author: Kelly Kazek
name: Sally
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/09
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves:
review:
Lots of plot possums in here...
]]>
After more than a year of laying low, Billie, Helen, Mary Alice, and Natalie are called back into action. They have enjoyed their rest, but the lack of excitement is starting to chafe: a professional killer can only take so many watercolor classes and yoga sessions before she gets the itch to get back in the game. When they receive a call from Naomi Ndiaye, the head of the elite assassin organization known as the Museum, they are ready to tackle the greatest challenge of their careers.
Someone on the inside has compiled a list of important kills committed by Museum agents, all of them connected to a single, shadowy figure, an Eastern European gangster who rules her business empire with an iron fist and plays puppet master in international affairs. Naomi is convinced this criminal queen is bent upon revenge, killing off the agents who attempted to thwart her, and the aging quartet of killers is next.
Together the foursome embark on a wild ride across the globe on the double mission of rooting out the Museum’s mole and hunting down the gangster and her assassin. But their nemesis is unlike any they’ve faced before, and it will take all their experience and a whole lot of luck to get out of this mission alive.]]>
It reminds me of the movie reviewer who sneered at Pitch Perfect 3 saying it was okay if you liked silliness and female camaraderie.
Well, I do.
Which is not to say that Raybourn's work is silly because it's not. It's like James Bond + female camaraderie complete with action and humor and...a chicken? I love that Billie, Helen, Nat, and Mary Alice are in their 60s and still kicking ass. They also have their own little squabbles still just as any family would.
Taverner is, of course, dreamy.]]>
author: Deanna Raybourn
name: Sally
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/08
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves:
review:
The series, in general, and this book, in particular, are such a delight.
It reminds me of the movie reviewer who sneered at Pitch Perfect 3 saying it was okay if you liked silliness and female camaraderie.
Well, I do.
Which is not to say that Raybourn's work is silly because it's not. It's like James Bond + female camaraderie complete with action and humor and...a chicken? I love that Billie, Helen, Nat, and Mary Alice are in their 60s and still kicking ass. They also have their own little squabbles still just as any family would.
Taverner is, of course, dreamy.
]]>
Longtime organizers and movement educators Mariame Kaba and Kelly Hayes examine some of the political lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the convergence of mass protest and mass formations of mutual aid, and consider what this confluence of power can teach us about a future that will require mass acts of care, rescue and defense, in the face of both state violence and environmental disaster.
The book is an assemblage of co-authored reflections, interviews and questions that are intended to aid and empower activists and organizers as they attempt to map their own journeys through the work of justice-making. It includes insights from a spectrum of experienced organizers, including Sharon Lungo, Carlos Saavedra, Ejeris Dixon, Barbara Ransby, and Ruth Wilson Gilmore about some of the difficult and joyous lessons they have learned in their work.]]>
I, of course, chose to read this book at a very heavy time, a time full of wrongs that need to be righted. It feels as though there are more wrongs than usual, but that's probably a function of my privilege. I admit that.
I think I was hoping for more directives, more ideas. This is, instead, a book from those who have been in the trenches far longer than I have. They know far better than I do that there are limits to what individuals can do. At the end of the day, the directive of this book is to take care of each other.
I'm going to repeat that: at the end of the day, all we can do is take care of each other.
Those who are in power right now are counting on the divisions they have sown. It's hard to fight for justice when you don't trust your neighbors, much less strangers. The ultimate activism, best I can tell, is to maintain your trust and to continue to extend a helping hand.
I'll be adding highlighted passages from this book eventually, so be on the lookout for those. I know this review isn't as coherent as my reviews usually are because I read this book in bite-sized chunks over time and because I have deadline brain. [Edit: I have added those highlights. I suggest you read them rather than relying on my deadline review]]]>
author: Kelly Hayes
name: Sally
average rating: 4.57
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/29
date added: 2025/04/06
shelves:
review:
If you're new to the injustices in the world at large and in this country in particular, then this book may very well radicalize you. If you are already familiar with a lot of what's going on, then large swaths of this book may weigh you down with reminders. [Edit: while I was going through my highlights, I came across the theme of hope. How hope is necessary. So...keep going. Find the hope. Remember that, as this book says, "cynicism is a creeping enemy."]
I, of course, chose to read this book at a very heavy time, a time full of wrongs that need to be righted. It feels as though there are more wrongs than usual, but that's probably a function of my privilege. I admit that.
I think I was hoping for more directives, more ideas. This is, instead, a book from those who have been in the trenches far longer than I have. They know far better than I do that there are limits to what individuals can do. At the end of the day, the directive of this book is to take care of each other.
I'm going to repeat that: at the end of the day, all we can do is take care of each other.
Those who are in power right now are counting on the divisions they have sown. It's hard to fight for justice when you don't trust your neighbors, much less strangers. The ultimate activism, best I can tell, is to maintain your trust and to continue to extend a helping hand.
I'll be adding highlighted passages from this book eventually, so be on the lookout for those. I know this review isn't as coherent as my reviews usually are because I read this book in bite-sized chunks over time and because I have deadline brain. [Edit: I have added those highlights. I suggest you read them rather than relying on my deadline review]
]]>
author: Yana Toboso
name: Sally
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/04
date added: 2025/04/06
shelves:
review:
I really should gather these and then read them together. I keep forgetting what has happened since last I read. Still, I love this series for whatever reason. Maybe it's because Toboso and I are birthday buddies.
]]>
Having overcome financial ruin and redeemed his family name to become the most legendary investor in London, the Duke of Westmead needs to secure his holdings by producing an heir. Which means he must find a wife who won’t discover his secret craving to spend his nights on his knees—or make demands on his long scarred-over heart.
Poppy Cavendish is not that type of woman. An ambitious self-taught botanist designing the garden ballroom in which Westmead plans to woo a bride, Poppy has struggled against convention all her life to secure her hard-won independence. She wants the capital to expand her exotic nursery business—not a husband.
But there is something so compelling about Westmead, with his starchy bearing and impossibly kind eyes—that when an accidental scandal makes marriage to the duke the only means to save her nursery, Poppy worries she wants more than the title he is offering. The arrangement is meant to be just business. A greenhouse for an heir. But Poppy yearns to unravel her husband’s secrets—and to tempt the duke to risk his heart.]]>
First, Poppy is the kind of historical figure we're all looking for, someone who is very aware of the ways historical society is holding her down but also very determined to live life on her own terms. She's also curious and pragmatic and passionate all at once.
Archer was created for all of us girlies who love a tortured hero. All buttoned up. All afraid to care and yet...so kind to Poppy. He sees her as a person, a quality not often seen in some of the best romances. His respect for both her and her interests? *chef's kiss*
This is the sort of angsty push me pull me that I was was in my repertoire.
Oh...and there's some kink--very much a part of character, which is always a nice touch.]]>
author: Scarlett Peckham
name: Sally
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/05
date added: 2025/04/06
shelves:
review:
Why it took me so long to read this book, I'll never know. It was a sheer delight.
First, Poppy is the kind of historical figure we're all looking for, someone who is very aware of the ways historical society is holding her down but also very determined to live life on her own terms. She's also curious and pragmatic and passionate all at once.
Archer was created for all of us girlies who love a tortured hero. All buttoned up. All afraid to care and yet...so kind to Poppy. He sees her as a person, a quality not often seen in some of the best romances. His respect for both her and her interests? *chef's kiss*
This is the sort of angsty push me pull me that I was was in my repertoire.
Oh...and there's some kink--very much a part of character, which is always a nice touch.
]]>
July 1962. A Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.
In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective. Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret.
For readers of The Vanishing Half and Woman of Light, this showstopping debut by a vibrant new voice in fiction is a riveting novel about the search for truth, the shadow of trauma, and the persistence of love across time.]]>
I'd say this book will really speak to people who want to sink into a place and time. It probably also appeals to those who haven't come across the types of discrimination Peters details. Definitely a must for folks who like multiple POVs and present and past timelines intertwined.
Since the writing is very evocative of time and place and the subject matter is interesting and necessary, I can only conclude that I skimmed parts of this because *I* was in a mood.
Oh! I can see this book really appealing to folks who loved Lisa Wingate's Before We Were Yours.]]>
author: Amanda Peters
name: Sally
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves:
review:
I'm trying to figure out why this book didn't speak to me the way it spoke to so many other people. I think it's a combination of things: 1) I'm on deadline so I'm cranky and very hard to satisfy right now, 2) this story is more of a how and less of a why, and 3) it's a very serious book, as well it should be.
I'd say this book will really speak to people who want to sink into a place and time. It probably also appeals to those who haven't come across the types of discrimination Peters details. Definitely a must for folks who like multiple POVs and present and past timelines intertwined.
Since the writing is very evocative of time and place and the subject matter is interesting and necessary, I can only conclude that I skimmed parts of this because *I* was in a mood.
Oh! I can see this book really appealing to folks who loved Lisa Wingate's Before We Were Yours.
]]>
The close of the 20th century promised a new era of gender equality. However, the iconic women of the 1990s—such as Hillary Clinton, Courtney Love, Roseanne Barr, Marcia Clark, and Anita Hill—earned their places in history not as trailblazers, but as whipping girls of the media. During this decade, American society grew increasingly hostile to women who dared to speak up, challenge power, or defy rigid expectations for female behavior.
Deeply researched yet thoroughly engaging, 90s Bitch untangles the complex history of women in the 1990s, exploring how they were maligned by the media, vilified by popular culture, and objectified in the marketplace. In an age where even a presidential nominee can be derided as a “nasty woman,� it’s clear that the epidemic of casting women as bitches persists. To understand why we must take a long, hard look back at the 1990s—a decade in which female empowerment was twisted into bitchification and exploitation.
Yarrow’s thoughtful, clear-eyed, and timely examination is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand gender politics and how we might end the “bitch epidemic� for the next generation.]]>
Why? Because I lived through the nineties, and looking at that time in retrospect proves Yarrow's point that the 90s were a backlash to any strides women made in the 70s and 80s. Rolling back Roe v Wade, Title 9, the Voting Rights Act, ACA, and anything else the current admin can get their hands on is rolling back any strides made for women and/or people of color. I'm tired, and I know I'm only tired from one intersection of my being, so all y'all who have multiples points, I salute you. You are incredible for pushing back against all of this unnecessary hatred.
Anyhoo, I've made it to Chapter 4 where Yarrow has discussed reclamation of the word bitch, Buffy, Charmed, how the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal was ultimately sexist, and what happened to Dr. Elders. I got too mad to function. To sum up, Elders suggested that sex education should start when kids are younger (it should--in an age appropriate way), that sex ed shouldn't be abstinence based (because that doesn't work), and that masturbation should be taught as a part of sex education to combat AIDS and teen pregnancy ("self abuse" only "abuses" the self, yo). My takeaway was that Clinton should've resigned for being a horndog. Elders' comments were misrepresented and became the fodder for late night jokes. Because she was fired, our nation still suffers from higher rates of STDs than other developed nations.
Because she was fired, we also have among the highest rates of teen pregnancy among developed nations.
Maybe we should've listened to the Condom Queen.
So, maybe I'll come back to this book when I can handle it.
more on elders: ]]>
author: Allison Yarrow
name: Sally
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:
Imma have to hit pause on this one because it's making me soooooo angry.
Why? Because I lived through the nineties, and looking at that time in retrospect proves Yarrow's point that the 90s were a backlash to any strides women made in the 70s and 80s. Rolling back Roe v Wade, Title 9, the Voting Rights Act, ACA, and anything else the current admin can get their hands on is rolling back any strides made for women and/or people of color. I'm tired, and I know I'm only tired from one intersection of my being, so all y'all who have multiples points, I salute you. You are incredible for pushing back against all of this unnecessary hatred.
Anyhoo, I've made it to Chapter 4 where Yarrow has discussed reclamation of the word bitch, Buffy, Charmed, how the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal was ultimately sexist, and what happened to Dr. Elders. I got too mad to function. To sum up, Elders suggested that sex education should start when kids are younger (it should--in an age appropriate way), that sex ed shouldn't be abstinence based (because that doesn't work), and that masturbation should be taught as a part of sex education to combat AIDS and teen pregnancy ("self abuse" only "abuses" the self, yo). My takeaway was that Clinton should've resigned for being a horndog. Elders' comments were misrepresented and became the fodder for late night jokes. Because she was fired, our nation still suffers from higher rates of STDs than other developed nations.
Because she was fired, we also have among the highest rates of teen pregnancy among developed nations.
Maybe we should've listened to the Condom Queen.
