BcWz5MRhwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/addie%2Blarue.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Full confession: I was intrigued by V.E. Schwab's novel </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue</i><span style="font-family: georgia;"> — both because of </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">its premise and because of the rave reviews by other readers. When a fellow reader said they sobbed loudly at the neighborhood Starbucks as they finished the novel, and another said they wished they could read it again for the first time, I thought it was right up my alley.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I saved </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue</i><span style="font-family: georgia;"> to read on vacation, so I could savor the experience (and sob into my coffee, if needed). </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Alas, there was no sobbing — just a bit of head-scratching. </span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Warning: spoilers ahead. </i></b>Feel free to bookmark this review for future reading, if you want to finish the book first.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Okay....</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">If you're still here....</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Let's get to it.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">First of all: the relationship between Addie and Luc confused me. Luc was the enemy. A sexy enemy, sure, but an enemy nonetheless. He wanted to see Adeline break, but... his actions toward her signaled more than a dark god's fancy in a soul owed him. Addie also gave off mixed messages: she hated him, yet they were lovers. She accepted gifts and assistance from him, but pushed him away when it suited her. She obsessively gauged his mood by the shade of his green eyes. (I lost track of what each shade meant, no matter how much foreshadowing Schwab tied to it.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The intriguing premise grew dull. Addie dabbled in the world she was so hungry for in her youth. She was in France to see Voltaire, and cross-dressed to experience real life. She was in Germany when Archduke Ferdinand's assassination launched the Great War. She sold her body when she had to, and loaned it out other times for a safe place to sleep. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Her occasional trips back to her hometown felt cliché and provided unnecessary reminders that everything is forgotten in time. Somehow, she knew enough piano to write part of a song for a pop artist.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">But she can influence artists intrigued by her seven perfect star-freckles. She met Voltaire, sort of. She watched Beethoven pay up to Luc.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Some parts worked. The art theme that tied up satisfactorily at the end, with the help of Bea, was nice — but I can't quite understand how she alone saw connections and the resolution of Henry's story. Other parts were more problematic: the writing was choppy and inconsistent, Schwab's characters were surprisingly forgettable — even the ones who were supposed to matter. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I never felt a sense of <i>place</i> in the story, and I found myself </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">checking chapter titles to see where (and when) we were supposed to be. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">The lone exceptions were her trips to Vallons, and the sole reason for those seemed to be to hammer home the point that everyone disappears over time. </span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div>In the end, I was underwhelmed, and I donated it to my local Little Free Library. Perhaps there is a reader out there who needs it, and will feel Schwab's tale, more so than I did. I hope that is the case.</div><div><br /></div><div>Did you love the book? What did I miss? Tell me; I truly would love to know.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-56293123777636894292021-06-01T00:00:00.016-04:002021-06-01T00:00:00.263-04:00Summer Reading 2021: Freedom to Read, and My First Summer Read<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2mvM6mL3xY/YLPvpKeoZeI/AAAAAAACALw/g3fWLhpYIosprEOxQ9OBCgYeazVae5KIACLcBGAsYHQ/s470/Summer%2BReading%2Blogo%2B2021%2B470x280.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2mvM6mL3xY/YLPvpKeoZeI/AAAAAAACALw/g3fWLhpYIosprEOxQ9OBCgYeazVae5KIACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Summer%2BReading%2Blogo%2B2021%2B470x280.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This summer, celebrate your freedom — to read!</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Not to dwell, but it's been tough lately: there has been a lot we couldn't safely do, and places we couldn't safely go. However, the summer holds promise: of health, of travel, of long days doing what makes us happiest, with the people who mean the most to us.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Personally, I have missed My Library People. I have felt a distinct, gnawing loss from limited library access. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Many of My Library workers and volunteers are good friends — and I haven't seen them in a year and a half. I miss them. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thankfully, My Library is returning to regular hours and services soon, and I can breathe a (hesitant) sigh of relief. Let's do all we can to help vaccination rates soar while infection rates plummet. </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">If you haven't yet receive your COVID-19 vaccination, please check with your local or state health department for information on your options. If you need help, please <b><a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">contact me and I'll help you</a></b> navigate your way to JMoPfize Land. Seriously.</i></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I also can help you find your next good read.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">However, don't stress about it. Any book that sounds good is your next good read.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b><i>What To Read Next: WHAT YOU WANT</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uBmziiok8CQ/YLWTe1Y40KI/AAAAAAACAL8/wPX0DwNYu3Ehct3Rg8hOdhUe6C6oqzm7gCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/addie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uBmziiok8CQ/YLWTe1Y40KI/AAAAAAACAL8/wPX0DwNYu3Ehct3Rg8hOdhUe6C6oqzm7gCLcBGAsYHQ/w213-h320/addie.jpg" width="213" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">My Reading Buddy Carole recently suggested a startling option: <i>read whatever you want</i>. Skip the book club book, the Christmas gift, the impulse purchase(s) stacked on your nightstand. Whatever book makes your heart sing, read that.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I am in two — no, three book clubs, and at least three Reading Partnerships. Much of my reading is prescribed by someone else. I don't mind because I easily entrench myself in a Reading Rut, so these partnerships help me diversify.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">However, this diversification has kept me from my Personal TBR. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">So here is my summer reading goal: read only what I want. I won't be<i> should'ed</i> into a book all summer. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I already have my first summer read chosen: <i>The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue</i>. This novel has been compared to <i>Life After Life</i> and <i>The Time Traveler's Wife</i>, both of which I enjoyed (and one I continue to press into other readers' hands).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b><i>How to Find Your Next Read</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Choosing should be pretty easy: just pick up a book. Chances are, there's at least one book laying around your house you haven't yet read. Crack the spine and start reading. No muss, no fuss. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">No books cluttering, er, laying around your home? You can shop at a bookstore, or "shop" at your library or Little Free Library.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Library — </b></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Most libraries have their catalogs online, and you can see what they have in which format. Your e-reader also can connect directly to Your Library, or whip out your computing device. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>(Pro tip: if the catalog states a book appears available at your branch, call Your Library's circulation desk and request a shelf check. Your Librarian will pull the material from the shelf and reserve it for you right then and there.)</i></span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Digital:</b> Most libraries offer access to e-book and audiobook (and more!) via Overdrive, Libby, and RBDigital. Check the app store on your e-reader, smartphone, or tablet — then download the app and sign in with your library card. Got questions? Call your library.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><b>In-Person:</b> Wandering the stacks or perusing the displays are two great ways to find a book. Even better: ask a librarian. </span>My Librarian Anuja introduced me to <i>A Quiver Full of Arrows</i>, a quirky short-story collection I continue to think about, a year later.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Hybrid:</b> Check the library catalog online, then reserve a book or ask for a "shelf check" for a book at your branch<i> (see the "pro tip," above)</i>. You may also be able to request curbside pickup of your book. You don't have to "people" yet.</span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Bookstore — </b></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Spend time in your local bookshop. Booksellers are dying to recommend a book. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">If you meet the eye of a fellow book-shopper, you may get a recommendation as well; personally, I can't resist commenting if a fellow shopper had a good book in their hand. Or go online and order the book to be delivered to the bookstore. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>(Pro tip: Currently, Barnes & Noble will sell you a book at the online price, even if it's in stock at your bookstore, if you order it online and pick it up in the store.)</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Previously loved books from used bookstores, thrift stores, or other resources are also an option. Chances are, you'll find a great read for only a buck or three.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Friends</b> — You are not alone. Every reader wonders what they will read. You have bookish friends you don't even know who are ready to help you choose, <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">including me</a>. They may even have a copy of that book you can borrow. (Or a spare copy of their favorite book.) <i>(Full confession: I always keep one extra copy of Good Omens on my shelf for that very reason.)</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">So, what are you waiting for? Summer reading has begun! Go grab a book and go for it! </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>(<a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Drop me a note to tell me what you're reading</a>, or leave a note in the comments section. I'd love to know what you're reading!)</i></span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0Fairfax, VA, USA38.846223599999988 -77.3063732999999911.895268645703112 -112.462625982209 65.797178554296863 -42.150120617790975tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-79239677836641493822021-04-20T00:00:00.022-04:002021-04-20T00:00:00.218-04:00Review: Anxious People<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://fredrikbackmanbooks.com/books/fredrik-backman-anxious-people.html" rel="nofollow" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="316" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9hGJvjr7o3g/YHj5a0CXhsI/AAAAAAAB_9w/Co4IQOuS9vILNTx2CXpz49VdMTW17CHQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/anxious.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I will be honest: <i>Anxious People</i> made me anxious at first. I had to take a break for a while because I couldn't get past the tragedy and sadness that started the book. I wanted to trust <a href="https://fredrikbackmanbooks.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Frederik Backman</a>, so I took a few weeks off, read a few other things, then went back to this book.</span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I am so glad I did.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Gender is fluid in this book. Some characters don't get pronouns, which I thought was a hackneyed parlor trick — but realized it was an important clue that was reinforced later in the story. Plus, the author bounced around with gender expectations: at first, I assumed a cheating spouse was a lesbian because it made as much sense as any other gender association. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">So many pairs of people at the open house! Traditional, non-traditional, current, past, future. And so many stages of life. What an amazing microcosm.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">So many surprises! I truly had no idea what was happening much of the time. The structure of <i><a href="https://fredrikbackmanbooks.com/books/fredrik-backman-anxious-people.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Anxious People</a></i> was unique, blending the past interviews with the current status and the even more previous actions, and an occasional glimpse into the future. This blending of time was important because grief is smeared across time. When tragedy happens, it's never truly in the past; you carry it with you into the present and project it into the future. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The humor and compassion of these disparate people crammed into an apartment that looked out at a bridge that meant so much to them for different reasons was pure Backman. His characters are the best and worst, the weirdest and the most redeemed, the most wounded and misunderstood, and the most unlovable and the most in need of love. </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">How many of us have been at the end of our proverbial rope? How many of us have made the absolutely worst decisions that managed to just keep getting worse? How many of us were given the gift of being seen, and aided? Which officer would we have been: Jim or Jack? And, a question you never have to answer out loud: which would you <i>want</i> to be?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I started thinking about the people I know who have committed suicide. Some were familiar to me, some were close to me, and each ended with a degree of tragedy that leaves me breathless. "It may not be getting better now, but it can't get better if you aren't here." Would we believe that sentence if we were too dark to see it?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The character who remained very much a mystery to me was Zara. A fellow reader said she gleaned so much more from her re-read, which makes me think of all of the magic I very well may have left on the page.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I feared that <i><a href="https://fredrikbackmanbooks.com/books/fredrik-backman-a-man-called-ove.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">A Man Called Ove</a></i> was a one-off, and I couldn't bear to read a Backman book that wasn't good. Now I'm brave enough to read more by this author because he is just that good.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> This was a great read, and I liked thinking about it. I'll be thinking about it for quite a while.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Which makes me think… What stuck with me the most with this book was the small fractures that occurred in characters' lives that made them appear very real, surprisingly compassionate, and beautifully flawed.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">How about you?</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-26270316643573002332021-03-02T00:00:00.026-05:002021-05-31T22:31:19.372-04:00 The Life of a Little Free Library in the Wild<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ARQ4K7TvG4/YCApdoKAL1I/AAAAAAAB_6I/oRrKDzg3PZQi5JszDAUgBV-G5Mc64hXyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s531/LFL%2Bhorizontal.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="95" data-original-width="531" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2ARQ4K7TvG4/YCApdoKAL1I/AAAAAAAB_6I/oRrKDzg3PZQi5JszDAUgBV-G5Mc64hXyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s16000/LFL%2Bhorizontal.png" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><span><br />A Little Free Library is a wonderful community hub, especially these days when the pandemic restricts contact and movement. My neighborhood includes three different communities, and each has its own Little Free Library. Each Library has its own content, but they all face one similar problem: an overabundance of donations.</span></span><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SPupyDjToxM/YCApl6mDfOI/AAAAAAAB_6Q/KbY2SlWUbpUd-8vY91HpNqj3rJQwNYpYgCLcBGAsYHQ/s165/LFL%2Bbutton.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="165" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SPupyDjToxM/YCApl6mDfOI/AAAAAAAB_6Q/KbY2SlWUbpUd-8vY91HpNqj3rJQwNYpYgCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/LFL%2Bbutton.jpg" /></a></div>One library, located near the city playground, offers children's books. The off-white double-door library is placed between two benches under large trees, surrounded by birdsong and the hum of passing traffic. Wide and squat, both shelves feature picture books and young reader chapter books. There are a couple of books for older readers nestled on the top shelf. </span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The newest, and smallest, library is adjacent to one community's private park. The tall, narrow library can hold about a dozen books behind its strong, dark red door, and usually features a mix of adult and young adult reads. One large, heavy tome dominates the right lower shelf, but the rest typically is a mix of paperbacks and hardbacks.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ePij8aLHBn8/YCAuG0QVIOI/AAAAAAAB_7E/nx-0HGrXMeEMADfYXoLR7U13Ce1qwoEuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s250/LFL%2Bstamp.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="250" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ePij8aLHBn8/YCAuG0QVIOI/AAAAAAAB_7E/nx-0HGrXMeEMADfYXoLR7U13Ce1qwoEuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/LFL%2Bstamp.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The oldest library in the neighborhood, situated outside the local pool, is the largest of the three, and can fit literally dozens of books behind its bright blue doors.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I have contributed quite a few books to the libraries — bestsellers, popular fiction, and children's books. When the library is full, however, I take my donations back home for another day.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Not everyone does that, however, and that's the problem. The mess in these little libraries has become quite spectacular.<br /></span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I pass by the poolside library during my daily walk. I am not "the librarian," but I manage the books just enough to keep it easy to peruse, easy to access, and easy to restock. I straighten the books so the spines are visible, stack the more delicate books together protectively, and transport the disintegrating books with ripped covers (and worse) to my home for rehab and re-release.</span></div><div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uyzEtTWVOJQ/YCAqDhY6foI/AAAAAAAB_6k/SDvsfAqA43g8_l-a4CdcYo9D-kkApHwOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s730/freelibrary.cute_.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="730" height="253" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uyzEtTWVOJQ/YCAqDhY6foI/AAAAAAAB_6k/SDvsfAqA43g8_l-a4CdcYo9D-kkApHwOQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h253/freelibrary.cute_.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>During the pandemic, I've seen a shift in community donation habits: the little libraries</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> have become </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">dumping grounds for tattered, ancient, and/or oversized books (the types of which I see in used bookstores "free" bins). Donors shove books onto the shelves no matter how full the library already is.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Not only do I find this chaos an unwelcome sight, it also dissuades me from perusing the library. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Lately, this overcrowding has become chronic. Although my first response is to straighten and cull, I have begun leaving the library alone for a week or so, to allow other users the opportunity to organize the books as they wish. In the past, the issue has resolved itself, so to speak, especially during heavy-use periods.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">If the library remains in chaos, </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">I wade in, rearranging books for maximum spine exposure, then carry home the "extras." Most recently, I carried home two armfuls of books that didn't fit, struggling under the weight of heavy textbooks (statistics and urban planning, anyone?), cookbooks from decades gone by, "spirituality" books, and a copy of </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">The Book of Mormon</i><span style="font-family: georgia;">. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1MilmQmQvhM/YCAqx2vgqyI/AAAAAAAB_64/KaezxNAKM04YlsKUDJwbLmubCMPcLtpdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1888/2Maier-LittleFreeLibraries-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1888" data-original-width="1569" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1MilmQmQvhM/YCAqx2vgqyI/AAAAAAAB_64/KaezxNAKM04YlsKUDJwbLmubCMPcLtpdgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/2Maier-LittleFreeLibraries-1.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">My husband eyed the stack, then commented, "You know, if they're gone, it could look like people love those books, and encourage more of the same."</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>He was right. The next day, face-out and propped up against the neatly stacked toms and visible spines was another copy of <i>The Book of Mormon</i>. (Apparently, someone was on a mission.) </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Within days, the library was again crammed with similar donations — plus handfuls of loose sheet music and crumpled magazines. Then, the day before a well-forecasted ice storm, came </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">an open box of books slipped under the library. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The other two libraries also are stuffed to the gills.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">With this chaos on display, I'm not inclined to use any of libraries. My desire to peruse for possible good reads is deterred by the fear of the calamity that will ensue when I open the doors. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Book lovers know the difference between "donation" and "castoff." Even current donors with the most generous assessments should be able to make that judgment. I hope post-pandemic donations will reset to what we used to find in our Little Free Libraries. The future of the libraries, after all, is in the hands of the users.</span></p></div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-90819116440168856282021-01-26T00:00:00.005-05:002021-01-26T08:27:35.736-05:00Review: The Midnight Library<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EOW2lEHwFw/X_Ulm9N5ZlI/AAAAAAAB_30/yWTqzRzCwWEfDn4gj4IgNFZ0EyP3LctRACPcBGAYYCw/s499/midnight.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="331" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EOW2lEHwFw/X_Ulm9N5ZlI/AAAAAAAB_30/yWTqzRzCwWEfDn4gj4IgNFZ0EyP3LctRACPcBGAYYCw/w265-h400/midnight.jpg" width="265" /></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><span style="font-size: large;">If</span> you had a chance to "fix" your life by changing decisions you made, would you? <a href="http://www.matthaig.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Matt Haig</a> gives Nora Seed that chance — a happy life and redemption for perceived past mistakes — in <i><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/575653/the-midnight-library-by-matt-haig/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Midnight Library</a></i>, and the outcome will change the way you see your own life.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">More importantly, Haig understands depression, and demonstrates that to his readers on every page. As humans navigate through the real-life terror of a raging global pandemic — and, in America, an unprecedented threat to the foundation of our once-lauded government — we face uncertainty and fear. That, and the unknown future, have stressed every aspect of society. Many are struggling, and are facing mental challenges and mental illness. Haig personifies such challenges with respect and empathy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">While no one has a flawless life absent of regret, Nora's life is — well, a complete mess. She has opportunities in her life to excel, learn, take adventures, connect with other people, but she turns away from them all, living a life with regrets stacked too high to see around.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">One day it all comes to a head: one too many failures, disconnects, and reminders of all of her bad decisions that led her to being alone, broke, and abandoned by friends and family. At this breaking point, she encounters the Midnight Library and an unexpected guide.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Midnight Library is <i>between</i>, perched on the cusp of <i>what if</i>. There, she has an opportunity to explore the path not taken, the different lives that she thinks would give her the joy and peace she so desperately wants. Where would she be today?What would she be today? Can her life be saved, fixed, made livable? And how does she choose the right life? She faces infinite choices in the Midnight Library — but not infinite time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Wishes are dangerous things, as every fairy tale horror story has shown. Readers follow her as she tries on lives she discarded along the way. We feel her surprise, shock, discomfort, and longing, relief, and sadness.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The characters are richly drawn, especially Nora. As the book unfolds, so do her supporting cast of characters, all with a specific role and lesson to be learned — if only she would learn it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I have read numerous other books by this author, and enjoyed them all in very different ways. Let me be clear: I don't always like his stories and how they unspool — but I am glad Haig has written them, and I'm glad to have read them. His storytelling is heavy on character development, which I enjoy, and he is precise and honest. (If you haven't read <i><a href="http://www.matthaig.com/books/thehumans/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Humans</a></i>, put it on your TBR pile immediately.) </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I came to the book with little information, so for me the details were new and fresh; I enjoyed the surprises that afforded me. I recommend the same for anyone who wants to experience Nora's situation alongside her, learning as she goes. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">It was a difficult, but enjoyable read, and I applaud this latest novel by an author I enjoy and trust. If you've read this, let me know what you think: leave a comment or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">contact me</a>!</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-65231865806822800662021-01-07T00:00:00.007-05:002021-01-07T00:00:00.173-05:00Review: The Unteachables<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RzQlvqszvEY/X_SQxVztJcI/AAAAAAAB_20/tFBSsINGe3k2kncxZy_ow7YLXL8fc6mNgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/unteachables%2Bcover.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1356" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RzQlvqszvEY/X_SQxVztJcI/AAAAAAAB_20/tFBSsINGe3k2kncxZy_ow7YLXL8fc6mNgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/unteachables%2Bcover.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I read pretty much all genres, all age levels — but I am discerning. Like the child I once was, who would have picked up this book in a heartbeat, I read what I consider quality writing and illustrations.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">So I know what I like — and I truly enjoyed <a href="https://gordonkorman.com/from-the-unteachables" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Gordon Korman</a>'s <i><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-unteachables-gordon-korman?variant=32127312756770" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Unteachables</a>. </i>It is a delightful and worthy read, even for those close(r) to (early) retirement. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Zachary Kermit can see early retirement from his desk at Greenwich Middle School. While his classroom changes every year, his goal does not. Early retirement has been his goal for decades, as he was moved from classroom to classroom, subject to subject, after a crushing disappointment in his early years of teaching.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">And what a teacher he was! Fierce, engaging, supportive, and driven. Nothing like the silent, coffee-swilling shell of an educator sitting at the front of the class in Room 117. School Superintendent Dr. Thaddeus, worried about budgets, sees Mr. Kermit's family's longevity and cringes: the school district could be in for 50+ years of payments to a man he loathes. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Solution: SCS-8, also known as The Unteachables, a motley crew of underachieving students who don't have a place in any other classroom. The school has given up on them, and they on themselves. They are the answer to Dr. Thaddeus' prayers. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">One last mess-up, and the superintendent can fire Mr. Kermit.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">But as with everything involving The Unteachables, nothing is easy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The charm of this book is in the characters, each of whom is vivid and engaging on the page. Everyone has a role in the story, and a chapter in the book, and readers grow to understand them and cheer for them. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Characters include, but are not limited to: a boy who can drive a truck but sees the world in jumbled letters. The daughter of an actor on the cusp of stardom staying with her father and stepmother — and their new baby — for a few weeks, until filming is done. A redheaded fireball and a giant, quiet fear-inducing sequoia of a girl. A jock who skated along on his athleticism until an injury knocked him off the field. An artist who sleeps through class. And Mr. Kermit, who cannot get past the disastrous turn his life took decades ago that cost him his self-respect, his love, and his career.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Even the peripheral characters — Gram, Chauncey, Principal Vargas — are fully formed and have pivotal roles in the story.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The dialogue is sharp and interesting, and readers can picture everyone as they move around the classroom, the school, and even the town of Greenwich.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I found myself reading way past my bedtime, <i>just one more chapter</i>, and enjoying every page (even if I squirmed with discomfort for educators and students alike). I am anxious to share the book with the rest of my family. And friends. And strangers. I may have to purchase copies for local Little Free Libraries.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">This book is perfect for all ages, for all reading levels. I strongly recommend this book for all readers who want a book with suspense, humor, and a lot of fun. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Then you'll start looking for other books by <a href="https://gordonkorman.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Korman</a>, as I have. Haunt your library, peruse bookstores, just find this book, read it, and share it — and see what else this author has in store for you.</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-30543849029921567672021-01-05T00:00:00.026-05:002021-01-18T10:25:38.286-05:00My 12 Favorite — and Two Least Favorite — Books of 2020<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jaBRfsZx9k/X-Jmd-0aqgI/AAAAAAAB_1s/RGCyKw1eERwi_U4b6nrg_PsldKGrcf6jgCPcBGAYYCw/s2048/Open%2BBook%2B2020.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1498" data-original-width="2048" height="146" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jaBRfsZx9k/X-Jmd-0aqgI/AAAAAAAB_1s/RGCyKw1eERwi_U4b6nrg_PsldKGrcf6jgCPcBGAYYCw/w200-h146/Open%2BBook%2B2020.png" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />In the Reading Year 2020, I read nearly every genre in every medium. I read all over the calendar, today's newest fiction and books from days gone by; I'm never sure what will truly captivate me on the page. I read text in print and ebooks, and I listen to books on my daily run. (I am an equal opportunity consumer.)