So, maybe I'll come back to this book when I can handle it.
more on elders:
]]>
I like the premise of this collection, but it's angry. I'm not in an angry place right now. I'm in a tired place. I looked Lovelace up, and, yeah, she's younger than I am. I'm thinking this collection would really appeal to the thirtysomething women are just now getting to that part of life where men start dismissing them because they don't look as young and/or have put on weight and/or are crowding in on higher level positions. Bless. It gets both better and worse, my little chickadees.
I doubt there would be a market for my tired middle-aged woman poetry, so I don't mean any of that as shade. Twenty-five-year-old Sally would've loved these poems and thought she understood them only to reach thirty-five or so and go "Ooohhhh, I get it now."
Anyhoo, I did like quite a few including this gem
say it
with me
now:
"women
owe
me
nothing.
not
one
thing."
-dear men]]>
author: Amanda Lovelace
name: Sally
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:
I also checked this book out of the library. The style is very similar to rupi Kaur, and I'm still not sure how I feel about the -[thing in italics] situation, but here we all are.
I like the premise of this collection, but it's angry. I'm not in an angry place right now. I'm in a tired place. I looked Lovelace up, and, yeah, she's younger than I am. I'm thinking this collection would really appeal to the thirtysomething women are just now getting to that part of life where men start dismissing them because they don't look as young and/or have put on weight and/or are crowding in on higher level positions. Bless. It gets both better and worse, my little chickadees.
I doubt there would be a market for my tired middle-aged woman poetry, so I don't mean any of that as shade. Twenty-five-year-old Sally would've loved these poems and thought she understood them only to reach thirty-five or so and go "Ooohhhh, I get it now."
Anyhoo, I did like quite a few including this gem
say it
with me
now:
"women
owe
me
nothing.
not
one
thing."
-dear men
]]>
A few I liked:
perhaps we are all immigrants
trading one home for another
first we leave the womb for air
then the suburbs for the filthy city
in search of a better life
some of us just happen to leave entire countries
learning to not envy
someone else's blessings
is what grace looks like
if you have never
stood with the oppressed
there's still time
-lift them]]>
author: Rupi Kaur
name: Sally
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/24
date added: 2025/03/26
shelves:
review:
As part of this year's exploration of poetry, I checked this book out of the library. At first, I wasn't enthused because I had no desire to read about a break up, BUT this collection of poems opened up in such lovely ways. Kaur's work is accessible, beautiful, and a meaningful look at her life as a woman/immigrant daughter/student of life.
A few I liked:
perhaps we are all immigrants
trading one home for another
first we leave the womb for air
then the suburbs for the filthy city
in search of a better life
some of us just happen to leave entire countries
learning to not envy
someone else's blessings
is what grace looks like
if you have never
stood with the oppressed
there's still time
-lift them
]]>
The newest book from beloved author Julia Cameron, The Listening Path is a transformational journey to deeper, more profound listening and creativity. Over six weeks, readers will be given the tools to become better listeners—to their environment, the people around them, and themselves. The reward for learning to truly listen is immense. As we learn to listen, our attention is heightened and we gain healing, insight, clarity. But above all, listening creates connections and ignites a creativity that will resonate through every aspect of our lives.
Julia Cameron is the author of the explosively successful book The Artist’s Way, which has transformed the creative lives of millions of readers since it was first published. Incorporating tools from The Artist’s Way, The Listening Path offers a new method of creative and personal transformation.
Each week, readers will be challenged to expand their ability to listen in a new way, beginning by listening to their environment and culminating in learning to listen to silence. These weekly practices open up a new world of connection and fulfillment. In a culture of bustle and constant sound, The Listening Path is a deeply necessary reminder of the power of truly hearing.]]>
author: Julia Cameron
name: Sally
average rating: 3.25
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves:
review:
It's Julia Cameron doing Julia Cameron things complete with lots of stories about her dog Lily.
]]>
At the height of the Great Depression, Los Angeles oil mogul George Allan Hancock and his crew of Smithsonian scientists came upon a gruesome scene: two bodies, mummified by the searing heat, on the shore of a remote Galápagos island. For the past four years Hancock and other American elites had traveled the South Seas to collect specimens for scientific research. On one trip to the Galápagos, Hancock was surprised to discover an equally exotic group of humans: European exiles who had fled political and economic unrest, hoping to create a utopian paradise. One was so devoted to a life of isolation that he’d had his teeth extracted and replaced with a set of steel dentures.
As Hancock and his fellow American explorers would witness, paradise had turned into chaos. The three sets of exiles—a Berlin doctor and his lover, a traumatized World War I veteran and his young family, and an Austrian baroness with two adoring paramours—were riven by conflict. Petty slights led to angry confrontations. The baroness, wielding a riding crop and pearl-handled revolver, staged physical fights between her two lovers and unabashedly seduced American tourists. The conclusion was deadly: with two exiles missing and three others dead, the survivors hurled accusations of murder.
Using never-before-published archives, Abbott Kahler weaves a chilling, stranger-than-fiction tale worthy of Agatha Christie. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the march to World War II, with a mystery as alluring and curious as the Galápagos itself, Eden Undone explores the universal and timeless desire to seek utopia—and lays bare the human fallibility that, inevitably, renders such a quest doomed.]]>
Seriously. I'm a writer, but I couldn't make this shit up.
The German doctor-dentist jackwagon and his paramour concoct a plan to live away from people and choose an island off the Galapagos. Next thing you know, a WWI army vet and his paramour join them--oh, and she's pregnant. Finally, an Austrian baroness and her two "husbands" decide to get in on the action and build a luxury resort there. Why? Because Ritter, the aforementioned dentist-doctor has given all of these interview and such because he wants to be away from people but to also have everyone's attention.
(Side note: I can actually relate to pretty much all of that last sentence: being a jack wagon, wanting to be away from people, but also wanting attention. I'll reflect on these deficits of character later)
Anyhoo, the Garden of Eden it is not because people, as my husband likes to say, are terrible and we should not have them. Various denizens of Floreana will steal, argue, sleep around, hit, and commit murder. Rich Americans with yachts will come through to point and laugh, as they are wont to do. At least the billionaires in this story are kind enough to bring supplies and share a bit of their wealth.]]>
author: Abbott Kahler
name: Sally
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves:
review:
I don't know how Abbott Kahler does what she does so well, which is to tell historical stories in a way that I find riveting. I knew a bit about this story thanks to an episode done on the podcast My Favorite Murder, but that, of course, only scratched the surface of this bizarre tale.
Seriously. I'm a writer, but I couldn't make this shit up.
The German doctor-dentist jackwagon and his paramour concoct a plan to live away from people and choose an island off the Galapagos. Next thing you know, a WWI army vet and his paramour join them--oh, and she's pregnant. Finally, an Austrian baroness and her two "husbands" decide to get in on the action and build a luxury resort there. Why? Because Ritter, the aforementioned dentist-doctor has given all of these interview and such because he wants to be away from people but to also have everyone's attention.
(Side note: I can actually relate to pretty much all of that last sentence: being a jack wagon, wanting to be away from people, but also wanting attention. I'll reflect on these deficits of character later)
Anyhoo, the Garden of Eden it is not because people, as my husband likes to say, are terrible and we should not have them. Various denizens of Floreana will steal, argue, sleep around, hit, and commit murder. Rich Americans with yachts will come through to point and laugh, as they are wont to do. At least the billionaires in this story are kind enough to bring supplies and share a bit of their wealth.
]]>
It’s 1999 in Southeast Texas and the Evans women, owners of the only funeral parlor in town, are keeping steady with…normal business. The dead die, you bury them. End of story. That’s how Ducey Evans has done it for the last eighty years, and her progeny―Lenore the experimenter and Grace, Lenore’s soft-hearted daughter, have run Evans Funeral Parlor for the last fifteen years without drama. Ever since That Godawful Mess that left two bodies in the ground and Grace raising her infant daughter Luna, alone.
But when town gossip Mina Jean Murphy’s body is brought in for a regular burial and she rises from the dead instead, it’s clear that the Strigoi―the original vampire―are back. And the Evans women are the ones who need to fight back to protect their town.
As more folks in town turn up dead and Deputy Roger Taylor begins asking way too many questions, Ducey, Lenore, Grace, and now Luna, must take up their blades and figure out who is behind the Strigoi’s return. As the saying goes, what rises up, must go back down. But as unspoken secrets and revelations spill from the past into the present, the Evans family must face that sometimes, the dead aren’t the only things you want to keep buried.
A crackling mystery-horror novel with big-hearted characters and Southern charm with a bite, Bless Your Heart is a gasp-worthy delight from start to finish.]]>
I wouldn't call this a perfect book, but I would call it charming. Described as "cozy horror" to me, I would say it's small town southern fiction with a supernatural bent. I suppose their descriptor is far shorter.
Four generations of women work at a funeral home where they put back down the dead who rise again--at least things start getting out of hand. Each family member has a story, but I was, as always, partial to the. butterscotch popping granny of the bunch.]]>
author: Lindy Ryan
name: Sally
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/10
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves:
review:
That time I called a publicist to get a quote, and then I saw a book by one of their clients and had to check it out...
I wouldn't call this a perfect book, but I would call it charming. Described as "cozy horror" to me, I would say it's small town southern fiction with a supernatural bent. I suppose their descriptor is far shorter.
Four generations of women work at a funeral home where they put back down the dead who rise again--at least things start getting out of hand. Each family member has a story, but I was, as always, partial to the. butterscotch popping granny of the bunch.
]]>
One step forward. Two steps back. The Tufts scholarship that put Nora Stuart on the path to becoming a Boston medical specialist was a step forward. Being hit by a car and then overhearing her boyfriend hit on another doctor when she thought she was dying? Two major steps back.
Injured in more ways than one, Nora feels her carefully built life cracking at the edges. There’s only one place to home. But the tiny Maine community she left fifteen years ago doesn’t necessarily want her. At every turn, someone holds the prodigal daughter of Scupper Island responsible for small-town drama and big-time disappointments.
With a tough islander mother who’s always been distant, a wild-child sister in jail, and a withdrawn teenage niece as eager to ditch the island as Nora once was, Nora has her work cut out for her if she’s going to take what might be her last chance to mend the family. Balancing loss and opportunity, dark events from her past with hope for the future, Nora will discover that tackling old pain makes room for promiseĚý.Ěý.Ěý. and the chance to begin again.
“Powerful, entertainingĚý.Ěý.Ěý. Balancing emotion, humor, and a redemptive theme, Higgins hits all the right notes with precision, perception, and panache.â€� â€� Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“She only gets better with each book.� � New York Times]]>
This book is for all of us awkward nerds who had to reinvent ourselves then tear ourselves apart and stitch ourselves back together as a more authentic self.
I particularly loved Nora's mom, Sharon, and prickly niece, Poe. Sullivan Fletcher is a delicious hero. I would love to be friends with Xiaowen. I *might* cuss as much as she does, but then she would one up me just cuz.
[spoilers removed]
I hope Robert Byrnes spends the rest of his life stepping on Legos.
As you can see, Now That You Mention It is a master class in character complete with humor, heart, and quite a few little mysteries.
]]>
author: Kristan Higgins
name: Sally
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/15
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves:
review:
Oh, Kristan Higgins. How do you always make us both laugh and cry?
This book is for all of us awkward nerds who had to reinvent ourselves then tear ourselves apart and stitch ourselves back together as a more authentic self.
I particularly loved Nora's mom, Sharon, and prickly niece, Poe. Sullivan Fletcher is a delicious hero. I would love to be friends with Xiaowen. I *might* cuss as much as she does, but then she would one up me just cuz.
[spoilers removed]
I hope Robert Byrnes spends the rest of his life stepping on Legos.
As you can see, Now That You Mention It is a master class in character complete with humor, heart, and quite a few little mysteries.
]]>
Much of the essay takes on a conservative bent. Or maybe I can better see Emerson's privilege. Or maybe the essay is framed that way from the quotes that are highlighted, and the quotes within.
On the one hand, I think this is an interesting way to approach literature because the editors/authors break up the essay into digestible chunks. On the other hand, it definitely felt as though there were an agenda here.
More study will be required.]]>
author: Ralph Waldo Emerson
name: Sally
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1841
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves:
review:
It's funny how we change over time. I absolutely fell in love with the Transcendentalists when I was in Ms. Keller's American lit class. As I read read this version of "Self-Reliance," however, I wasn't as enthralled.
Much of the essay takes on a conservative bent. Or maybe I can better see Emerson's privilege. Or maybe the essay is framed that way from the quotes that are highlighted, and the quotes within.
On the one hand, I think this is an interesting way to approach literature because the editors/authors break up the essay into digestible chunks. On the other hand, it definitely felt as though there were an agenda here.
More study will be required.
]]>
Exploding the myth of de facto segregation arising from private prejudice or the unintended consequences of economic forces, Rothstein describes how the American government systematically imposed residential segregation: with undisguised racial zoning; public housing that purposefully segregated previously mixed communities; subsidies for builders to create whites-only suburbs; tax exemptions for institutions that enforced segregation; and support for violent resistance to African Americans in white neighborhoods.
A groundbreaking, “virtually indispensable� study that has already transformed our understanding of twentieth-century urban history (Chicago Daily Observer), The Color of Law forces us to face the obligation to remedy our unconstitutional past.]]>
Late in the book Rothstein quotes a textbook as saying something akin to "African-Americans found themselves living in segregated communities."
Um...they just woke up one day and bam! Segregation. No, I don't think so. I think that's a sentence purposely phrased in the passive voice to undercut the actuality of the situation: government policies combined with the overt racism of lots of white folks intentionally segregated communities, a practice that has had devastating consequences for Black folks in particular.
To sum up Rothstein in a nonacademic way--and one that will miss some key points because I accidentally took this book back to the library before I wrote this review:
1. The early end of Reconstruction meant that the formerly enslaved were pushed into the lowest paying jobs, many of which exploited them. See cropping, share.
2. Woodrow Wilson started this idea of home ownership specifically as a way to segregate communities.
3. Federal policies insured that only white people could take advantage of these opporuntities. Only white folks could get a mortgage. Zoning ordinances and neighborhood "covenants" expressly forbid Black people from moving into middle class neighborhoods even if those families had the means.
4. Governments worked with realtors to steer white families to white neighborhoods and Black families to Black neighborhoods. It was assumed that property values would go down due to nothing more than the color of a person's skin.
5. White families were able to take advantage of government programs for favorable mortgages as well as the GI bill in order to build up generational wealth. Black families were barred from these same programs.
6. Interstate systems and other "community" projects were used to further segregate communities, always pushing people of color into smaller, poor neighborhoods with crappier schools and pushing shite families out to the suburbs with nicer schools.
7. Precedence was given to highway construction rather than mass transportation which further kept Black folks isolated in poorer neighborhoods.
8. When middle class Black families attempted to integrate neighborhoods, especially in the postWWII era when housing was scarce, violent mobs kept them from doing so. The police did nothing--or they charged the folks who integrated with inciting violence rather than charging the mobs who were throwing rocks, putting burning crosses in lawns, setting houses on fire, tossing bombs.
Now, I want to pause here, and I'm going to put this in all caps because it's incredibly important:
THESE POLICIES WERE NOT LIMITED TO THE SOUTH. SAN FRANCISCO, ST LOUIS, CHICAGO, NYC, BALTIMORE, AND JUST ABOUT EVERYWHERE ELSE YOU CAN THINK OF used government policies as well as local ordinances to maintain segregation. To lay it all at the feet of the South is to ignore the larger problem.
That larger problem is that segregated housing has impacted the education, generational wealth, and community of Black Americans. As Rothstein points out, other minorities particularly immigrant communities have chosen to live in like-minded communities but only Black Americans have been kept from housing due to federal policy.
This book also reminded me of the book Hot, Hot Chicken which goes into detail about how these housing policies affected Nashville. What always kills me are stories of "urban renewal" that leveled vibrant, middle class Black neighborhoods. These policies were systematic and cruel.
And I know I left out a ton of information. I'd recommend reading this book yourself, but gird your loins for some very academic language. I'm half-tempted to do a video series where I could describe books like this for folks who are either too busy to read dense prose or who simply don't like "school." I loved school, and I still love learning. As you can see from the length of this review, I MADE some time even though I'm on deadline.]]>
author: Richard Rothstein
name: Sally
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/04
date added: 2025/03/04
shelves:
review:
In the spirit of this year's word "Both...and," I bring you this book. It's important to avoid falling into binary thought, the idea that because I love my country it has never done wrong. If individual people are made up of both good and bad and countries are made up of individual people, then wouldn't it stand to reason that countries sometimes do bad things? This is an oversimplification of a grave injustice done to Black Americans, but it's so, so important to study American history rather than American mythology.
Late in the book Rothstein quotes a textbook as saying something akin to "African-Americans found themselves living in segregated communities."
Um...they just woke up one day and bam! Segregation. No, I don't think so. I think that's a sentence purposely phrased in the passive voice to undercut the actuality of the situation: government policies combined with the overt racism of lots of white folks intentionally segregated communities, a practice that has had devastating consequences for Black folks in particular.
To sum up Rothstein in a nonacademic way--and one that will miss some key points because I accidentally took this book back to the library before I wrote this review:
1. The early end of Reconstruction meant that the formerly enslaved were pushed into the lowest paying jobs, many of which exploited them. See cropping, share.
2. Woodrow Wilson started this idea of home ownership specifically as a way to segregate communities.
3. Federal policies insured that only white people could take advantage of these opporuntities. Only white folks could get a mortgage. Zoning ordinances and neighborhood "covenants" expressly forbid Black people from moving into middle class neighborhoods even if those families had the means.
4. Governments worked with realtors to steer white families to white neighborhoods and Black families to Black neighborhoods. It was assumed that property values would go down due to nothing more than the color of a person's skin.
5. White families were able to take advantage of government programs for favorable mortgages as well as the GI bill in order to build up generational wealth. Black families were barred from these same programs.
6. Interstate systems and other "community" projects were used to further segregate communities, always pushing people of color into smaller, poor neighborhoods with crappier schools and pushing shite families out to the suburbs with nicer schools.
7. Precedence was given to highway construction rather than mass transportation which further kept Black folks isolated in poorer neighborhoods.
8. When middle class Black families attempted to integrate neighborhoods, especially in the postWWII era when housing was scarce, violent mobs kept them from doing so. The police did nothing--or they charged the folks who integrated with inciting violence rather than charging the mobs who were throwing rocks, putting burning crosses in lawns, setting houses on fire, tossing bombs.
Now, I want to pause here, and I'm going to put this in all caps because it's incredibly important:
THESE POLICIES WERE NOT LIMITED TO THE SOUTH. SAN FRANCISCO, ST LOUIS, CHICAGO, NYC, BALTIMORE, AND JUST ABOUT EVERYWHERE ELSE YOU CAN THINK OF used government policies as well as local ordinances to maintain segregation. To lay it all at the feet of the South is to ignore the larger problem.
That larger problem is that segregated housing has impacted the education, generational wealth, and community of Black Americans. As Rothstein points out, other minorities particularly immigrant communities have chosen to live in like-minded communities but only Black Americans have been kept from housing due to federal policy.
This book also reminded me of the book Hot, Hot Chicken which goes into detail about how these housing policies affected Nashville. What always kills me are stories of "urban renewal" that leveled vibrant, middle class Black neighborhoods. These policies were systematic and cruel.
And I know I left out a ton of information. I'd recommend reading this book yourself, but gird your loins for some very academic language. I'm half-tempted to do a video series where I could describe books like this for folks who are either too busy to read dense prose or who simply don't like "school." I loved school, and I still love learning. As you can see from the length of this review, I MADE some time even though I'm on deadline.
]]>
In this gemlike volume, Harjo selects her best poems from across fifty years, beginning with her early discoveries of her own voice and ending with moving reflections on our contemporary moment. Generous notes on each poem offer insight into Harjo’s inimitable poetics as she takes inspiration from Navajo horse songs and jazz, reckons with home and loss, and listens to the natural messengers of the earth. As evidenced in this transcendent collection, Joy Harjo’s “poetry is light and elixir, the very best prescription for us in wounded times� (Sandra Cisneros, Millions).]]>
author: Joy Harjo
name: Sally
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2022/12/09
date added: 2025/02/28
shelves:
review:
I'm not the biggest poetry person, but I like to expand my horizons from time to time. I like Harjo’s easy style--especially since that easy style often betrays difficult themes.
]]>
Kate Baer shot into the literary stratosphere with the publication of her debut poetry collection, What Kind of Woman, which became an instant #1 New York Times bestseller.
Kate's second full-length book of traditional poetry, And Yet, dives deeper into the themes that are the hallmarks of her writing: motherhood, friendship, love, and loss. Taken together, these poems demonstrate the remarkable evolution of a writer and an artist working at the height of her craft, pushing herself and her poetry in a beautiful and impressive way.
Intimate, evocative, and bold, Kate's beguiling poetry firmly positions her in the company of Dorianne Laux, Mary Oliver, Maggie Nelson, and other great female poets of our time.]]>
For the most part, sadly, I do not retain poetry other than the one about chickens by the wheelbarrow and the classic purple cow. That said, I think reading poetry improves my prose. Reading poetry by women heals my heart and makes me think.
Baer has some good ones in here, but I think I'm most partial to "Help Wanted: A Bonus Wife" because what mother hasn't thought at some time or the other that they could use another set of hands? My second favorite is one entitled "Grounds for Divorce" in which her husband recounts the births of their children "like a camp counselor describing cold lake water." Fun times.
Anyhoo, glad I picked this one up. I think I'm a little old for all of these to resonate with me in terms of subject matter, but I appreciate Baer's way with words.]]>
author: Kate Baer
name: Sally
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/24
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
review:
I decided I wanted to read more poetry this year, and I saw this book at the library.
For the most part, sadly, I do not retain poetry other than the one about chickens by the wheelbarrow and the classic purple cow. That said, I think reading poetry improves my prose. Reading poetry by women heals my heart and makes me think.
Baer has some good ones in here, but I think I'm most partial to "Help Wanted: A Bonus Wife" because what mother hasn't thought at some time or the other that they could use another set of hands? My second favorite is one entitled "Grounds for Divorce" in which her husband recounts the births of their children "like a camp counselor describing cold lake water." Fun times.
Anyhoo, glad I picked this one up. I think I'm a little old for all of these to resonate with me in terms of subject matter, but I appreciate Baer's way with words.
]]>
When Tyler Merritt was diagnosed with cancer, everything he thought he knew about what mattered in life changed. This Changes Everything is a humorous and optimistic love letter to this beautiful life.
Though he made it through a highly invasive surgery and thought he was in the clear, Tyler soon realized that the cancer had other plans. It wasn’t a question of if the tumor would come back for an encore, his doctors told him. It was a question of when. Laced with Tyler’s trademark humor, love of pop culture, and arguably too many musical theater references, This Changes Everything is a story about how wrestling with the idea of death can birth a whole new outlook on life, how we live it, and the urgency that comes when you grasp that time is a precious commodity.]]>
Normally I hate to encourage folks when they say something like "I'm the funniest," but I gotta admit...Tyler Merritt is pretty damn funny. I appreciate and somewhat resemble his dedication to both sports and musical theater.
Even more so, I relate and resemble his tendency to mask all things serious with humor. And his tendency to relate just about everything to a song lyric since I just thought "Hi! It's me. I'm the problem it's me."
This is a funny, poignant, highly readable memoir about, well, all of those topics mentioned in the subtitle. I especially appreciate his take on biscuits (yes) and on Jesus (quit hijacking the Lord, please and thank you)
I'm also very excited that I managed to finish this book a day before the book club meeting.]]>
author: Tyler Merritt
name: Sally
average rating: 4.55
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/26
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
review:
My first foray into the Jen Hatmaker Book Club!
Normally I hate to encourage folks when they say something like "I'm the funniest," but I gotta admit...Tyler Merritt is pretty damn funny. I appreciate and somewhat resemble his dedication to both sports and musical theater.
Even more so, I relate and resemble his tendency to mask all things serious with humor. And his tendency to relate just about everything to a song lyric since I just thought "Hi! It's me. I'm the problem it's me."
This is a funny, poignant, highly readable memoir about, well, all of those topics mentioned in the subtitle. I especially appreciate his take on biscuits (yes) and on Jesus (quit hijacking the Lord, please and thank you)
I'm also very excited that I managed to finish this book a day before the book club meeting.
]]>
Micro Activism gives us excellent strategies for pushing past being overwhelmed, and those strategies are excellent for life and for activism. I love the part where Williams says something akin to figure out how much time you have to dedicate to a cause. Now halve it because people tend to overestimate what they can do and underestimate how long it will take. That's my life in a nutshell.
I will say I still have no idea what my particular skillset would be. On the quiz I was all over the place. Maybe producer?
Also, I left my e copy open to the digital resources because I think two things are very important. One, that when we are advocating for folks, those people do need to be in the center of the movement. Two, we should look to the experts. Mind you, I've been looking for the experts and haven't been able to find them, so I'm going to refer back to that list at the end of the book.
I'm strongly considering getting together a group of folks with varied interests because Williams points out that we need small tasks performed consistently. It's rather hard to narrow one's focus when one has anxiety and an almost limitless capacity for worry. If I got together some folks and knew that so-and-so would be tackling this issue, and so-and-so will take that one, so I can focus on this third one, then that might help. It might help all of us.