</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">2020 was not a typical year of reading for me, at least at first. The pandemic coupled with short staffing at work made reading difficult — but never impossible. I need to read as much as I need air and sunshine (but not nearly as much as I need sleep, apparently). Halfway through the year, I recaptured my reading momentum, and I didn't look back.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zQnBRCM9GQ/X_TOboeSrMI/AAAAAAAB_3A/CFbxK8oPrRIVl23lDrf5zuEq4buJrOMzwCLcBGAsYHQ/s475/drowning.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="308" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zQnBRCM9GQ/X_TOboeSrMI/AAAAAAAB_3A/CFbxK8oPrRIVl23lDrf5zuEq4buJrOMzwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/drowning.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />I read 95 books in just about every genre. Some of the books were modest in length — some were graphic novels, and a few were picture books — but the biography of Queen Elizabeth topped the scale at 721 pages, so I was no slacker. According to Goodreads, I averaged 245 pages per book. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I had a very rewarding reading year, with few duds in the lineup. It was a challenge to winnow down the "favorites," considering every time I saw another title, I thought, "Oh, and I loved that one because who doesn't love ravens?" or "Shakespeare as a spy!" or "Maybe I do need to talk to someone..." So here are some of</span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> my favorites, in no particular order:</span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>In the Drowning Deep</i></b> and <b><i>Rolling in the Deep</i></b> — I have three words for you: <i>apex predator mermaids</i>. Or <i>sirens</i>. Whatever. Still: apex predators.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires</i></b> — This book is a love letter to the neighborhood moms of Grady Hendrix's youth. That they also have to rid the neighborhood of vampires — well, all in a day's work for the 80's SAHM. It was nothing like I expected: it was much better, and I'm looking forward to more by this author. </span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CIdxZB5GM28/X_TPJpWmnFI/AAAAAAAB_3I/V79_kt7NHWYWiNot2QwwDaq765cliZfZACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/stationery.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1336" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CIdxZB5GM28/X_TPJpWmnFI/AAAAAAAB_3I/V79_kt7NHWYWiNot2QwwDaq765cliZfZACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/stationery.jpg" /></a></div>The Stationery Shop</i></b> — Travel to Iran for one of the most exquisite heartbreaks in modern literature. A young woman and a young man fall in love on the cusp of the Iranian Revolution, but their love and lives do not go as planned. I had picked up the book after hearing a review on National Public Radio, but it sat unread for months until <a href="https://fallforthebook.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Fall for the Book</a> hosted a conversation with Marjan Kamali. I now own the book in print, on Kindle, and audio, and plan to re-read it again soon. </span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><b>There, Ther</b></i><b><i>e</i></b> — Many people are on their own paths to the upcoming powwow, revealing their own histories and arriving at unexpected destinies. Different characters tell their stories in each chapter, which is gorgeously read on audio. I knew little about Oakland and its Native American population, and Tommy Orange's characters and story were unforgettable.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Eleanor & Park</i></b> — Such a difficult book to read because the characters feel so real in harrowing situations, but such a rewarding read in the end. Eleanor is new in town, and Park sits alone on the school bus — two very different people who learn to trust, and grow up, under circumstances no teenagers should have to face. So many parts made me cringe and gasp, and it took all of my restraint to not skip ahead to make sure everything would be "okay." (I would not always find that comfort.) It was my first Rainbow Rowell book, but not my last.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2020/09/book-review-then-she-was-gone.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2020/09/book-review-then-she-was-gone.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GGmZSZIlKZE/X_TPhNEaoSI/AAAAAAAB_3U/-81kDz3YxUUhwXBJlpzKP5-V_b96v1QGACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/neverworld.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1354" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GGmZSZIlKZE/X_TPhNEaoSI/AAAAAAAB_3U/-81kDz3YxUUhwXBJlpzKP5-V_b96v1QGACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/neverworld.jpg" /></a></div>Then She Was Gone</i></b> — I knew where this was going, but I was completely surprised by how it got there and what happened once we arrived.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Hamilton, The Revolution</i></b> — I laughed, I cried, I fell in love with George Washington all over again. The intricacies of how the musical came into being was fascinating, revealing, delightful, and riveting. I listened to the book and read it in print to enjoy the handwritten notes included in the tome. </span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Neverworld Wake</i></b> — What an intriguing premise: a group of young adult friends are trapped between the worlds of life and death until they decide which one of their party will survive a terrible accident. They can — and do — go anywhere to be with anyone alive on that day. But there is no escaping your life (or death).</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>The Huntress</i></b> — This powerful complex story includes some of the most unexpected characters, and moments of heart-stopping shock and terror. Plus, you get to meet the Night Witches. (And if you have no idea what that last sentence is about, stop reading this entry and start reading this novel <i>right now</i>.)</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5yZtFI1zPns/X_TPp7PoqDI/AAAAAAAB_3Y/FDsLDKQ9siU61DQ93564GWY9SHK83gbNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/huntress.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1377" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5yZtFI1zPns/X_TPp7PoqDI/AAAAAAAB_3Y/FDsLDKQ9siU61DQ93564GWY9SHK83gbNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/huntress.jpg" /></a></div>Unsheltered</i></b> — Barbara Kingsolver's unsettling book examines how values evolve with each generation and captures the uncertainty of the future in a family whose members did everything "right" and still fell short of their goals — and watched their plans and dreams evaporate just out of their reach.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Just Mercy</i></b> — Justice is not blind. Bryan Stevenson can tell you all about it, and does, in this amazing book. I did not see the movie. I admire the book too greatly to see it on the big screen — and honestly, the book read better than any movie could possibly depict. I recommend you listen to the author read his book.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>The Big Book of the Dead</i></b> — Marion Winik memorialized friends, family, and others important in her in "books of the dead," two volumes named after the Maryland neighborhoods in which she lived when she wrote them. Those two books are combined here in a single volume that reminds us how interesting, important, and unforgettable people in our lives are. </span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eHAaanYgyrI/X_UlTHksu-I/AAAAAAAB_3o/3NtH5kDa7K8YB4QfDQbqmCvz_AcW2t9ZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/starless.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1347" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eHAaanYgyrI/X_UlTHksu-I/AAAAAAAB_3o/3NtH5kDa7K8YB4QfDQbqmCvz_AcW2t9ZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/starless.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />My least favorite book was <b><i>The Starless Sea</i></b>. I adored<i> The Night Circus</i>, and I couldn't wait to see what the author came up with next. I didn't expect a mess of a story that I had to re-start three times before I realized there was no good way to wade into chaos. The author seemed to be deep into gaming, and the book must have followed a gaming pattern. It's the only excuse for such a disconnected, bloated, confusing story with characters I couldn't care less about if I tried. I read it in every media I could in case I missed something. (I didn't.)</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Also in the "blech" pile was <b><i>Perfect Little Children</i></b>. I do not enjoy the trope of a broken-down, drunk British housewife who pretends to have a stressful career and is completely unreliable in every part of her life, especially regarding her Friend Who Is In Trouble. Some find that suspenseful, but I find it tedious — which surprises me because I love me some champagne-swilling rich Brits. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here is a complete list of the books I read this year. The icons indicate print (<span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📖), Kindle (</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📲), library (</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤓), juvenile (</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">👧), Little Free Library loan (</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">🏠</span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">), and audiobook (</span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">🎧).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-a4cbdc79-7fff-e52a-ff8d-29ea9550fea7"></span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EOW2lEHwFw/X_Ulm9N5ZlI/AAAAAAAB_3w/hmnDzNNQymAxwzw1B4Lr450WMPMovsHUQCLcBGAsYHQ/s499/midnight.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EOW2lEHwFw/X_Ulm9N5ZlI/AAAAAAAB_3w/hmnDzNNQymAxwzw1B4Lr450WMPMovsHUQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/midnight.jpg" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Humans 📲📖</span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Brady Needs a Nightlight 📲👧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Midnight Library 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Letters From Father Christmas 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Prince and the Troll 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ivy and Bean and the Ghost Who Had to Go (#2) </span>📲</span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Understanding the British: a hilarious guide from Apologising to Wimbledon 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Take the Look at the 5 and 10 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Hamilton: The Revolution 🎧 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Hamnet 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Kitchen Daughter 📖🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Boy in the Field 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir 📖🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">How to Be an Antiracist 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">A Quiver Full of Arrows 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; 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text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />Around the World in Seventy-Two Days 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There There 🎧🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; 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font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">One-Pan Wonders: Fuss-Free Meals for your Sheet Pan, Dutch Oven, Skillet, Roasting Pan, Casserole, and Slow-Cooker 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is the Rope 📲 🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Neverworld Wake 📲🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Siddhartha 🎧🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Blossom & Bones 📖🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kitten Lady’s Big Book of Little Kittens 📖🤓👧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Black Klansman 🎧🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bonjour Tristesse 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Dutch House 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6qhsaeze4pM/X_UnSEoRqKI/AAAAAAAB_4Q/JVzTWg1gpSoNcpMeGsoT8-036XehX80oACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/big%2Bbook.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1243" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6qhsaeze4pM/X_UnSEoRqKI/AAAAAAAB_4Q/JVzTWg1gpSoNcpMeGsoT8-036XehX80oACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/big%2Bbook.jpg" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Bad Seed 📖🤓</span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Starless Sea 🎧🤓📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Time’s Convert 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">My Real Children 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Behold the Dreamers 🎧🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Nightingale 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Lion / A Long Way Home 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Heart and Other Viscera 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Dark Matter 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Big Book of the Dead 🎧🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Rattles, the Barn Cat Misfit 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Mary Berry’s Christmas Collection 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Latin History for Morons 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Daisy Jones & The Six 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Tomorrow Most Likely 📲👧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GQTeWhBFxug/X_UnY27S74I/AAAAAAAB_4U/Sg2ZwSEwW3oPKkFmldudXWt_fpu6qFngwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/daisy.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1357" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GQTeWhBFxug/X_UnY27S74I/AAAAAAAB_4U/Sg2ZwSEwW3oPKkFmldudXWt_fpu6qFngwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/daisy.jpg" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">For This We Left Egypt? 📲</span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Elizabeth the Queen 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Maybe You Should Talk to Someone 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Ring 📖🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The World According to Mr. Rogers 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Conviction 📲</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Ravenmaster 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Island of the Lost: Shipwrecked at the End of the World 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Letters to the Lost 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Charlotte’s Web 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Huntress 📖</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Wonderful Wizard of Oz 🎧</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Life of Frederick Douglass: A Graphic Narrative of an Extraordinary Life 📖🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Burgess Boys 📲🤓</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I’ll Root for You 📖🤓👧🏼</span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Just Mercy 🎧</span></span></p></li></ol><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">How was your Reading 2020? What were your favorite reads, and your not-so-favorite reads? Comment below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">email</a> me, and we'll chat.</span></span></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-14224711053306033422020-12-23T00:00:00.008-05:002020-12-23T00:00:03.550-05:00A Year in Reading: A Brief Overview of 2020<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jaBRfsZx9k/X-Jmd-0aqgI/AAAAAAAB_1g/G5oQqUrxQ7INScvYMThod1M_KtQQ-_v8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Open%2BBook%2B2020.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1498" data-original-width="2048" height="146" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jaBRfsZx9k/X-Jmd-0aqgI/AAAAAAAB_1g/G5oQqUrxQ7INScvYMThod1M_KtQQ-_v8ACLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h146/Open%2BBook%2B2020.png" width="200" /></a></div><br />As the Plague Year wraps up, many of us are looking at our reading lists and shaking our heads. We either didn't read enough, read too much, or read books that typically would not have found their way to our TBR.<p></p><p>I started out in the first group, wandered oh so briefly into the second group, then settled comfortably in the third group. Not all of the books I picked up made it on to my reading list — if I finished less than half, it didn't count. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YvMCOoyX4ec/X-Jmof9XabI/AAAAAAAB_1k/O4wm66oo3BcX9KSUhvLL8geQIzhbkoYNQCLcBGAsYHQ/s900/just%2Bmercy%2Bcover.