Okay, so next steps: figure out my thing and start doing it.]]>
author: Omkari Williams
name: Sally
average rating: 4.18
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/26
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
review:
I've long believed that more people are perfectionists than lazy.
Micro Activism gives us excellent strategies for pushing past being overwhelmed, and those strategies are excellent for life and for activism. I love the part where Williams says something akin to figure out how much time you have to dedicate to a cause. Now halve it because people tend to overestimate what they can do and underestimate how long it will take. That's my life in a nutshell.
I will say I still have no idea what my particular skillset would be. On the quiz I was all over the place. Maybe producer?
Also, I left my e copy open to the digital resources because I think two things are very important. One, that when we are advocating for folks, those people do need to be in the center of the movement. Two, we should look to the experts. Mind you, I've been looking for the experts and haven't been able to find them, so I'm going to refer back to that list at the end of the book.
I'm strongly considering getting together a group of folks with varied interests because Williams points out that we need small tasks performed consistently. It's rather hard to narrow one's focus when one has anxiety and an almost limitless capacity for worry. If I got together some folks and knew that so-and-so would be tackling this issue, and so-and-so will take that one, so I can focus on this third one, then that might help. It might help all of us.
Okay, so next steps: figure out my thing and start doing it.
]]>
All the while, Farrow and his producer faced a degree of resistance that could not be explained - until now. And a trail of clues revealed corruption and cover-ups from Hollywood, to Washington, and beyond.
This is the untold story of the exotic tactics of surveillance and intimidation deployed by wealthy and connected men to threaten journalists, evade accountability and silence victims of abuse - and it's the story of the women who risked everything to expose the truth and spark a global movement.
Both a spy thriller and a meticulous work of investigative journalism, Catch and Kill breaks devastating new stories about the rampant abuse of power - and sheds far-reaching light on investigations that shook the culture.
In a dramatic account of violence and espionage, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Ronan Farrow exposes serial abusers and a cabal of powerful interests hell-bent on covering up the truth, at any cost.]]>
I add the qualifier of almost only because once Farrow gets past having the New Yorker piece published, it gets a little...lost? All very important information, though, and tying in the Matt Lauer allegations and the Tr*mp allegations only makes sense considering the connection to The National Enquirer and their whole cottage industry of burying stories. I've seen a criticism that Farrow talks too much about his personal life, but I didn't feel that way at all. He pretty deftly tells a bunch of different stories that wind into one, and his personal story is one of those threads. Similarly, I can't fault him for wanting to work things out with NBC. The heart wants what it wants, and sometimes it takes a lot to realize we can't MAKE things work the way we want them to. Oh, and mazel tov to him and Jonathan.
This is not a book for the faint of heart. So many women were assaulted, their lives irrevocably changed, their careers killed. And for what? Some guy who couldn't take no for an answer. Not only that, but there was--and still is--a whole network of men who will protect each other. We women are...disposable.
Beyond the abuse of women, there's a larger abuse of power, and I think we should all be deeply concerned by how men--and it's almost always men, isn't it--in high places can kill a story. It behooves us all to think critically about what gets reported and why. Whose story is told; whose story is left out.
Farrow doesn't mention this, but I made the connection that Ann Curry was let go not long after she informed HR that they had a problem on their hands with Lauer. Meredith Vieira was shuttled to her own show that was subsequently canceled at about the same time for probably the same reason. Add two more women to the ranks of those who faced demotions of a sort. That's a hunch for Vieira who no doubt deserved her show, but it kinda smacked to me of a way to put some distance between her complaint and her firing as if to guard against any law suits. Other employees experienced this.
What still shocks me is the number of people who are still there. I suppose the Comcast guy isn't going anywhere since they bought NBC Universal, but allllll of the lawyers are still there. I understand that they took their orders from other folks, but still. I think of all the actresses who were blocked from roles, all of the women journalists who were traumatized and then fired, and even Rich McHugh who doesn't appear to be living on a ranch in New Zealand like a certain someone.
Another important takeaway, something I've been realizing in the past few years is that we, and by we I mean me, have to be careful about those we defend. Some guys probably didn't legitimately know how bad Weinstein was because Weinstein wasn't calling them up to his hotel room and doing the things he would do. Respect to Colin Firth for apologizing that he didn't do more. Similarly, I have learned the hard way that some white people have one face and one personality for me but a completely different one for people of color or for people in the LGBTQ community or...you name it. I look like a "Karen." One of my greatest regrets is being slow on the uptake in that regard.
At the end of the day, absolute power really does corrupt absolutely. With oligarchs owning the press, that's one less check, one less balance. Also, I wish the world would pay more attention to how people treat each other when looking to a leader. Men who abuse women do not make good leaders. People who systematically mistreat other people due to their race, gender, religion, or politics do not make good leaders. Behold, exhibit A; *gestures widely to the world around her in the year 2025*
And now I need to go read a romance with a feisty heroine and a hero who solidly has her back as a palate cleanser, because between this book and the Brazilian movie I watched yesterday, I am...not feeling all that optimistic.]]>
author: Ronan Farrow
name: Sally
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/18
date added: 2025/02/18
shelves:
review:
A book on journalism that almost reads like a thriller. I'd be shocked if there isn't a movie version of this somewhere in the works. Well, I know it won't be Miramax...
I add the qualifier of almost only because once Farrow gets past having the New Yorker piece published, it gets a little...lost? All very important information, though, and tying in the Matt Lauer allegations and the Tr*mp allegations only makes sense considering the connection to The National Enquirer and their whole cottage industry of burying stories. I've seen a criticism that Farrow talks too much about his personal life, but I didn't feel that way at all. He pretty deftly tells a bunch of different stories that wind into one, and his personal story is one of those threads. Similarly, I can't fault him for wanting to work things out with NBC. The heart wants what it wants, and sometimes it takes a lot to realize we can't MAKE things work the way we want them to. Oh, and mazel tov to him and Jonathan.
This is not a book for the faint of heart. So many women were assaulted, their lives irrevocably changed, their careers killed. And for what? Some guy who couldn't take no for an answer. Not only that, but there was--and still is--a whole network of men who will protect each other. We women are...disposable.
Beyond the abuse of women, there's a larger abuse of power, and I think we should all be deeply concerned by how men--and it's almost always men, isn't it--in high places can kill a story. It behooves us all to think critically about what gets reported and why. Whose story is told; whose story is left out.
Farrow doesn't mention this, but I made the connection that Ann Curry was let go not long after she informed HR that they had a problem on their hands with Lauer. Meredith Vieira was shuttled to her own show that was subsequently canceled at about the same time for probably the same reason. Add two more women to the ranks of those who faced demotions of a sort. That's a hunch for Vieira who no doubt deserved her show, but it kinda smacked to me of a way to put some distance between her complaint and her firing as if to guard against any law suits. Other employees experienced this.
What still shocks me is the number of people who are still there. I suppose the Comcast guy isn't going anywhere since they bought NBC Universal, but allllll of the lawyers are still there. I understand that they took their orders from other folks, but still. I think of all the actresses who were blocked from roles, all of the women journalists who were traumatized and then fired, and even Rich McHugh who doesn't appear to be living on a ranch in New Zealand like a certain someone.
Another important takeaway, something I've been realizing in the past few years is that we, and by we I mean me, have to be careful about those we defend. Some guys probably didn't legitimately know how bad Weinstein was because Weinstein wasn't calling them up to his hotel room and doing the things he would do. Respect to Colin Firth for apologizing that he didn't do more. Similarly, I have learned the hard way that some white people have one face and one personality for me but a completely different one for people of color or for people in the LGBTQ community or...you name it. I look like a "Karen." One of my greatest regrets is being slow on the uptake in that regard.
At the end of the day, absolute power really does corrupt absolutely. With oligarchs owning the press, that's one less check, one less balance. Also, I wish the world would pay more attention to how people treat each other when looking to a leader. Men who abuse women do not make good leaders. People who systematically mistreat other people due to their race, gender, religion, or politics do not make good leaders. Behold, exhibit A; *gestures widely to the world around her in the year 2025*
And now I need to go read a romance with a feisty heroine and a hero who solidly has her back as a palate cleanser, because between this book and the Brazilian movie I watched yesterday, I am...not feeling all that optimistic.
]]>
Inspector Treadles, Charlotte Holmes’s friend and collaborator, has been found locked in a room with two dead men, both of whom worked with his wife at the great manufacturing enterprise she has recently inherited.
Rumors fly. Had Inspector Treadles killed the men because they had opposed his wife’s initiatives at every turn? Had he killed in a fit of jealous rage, because he suspected Mrs. Treadles of harboring deeper feelings for one of the men? To make matters worse, he refuses to speak on his own behalf, despite the overwhelming evidence against him.
Charlotte finds herself in a case strewn with lies and secrets. But which lies are to cover up small sins, and which secrets would flay open a past better left forgotten? Not to mention, how can she concentrate on these murders, when Lord Ingram, her oldest friend and sometime lover, at last dangles before her the one thing she has always wanted?]]>
Somewhere, somehow, though, I lost the thread of the mystery in the last few pages. Probably on me, if we're being honest, because I like to read multiple books at once and may have forgotten some details here and there. The explanation just didn't hit as well as it usually does.
Buuuuutttt I'm here for the characters, so I continue on. And do take seriously my caveat because it was probably user error.]]>
author: Sherry Thomas
name: Sally
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/16
date added: 2025/02/18
shelves:
review:
Let's be honest, I keep reading this series for the characters rather than the mysteries. Holmes and Lord Ingram's romance is progressing nicely. Also, happy to see the Treadles reach an accord.
Somewhere, somehow, though, I lost the thread of the mystery in the last few pages. Probably on me, if we're being honest, because I like to read multiple books at once and may have forgotten some details here and there. The explanation just didn't hit as well as it usually does.
Buuuuutttt I'm here for the characters, so I continue on. And do take seriously my caveat because it was probably user error.
]]>
As my friend Maggie says, hurt people hurt people. Shame causes us to hurt both others and ourselves. This book is another entry on God's syllabus that reminds me that in order to be compassionate to others we must also be compassionate to ourselves.
Some other key takeaways:
1. "You cannot shame or belittle people into changing their behaviors." The clinical director of a residential treatment facility said this to Brené Brown, and I am now repeating it to you.
2. You cannot shame or belittle yourself into changing your behaviors. This is a 2x4 from the Holy Spirit to me, an idea that has been repeated in about eleventy-billion things I've read in the past two years, this book included. "Shame corrodes the very part of us that believes we are capable of changing."
3. "Shame diminishes our capacity to practice empathy."
which is really bad because
4. The empathy of shared experience is the quickest way to kill shame.
5. "...there is a power in writing down our thoughts, reading them, and reflecting on them."
6. If you know the sensitive issues that trigger your shame, you'll be more likely to develop what Brown calls shame resilience.
7. For women those triggers are usually one or more of the following: appearance/body image, motherhood, family, parenting, money/work, mental and physical health, sex, aging, religion, and anything that could earn you a label, i.e. being stereotyped or surviving trauma.
8. For men, most shame comes down to one thing: don't be weak. Men should be allowed to have a full range of emotions. Sadness, depression, shame--none of these are a weakness. The flip side of feminism is that men should be allowed to
9. When we experience shame--and all of us do--we tend to either shut down/withdraw or act out. Instead, we should learn to express our feelings and to ask for what we need.
10. Additionally, we can discharge shame by reaching out to those we know and love and trust in order to tell our stories. If someone reaches out to us, we need to do the best we can to normalize the feelings of others, to help them contextualize their experience and thus demystify the shame.
11. Despite the very human tendency to focus on our shortcomings, it's crucial that we recognize the things we do well. Even our weaknesses have a strength on their flip side.
12. Harriet Lerner: "Although the connections are not always obvious, personal change is inseparable from social and political change." A part of happiness is authenticity, and authenticity is being yourself even when social and political forces want you to be someone else.
13. How do we go beyond our own shame to connect with others? To quote Brown's mama (and mine, probably), "You do it because that's the person you want to be. You do it because that could have been me and one day it could just as easily be you."
And most importantly for this day and time (and always)
From Mavis Leno: "If you want to make a difference, the next time you see someone being cruel to another human being, take it personally. Take it personally because it is personal."
Which is to say, I'm sorry for all the times I allowed my shame to hurt any of you. Truly.
Perfection is unattainable, something it's taken me a while to figure out, but small improvements are the way we get better. To quote Mike Myers as Middle-Aged Man, "I'm working on it! I'm working on it!"
]]>
author: BreneBrown
name: Sally
average rating: 4.18
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/11
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves:
review:
Treads a lot of the same ground as Daring Greatly, but I don't care. I could use a little Brené Brown to sit on my shoulder and remind me not to let shame get the best of me.