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="563" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YvMCOoyX4ec/X-Jmof9XabI/AAAAAAAB_1k/O4wm66oo3BcX9KSUhvLL8geQIzhbkoYNQCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h320/just%2Bmercy%2Bcover.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>The "Don't Mention It List" is short, and just a tad surprising. First of all, I got about 40 pages into the latest Stephanie Plum novel and discovered her antics were just plain annoying. Maybe it was that this was a direct sequel, picking up where the last one left off, or that I didn't need to read about how Morelli was out so Ranger could be, er, in. At any rate, after 27 novels, I am breaking up with Stephanie Plum. I will miss Lula. I may miss Grandma Mazur (but only a little). I will miss Connie's no-nonsense approach to everything (and her donut choices).<p></p><p><br />But Stephanie should't feel too bad. It's 2020. Everything is under the microscope, and a lot of otherwise worthy books don't pass muster.</p><p>I didn't check out any fad nutrition books from the library; I learned my lesson last year with the tomato-hater. Now, I just read short articles to see whether I thought the "science" had merit. For the most part, I've eschewed in-the-moment food books, but I did read a number of cookbooks (and even tried a few of the recipes). (Okay, David tried the recipes.) </p><p>I also skipped "current" political books of any party — if it doesn't marinade well, it's not going to fit my taste.</p><p>So, what <i>did</i> I read?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S4keXsjEqw0/X-JnYPFfsqI/AAAAAAAB_10/z8DiR9mwhbgj-dKeOf13twzBqyqu0ZmVgCLcBGAsYHQ/s990/latin%2Bedited.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="990" data-original-width="630" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S4keXsjEqw0/X-JnYPFfsqI/AAAAAAAB_10/z8DiR9mwhbgj-dKeOf13twzBqyqu0ZmVgCLcBGAsYHQ/w202-h320/latin%2Bedited.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><br />Well, I consumed about 20 percent of my books via audio. I let Anne Hathaway and E. B. White, John Leguizamo and Bryan Stevenson read to me. <p></p><p>I consumed two of the Fall for the Book tomes via audio, neither of which was narrated by the author. (Honestly, not all writers should read their own work. I keep waiting for someone besides Toni Morrison to narrate <i>Beloved</i>; I literally cannot hear her voice very well.)</p><p>I also consumed some good YA and juvenile fiction. I sent my granddaughter a collection of Ivy & Bean books for her first day of school, and figured I needed to get caught up so we could talk. I just finished the second one (sorry to be so slow, Mads!) and I'll start the next one soon.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VHOiHhUoAMc/X-Jnh8AGNJI/AAAAAAAB_14/UyGbUjgF_ooX9WFbb1dTMd46sxhVtQn_QCLcBGAsYHQ/s900/the%2Bheart%2Band%2Bother%2Bviscera.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="579" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VHOiHhUoAMc/X-Jnh8AGNJI/AAAAAAAB_14/UyGbUjgF_ooX9WFbb1dTMd46sxhVtQn_QCLcBGAsYHQ/w203-h320/the%2Bheart%2Band%2Bother%2Bviscera.jpg" width="203" /></a></div><br />I was very disappointed by a book I had been waiting more than a year to read: <i>The Starless Sea</i> felt like a LARP game full of dead ends and wild cards. I also was disappointed in the fourth installment of the<i> All Souls Trilogy</i>: there weren't enough witches in this vampire tale for me. I was, however, pleased by the short story collection by Félix J. Palma, <i><a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Heart-and-Other-Viscera/Felix-J-Palma/9781501164040" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Heart and Other Viscera</a>, </i>and the latest by Barbara Kingsolver and Ann Patchett.<p></p><p>I met a new author I am enjoying greatly: <a href="http://www.jowaltonbooks.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jo Walton</a>. The first of her books I read was mind-blowing: <i><a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780765332684" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">My Real Children</a></i>, in which a woman in a memory care unit was trying to remember the path her life took, and whether the people visiting her were her "real children" in her "real" life. Between her and <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/33338/connie-willis/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Connie Willis</a>, I got my feminist sci-fi on.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kWmU08E_KsM/X-Jnoqo1g5I/AAAAAAAB_2A/xcRfkUThpFQ2n1z0piB8LfR_Nh1AtuU3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s900/my%2Breal%2Bchildren.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kWmU08E_KsM/X-Jnoqo1g5I/AAAAAAAB_2A/xcRfkUThpFQ2n1z0piB8LfR_Nh1AtuU3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/my%2Breal%2Bchildren.jpg" /></a></div><br />All in all, the reading year was satisfying.<p></p><p>Next week, I'll publish my reading list and my favorite books of the year. Start thinking about what that looks like for your own reading, and we can compare notes.</p><p>So, how was <i>your</i> reading year? Was it better or worse than you anticipated? Were there any surprises? <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Do tell</a>!</p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-69259401334607418082020-12-01T00:00:00.061-05:002020-12-01T00:00:00.125-05:00Summer Reading 2020: A Review<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_ls/oA12IbDWXvoGm9n_xCdU6cbHyQ3FjDqcgCPcBGAYYCw/s450/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="361" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_ls/oA12IbDWXvoGm9n_xCdU6cbHyQ3FjDqcgCPcBGAYYCw/w160-h200/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" width="160" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Reading in 2020 started out a little rocky, but picked up by summertime — and summer reading was saved! Okay, a little dramatic, but summer reading is a joy I look forward to every year.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">In 2012, I launched a summer reading program for adults, encouraging them to read as much as they liked, and rewarding program participants who read the most with a free book. Well, local libraries caught up with adult readers, so my program is no longer needed — but I still encourage summer reading for everyone, especially adults.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w9c6dCcH-3w/X8VsnCnkCyI/AAAAAAAB_z4/k6L1bcqf6hwPtNBpiuFCJJlTX7hQm4X7QCPcBGAYYCw/s2048/one-pan.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1660" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w9c6dCcH-3w/X8VsnCnkCyI/AAAAAAAB_z4/k6L1bcqf6hwPtNBpiuFCJJlTX7hQm4X7QCPcBGAYYCw/w258-h320/one-pan.jpg" width="258" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">In 2020, that may have been a little harder to achieve. Many readers confessed to having less time or initiative to read due to mental or emotional fatigue, fear, overworking, job searches, or other various reasons. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Myself, I had a windfall in the shape of a new co-worker who saved my vegetarian bacon, so to speak, and my mind. I was able to relax and pick up books for pleasure and relaxation again, finally.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I read a wide variety of books, from cookbooks (yes, cookbooks!) to short novels, classics to modern thrillers, self-help to juvenile stories and YA novels. I considered Hygge-ing in the summer but decided to hold off until the days grew shorter. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AQvK_5f6ZAk/X8Vsy5cuRvI/AAAAAAAB_z0/_Q5ZAxWYFGcxE4YJjr1MZT7Ic-tIbZt0ACLcBGAsYHQ/s450/bad%2Bseed.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="292" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AQvK_5f6ZAk/X8Vsy5cuRvI/AAAAAAAB_z0/_Q5ZAxWYFGcxE4YJjr1MZT7Ic-tIbZt0ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/bad%2Bseed.jpeg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">My Library receives credit for providing the breadth of topic in ths summer's reading selection. I stumbled into the Library Summer Reading Program a little late (mid-June) and scrambled to catch up. I was surprised by a few reading suggestions (<i>The Bad Seed</i>, <i>Brokeback Mountain</i>) but gave it the ol' college try — and was reminded that </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">engaged, well-read librarians provide</span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> oodles of good suggestions for titles, authors, and genres.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I discovered a new author at my Little Free Library, Lisa Jewell, then was amazed to find another of her books already in my TBR pile.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">A college pal of mine wrote a book, <i>Value Based Goal Setting</i>, which I highly recommend; <a href="https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DXM52GL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_d_asin_title_o02?ie=UTF8&psc=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here to find out more about her book on Amazon</a>.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://fallforthebook.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Fall for the Book</a> and I always are in sync, but this year four authors in my TBR pile were scheduled to participate in the annual festival in October — so finished the books before the scheduled author events (including <i>There There</i>).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EuynshIql6U/X8Vs7z-9jZI/AAAAAAAB_z8/FHoN9rblM8o9gIEjZBJ-hqesWjL06Ni_wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/then%2Bshe%2Bwas%2Bgone.jpg" rel="nofollow" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell" border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1317" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EuynshIql6U/X8Vs7z-9jZI/AAAAAAAB_z8/FHoN9rblM8o9gIEjZBJ-hqesWjL06Ni_wCLcBGAsYHQ/w205-h320/then%2Bshe%2Bwas%2Bgone.jpg" width="205" /></a></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">My online book club has been on fire with their suggestions, and they pushed some titles to the top of my TBR pile, including <i>The Paris Wife, The Dutch House, Behold the Dreamers, </i>and<i> The Authenticity Project.</i></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia;">One disappointment this summer was a book I had been anxiously awaiting since first I heard of it: Erin Morganstern's second novel, <i>The Starless Sea.</i> I read it on three formats — Kindle, print, and audiobook — and still was unable to make sense of it. I also failed to enjoy <i>Perfect Little Children</i> and the crazy wine-drinking-nosy-or-is-she-crazy British female protagonist. <i>(Full disclosure: I stopped reading halfway through, my only DNF of the year so far.)</i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">So, without further ado, I present my 2020 summer reading list:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-faee9631-7fff-9fec-141d-7fba2fba4fbc"></span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Mary Poppins Opens the Door 📲👧</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r7IFiwlKP7A/X8VtMc27_bI/AAAAAAAB_0I/-_W_S-Sj8Ps5CgsazRufv6nznIaNEWskgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/unsheltered.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1356" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r7IFiwlKP7A/X8VtMc27_bI/AAAAAAAB_0I/-_W_S-Sj8Ps5CgsazRufv6nznIaNEWskgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/unsheltered.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>That Monster on the Block 📲👧</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ivy and Bean 📲</span>👧</i></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Kaspar the Titanic Cat 📖👧🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Slow Cooker Cookbook: Volume 3: Delicious Dessert Recipes 📲</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Mexican Gothic 📖</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Paris Wife 🎧📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Eleanor & Park 📖</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Emergency Skin 📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Hygge: Introduction to the Danish Art of Cozy Living 📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2020/09/book-review-then-she-was-gone.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Then She Was Gone</a> 📖🏠</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Perfect Little Children 📲🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Body: A Guide for Occupants 🎧🤓📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Unsheltered 📖</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9v_ypFhTvg8/X8VuZiVGKII/AAAAAAAB_0Y/ze59LymQXHkIPxVSkn5oWHKhyOGZNEhrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s450/body.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="308" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9v_ypFhTvg8/X8VuZiVGKII/AAAAAAAB_0Y/ze59LymQXHkIPxVSkn5oWHKhyOGZNEhrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/body.jpeg" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Values Based Goal Setting 📲</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>How I Made a Friend 📲👧</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Authenticity Project 📖</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Around the World in Seventy-Two Days 📲</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>There There 🎧🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>A Stone Sat Still 📲👧</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Brokeback Mountain 🎧🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>One-Pan Wonders: Fuss-Free Meals for your Sheet Pan, Dutch Oven, Skillet, Roasting Pan, Casserole, and Slow-Cooker 📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>This is the Rope 📲 🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Neverworld Wake 📲🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Siddhartha 🎧🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Blossom & Bones 📖🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Kitten Lady’s Big Book of Little Kittens 📖🤓👧</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-acjTxgo9YDM/X8VtjEyj6FI/AAAAAAAB_0Q/puQaEoc9apcmonrYc8cmlE6v1v7YVE13QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1360/real.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1360" data-original-width="907" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-acjTxgo9YDM/X8VtjEyj6FI/AAAAAAAB_0Q/puQaEoc9apcmonrYc8cmlE6v1v7YVE13QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/real.jpg" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Black Klansman 🎧🤓</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Bonjour Tristesse 📖</i></span></span><p></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Dutch House 📖</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Bad Seed 📖🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World 🎧</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Starless Sea 🎧🤓📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Time’s Convert 📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>My Real Children 📲</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Behold the Dreamers 🎧🤓</i></span></span></p></li><li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>The Nightingale 📲</i></span></span></p></li></ol><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Did you read any of these, and what did you think? Or did you read something else amazing this summer? Leave a comment below — or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">send me a message</a>, and I'll share with our fellow readers.</span></span></div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-38700813318070107802020-09-03T00:00:00.009-04:002020-09-04T16:26:39.994-04:00Book Review: Then She Was Gone<p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_U1bWgXTJ30/X1BRbxUTu-I/AAAAAAAB_wE/tKU0VRUvf5YrewOCTrtFEcKgMhLaEhIEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/then%2Bshe%2Bwas%2Bgone.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1355" height="409" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_U1bWgXTJ30/X1BRbxUTu-I/AAAAAAAB_wE/tKU0VRUvf5YrewOCTrtFEcKgMhLaEhIEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w269-h409/then%2Bshe%2Bwas%2Bgone.jpg" width="269" /></a><span style="color: #454545; font-family: georgia;">It’s always worse than you can imagine, because horror and grief are tricky and pliable. They take shapes you didn’t know existed, and they're impossible to contain, or even manage.</span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In <i><a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Then-She-Was-Gone/Lisa-Jewell/9781501154652" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Then She Was Gone</a></i>, author Lisa Jewell knows how to describe horror. Tangible horror. The kind of thing that lurks at the back of your mind: what would happen if [terrible thing] occurred? </span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We've all seen the movies and read the books, but they're not what we can imagine.What's in our heads is awful, simply and utterly awful — and </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">what Jewell has in her head is even worse than awful, if that's possible. She takes it to unimaginable, etching it into our brains with precise language and specific, and devastating, details.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">If you don't want to envision the reality of your own fears, skip this book.</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">At a certain point, I knew what we would learn about the characters and the storyline — but that didn't dim my enthusiasm one bit. I liked the author's writing. I understood and appreciated the world she built. There was still a lot of book to be read. I wanted to see where she would take the story.</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I don't completely rue that decision, but what it brought with it will stay with me for a long, long time.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The structure of the book is brilliant: We are privy to the minds of only certain characters, and only select featured characters provide first-person narrative. The slow unfolding of the story, who provides what perspective and what specific details, what is revealed by whom and how.... the suspense kept me up literally all night, reading frantically to reach the conclusion.</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">(Also, can someone please explain to me the apparent British obsession with champagne? It pops up regularly in books penned by British writers. It's fascinating to me, really.)</span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">At any rate, I recommend this book for people with strong nerves and an ability to not look away. I am not usually that reader, but I am glad I was for this book.</span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #454545; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Chime in below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">message me</a>: did it capture you?</span></p>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-61091447706206735732020-08-02T15:00:00.002-04:002020-08-02T14:47:11.928-04:00Summer Reading 2020: How's it Going?<font face="georgia"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_ls/oA12IbDWXvoGm9n_xCdU6cbHyQ3FjDqcgCPcBGAYYCw/s450/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="361" height="256" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_ls/oA12IbDWXvoGm9n_xCdU6cbHyQ3FjDqcgCPcBGAYYCw/w205-h256/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" width="205" /></a></div>This is not your typical summer.</font><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">(In fact, it's so atypical that I'm posting in August.)</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">Are you treating your summer reading the same? </font><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'm not.</span></div><div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">First of all, I nearly missed out on My Library's Summer Reading Program. Between my work schedule and My Library's schedule, I was thrown off my own schedule, and I didn't find the program information until recently.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">When My Library began offering curbside pickup service, however, librarians kindly included the flyer for the program. Was I relieved! </font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vNM5pmgKRf0/XybE4m8YLrI/AAAAAAAB_uA/gauUMzOnKrIMHiNwQ93uH9tMIjnK0v5rACPcBGAYYCw/s630/long%2Bway%2Blion.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><font color="#000000" face="georgia"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="419" height="258" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vNM5pmgKRf0/XybE4m8YLrI/AAAAAAAB_uA/gauUMzOnKrIMHiNwQ93uH9tMIjnK0v5rACPcBGAYYCw/w170-h258/long%2Bway%2Blion.jpg" width="170" /></font></a></div><font face="georgia">Last year's adult summer reading program was a blast, and I stepped off with them at the program launch (and ended the program with cake and <i>Good Omens</i>.) But this year... Work kept me hopping by half again, and I was still feeling the effects of COVID Reading Blahs until after Memorial Day, the traditional launch of my personal summer reading program. I've had reading slumps before, but rarely in the summer. </font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">What's a reader to do?</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">I listened to myself, and to books.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><font face="georgia">Typically, I listen to books only when I'm running, or in the rare situation at home when I won't be otherwise interrupted.<i> (For those who are about to scold me about the safety of running in headphones, I hear you — but I'm too busy listening to my books.) </i></font></p></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7MY2WXnNHDo/XybFyM8026I/AAAAAAAB_uI/B4cP3aGd0eUmfv5lUWRwnFyddamydT9owCPcBGAYYCw/s2048/behold%2Bthe%2Bdreamers.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1328" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7MY2WXnNHDo/XybFyM8026I/AAAAAAAB_uI/B4cP3aGd0eUmfv5lUWRwnFyddamydT9owCPcBGAYYCw/w170-h262/behold%2Bthe%2Bdreamers.jpg" width="170" /></a></div>I also found some amazing audiobooks that kept me riveted. Among the gems so far this summer are <i><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/251547/behold-the-dreamers-by-imbolo-mbue/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Behold the Dreamers</a></i>,<a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/lion-a-long-way-home-9780143572305" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> <i>A Long Way Home</i></a>, and <i><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/563403/there-there-by-tommy-orange/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">There There</a></i>.</font></div></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">Two of those I borrowed from My Library. (Guess which ones!) At least one of them I will purchase for myself for the rare re-read.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">I started reading <i>There There</i> before I discovered that Tommy Orange is a headliner at this year's <a href="https://fallforthebook.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Fall for the Book Festiva</a>l. I don't know what that means yet, but I can't wait to find out.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">I have a stack of printed books, and my Kindle is freshly stocked with new treasures. My Library has finally reopened, so I am being flooded by the holds I set up earlier this year. Overdrive and RB Digital are both loaded on every device, and delivering the goods on a regular basis.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NYzA4yi3Cn0/XybKDI9s7WI/AAAAAAAB_uc/F8pxBj7JiYU5oKL7uShuPx8BoLNuM7awACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/there%2Bthere.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1343" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NYzA4yi3Cn0/XybKDI9s7WI/AAAAAAAB_uc/F8pxBj7JiYU5oKL7uShuPx8BoLNuM7awACLcBGAsYHQ/w171-h262/there%2Bthere.jpg" width="171" /></a></div>What's next? Well, a little Bill Bryson, a classic, maybe some Stephen King. </font></div><div><font face="georgia"><i><br /></i></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><i>(The latter terrifies me, but maybe when read in the daylight it won't be so ba—) </i></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><i><br /></i></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><i>(Never mind. It's Stephen King, what was I thinking.)</i></font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">At any rate, my August TBR has some great titles, and I can't wait to tuck back into it.</font></div><div><font face="georgia"><br /></font></div><div><font face="georgia">What are you reading this summer? Have you skipped the slump, or are you still struggling? Let me know in the comments below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">send me a note</a>. You're not in this alone.</font></div><div><br /></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-1587773848836894862020-05-25T00:00:00.000-04:002020-05-31T11:12:57.253-04:00Summer Reading Message: A Rockin' and Readin' 2020<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_lo/w0soaHWjwAcSplSBFQXbGMO9wViKJXeLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="361" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntpWMYbC9vo/XsnZPf_43jI/AAAAAAAB_lo/w0soaHWjwAcSplSBFQXbGMO9wViKJXeLwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/summer%2Breading%2Bgirl%2B2020%2Bcfc.png" width="160" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">How has "stay-at-home" treated you, my fellow readers? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My bookish friends: Have you haunted Little Free Libraries? </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Have you discovered every curbside bookstore pickup in your area, or maybe</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> mail-ordered more than your fair share?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My e-readers: Have you checked out every ebook you Library offers, or been sucked in to amazing sales from your ebook suppliers?</span><br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RGhBL_gl2Vo/XsvhEt_b1KI/AAAAAAAB_mA/eO32piFdmB42izmdkK3zwgae1g0WJcxVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/nightingale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RGhBL_gl2Vo/XsvhEt_b1KI/AAAAAAAB_mA/eO32piFdmB42izmdkK3zwgae1g0WJcxVwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/nightingale.jpg" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My listeners: Are you catching up on your already-ample collection? Have you discovered just how many audiobook services your Library offers? </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Or are you a newbie, discovering the world of audiobooks — and are you a fan? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I wish I could say I've been able to find comfort and distraction in books, but the truth of the matter is that the pandemic has reduced my reading time and energy. A week ago I didn't even realize it was May, let alone almost Memorial Day. By the end of the very long workdays — because every day is a workday right now — my brain is full.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qnuJ6obAuxI/XsvhloeEPsI/AAAAAAAB_mI/mZJEz62ku5ohurerQbQrhRCAfJ8bfhvnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/blood%2Band%2Bbone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1053" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qnuJ6obAuxI/XsvhloeEPsI/AAAAAAAB_mI/mZJEz62ku5ohurerQbQrhRCAfJ8bfhvnQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/blood%2Band%2Bbone.jpg" width="131" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But all is not lost. I surrendered my exercise-headphones ban and began listening to books while I run. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I've begun reading "ongoing" books I began months ago but put aside for one reason or another. A page or two to clear my mind does a world of good, and I know I can put them aside, or shuffle them around, as needed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">When I hit my limit with my ongoing books, I read books with friends. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My bookish friend Carole and I are re-reading the Olive Kitteridge selection (Elizabeth Strout's related books that build to </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Olive, Again</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">) and </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Don Quixote</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. </span><br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7nex_jGY-LA/Xsvh0DFsrlI/AAAAAAAB_mM/H8rEeFFT7aIEkcqEULzc-FYegl8eFOXcACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/don%2Bquixote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7nex_jGY-LA/Xsvh0DFsrlI/AAAAAAAB_mM/H8rEeFFT7aIEkcqEULzc-FYegl8eFOXcACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/don%2Bquixote.jpg" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My online book club has kept me busy with some interesting picks already on my TBR list, including </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Daisy Jones and the Six, Behold the Dreamers, </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and</span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"> Maybe You Should Talk to Someone</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I continue to read all platforms — </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">print, ebook, and audio — </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and, to be honest, some books deserve all three (</span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Don Quixote</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, I'm looking at you). My Library has contributed to the cause electronically, and I am forever grateful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'm still about a dozen books behind my pre-Memorial Day count from last year, but I can live with that.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LYaF2uILATw/Xsvlio0GbTI/AAAAAAAB_mg/U1NZp4QyFD0kC9AXFjc8qzCr7nMPGGqQwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/daisy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1061" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LYaF2uILATw/Xsvlio0GbTI/AAAAAAAB_mg/U1NZp4QyFD0kC9AXFjc8qzCr7nMPGGqQwCPcBGAYYCw/s200/daisy.jpg" width="132" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I suspect 2020 will continue to be a grab bag of surprises. That alone will make summer reading very, very different.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, let's think differently about "summer reading" and launch our discussion as we get closer to the summer solstice. </span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R3IW04IOEec/Xsvq4ED8o-I/AAAAAAAB_mo/N5YuLrzYRDMQOjDajtnLH5bs7IJjN5_QACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/olive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1038" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R3IW04IOEec/Xsvq4ED8o-I/AAAAAAAB_mo/N5YuLrzYRDMQOjDajtnLH5bs7IJjN5_QACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/olive.jpg" width="128" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In the meantime, please be careful. <i>Lifting stay-at-home orders doesn't mean you are safe from the virus.</i> It means we have created an infrastructure of expanded access to hospital beds and ventilators, so we can better treat patients during the second surge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The virus is still present. You can still get sick. Stay home and read when you can, and please continue to follow CDC guidelines regarding social distancing, wearing a face covering/mask, and avoiding large gatherings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">See you in June.</span><br />
<br />Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-20929474529652763402019-12-31T00:00:00.000-05:002020-01-06T22:43:33.814-05:00Best Books Read in 2019<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EJsRac8E7Gc/XdioSnkwbII/AAAAAAAB_WU/szwX8xiPwMsJjhXTm97uC2kZtc5ST0aQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/best%2Bbook%2Bstack%2B2019.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hcgm1GCklM4/Xgt5oIbelEI/AAAAAAAB_aE/1dtfQoIdY6o-S5bDLT0EdsCnrDslF38nwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/best%2Bbook%2Bstack%2B2019.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1237" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hcgm1GCklM4/Xgt5oIbelEI/AAAAAAAB_aE/1dtfQoIdY6o-S5bDLT0EdsCnrDslF38nwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/best%2Bbook%2Bstack%2B2019.png" width="247" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I read some really enjoyable books in 2019</span>, and a lot of titles — in part because I didn't stay in my lane. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I read a lot of graphic novels, courtesy of My Library's ample "Graphic Novel" section. It's suspiciously close to the YA section and the Teen Center, but that doesn't slow me down. In fact, it speeds me up: kids these days have the coolest stuff!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I read some picture books and chapter books. First of all, I don't know why more adults aren't hooked on Mr. Putter and Tabby. (Maybe they are and I just haven't learned the secret wink.) At any rate, people of all ages can appreciate an elderly man and his older cat who get into scrapes with his elderly neighbor and her good dog.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I read <i>The Odyssey</i> in audio, print, graphic novel, and e-book — and discovered that not all booked deemed "classics" stand the test of time, and may not have deserved that recognition in the first place. <a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/06/classifying-classics-and-who-to-trust.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">My opinion was reaffirmed</a> when I read a book about classics recommended by a scholar. (<i>Lolita</i>, anyone?)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Of the dozen books chosen by my book club in 2019, I read 11. I am not yet ready to read <i>Beloved</i> — and I say that after reading the <a href="https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/beloved" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Schmoop chapter-by-chapter discussion</a> of that tome. When the teacher says, "You might need to sit down for this one," they're not kidding.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">You'll find about a dozen or so series on this list, from Mary Poppins and Carter & Lovecraft to The Sixth World and Chronicles of the One. Not to mention Themis Files.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My favorites? </span></span><br />