As my friend Maggie says, hurt people hurt people. Shame causes us to hurt both others and ourselves. This book is another entry on God's syllabus that reminds me that in order to be compassionate to others we must also be compassionate to ourselves.
Some other key takeaways:
1. "You cannot shame or belittle people into changing their behaviors." The clinical director of a residential treatment facility said this to Brené Brown, and I am now repeating it to you.
2. You cannot shame or belittle yourself into changing your behaviors. This is a 2x4 from the Holy Spirit to me, an idea that has been repeated in about eleventy-billion things I've read in the past two years, this book included. "Shame corrodes the very part of us that believes we are capable of changing."
3. "Shame diminishes our capacity to practice empathy."
which is really bad because
4. The empathy of shared experience is the quickest way to kill shame.
5. "...there is a power in writing down our thoughts, reading them, and reflecting on them."
6. If you know the sensitive issues that trigger your shame, you'll be more likely to develop what Brown calls shame resilience.
7. For women those triggers are usually one or more of the following: appearance/body image, motherhood, family, parenting, money/work, mental and physical health, sex, aging, religion, and anything that could earn you a label, i.e. being stereotyped or surviving trauma.
8. For men, most shame comes down to one thing: don't be weak. Men should be allowed to have a full range of emotions. Sadness, depression, shame--none of these are a weakness. The flip side of feminism is that men should be allowed to
9. When we experience shame--and all of us do--we tend to either shut down/withdraw or act out. Instead, we should learn to express our feelings and to ask for what we need.
10. Additionally, we can discharge shame by reaching out to those we know and love and trust in order to tell our stories. If someone reaches out to us, we need to do the best we can to normalize the feelings of others, to help them contextualize their experience and thus demystify the shame.
11. Despite the very human tendency to focus on our shortcomings, it's crucial that we recognize the things we do well. Even our weaknesses have a strength on their flip side.
12. Harriet Lerner: "Although the connections are not always obvious, personal change is inseparable from social and political change." A part of happiness is authenticity, and authenticity is being yourself even when social and political forces want you to be someone else.
13. How do we go beyond our own shame to connect with others? To quote Brown's mama (and mine, probably), "You do it because that's the person you want to be. You do it because that could have been me and one day it could just as easily be you."
And most importantly for this day and time (and always)
From Mavis Leno: "If you want to make a difference, the next time you see someone being cruel to another human being, take it personally. Take it personally because it is personal."
Which is to say, I'm sorry for all the times I allowed my shame to hurt any of you. Truly.
Perfection is unattainable, something it's taken me a while to figure out, but small improvements are the way we get better. To quote Mike Myers as Middle-Aged Man, "I'm working on it! I'm working on it!"
]]>
Selah knows her rules for being normal.
She always, always sticks to them. This means keeping her feelings locked tightly inside, despite the way they build up inside her as each school day goes on, so that she has to run to the bathroom and hide in the stall until she can calm down. So that she has to tear off her normal-person mask the second she gets home from school, and listen to her favorite pop song on repeat, trying to recharge. Selah feels like a dragon stuck in a world of humans, but she knows how to hide it.
Until the day she explodes and hits a fellow student.
Selah's friends pull away from her, her school threatens expulsion, and her comfortable, familiar world starts to crumble.
But as Selah starts to figure out more about who she is, she comes to understand that different doesn’t mean damaged. Can she get her school to understand that, too, before it’s too late?]]>
It's a novel(?) but told in a series of poems. Selah is in middle school--the worst--and being on the spectrum is catching up with her. What a wonderful story about a girl who digs deep to find out why she feels the way she does, learns to speak up for herself, and positively inspires those around her.
Not ashamed to admit I cried several times.
Beautifully done.]]>
author: Meg Eden Kuyatt
name: Sally
average rating: 4.47
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/11
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves:
review:
I loved, loved, loved this book.
It's a novel(?) but told in a series of poems. Selah is in middle school--the worst--and being on the spectrum is catching up with her. What a wonderful story about a girl who digs deep to find out why she feels the way she does, learns to speak up for herself, and positively inspires those around her.
Not ashamed to admit I cried several times.
Beautifully done.
]]>
The once-rising literary star Olivia Fitzgerald is down on her luck. Her most recent novel—a retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca—was a flop, her boyfriend of nine years just dumped her and she’s battling a bad case of writer’s block. So when her agent calls her with a high-paying ghostwriting opportunity, Olivia is all too willing to sign the NDA.
At first, the write-for-hire job seems too good to be true. All she has to do is interview Henry “Ash� Asherwood, a reclusive mega billionaire, twice named People’s Sexiest Man Alive, who wants her help in writing a book that reveals a shocking secret about his late grandmother and Daphne du Maurier. But when Olivia arrives at his Malibu estate, nothing is as it seems. The more Olivia digs into his grandmother’s past, the more questions she has—and before she knows it, she’s trapped in a gothic mystery of her own.
With as many twists and turns as the California coast, The Fiction Writer is a thriller that explores the boundaries of creative freedom and whose stories we have the right to tell.]]>
author: Jillian Cantor
name: Sally
average rating: 3.16
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
After a childhood picking cotton, he became an expert marksman under his master’s tutelage, winning shooting contests throughout the region. His skill had serious implications, however, as the Civil War broke out. Reeves was given to his master’s mercurial, sadistic, Moby-Dick-quoting son in the hopes that Reeves would keep him safe in battle. The ensuing humiliation, love, heroics, war, mind games, and fear solidified Reeves’s determination to gain his freedom and drew him one step further on his fated path to an illustrious career.
Follow the Angels, Follow the Doves is an important historical work that places Reeves in the pantheon of American heroes and a thrilling historical novel that narrates a great man’s exploits amid the near-mythic world of the nineteenth-century frontier.
Ěý±Ő±Ő>
This novel starts on a plantation, and I've got some feelings about lots of things going on. First, there's the "Note on Language" where Thompson wanted to use a certain hateful word but the University of Nebraska Press had him write it as "n_____." Honestly, at this point, I've read a great deal of historical fiction by Black authors who can convey such things without ever having to use the word.
Then there was the scene where the enslaved workers "laughed with the overseer and remarked on their good fortune that the sun was absent that day."
Eh, I don't think I can do this one. Thompson teaches African-American lit and creative writing and may very well know much more on the subject than I do. Lord knows I'm not wanting any kind of trauma p*rn, either.
Methinks it's not for me.]]>
author: Sidney Thompson
name: Sally
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/07
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves:
review:
Here's the thing: I want to read about Bass Reeves, but IDK.
This novel starts on a plantation, and I've got some feelings about lots of things going on. First, there's the "Note on Language" where Thompson wanted to use a certain hateful word but the University of Nebraska Press had him write it as "n_____." Honestly, at this point, I've read a great deal of historical fiction by Black authors who can convey such things without ever having to use the word.
Then there was the scene where the enslaved workers "laughed with the overseer and remarked on their good fortune that the sun was absent that day."
Eh, I don't think I can do this one. Thompson teaches African-American lit and creative writing and may very well know much more on the subject than I do. Lord knows I'm not wanting any kind of trauma p*rn, either.
Methinks it's not for me.
]]>
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.
But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile� humans. They incinerate them.
With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.
She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.
Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die]]>
I'm not sure romantasy is my thing, but I may come back to it at a later date.]]>
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: Sally
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves:
review:
I checked this one out of the library, too. Got about 20 pages in before I had to return it.
I'm not sure romantasy is my thing, but I may come back to it at a later date.
]]>
Cairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha’arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she’s certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer.
So when someone murders a secret brotherhood dedicated to one of the most famous men in history, al-Jahiz, Agent Fatma is called onto the case. Al-Jahiz transformed the world 50 years ago when he opened up the veil between the magical and mundane realms, before vanishing into the unknown. This murderer claims to be al-Jahiz, returned to condemn the modern age for its social oppressions. His dangerous magical abilities instigate unrest in the streets of Cairo that threaten to spill over onto the global stage.
Alongside her Ministry colleagues and her clever girlfriend Siti, Agent Fatma must unravel the mystery behind this imposter to restore peace to the city -or face the possibility he could be exactly who he seems…]]>
I can kinda see what she meant. One, Egypt. Two, a certain voice. But...I had to return it to the library before the cruise so I haven't finished it. May come back to it.]]>
author: P. Djèlà Clark
name: Sally
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves:
review:
I picked this up because it was recommended by the TikTokker who's recommending books similar to the 1999 cinematic classic, The Mummy.
I can kinda see what she meant. One, Egypt. Two, a certain voice. But...I had to return it to the library before the cruise so I haven't finished it. May come back to it.
]]>
Part of an ancient Hindu epic poem, the dialogue of the Bhagavad Gita takes place on a battlefield, where a war for the possession of a North Indian kingdom is about to ensue between two noble families related by blood. The epic's hero, young Prince Arjuna, is torn between his duty as a warrior and his revulsion at the thought of his brothers and cousins killing each other over control of the realm. Frozen by this ethical dilemma, he debates the big questions of life and death with the supreme Hindu deity Krishna, cleverly disguised as his charioteer. By the end of the story, Eastern beliefs about mortality and reincarnation, the vision and practice of yoga, the Indian social order and its responsibilities, family loyalty, spiritual knowledge, and the loftiest pursuits of the human heart are explored in depth. Explaining the very purpose of life and existence, this classic has stood the test of twenty-three centuries. It is presented here in a thoroughly accurate, illuminating, and beautiful translation that is sure to become the standard for our day.
]]>Honestly? Still processing because I don't want to say anything insensitive about a text that is sacred to others.]]>
author: Graham M. Schweig
name: Sally
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/05
date added: 2025/02/07
shelves:
review:
So I've read this book AND the commentary because I'm the weirdo that read "The Custom House" before The Scarlet Letter even though I didn't have to.
Honestly? Still processing because I don't want to say anything insensitive about a text that is sacred to others.
]]>
An imposing, isolated hotel, high up in the Swiss Alps, is the last place Elin Warner wants to be. But she's taken time off from her job as a detective, so when she receives an invitation out of the blue to celebrate her estranged brother's recent engagement, she has no choice but to accept.
Arriving in the midst of a threatening storm, Elin immediately feels on edge. Though it's beautiful, something about the hotel, recently converted from an abandoned sanatorium, makes her nervous - as does her brother, Isaac.
And when they wake the following morning to discover his fiancée Laure has vanished without a trace, Elin's unease grows. With the storm cutting off access to and from the hotel, the longer Laure stays missing, the more the remaining guests start to panic.
But no-one has realized yet that another woman has gone missing. And she's the only one who could have warned them just how much danger they're all in . . .]]>
Absolutely could not put this down from about 60% on. Great book for a cruise, even if it was weird to read about snow and cold while basking in the sun. Maybe the best way to read the book.
I liked how Pearse played with the ideas of brothers and sisters and grief in a book that's ostensibly a page turner. I did think the ending was a little convoluted, but I'll allow it because it was such a fun read.]]>
author: Sarah Pearse
name: Sally
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/05
date added: 2025/02/06
shelves:
review:
So this was written for me, that woman who has a morbid fascination with old sanitariums, mental asylums, et al. I found Detective Warner to be very sympathetic even if I thought she sometimes acted a little TSTL (too stupid to live). Lord knows she tried to off herself.
Absolutely could not put this down from about 60% on. Great book for a cruise, even if it was weird to read about snow and cold while basking in the sun. Maybe the best way to read the book.
I liked how Pearse played with the ideas of brothers and sisters and grief in a book that's ostensibly a page turner. I did think the ending was a little convoluted, but I'll allow it because it was such a fun read.
]]>
The United States is currently home to six generations: the Silents, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, Generation Z, and Generation Alpha. They have had vastly different life experiences and thus, one assumes, they must have vastly diverging beliefs and behaviors--but what are those differences, what causes them, and how deep do they actually run?
Professor of psychology Jean Twenge does a deep dive into a treasure trove of long-running, government-funded surveys and databases to answer these questions. Are we truly defined by major historical events, such as the Great Depression for the Silents and September 11 for Millennials? Or, as Twenge argues, is it the rapid evolution of technology that differentiates the generations?
With her clear-eyed and insightful voice, Twenge explores what the Silents and Boomers want out of the rest of their lives; how Gen X-ers are facing middle age; the ideals of Millennials as parents and in the workplace; and how Gen Z has been changed by COVID-19, among other fascinating topics. Surprising, engaging, and informative, Generations will forever change the way you view your parents, peers, coworkers, and children, no matter what your generation.]]>
Key takeaways: We've moved from collectivism to individualism. As Twenge points out, neither concept is all good or all bad, BUT extreme individualism has led us to where we are today: disconnected, polarized, anxious, angry.