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Ends of the World</i>: I didn't expect to be as affected by a story about prehistoric world endings, but it makes me see the future very differently. Now where I plan to live in my advanced years is changing.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Fifth Risk</i>: I love government, and I am so happy for this love letter to federal government function and service. My favorite part was the very last story.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Born a Crime</i>: I knew <i>about</i> apartheid, but I didn't know <i>apartheid</i>. Now I do.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Deep</i>: So original, so moving, and very well-read.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Letters from Skye</i>: I was riveted, and moved, and couldn't wait to gift this book to my best reading buddy (who doesn't listen to audiobooks, but I thought this may change her mind).</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Two series: the <i>Themis Files</i> and the <i>Sixth World:</i> How creative, imaginative, and cautionary. Literally out of this world, and grounded — at the same time.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Least favorites? </span></span></span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>10 Years Younger</i>. I need to stop reading pop-help books.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Where the Crawdads Sing</i>. I have a love/hate relationship with this beautifully written book. I loved it immensely until the last two pages.</span></span></span></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here is my list of 2019 reads, which includes print books </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📖</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, children's books 👧</span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">audiobooks </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">🎧</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, graphic novels </span><span style="white-space: pre;">🖼</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, e-books </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">📲</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, and library books </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">🤓</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">. I think I captured all of the categories, but if I didn't think a book necessarily stayed in its lane, I may have skipped that emoji. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-d21aaa67-7fff-b4ee-fea6-9048b160a96e" style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></span>
</span>
<br />
<ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-koHZoDgCVHk/Xgrkvup7dbI/AAAAAAAB_Z4/wG9wnjdk8yYlOjuB8gnAv_2tuG5AeC04wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/toil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="331" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-koHZoDgCVHk/Xgrkvup7dbI/AAAAAAAB_Z4/wG9wnjdk8yYlOjuB8gnAv_2tuG5AeC04wCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/toil.jpg" width="132" /></a>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">They Called Us Enemy </span></span>📲🖼</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Toil and Trouble 📲</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Literary Feast 📖🤓</span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Hanukkah Treasury 📖🤓👧</span></span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Box in the Basement 📖</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Confused Hanukkah 📖🤓👧</span></span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gk24GX11b28/XgreXaIPFHI/AAAAAAAB_Xc/dXWD359HEloxu31b0yVMajCnKkeKSA54gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/born%2Ba%2Bcrime.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gk24GX11b28/XgreXaIPFHI/AAAAAAAB_Xc/dXWD359HEloxu31b0yVMajCnKkeKSA54gCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/born%2Ba%2Bcrime.jpeg" width="133" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Born A Crime 🎧</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Twisted Twenty-Six 📖🤓</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Christmas Carol 🎧</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Library of the Unwritten 📖</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Together for Kwanzaa 📲🤓👧</span></span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Kevin’s Kwanzaa 📲🤓👧</span></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Lot Like Christmas 📲</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dead Letters: An Anthology of the Undelivered, the Missing & the Returned 📲</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Our House 📲🤓</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PVc32uw5seQ/XgresJqFruI/AAAAAAAB_Xk/bkjtqLfOL_4fToh0kz58KioUaHLReX5iQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/library.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PVc32uw5seQ/XgresJqFruI/AAAAAAAB_Xk/bkjtqLfOL_4fToh0kz58KioUaHLReX5iQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/library.jpg" width="133" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy 🎧</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Deep 🎧</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Read My Pins 📲</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Devil and the Deep 📖 📲</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dear Girls 🎧</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UXzkN2yHoAs/XgrfZB8AKrI/AAAAAAAB_Xs/AWAEF6ACnfAx-W2HOV5mxB8V4UyVhNUCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/fifth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1065" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UXzkN2yHoAs/XgrfZB8AKrI/AAAAAAAB_Xs/AWAEF6ACnfAx-W2HOV5mxB8V4UyVhNUCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/fifth.jpg" width="132" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous 📲</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
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<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Word Collector 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/11/review-recursion.html" rel="nofollow" style="white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank">Recursion</a><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> 📖</span></span></li>
<li dir="ltr" style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Herbert’s First Halloween 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
</li>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paperbacks From Hell 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">All My Friends Are Still Dead 📲</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-065-ys4pGCc/Xgrf8Qp1GbI/AAAAAAAB_X0/YoocUrM_vZE5mwYRF6CLz8FdrPf6nuP_gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/on%2Bearth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="333" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-065-ys4pGCc/Xgrf8Qp1GbI/AAAAAAAB_X0/YoocUrM_vZE5mwYRF6CLz8FdrPf6nuP_gCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/on%2Bearth.jpg" width="133" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Ninth House 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/11/review-evvie-drake-starts-over.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Evvie Drake Starts Over</a> 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Gift From the Sea 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Where the Crawdads Sing 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">K is for Knifeball 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I Was Their American Dream 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Letters from Skye 🎧📲🤓</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VZrVJ0XMQ2E/XgrgG7rZAaI/AAAAAAAB_X4/1RlxLSpzjb87W5dVD8PsvUurcsEVeV8iACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/letters%2Bfrom%2Bskye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: transparent; clear: right; color: black; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VZrVJ0XMQ2E/XgrgG7rZAaI/AAAAAAAB_X4/1RlxLSpzjb87W5dVD8PsvUurcsEVeV8iACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/letters%2Bfrom%2Bskye.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Spike the Dinosaur 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I Could Pee on This Too 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Fortunately the Milk 📖👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sorry I Barfed on Your Bed (and other heartwarming letters from Kitty) 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Only Human 📲</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-JxqKfDQBU/XgrgUWGsVoI/AAAAAAAB_YA/Xh7T24be1KYHEH0ccV-hn6yCoqpnEQaiACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/only%2Bhuman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1046" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-JxqKfDQBU/XgrgUWGsVoI/AAAAAAAB_YA/Xh7T24be1KYHEH0ccV-hn6yCoqpnEQaiACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/only%2Bhuman.jpg" width="130" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rupert Can Dance 📖🤓😉</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Smell the Roses 📖🤓👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/10/review-sheets.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sheets</a> 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Testaments 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Hit the Slopes 📖🤓👧</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tOfZWTDphkc/Xgrgom-paCI/AAAAAAAB_YI/0SykL6NJfCkMNyfDLZbkinJGW8IGWbjSgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/summer%2Bhours.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: transparent; clear: right; color: black; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1063" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tOfZWTDphkc/Xgrgom-paCI/AAAAAAAB_YI/0SykL6NJfCkMNyfDLZbkinJGW8IGWbjSgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/summer%2Bhours.jpg" width="132" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You wouldn’t want to be sick in the 16th Century 📖🤓😉</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/06/when-book-worlds-collide-unexpected.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">No Visible Bruises</a> 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/06/summer-reading-club-book-ghost-of-tale.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Ghost Studies</a> 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Turn the Page 📲👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Nickel Boys 🎧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Summer Hours at the Robbers Library 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery - the graphic novel adaptation 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Someone New 📖👧</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KnV9heexOPk/Xgrg7k3bbLI/AAAAAAAB_YU/Wks2GG-Cww0iRDyRtrsthf2KB_A8XRzSACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/someone%2Bnew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KnV9heexOPk/Xgrg7k3bbLI/AAAAAAAB_YU/Wks2GG-Cww0iRDyRtrsthf2KB_A8XRzSACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/someone%2Bnew.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vincent 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Last Dragon 📖🤓 </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uS7zk2yDaCI/Xgrhj5nLxwI/AAAAAAAB_Yk/b9-ica97xe0ATXnO9OSF16fsYYbDJbblQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/underground.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="322" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uS7zk2yDaCI/Xgrhj5nLxwI/AAAAAAAB_Yk/b9-ica97xe0ATXnO9OSF16fsYYbDJbblQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/underground.jpg" width="128" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maneater Vol. 1 📖🤓 </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Beowulf on the Beach: What to Love And What to Skip on Literature’s 50 Greatest Hits 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Storm of Locusts 📲</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/06/reading-about-animals-pleasure-and-peril.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dogs of War</a> 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/09/review-whered-you-go-bernadette.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Where’d You Go, Bernadette?</a> 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Odyssey: Graphic Novel 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1fgMpb04dBM/XgriZmDBNnI/AAAAAAAB_Y4/h4R9wvjmhfYpd78vqCP98E719zXGniSOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/early%2Briser.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="797" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1fgMpb04dBM/XgriZmDBNnI/AAAAAAAB_Y4/h4R9wvjmhfYpd78vqCP98E719zXGniSOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/early%2Briser.jpg" width="132" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Odyssey 🎧</span></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📖</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/05/reading-graphically-graphic-novels-at.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">A Family Secret</a> 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/05/reading-graphically-graphic-novels-at.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sabrina</a> 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yBRV5qfTGdA/XgripnCOtvI/AAAAAAAB_ZA/HJeOnf80uggPKLEXzWJrHqNmhhr3Jqq3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/kill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yBRV5qfTGdA/XgripnCOtvI/AAAAAAAB_ZA/HJeOnf80uggPKLEXzWJrHqNmhhr3Jqq3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/kill.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Hug 📖</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble 📖👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">History vs Women: the defiant lives that they don’t want you to know 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To Kill a Mockingbird: the graphic novel 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">10 Years Younger: 21 Surprising Techniques to Turn Back Time 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I Won’t Cut My Hair 📲👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/05/reading-graphically-graphic-novels-at.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Illegal</a> 📖</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Why we love cats 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Talk to the tail ‘cause the whiskers ain’t listenin’! 📖</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n318Jo3Aw9Q/XgrjF7UDEsI/AAAAAAAB_ZQ/5qF13fPUJpceTZJ7k1y5uMuU-X9x3PnPQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/ends.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="453" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n318Jo3Aw9Q/XgrjF7UDEsI/AAAAAAAB_ZQ/5qF13fPUJpceTZJ7k1y5uMuU-X9x3PnPQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/ends.jpg" width="131" /></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stitches 📲</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Why Grizzly Bears Should Wear Underpants 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Ends of the World 🎧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ruby and Baby … an unlikely friendship 📖🤓👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Library Lion 📖🤓👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The House With a Clock In Its Walls 📲🤓</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2C4Hj0ew-E/XgrjYZajtjI/AAAAAAAB_ZY/coHcMV1K5DgcGv1R_YrK4N77gunwT-EPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/carter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1492" data-original-width="962" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p2C4Hj0ew-E/XgrjYZajtjI/AAAAAAAB_ZY/coHcMV1K5DgcGv1R_YrK4N77gunwT-EPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/carter.jpg" width="128" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Evicted 🎧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/03/my-review-dear-fahrenheit-451.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dear Fahrenheit 451</a> 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.fromonebooklover.com/2019/03/review-year-one.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Year One</a> 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Memory of Wind 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Carter & Lovecraft 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo 📲👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Minimalist Home 📲🤓</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wBwsJpIBvnE/Xgrjya_eNOI/AAAAAAAB_Zg/DRZtHMzJYbIWQ13FrqkSqIyBUgmTIXfTACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/educated.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="277" data-original-width="182" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wBwsJpIBvnE/Xgrjya_eNOI/AAAAAAAB_Zg/DRZtHMzJYbIWQ13FrqkSqIyBUgmTIXfTACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/educated.jpeg" width="131" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I See a Bear, But… 📲👧</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sisters 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span></span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Higher Loyalty 🎧 🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Library Book 📖</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Educated 🎧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Uncommon Type (dnf) 🎧</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mz5xFUc4JIY/XgrkEC-VxnI/AAAAAAAB_Zo/saftUDxO3AwQRfhPMD435OfxuWpZ7ngvACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/trail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mz5xFUc4JIY/XgrkEC-VxnI/AAAAAAAB_Zo/saftUDxO3AwQRfhPMD435OfxuWpZ7ngvACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/trail.jpg" width="133" /></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Everything is Teeth 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Forbidden Films 📖🤓</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Becoming 🎧</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Trail of Lightning 📲</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4phdJZc_qE/XgrkYBoY3GI/AAAAAAAB_Zw/37__dUVGsdk3xaMKH--06KOQxWARkfpLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/mary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="362" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4phdJZc_qE/XgrkYBoY3GI/AAAAAAAB_Zw/37__dUVGsdk3xaMKH--06KOQxWARkfpLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/mary.jpg" width="145" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Three Sisters, Three Queens 📲</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We Don't Eat Our Classmates 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Smile 📖🤓</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span></li>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4phdJZc_qE/XgrkYBoY3GI/AAAAAAAB_Zw/37__dUVGsdk3xaMKH--06KOQxWARkfpLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/mary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: transparent; clear: right; color: black; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Mary Poppins Comes Back 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Mary Poppins 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Mary Poppins 📲👧</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I don't often re-read, so the first book of the year being a re-read was a little ironic — </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">but after seeing "Mary Poppins Returns" in the theater three times, I couldn't resist. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I've provided links to the reviews and discussions related to the books, for your reading enjoyment. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I also discussed some of the books on Instagram</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/fromonebooklover/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@fromonebooklover</a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and Twitter</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/from1booklover" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@from1booklover</a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Did you read any of these books? What did you think? <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Let me know, and tell me what you read</a>!</span></span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-2364187317210333712019-11-10T00:00:00.000-05:002019-11-10T00:00:06.071-05:00Review: Recursion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M8g5zenmof8/Xb-ERLU8T7I/AAAAAAAB_VU/Cs0q3aMYWz4uigC2ESTuIqNgDGfxai3JgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/recursion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1053" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M8g5zenmof8/Xb-ERLU8T7I/AAAAAAAB_VU/Cs0q3aMYWz4uigC2ESTuIqNgDGfxai3JgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/recursion.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The premise on the book jacket of <i><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/553713/recursion-by-blake-crouch/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Recursion</a></i> is intriguing: people are being flooded with false memories.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Blake Crouch's story goes further than you could possibly imagine — and it will keep you turning pages long into the wee hours of the morning.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">NYPD Detective Barry Sutton comes face-to-face with a person afflicted with False Memory Syndrome as she contemplates her own demise from the side of a high rise building in Manhattan. For her, the memories are real, vivid, and heartbreaking. But how can they be, when reality provides different facts? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sutton isn't convinced she is right — but he also is not convinced she is wrong. On a hunch, he pursues the case to Long Island, a decision that changes his life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Time is running out for Helena Smith's neuroscience research: her mother is losing all of her memories due to advancing Alzheimer's. She wants to find a way to save her mother's memories and halt the devastation of the disease. One night, she is offered a chance to work on her project in a way she never thought possible.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Alas, in <a href="http://blakecrouch.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Blake Crouch</a>'s thriller, nothing is as it appears. With twists, turns, and amazing leaps, characters careen near disaster in ways that keeps readers riveted.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I literally did not put this book down once I started it. I buried my nose in it and walked slowly from room to room, propping it up for meals, moving it off my lap to make room for a cat from time to time. I stayed up way past my bedtime — and only when I was exhausted did I find a safe place to slip in my "quitter strip" until the next morning.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;">I liked the characters: a police officer with tragic loss and soaring opportunity, a desperate neuroscientist racing for a cure to a heartbreaking disease, a handful of good-intentioned scientists who try to do the right thing, a sad spouse with all-consuming grief. I even liked the villains: the person who removes all limitations so Helena can save the world, the good-intentioned bureaucrats who have no choice but to follow bad decisions or lose all access to the tool they should not have loosed in the first place.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;">The ending was perfect, and the acknowledgements were charming; Crouch seems like a good friend as well as a bang-up writer. I have one of his earlier novels on my shelves; once I get my breath back, I may step into those pages, if I dare.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;">Read this book if you like excitement, wonder, just enough science to make the fiction believable, and just enough fiction to make the science approachable. </span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-53802854197404177902019-11-03T15:41:00.000-05:002019-11-03T15:42:32.323-05:00Review: Evvie Drake Starts Over<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-poE2gnOGatc/Xb8qgggY9II/AAAAAAAB_VI/9OT4d47nLh4RMkk_HevEcaVCTp0shgLKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/evvie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1058" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-poE2gnOGatc/Xb8qgggY9II/AAAAAAAB_VI/9OT4d47nLh4RMkk_HevEcaVCTp0shgLKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/evvie.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Evvie Drake lives a life of layers, mostly hidden from everyone — including herself. She is a local, the wife of a beloved local doctor, the daughter of an adoring lobsterman, and the best friend to Andy. (Some may say "too" best.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But she is none of these. She is a woman who, when she finds the strength to do what's right, receives an awful gift that takes away her power and replaces it with something insidious: expectation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/people/93702353/linda-holmes" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Linda Holmes</a>' amazing, compelling, and powerful novel <i><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/573986/evvie-drake-starts-over-by-linda-holmes/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Evvie Drake Starts Over</a></i> shows readers how someone can evolve from what she was into what she intended to be all along — with a little unexpected help from unexpected people in her life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Evvie (which rhymes with "Chevy") has taken the literal first step to leaving her life when she gets a surprise phone call from the hospital where her husband works. She isn't leaving after all.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As Evvie rattles around her huge house in her hometown, trying to avoid well-meaning people who want to help her mourn her loss, she is stuck. Her late husband is beloved as the local kid who made good and came home to serve his community. Only Evvie knows how different his public and private personae were — and readers discover it as Evvie herself has the courage to think about it.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Along comes Dean Tenney, a former major league baseball pitcher drummed off the diamond and retreating to his hometown. Evvie's best friend Andy proposes a win-win: Dean moves into Evvie's adjacent apartment to get away from prying eyes while Evvie gets some company (and a little cash). Dean and Evvie agree to two things: he will live there for a short time, and they won't talk about their elephants in the room.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Evvie's commits small (and not so small) acts of deception, whether it's telling people what they want to hear or not admitting to unhappiness while living in a perfect life. Or just not saying anything at all. And readers very well may understand: Whether we doubt ourselves or the support we may (or may not) receive, whether we feel believed or even seen, we have the ability to cover up so many things. Evvie is a Master Illusionist, with the willful ignorance of those around her, and her life could have continued with dishes she didn't want in a house she didn't want and the (late) husband who also was a Master Illusionist. I totally bought Evvie's angst: she could't come clean, but she couldn't live with the image — so she just limped along and hid as much as possible. Linda Holmes captured Evvie's situation with compassion and honesty.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Even better than the build-up was the resolution. Evvie found an unexpected ally. Could this friend provide enough support to coax Evvie out of her non-life? Help her dispatch her demons? Could Evvie find her way back to herself? Could she discover the courage to build the life she wanted and adjust the relationships in her life to be more honest and meaningful? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">At every turn, Evvie's cast of characters were rich and robust, fairly portrayed, and compassionately developed. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I liked Evvie and ached for her hidden pain. I liked Dean, a decent and honest man who needed to be told that he asked for things in ways he didn't realize. I liked Andy, despite the unbalanced (and surprisingly unhealthy) relationship. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I recommend this book. It's full of surprises, and chances are readers may see themselves occasionally. Maybe some of Evvie's courage will rub off on, or at least spark awareness. And if not, it's still an enjoyable debut novel.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-88585866723295611492019-10-31T11:05:00.000-04:002019-10-31T11:05:29.149-04:00Halloween Poetry: Bats<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lu_ZpwmJ8ig/WdGrsYsAcJI/AAAAAAAAHeQ/7clVMs6PSOAxuGsuwOzcFOvJ-oCbNWW_ACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/halloween%2Bpoetry%2Bbanner%2B17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="296" data-original-width="1600" height="118" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lu_ZpwmJ8ig/WdGrsYsAcJI/AAAAAAAAHeQ/7clVMs6PSOAxuGsuwOzcFOvJ-oCbNWW_ACPcBGAYYCw/s640/halloween%2Bpoetry%2Bbanner%2B17.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>Celebrate Halloween properly with this amazing poem, courtesy of <a href="https://poets.org/poem/bats" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">poets.org</a>.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="p1">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Bats</b></span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">unveil themselves in dark.</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">They hang, each a jagged,</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">silken sleeve, from moonlit rafters bright</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">as polished knives. They swim</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">the muddled air and keen</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">like supersonic babies, the sound</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">we imagine empty wombs might make</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">in women who can’t fill them up.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">A clasp, a scratch, a sigh.</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">They drink fruit dry.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">And wheel, against feverish light flung hard</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">upon their faces,</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">in circles that nauseate.</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Imagine one at breast or neck,</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Patterning a name in driblets of iodine</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">that spatter your skin stars.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">They flutter, shake like mystics.</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">They materialize. Revelatory</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">as a stranger’s underthings found tossed</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">upon the marital bed, you tremble</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">even at the thought. Asleep,</span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">you tear your fingers</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">and search the sheets all night.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="p4">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><i>by Paisley Rekdal, from The Invention of the Kaleidoscope, 2007</i></span></div>