Twenge further posits that these changes have all been driven by social media. While social media could be a good thing, it's currently monetized in such a way that negative information gets more clicks. More clicks = more money. I think you can see the problem here. I especially worry about Gen Z because they've grown up knowing nothing else and are more depressed and anxious than they ought to be based on all of this negative information.
Each generation is especially suffering from a lack of physical activity, especially Gen Alpha. The rise of all of this technology could even be leading to our current "Great Sex Recession."
A little regulation would go a long way, but, in the year of our Lord 2025, with a current political regime that has benefited from all of the negativity of our current state, I don't see that happening. No matter your political leanings, I would hope we could all agree that this tech should be regulated in order to prevent further harm to our kids, ourselves, and our nations. Misinformation is rampant.
Also, this book has highlighted a greater need for community, something my prescient mother pointed out long ago. At some point we need to reach beyond the powers that aim to polarize us and learn to trust each other again.]]>
author: Jean M. Twenge
name: Sally
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/05
date added: 2025/02/06
shelves:
review:
Absolutely fascinating book. I could write a book about this book, but I simply don't have the time.
Key takeaways: We've moved from collectivism to individualism. As Twenge points out, neither concept is all good or all bad, BUT extreme individualism has led us to where we are today: disconnected, polarized, anxious, angry.
Twenge further posits that these changes have all been driven by social media. While social media could be a good thing, it's currently monetized in such a way that negative information gets more clicks. More clicks = more money. I think you can see the problem here. I especially worry about Gen Z because they've grown up knowing nothing else and are more depressed and anxious than they ought to be based on all of this negative information.
Each generation is especially suffering from a lack of physical activity, especially Gen Alpha. The rise of all of this technology could even be leading to our current "Great Sex Recession."
A little regulation would go a long way, but, in the year of our Lord 2025, with a current political regime that has benefited from all of the negativity of our current state, I don't see that happening. No matter your political leanings, I would hope we could all agree that this tech should be regulated in order to prevent further harm to our kids, ourselves, and our nations. Misinformation is rampant.
Also, this book has highlighted a greater need for community, something my prescient mother pointed out long ago. At some point we need to reach beyond the powers that aim to polarize us and learn to trust each other again.
]]>
Here, for the first time, Ina Garten presents an intimate, entertaining, and inspiring account of her remarkable journey. Ina’s gift is to make everything look easy, yet all her accomplishments have been the result of hard work, audacious choices, and exquisite attention to detail. In her unmistakable voice (no one tells a story like Ina), she brings her past and her process to life in a high-spirited and no-holds-barred memoir that chronicles decades of personal challenges, adventures (and misadventures) and unexpected career twists, all delivered with her signature combination of playfulness and purpose.
From a difficult childhood to meeting the love of her life, Jeffrey, and marrying him while still in college, from a boring bureaucratic job in Washington, D.C., to answering an ad for a specialty food store in the Hamptons, from the owner of one Barefoot Contessa shop to author of bestselling cookbooks and celebrated television host, Ina has blazed her own trail and, in the meantime, taught millions of people how to cook and entertain. Now, she invites them to come closer to experience her story in vivid detail and to share the important life lessons she learned along the way: do what you love because if you love it you’ll be really good at it, swing for the fences, and always Be Ready When the Luck Happens.]]>
author: Ina Garten
name: Sally
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
author: Art T. Burton
name: Sally
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
Celebrated feminist advocate Caroline Criado Perez investigates the shocking root cause of gender inequality and research in Invisible Women�, diving into women’s lives at home, the workplace, the public square, the doctor’s office, and more. Built on hundreds of studies in the US, the UK, and around the world, and written with energy, wit, and sparkling intelligence, this is a groundbreaking, unforgettable exposé that will change the way you look at the world.]]>
I wish I'd written this particular review sooner because now I've forgotten a great deal of the information I read. For one thing, it's a lot os statistics, and my brain so doesn't want to remember numbers.
That said, if you're looking for a book that will back you up when you say women aren't considered in, well, anything, this is it.]]>
author: Caroline Criado PĂ©rez
name: Sally
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/22
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:
A depressing yet enlightening onslaught of data on all the ways the world refuses to acknowledge half its population. Everything form medical information to snow-clearing is covered by Perez.
I wish I'd written this particular review sooner because now I've forgotten a great deal of the information I read. For one thing, it's a lot os statistics, and my brain so doesn't want to remember numbers.
That said, if you're looking for a book that will back you up when you say women aren't considered in, well, anything, this is it.
]]>
But nothing can stop Violet from wanting to shed her wallflower ways and fulfill her darkest, most forbidden desires…even if it means seducing a man twice her age.
Note: My Dirty Duke was originally published in the Duke I'd Like to F... anthology.]]>
Listen, this is a novella that speaks more truth to Victorian times that one usually sees in a historical. Shupe doesn't shy away from the age gap, and she makes it believable. She also doesn't show an innocent miss. Instead, her heroine has agency.
Beautifully well done, and steamy as a bonus.]]>
author: Joanna Shupe
name: Sally
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/30
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:
That Joanna Shupe.
Listen, this is a novella that speaks more truth to Victorian times that one usually sees in a historical. Shupe doesn't shy away from the age gap, and she makes it believable. She also doesn't show an innocent miss. Instead, her heroine has agency.
Beautifully well done, and steamy as a bonus.
]]>
Much like Morticia and Gomez Addams, Peabody and Emerson are relationship goals.
Also? I LOVE that Peabody clearly loves her son but is also conflicted and, at times, perplexed by motherhood. That's only fair, you know.]]>
author: Elizabeth Peters
name: Sally
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1985
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/28
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:
Just a delight. Peabody and Emerson are proof that authors don't have to break up married couples to still give readers a great story. I'll admit that the ever-precocious Ramses doesn't hurt in that regard.
Much like Morticia and Gomez Addams, Peabody and Emerson are relationship goals.
Also? I LOVE that Peabody clearly loves her son but is also conflicted and, at times, perplexed by motherhood. That's only fair, you know.
]]>
Mira Salvi has the perfect life—a job she loves, a fiancé everyone adores, and the secure future she’s always imagined for herself. Really, she hasn’t a thing to complain about, not even when she has to go on her engagement trip to New York alone.
While playing tourist in the city, Mira chances upon a lost ring, and her social media post to locate its owner goes viral. With everyone trying to claim the ring, only one person seems to want to find its owner as badly as Mira journalist Krish Hale. Brooding and arrogant, he will do anything to get to write this story.
As Krish and Mira reluctantly join forces and jump into the adventure of tracing the ring back to where it belongs, Mira begins to wonder if she is in the right place in her own life. She had to have found this ring for a reason…right? Maybe, like the owner of the lost ring, her happy ending hasn’t been written yet either.]]>
All that with a mystery and adventure!
Mira is a heroine you can root for.]]>
author: Sonali Dev
name: Sally
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/02/03
shelves:
review:
I read an earlier version of this, but I stand by my assessment that Dev has, per usual, crafted a story that is witty and warm, full of questions and answers. In this case she explores parental expectations, love lost, love found, culture, and how to be true to oneself.
All that with a mystery and adventure!
Mira is a heroine you can root for.
]]>
There’s been a sensational murder at historic Castle Kinloch, a gothic fantasy of grey granite on a remote island in the Highlands of Scotland.ĚýLiterary superstar Brett Saffron Presley has been found dead—under bizarre circumstances—in the castle tower’s book-lined study. Years ago, Presley purchased the castle as a showpiece for his brand and to lure paying guests with a taste for writerly glamour. Now it seems, the castle has done him in…or, possibly, one of the castle’s guests has. Detective Chief Inspector Euan McIntosh, a local with no love for this literary American show-off (or Americans in general), finds himself with the unenviable task of extracting statements from three American lady novelists.Ěý
The prime suspects are Kat de Noir, a slinky, sexy erotica writer; Cassie Pringle, a Southern mom of six juggling multiple cozy mystery series; and Emma Endicott, a New England blue blood and author of critically acclaimed historical fiction. The women claim to be best friends writing a book a historical novel about the castle’s lurid past and its debauched laird, who himself ended up creatively murdered. But the authorsâ€� stories about how they know Brett Saffron Presley don’t quite line up, and the detective is getting increasingly suspicious.Ěý
Why did the authors really come to Castle Kinloch? Is the murder of the long-ago laird somehow connected with the playboy author’s unfortunate demise? And what really happened the night of the great Kinloch ceilidh, when Brett Saffron Presley skipped the folk dancing for a rendezvous with death?Ěý
A crafty locked-room mystery, a pointed satire about the literary world, and a tale of unexpected friendship and romance—this novel has it all, as only three bestselling authors can tell it!Ěý±Ő±Ő>
OMG that ending, though.]]>
author: Beatriz Williams
name: Sally
average rating: 3.53
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/10
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves:
review:
This book was, simply put, a lot of fun. At times, [spoilers removed]
OMG that ending, though.
]]>
1. I remember reading an abridged version from Scholastic Scope back when I was in 4th or 5th grade, and I found the whole concept of Miss Havisham fascinating.
2. I'm writing a story with a character named Havisham, and I thought, might as well finish this so you know what you're doing.
3. Shits and giggles.
Per usual, I find Dickens to be one of the more accessible classics. Sure, there are all sorts of vocabulary and situations that we aren't familiar with, but Dickens did understand a great deal of human nature. He also often writes with a sly, dry wit. More importantly, I actually shed a tear or three at the end as Pip [spoilers removed]
This is definitely a story of odd coincidences in life, and about how both the good and bad things we do can come back to haunt us. On the whole, however, good people will forgive you. That nice thing you did for someone else may come back to help you later. And, of course, it's best never to think yourself too good for someone because that's not how life really works--at least not how it should work.
If ever there were a sagging middle, I do believe it's in this book. Honestly, I'm mostly interested if Miss Havisham and/or Estella are in the scene, which is less than ideal since this is Pip's story. Pip's beginning and Pip's ending are both interesting, but I care not for a lot of the middle. It definitely feels like a story that was made up as Dickens went along which, if memory serves, he was.
I did look up that he changed the ending to a more ambiguous one that hints [spoilers removed] but who's to say?
Anyhoo, I read a classic. Yay, me!]]>
author: Charles Dickens
name: Sally
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1861
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/04
date added: 2025/01/05
shelves:
review:
You may be asking yourself...why, Sally, are you reading Great Expectations. Well, a few reasons.
1. I remember reading an abridged version from Scholastic Scope back when I was in 4th or 5th grade, and I found the whole concept of Miss Havisham fascinating.
2. I'm writing a story with a character named Havisham, and I thought, might as well finish this so you know what you're doing.
3. Shits and giggles.
Per usual, I find Dickens to be one of the more accessible classics. Sure, there are all sorts of vocabulary and situations that we aren't familiar with, but Dickens did understand a great deal of human nature. He also often writes with a sly, dry wit. More importantly, I actually shed a tear or three at the end as Pip [spoilers removed]
This is definitely a story of odd coincidences in life, and about how both the good and bad things we do can come back to haunt us. On the whole, however, good people will forgive you. That nice thing you did for someone else may come back to help you later. And, of course, it's best never to think yourself too good for someone because that's not how life really works--at least not how it should work.
If ever there were a sagging middle, I do believe it's in this book. Honestly, I'm mostly interested if Miss Havisham and/or Estella are in the scene, which is less than ideal since this is Pip's story. Pip's beginning and Pip's ending are both interesting, but I care not for a lot of the middle. It definitely feels like a story that was made up as Dickens went along which, if memory serves, he was.
I did look up that he changed the ending to a more ambiguous one that hints [spoilers removed] but who's to say?
Anyhoo, I read a classic. Yay, me!
]]>
Tilly Farriday isn’t feeling very jolly this season. Recently divorced and broke, she’s squatting in one of her rental agency’s properties until her new home is ready. The sprinkles on top of the burnt Christmas cookie that is her life? The new owner shows up early, forcing Tilly to hide in the attic to save her job…and what remains of her dignity.
George Holloway is here to sell his granduncle’s house—and to reconsider whether he and his fiancée are right for each other. Amid home repairs, George notices strange noises and missing food, but as much as he gets his rental agent on the phone, Tilly dodges every invitation to meet. He’s sure that someone’s here with him, and it’s certainly not the Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, or Future.
As Tilly and George circle each other, they both wonder where their lives are headed and if, maybe, meeting each other is just the Christmas miracle they need.]]>
Which is exactly what I wanted.]]>
author: Mary Kay Andrews
name: Sally
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/02
date added: 2025/01/05
shelves:
review:
Cute Christmas short story.
Which is exactly what I wanted.
]]>
365 Spirit-Lifting Devotions for WomenĚýforms a tapestry of life's emotions - joy and laughter, heartache and healing, lessons to be savored and explored. Tailored to the spiritual needs of women, it reaches out with insights that will speak to your heart.