<br />Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-22854136450106626502019-10-27T00:00:00.000-04:002019-10-27T00:00:07.501-04:00Review: Sheets<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JkmQ4oVoVDY/XYQwI20OyKI/AAAAAAAB_SA/3_jdPGyxqbMBH9e6L9PQXcs7VPVwwySSgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/sheets%2Bgraphic%2Bnovel%2Bcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="283" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JkmQ4oVoVDY/XYQwI20OyKI/AAAAAAAB_SA/3_jdPGyxqbMBH9e6L9PQXcs7VPVwwySSgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/sheets%2Bgraphic%2Bnovel%2Bcover.jpg" width="226" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://www.brennathummler.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Brenna Thummler</a>'s world in <i><a href="https://www.brennathummler.com/sheets" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sheets</a></i> is familiar to anyone who's been a child, or who has tried to slog through loss. Loss means change — and what's more bewildering to a child than the "real" world that changes from moment to moment? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In <i>Sheets</i>, everyone encounters rules, and situations, that make no sense, like the Laws of Ghosts and clean sheets, relationships and adolescence. Everything is new.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Add to that a devastating loss.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Add to that an unreliable guide, whether involves someone who is intentionally unreliable for their own benefit, is unsuitable for the situation, or just broken.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Add to that responsibilities beyond your capabilities, and no apparent options.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">What you have is a poignant, touching, and revealing graphic novel that captures the confusion and angst of growing up without those who you most trust to guide you through this ever-shifting landscape of youth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Marjorie is the teenage adult of the family. Her father, still reeling from the death of his wife, spends most of his time sleeping or hiding in his bedroom. Owen has just started kindergarten and can't remember a time when things were different — so he understands, but doesn't.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's up to Marjorie to keep Glatt's Laundry running and keep the family together. But how can she do that when she can barely keep herself together? Adolescence is hard enough when you have everything together, and Marjorie's loss has left a chasm out of which she has no map to navigate.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Enter Nigel Saubertuck, a charlatan who wants to build a resort in his hometown — and needs the Glatt's property to do so. He's in a tight spot, and needs things to move fast. How far will he go to close down Glatt's Laundry?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Wendell is a lonely little ghost in a town full of forgotten ghosts, who finds himself drawn to Marjorie (whose business is the perfect cover for a ghost among linens). He knows the rules of Ghost Town, and he really wants to follow them — but even the best intentions of a youthful, immature ghost can go awry. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">With a few deft strokes, Thummler shows us Marjorie's pain with her memories and current-life troubles. She captures Marjorie's desperation to not reveal her troubles, no matter how reliable the adult appears, and her natural protectiveness of her privacy and her crumbling family. Readers see Marjorie having to grow up way too soon and taking on burdens she wouldn't have had to face without the loss of the person who made her feel loved and safe and precious.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thummler shows us the dark sides of small towns, the pain of adolescence, the cruelty of loss, and how children try to protect themselves from anything that will chip away at the tiny ledge they cling to in their whirling, confused world. The book cover captures the isolation, fragility, and abject loneliness loss brings to old and young alike. Thummler show us how children try to keep pain and confusion secret, whether it's their own or someone else's, in a world that makes no sense on the best of days.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thummler wrote <i>A Sheets Story,</i> which was given away on Free Comic Book Day 2019, and announced a <i>Sheets</i> sequel to be published in 2020. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This touching novel deserves a close read, and a slow and leisurely re-read. I would strongly recommend it to readers of all ages. Reading it right around Samhain feels about right, but any time of year is perfect for this tome.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Have you read it? What did you think? Leave your comments below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">send me an email with your thoughts</a>.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-13727227778329360552019-10-20T00:00:00.000-04:002019-12-05T22:14:25.852-05:00Summer Reading in Review: Quantity and Quality<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6nvbTdeC8DU/XZaOzxJnFaI/AAAAAAAB_TQ/DC8c64fv2MUuQgq-GdkdEisLwJI_3BF0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/one%2Bhundred%2Bnights%2Bof%2Bhero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="356" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6nvbTdeC8DU/XZaOzxJnFaI/AAAAAAAB_TQ/DC8c64fv2MUuQgq-GdkdEisLwJI_3BF0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/one%2Bhundred%2Bnights%2Bof%2Bhero.jpg" width="142" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This summer, I read a whole lot of books. Many of them were short and sweet, quite a few were graphic novels, and most were worth the time and energy. Not all, definitely, but I found quite a few diamonds in the rough on the library and bookstore shelves.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have great memories of reading many of the books on this list. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I finished most of the <i>Nickel Boys</i> as I paced along the river's shore in a Virginia state park. <i>No</i> <i>Visible Bruises</i> took most of the summer, but I took my time due to the subject matter. I listened to <i>The Lost Gutenberg </i> as I walked to and from the library under darkening skies. I wanted to savor <i>The Testaments</i>, but instead spent much of a blistering summer weekend in Gilead, curled up in my favorite chair. I paused <i>How to Be a Good Creature</i> when Tess starting showing signs of old age.</span><br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b5GFdLVpttk/XZaQPuU4wAI/AAAAAAAB_Tk/4vk19CnPLSkLJPXoeHwz73RODf6E7yYngCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/nickel%2Bboys.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="298" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b5GFdLVpttk/XZaQPuU4wAI/AAAAAAAB_Tk/4vk19CnPLSkLJPXoeHwz73RODf6E7yYngCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/nickel%2Bboys.jpeg" width="131" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I read more titles this summer than in years past, but the total pages is probably close to my average — this summer I consumed a generous amount of juvenile fiction, picture books, and other short books. <i>(Please note: "picture books" are not the same as "graphic novels." Which you know. But it bears repeating.) </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The list below includes a mix of print books <span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">📖</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, audiobooks </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">🎧,</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> e-books </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">📲</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, library loans </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">🤓</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, graphic novels </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; white-space: pre-wrap;">🖼</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, and juvenile fiction and non-fiction </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "segoe ui emoji";">👧</span>.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<ol>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WKR2E-7Pm6s/XZaQgb8wPvI/AAAAAAAB_Ts/Dua-xsejtb0ciu3u_WDgjQE-HblGwLIPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/only%2Bhuman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1046" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WKR2E-7Pm6s/XZaQgb8wPvI/AAAAAAAB_Ts/Dua-xsejtb0ciu3u_WDgjQE-HblGwLIPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/only%2Bhuman.jpg" width="130" /></a>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I Could Pee on This Too 📲</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Fortunately the Milk </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">📖</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sorry I Barfed on Your Bed (and other heartwarming letters from Kitty) 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Only Human 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Rupert Can Dance 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Smell the Roses 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sheets 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Testaments 📖</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Hit the Slopes 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">You wouldn’t want to be sick in the 16th Century 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">No Visible Bruises 📖<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0axxGG9Q76g/XZaQpExfW2I/AAAAAAAB_Tw/BTQqQ3M8-yc82yf8zJyfR99avL-Kitg1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/summer%2Bhours%2Bat%2Bthe%2Brobbers%2Blibrary.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1063" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0axxGG9Q76g/XZaQpExfW2I/AAAAAAAB_Tw/BTQqQ3M8-yc82yf8zJyfR99avL-Kitg1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/summer%2Bhours%2Bat%2Bthe%2Brobbers%2Blibrary.jpg" width="132" /></a></div>
</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Ghost Studies 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Mr. Putter and Tabby Turn the Page 📲</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Nickel Boys 🎧</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Summer Hours at the Robbers Library 📖</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery - the graphic novel adaptation 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Someone New 📖</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Psychology of Time Travel 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Waking Gods 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Behind the Scenes at the Museum 📖<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JJO8VtIfXXA/XZaQ-pdiKDI/AAAAAAAB_T8/zLD-huGusvcNOe7izioSwZW-lP88MN5PgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/vincent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="354" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JJO8VtIfXXA/XZaQ-pdiKDI/AAAAAAAB_T8/zLD-huGusvcNOe7izioSwZW-lP88MN5PgCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/vincent.jpg" width="141" /></a></div>
</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Never Split the Difference 🎧</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Vincent 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Confessions of Max Tivoli 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Baltimore Book of the Dead 📖🤓</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">City of Ghosts 📲 🤓</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Anything is Possible 📖</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Martina the Beautiful Cockroach 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">👧</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Probable Paws (Mystic Notch Book 5) 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Severance 📖</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Last Dragon 📖🤓 </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8AlWPQpJpeM/XZaRNOF669I/AAAAAAAB_UA/Rrt35w6tC40szDmibUgKeaM4gwHvtyQGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/waking%2Bgods.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1053" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8AlWPQpJpeM/XZaRNOF669I/AAAAAAAB_UA/Rrt35w6tC40szDmibUgKeaM4gwHvtyQGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s200/waking%2Bgods.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Maneater Vol. 1 📖🤓 </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Underground Airlines 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Ghosted 📲 🤓</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Lost Gutenberg 🎧</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Nine Perfect Strangers 📖</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Beowulf on the Beach: What to Love And What to Skip on Literature’s 50 Greatest Hits 📖🤓</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Storm of Locusts 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Lost Man 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">How to be a Good Creature 🎧</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Dogs of War 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Where’d You Go, Bernadette 📖<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NZ4pF1of__Y/XZaPbRDZVXI/AAAAAAAB_Tc/2zVTtJA88w49r160yZcDiEV36zad5pwVgCEwYBhgL/s1600/the%2Btestaments.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1050" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NZ4pF1of__Y/XZaPbRDZVXI/AAAAAAAB_Tc/2zVTtJA88w49r160yZcDiEV36zad5pwVgCEwYBhgL/s200/the%2Btestaments.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Lemoncholy Life of Annie Aster 📲</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The One Hundred Nights of Hero 📖🤓</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background: white; color: #333333;">🖼</span></span></span></li>
</ol>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have quite a few "favorite" books this year. I can't decide between <i>Storm of Locusts, Underground Airlines, No Visible Bruises, The Testaments, </i>and the <i>Themis Files</i> books.</span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> What did you read this summer? Share your list in the comments below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">email me your list and I'll share it with our group</a>.</span></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1183599130867653902.post-29349344990394038672019-10-13T00:00:00.000-04:002019-10-25T08:15:29.301-04:00Review: The Psychology of Time Travel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iSLIJKkYlN4/XWXl3wUbEkI/AAAAAAAB_RA/96FtxrWLFfkWWdazBv99IVYiUCl7JnR_ACLcBGAs/s1600/psychology%2Bof%2Btime%2Btravel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1058" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iSLIJKkYlN4/XWXl3wUbEkI/AAAAAAAB_RA/96FtxrWLFfkWWdazBv99IVYiUCl7JnR_ACLcBGAs/s320/psychology%2Bof%2Btime%2Btravel.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Time travel? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Women scientists? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Animals not harmed in the making of the book? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The description of "the perfect book for Chris" should have been a fabulous read. Instead, <a href="http://www.katemascarenhas.co.uk/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kate Mascarenhas</a>' <i><a href="http://www.katemascarenhas.co.uk/blog" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Psychology of Time Travel</a></i> was surprisingly dull, with undeveloped characters and confusing storylines.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">First of all, there was no sense of time or place. Four women discover time travel in 1967. They could have discovered it at a farmhouse in Idaho or the French countryside for all the attention the setting received. In 1967, women had no standing in the world of science — and yet these women are not only embraced by the scientific community, but also have the power to privatize time travel to their financial benefit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This book introduced new time-travel rules; after <i>Avengers: Endgame</i>, I am almost numb to the tangled ideas and brutal liberties people take with this fictional practice. It's like sparkly vampires: if you write the fiction, you invent a world in which you can hang out with yourself, or multiple versions of yourself (or do whatever with yourselves, and Mascarenhas describes plenty of <i>whatever</i>). There is no sense of excitement or discovery.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Readers learn a lot about the Conclave, the proprietary corporation/society created by Margaret, to benefit her world order. There are strange rules, weird law enforcement, and a most unique monetary system. That's all well and good, but what did time travel <i>do</i>? It was never clear to me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Only a few characters were memorable — and with multiple versions of time-travelers interacting with each other, it was easy to get overwhelmed. When it wasn't confusing, much of the interaction was dull. It's a workplace with strange rules.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There wasn't a "main" story. The author tried to weave a couple of stories together, but the connections are almost desperate. Odette was traumatized by a murder scene she encounters at the toy museum where she works, and decides that working as an investigator for the Conclave would give her closure. Bee dies, and her granddaughter Ruby finds out how and why from her lover Grace. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Time travel is becoming the storyline <i>du jour</i>, and not everyone follows the rules, or even the new rules they set up. I'm a huge fan of time travel, but after this book, I'm ready to take a break. What a shame.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Did I miss something about this book that you think makes it a great read? I'd love to know, and we can discuss: leave a comment below, or <a href="mailto:chattingwithchris@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">send me an email</a>.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09213197326957514375noreply@blogger.com0