Each entry begins with a Scripture verse to help shape your devotional time. It then draws from a treasury of inspirational stories from Daily Guideposts favorites such as Debbie Macomber, Marion Bond West, Sharon Ewell Foster, and more with unique and varied perspectives on the challenges faced by modern women of all ages and situations. The authors share their experiences with down-to-earth glimpses into their own daily lives, ending with heartfelt personal prayers for strength and growth.
You owe it to yourself to take a few minutes of quiet time each day to nourish and restore your spirit. Experience the comfort and guidance offered each day inĚý365 Spirit-Lifting Devotions for Women.]]>
Some notable names in there like Debbie Macomber.]]>
author: Guideposts Editors
name: Sally
average rating: 4.74
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves:
review:
Finished this one this morning. On the whole, a book of welcome reminders. Occasionally, things get a wee bit too...evangelical? for me, but on the whole it did the trick.
Some notable names in there like Debbie Macomber.
]]>
Ruther Crawford, a wealthy New Yorker, returns to his hometown to confront the trauma of a devastating house fire that scarred him both physically and emotionally as a child.
Clyde Griffin, a kind-hearted man recently arrived in Crawford City, is seeking refuge from his past romantic choices.
When Ruther and Clyde’s paths cross, their contrasting worlds collide—Ruther’s polished exterior hides deep-seated fears, and Clyde’s difficulties with relationships make him reluctant to try again.
As they share stories over cinnamon rolls and coffee, Ruther and Clyde learn to confront their pasts, support each other’s dreams, and open their hearts to the possibility of love. Will the magic of this small town and it’s quirky holiday celebrations be enough to bridge the gap between their lives or are their scars too deep to allow love to grow?
Although Christmas Home was written as a holiday book the story isn’t an insta-love story and takes place over a year and a half.
Family Home is a low-heat (no explicit sex scenes,) sweet, high drama romance.
Content Warnings - Christmas home has elements of all of the
AbandonmentPast abusive relationshipsBurning/burns and scarsPast domestic abuseRecovery from abuseFamily conflictFearViolenceHarassmentPanic attacksPhysical attacksWeapons]]>
This is a small-town romance that explores the bruises and scars we carry on both inside and outside. Clyde is a delight. Ruther is the hero he deserves. Lots of wonderful secondary characters to like like the impeccable Corey.
Crawford City is, to be quite honest, almost too good to be true--and I have questions about this middle Tennessee wine that turned out so good.
Great romance for those seeking character-driven, slow burn, emotional reads.]]>
author: Blake Allwood
name: Sally
average rating: 4.40
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/30
date added: 2024/12/30
shelves:
review:
Blake Allwood just keeps getting better and better.
This is a small-town romance that explores the bruises and scars we carry on both inside and outside. Clyde is a delight. Ruther is the hero he deserves. Lots of wonderful secondary characters to like like the impeccable Corey.
Crawford City is, to be quite honest, almost too good to be true--and I have questions about this middle Tennessee wine that turned out so good.
Great romance for those seeking character-driven, slow burn, emotional reads.
]]>
Anyhoo, it's a nice daily thought complete with writing exercises, books to read, grammar points, authors, etc.
Jesus ain't involved. I'm not complaining about that, but with "devotional" in the title I know some might have that expectation. Personally, I'm cool with that and have a separate devotional for my spiritual needs.]]>
author: Amy Peters
name: Sally
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/29
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves:
review:
There were a couple of times I almost put this book down never to return. I think Ayn Rand was involved.
Anyhoo, it's a nice daily thought complete with writing exercises, books to read, grammar points, authors, etc.
Jesus ain't involved. I'm not complaining about that, but with "devotional" in the title I know some might have that expectation. Personally, I'm cool with that and have a separate devotional for my spiritual needs.
]]>
From the revolutionary "Seduction" to the tender new poem, "Just a Simple Declaration of Love," from the whimsical "I Wrote a Good Omelet" to the elegiac "All Eyez on U," written for Tupac Shakur, these poems embody the fearless passion and spirited wit for which Nikki Giovanni is beloved and revered.
Romantic, bold, and erotic, Love Poems expresses notions of love in ways that are delightfully unexpected. Articulating in sensuous verse what we know only instinctively, Nikki Giovanni once again confirms her place as one of our nations's most distinguished poets and powerful truth-tellers.
In a career that has spanned more than a quarter century, starting with her explosive early years in the Black Rights Movement, Nikki Giovanni has earned a reputation as one of America's most celebrated and controversial writers. Her mind-speaking work has made her a universal favorite and a number-one best-seller.The love poems-the revolutionary "Seduction," the whimsical "I Wrote a Good Omelet," and the tender "My House" to name just a few-are among the most beloved of all Nikki Giovanni's works. Now, Love Poems brings together these and other favorites with over twenty new poems. Romantic, bold, and erotic, Love Poems will once again confirm Nikki Giovanni's place among the country's most renowned poets and truth tellers.]]>
Reread: Upon Giovanni's passing, I reread this book. This time I will make good on my earlier intention to read more of her work.]]>
author: Nikki Giovanni
name: Sally
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/26
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves:
review:
I did not mean to read this book in one setting, but I couldn't help myself.
Reread: Upon Giovanni's passing, I reread this book. This time I will make good on my earlier intention to read more of her work.
]]>
Fortunately, this read was far better than Passenger to Frankfort.
Or it could be that all of the talk about fascism and charismatic leaders backed by billionaires who are only out for themselves hit a little too close to home. Who's to say?
At any rate, Destination Unknown will never be my favorite, but it was a surprisingly enjoyable read. One point in the book's favor is that Hillary/Olive is a likable and plucky heroine. Also, the spy stuff centers on people rather than nebulous conspiracies and the conclusion shows that [spoilers removed]
Whew. I have only 3 of Christie's full-length mysteries left.]]>
author: Agatha Christie
name: Sally
average rating: 3.45
book published: 1954
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/26
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves:
review:
Not gonna lie...I saw the 1954 and groaned. Then Christie started talking about government plots, and I groaned again while thinking, "Oh boy. Here we go again. Anti-communist global cabal Christie."
Fortunately, this read was far better than Passenger to Frankfort.
Or it could be that all of the talk about fascism and charismatic leaders backed by billionaires who are only out for themselves hit a little too close to home. Who's to say?
At any rate, Destination Unknown will never be my favorite, but it was a surprisingly enjoyable read. One point in the book's favor is that Hillary/Olive is a likable and plucky heroine. Also, the spy stuff centers on people rather than nebulous conspiracies and the conclusion shows that [spoilers removed]
Whew. I have only 3 of Christie's full-length mysteries left.
]]>
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.
Now we rise.
Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.
But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving ZĂ©lie without a mother and her people without hope.
Now ZĂ©lie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, ZĂ©lie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.
Danger lurks in OrĂŻsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be ZĂ©lie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.]]>
I can't even remember why I chose this one because I don't typically do YA or fantasy. Obviously something about the book spoke to me, and I'm glad I bought it. Sure, it took me a while to read it, but such is the way of God's Syllabus. Every book in its own good time.
One one level, this is an adventure book in which Zelie strives to bring magic back to her world. As such, the book has all of the fights, peril, and challenges one would expect. This level of the book is fast-paced and will keep you turning pages.
On another level, Adeyemi speaks to prejudice and to the injustice done to any people who are oppressed by a dominant caste. I wasn't surprised to see her reference police brutality at the end of the book. This aspect of the book is more challenging, grueling at times.
Original and ultimately triumphant--I think? [spoilers removed]--I'm glad I read it. Sure didn't FEEL like over 500 pages.]]>
author: Tomi Adeyemi
name: Sally
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/22
date added: 2024/12/22
shelves:
review:
Whew. What a ride.
I can't even remember why I chose this one because I don't typically do YA or fantasy. Obviously something about the book spoke to me, and I'm glad I bought it. Sure, it took me a while to read it, but such is the way of God's Syllabus. Every book in its own good time.
One one level, this is an adventure book in which Zelie strives to bring magic back to her world. As such, the book has all of the fights, peril, and challenges one would expect. This level of the book is fast-paced and will keep you turning pages.
On another level, Adeyemi speaks to prejudice and to the injustice done to any people who are oppressed by a dominant caste. I wasn't surprised to see her reference police brutality at the end of the book. This aspect of the book is more challenging, grueling at times.
Original and ultimately triumphant--I think? [spoilers removed]--I'm glad I read it. Sure didn't FEEL like over 500 pages.
]]>
This entertaining book from beloved National Geographic photographer and Photo Ark founder Joel Sartore shows aspiring photographers how to take great pictures, from framing and F-stops to editing and archiving. Whether you're using your phone or a DSLR camera, you'll learn the fundamentals of photography--and how to put them to work every day.
In a series of short lessons, Sartore explains the basics, from choosing a camera and gear to understanding focus, exposure, composition, and lighting. Using examples from his own work, he applies the basic rules of photography to family, pet, travel, nature, and street photos, and how to get a great shot with the camera on your smartphone.
Throughout the book you'll find pro tips, quick assignments, and the behind-the-camera stories of great photographs; helpful notes clarify how to use every piece of advice with your smartphone camera.
Fun and informative, this practical book will be your gateway to taking great pictures.]]>
author: Joel Sartore
name: Sally
average rating: 4.25
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/20
date added: 2024/12/22
shelves:
review:
There are stunning photos, as you would expect. Lots of practical advice, and I plan to use this as a reference as I attempt to figure out the camera I got oh I don't know two years ago? Three? I'll figure it out.
]]>
I was only a few pages in when I laughed out loud and told the family it was like Noel Coward play only southern. Lo and behold, if McCrumb didn't namecheck Coward in a few more pages. There are Macbeth jokes and a reference to Songs of the Portuguese. For heaven's sake, one character is Captain Grandfather.
I may be late to the McCrumb party, but I'll be staying a while.]]>
author: Sharyn McCrumb
name: Sally
average rating: 3.89
book published: 1984
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/19
date added: 2024/12/22
shelves:
review:
I'm not going to lie...this is the kind of mystery I would like to write. Very character-driven, often funny, reliant on small town and southern customs.
I was only a few pages in when I laughed out loud and told the family it was like Noel Coward play only southern. Lo and behold, if McCrumb didn't namecheck Coward in a few more pages. There are Macbeth jokes and a reference to Songs of the Portuguese. For heaven's sake, one character is Captain Grandfather.
I may be late to the McCrumb party, but I'll be staying a while.
]]>
Even the great detective Hercule Poirot harbored a deep and abiding fear of the dentist, so it was with some trepidation that he arrived at the celebrated Dr. Morley’s surgery for a dental examination. But what neither of them knew was that only hours later Poirot would be back to examine the dentist, found dead in his own surgery.
Turning to the other patients for answers, Poirot finds other, darker, questions.…]]>
Not my fave. For one thing, Dame Agatha just had to include a racial slur, as is often her won't. For another, it's all about how the liberal hippies would bankrupt the country but the stalwart conservative is the answer. Blah blah blah.]]>
author: Agatha Christie
name: Sally
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1940
rating: 0
read at: 2024/07/10
date added: 2024/12/20
shelves:
review:
Twisty, turny. Lots of Hercule Poirot saying "I wonder..." or something like that.
Not my fave. For one thing, Dame Agatha just had to include a racial slur, as is often her won't. For another, it's all about how the liberal hippies would bankrupt the country but the stalwart conservative is the answer. Blah blah blah.
]]>
***
Reid Gallagher hasn't returned to Potter Lake because he misses his family, or because he wonders how his hometown has fared since he left. After many years away, this visit is strictly business....until he meets Sabrina.
Sabrina Ward's crumbling marriage drives her to the peace and solace of her Aunt Cara’s comfortable home in a slow, southern town. Her stay was always going to be temporary, but for Reid, she might consider an extended stay.
As the first snow blankets Potter Lake in a winter wonderland, Sabrina and Reid give in to an inconvenient yet irresistible spark of attraction. With Reid's departure looming, a lucrative opportunity could turn a casual holiday fling into a chance at love.
Come for the festive holiday vibes... stay for a steamy love story and the charm of Potter Lake, where second chances aren’t just possible; they’re inevitable. Home for the Holidays is a heartwarming novella, perfect for fans of seasonal Hallmark movies and the magic of the season.
Content Divorce, adult language and sexual content including depictions of sex acts on the page. If any of these are a stop sign for you, I encourage you to engage in self care and choose another title. 

]]>
This book has all of the small-town shenanigans you could hope for: nosy relatives, garden vegetables to harvest, designer jeans to be made fun of, a tree-lighting ceremony, a trip to the beauty shop, a diner trip, and lots of gossip along the way. White also includes some very real concerns about how developers could ruin the vibes--immaculate if I may dare to say so--of Potter Lake.
Then there's the sexy times. Reid and Sabrina find each other just when they not only need to get busy but also when they need to find that person who gets them. The romance here is both sweet and spicy. Bonus: the hero has been to therapy.
So, the stakes are kinda low, but the characters are delightful. If you like your small towns with a side of sex, this is the book for you.
Side note: I started reading Sharyn McCrumb's Sick of Shadows, and it was interesting to read it alongside White. A few times I got a thing or two confused while thinking back on what I'd read--and I mean that as a high compliment to both authors.]]>
author: D.L. White
name: Sally
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/14
date added: 2024/12/14
shelves:
review:
Perfect short Christmas read.
This book has all of the small-town shenanigans you could hope for: nosy relatives, garden vegetables to harvest, designer jeans to be made fun of, a tree-lighting ceremony, a trip to the beauty shop, a diner trip, and lots of gossip along the way. White also includes some very real concerns about how developers could ruin the vibes--immaculate if I may dare to say so--of Potter Lake.
Then there's the sexy times. Reid and Sabrina find each other just when they not only need to get busy but also when they need to find that person who gets them. The romance here is both sweet and spicy. Bonus: the hero has been to therapy.
So, the stakes are kinda low, but the characters are delightful. If you like your small towns with a side of sex, this is the book for you.
Side note: I started reading Sharyn McCrumb's Sick of Shadows, and it was interesting to read it alongside White. A few times I got a thing or two confused while thinking back on what I'd read--and I mean that as a high compliment to both authors.
]]>
If you have ADHD - or love somebody who does - DIRTY LAUNDRY will change your life, and your relationships.
Do you feel crippling shame because you struggle with cleaning, personal hygiene, or time-keeping? Do you always feel misunderstood by the people close to you and find that they get frustrated by your behaviour?
DIRTY LAUNDRY is an unfiltered look into the chaos of real life with ADHD. It will transform your self-hatred into self-acceptance, with simple tips that actually work for your brain. It will also help to educate partners, parents and friends, to help them move from frustration to patience, understanding - and love.
Learn how to:
- Stop believing you are fundamentally broken
- Stop judging yourself by the standards of a neurotypical world
- Communicate your struggles to those who love you
- Support someone with ADHD in ways that work for them
- Be compassionate rather than judgemental ...and much more.
From the husband-and-wife team behind social media phenomenon @ADHD_Love , whose viral videos have been viewed more than 200 million times , comes a fearless, often outrageously funny, account of life, learning, and growing with ADHD. They share the strategies they have used to reduce shame, improve communication, and find happiness in their neurodivergent household.
Filled with heartbreak and humour in equal measure, DIRTY LAUNDRY is an invaluable resource both for neurodivergents and the people who love them.]]>
For me, the best part of the book is when Rox talks about her challenges. Often, there are aspects I can relate to, although I've never had my electricity turned off nor been completely sunk in debt. I've not thrown out a relationship due to boredom, and my hobby graveyard is relatively small. I do, however, have a pile of clothes in my closet that is "mostly clean" and have been spacing out as of late on dates and times. While there's much I can relate to, there are other aspects that made even me want to say, "Get it together!"
And that's the aspect about this book that I find most troubling: it feels a little...patronizing? Certainly, we should all depend on each other as needed, but there are plenty of other strategies that one can employ other than turning to a significant other for, say, directions or, more importantly, when one should take a shower.
I'm lucky. Pretty sure my mother has ADHD as do I and as does my youngest child. As in many things, my mother paved the way for me. At one point my psychiatrist said I was "too high-functioning to have ADHD" and I burst into tears because I have coping mechanism after coping mechanism. If I'm on time to places it's because I'm scared to death to put someone out by being late and thus keep an eye on the clock and set alarms for my alarms. If I pay my bills on time, it's because I'm scared to death of debt and set alarms for my alarms. As a teacher, I was a meticulous planner, putting things down to the minute and having extra activities for when I misjudged how long it would take to do something. As a writer, I set deadlines for my deadlines because I know I can't accurately predict how long it will take to write something.
It's a fear of shame.
It's a fear of that absolutely horrific, horrifying moment when I realize I've messed up yet again. All of the blood drains from my face, and I call myself a thousand nasty names because I dropped a ball. That has been ADHD for me: my hyper-focus became staying on top of things. THAT's how I made good grades. I had a planner and treated studying like it was my job.
And that shame is what I've been trying to get rid of. In that regard, this is a good book, a good reminder to cut myself some slack because my brain's inability to function "normally" isn't some kind of personal failing. My only caveat is this: if at all possible, it's better to learn one's own coping mechanisms rather than to put that burden on a romantic partner.
]]>
author: Richard Pink
name: Sally
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/12
date added: 2024/12/14
shelves:
review:
Well...I'm not sure what I think about this. I can tell you that my experience is mostly different from Rox's, so do keep that in mind.
For me, the best part of the book is when Rox talks about her challenges. Often, there are aspects I can relate to, although I've never had my electricity turned off nor been completely sunk in debt. I've not thrown out a relationship due to boredom, and my hobby graveyard is relatively small. I do, however, have a pile of clothes in my closet that is "mostly clean" and have been spacing out as of late on dates and times. While there's much I can relate to, there are other aspects that made even me want to say, "Get it together!"
And that's the aspect about this book that I find most troubling: it feels a little...patronizing? Certainly, we should all depend on each other as needed, but there are plenty of other strategies that one can employ other than turning to a significant other for, say, directions or, more importantly, when one should take a shower.
I'm lucky. Pretty sure my mother has ADHD as do I and as does my youngest child. As in many things, my mother paved the way for me. At one point my psychiatrist said I was "too high-functioning to have ADHD" and I burst into tears because I have coping mechanism after coping mechanism. If I'm on time to places it's because I'm scared to death to put someone out by being late and thus keep an eye on the clock and set alarms for my alarms. If I pay my bills on time, it's because I'm scared to death of debt and set alarms for my alarms. As a teacher, I was a meticulous planner, putting things down to the minute and having extra activities for when I misjudged how long it would take to do something. As a writer, I set deadlines for my deadlines because I know I can't accurately predict how long it will take to write something.
It's a fear of shame.
It's a fear of that absolutely horrific, horrifying moment when I realize I've messed up yet again. All of the blood drains from my face, and I call myself a thousand nasty names because I dropped a ball. That has been ADHD for me: my hyper-focus became staying on top of things. THAT's how I made good grades. I had a planner and treated studying like it was my job.
And that shame is what I've been trying to get rid of. In that regard, this is a good book, a good reminder to cut myself some slack because my brain's inability to function "normally" isn't some kind of personal failing. My only caveat is this: if at all possible, it's better to learn one's own coping mechanisms rather than to put that burden on a romantic partner.
]]>
author: Dominique Enright
name: Sally
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2002
rating: 0
read at: 2016/01/17
date added: 2024/12/13
shelves:
review:
Amusing little book. The best parts were actually excerpts from letters that Austen wrote. One was, to paraphrase a little, I'm not saying your mulberry bushes are dead, but they're not exactly living.
]]>
author: Kim Fredrickson
name: Sally
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/12
shelves: currently-reading
review:
]]>
At least, he’s not a beast all the time.
As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.
From bestselling author Sarah J. Maas comes a seductive, breathtaking book that blends romance, adventure, and faerie lore into an unforgettable read.]]>
First of all, I'm a contrarian. Rare is it that I love really popular books as much as other people do. Lessons in Chemistry and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo stand out as really popular books that I also LOVED.
I think my biggest problem here is that this felt like two very different kinds of stories. The first half to three-quarters of this book felt like a Beauty and the Beast retelling. No shade. I love stories about gruff men with big libraries. Kinda my aesthetic.
But then the last part was more...Hunger Gamesesque? But with some weird politics and an odd sexual undertone? IDK I'm not mad at it. I'm still not entirely sure that it's for me, but I ain't mad at it.
Maybe I'll go on to book 2. Maybe I won't. Who's to say? Who knew that I was such a prude that I would have a problem with [spoilers removed]
Well, and another thing was spoiled for me: [spoilers removed] and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that.
Anyhoo, I have read a Booktok sensation! Long live anyone who gets folks into reading.]]>
author: Sarah J. Maas
name: Sally
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/10
date added: 2024/12/11
shelves:
review:
I'm still working through this one.
First of all, I'm a contrarian. Rare is it that I love really popular books as much as other people do. Lessons in Chemistry and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo stand out as really popular books that I also LOVED.
I think my biggest problem here is that this felt like two very different kinds of stories. The first half to three-quarters of this book felt like a Beauty and the Beast retelling. No shade. I love stories about gruff men with big libraries. Kinda my aesthetic.
But then the last part was more...Hunger Gamesesque? But with some weird politics and an odd sexual undertone? IDK I'm not mad at it. I'm still not entirely sure that it's for me, but I ain't mad at it.
Maybe I'll go on to book 2. Maybe I won't. Who's to say? Who knew that I was such a prude that I would have a problem with [spoilers removed]
Well, and another thing was spoiled for me: [spoilers removed] and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that.
Anyhoo, I have read a Booktok sensation! Long live anyone who gets folks into reading.
]]>
A marriage of convenience saved Lady Abigail Worthing’s family from disgrace, but she’s finding her absent husband's endless conditions increasingly repressive. Unable to stay at their London home during the oncoming winter, she accepts a ride to the country from her neighbor, Stapleton Henderson. However, she's less than delighted that she’s his excuse to avoid a dinner held by Lord Charles Duncan, one of London's most powerful—and relentless—magistrates. More irritating, women are decidedly unwelcome at the evening’s prestigious discussion of criminality—even though Abigail and Stapleton have solved several cases together . . .
Then an unexpected blizzard strands them at Lord Duncan’s with his now-houseguests. Suddenly, an evening of fine dining, fine brandy, and insightful debate becomes an inescapable—and deadly—ordeal. The ultimate test for Abigial’s skill. One of the dinner guests is found dead in front of the Berkley Square mansion. And when another party is murdered, Abigail discovers each had received a taunting, prophetic nursery rhyme . . . coincidence, or clues left by a killer on the loose?
Through deft interrogation, she learns everyone present is connected to Lord Duncan's greatest failure in the courts: the conviction of a Martinique plantation informant for a murder he didn’t commit. But as Abigail races to find who was really responsible for the miscarriage of justice, she'll be forced to put her own and Stapleton's lives at risk in a gambit that will alter their fates forever—or end them permanently.]]>
Riley--and stalwart Lady Worthing--take on And Then There Were None with her own rhyme about Grand Blancs. Stapleton Henderson is back, and he is supporting his neighbor.
Then there's a surprise at the end: [spoilers removed]
Another unique cozy mystery, and a great Christmas read!]]>
author: Vanessa Riley
name: Sally
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/09
date added: 2024/12/11
shelves:
review:
What a delight.
Riley--and stalwart Lady Worthing--take on And Then There Were None with her own rhyme about Grand Blancs. Stapleton Henderson is back, and he is supporting his neighbor.
Then there's a surprise at the end: [spoilers removed]
Another unique cozy mystery, and a great Christmas read!
]]>
Look for Brené Brown’s new podcast, Dare to Lead, as well as her ongoing podcast Unlocking Us !
From thought leader Brené Brown, a transformative new vision for the way we lead, love, work, parent, and educate that teaches us the power of vulnerability.
Ěý
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; . . . who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. ”� Theodore Roosevelt
Every day we experience the uncertainty, risks, and emotional exposure that define what it means to be vulnerable or to dare greatly. Based on twelve years of pioneering research, BrenĂ© BrownĚýPhD, MSW, dispels the cultural myth that vulnerability is weakness and argues that it is, in truth, our most accurate measure of courage.
Brown explains how vulnerability is both the core of difficult emotions like fear, grief, and disappointment, and the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, empathy, innovation, and creativity. She writes: “When we shut ourselves off from vulnerability, we distance ourselves from the experiences that bring purpose and meaning to our lives.�
Daring Greatly is not about winning or losing. It’s about courage. In a world where “never enough� dominates and feeling afraid has become second nature, vulnerability is subversive. Uncomfortable. It’s even a little dangerous at times. And, without question, putting ourselves out there means there’s a far greater risk of getting criticized or feeling hurt. But when we step back and examine our lives, we will find that nothing is as uncomfortable, dangerous, and hurtful as standing on the outside of our lives looking in and wondering what it would be like if we had the courage to step into the arena—whether it’s a new relationship, an important meeting, the creative process, or a difficult family conversation. Daring Greatly is a practice and a powerful new vision for letting ourselves be seen.]]>
7/13/22 Just finished listening to the audio version. An important takeaway is that I often create entire scenarios that may or may not be true. These fictitious mind-reading exercises often lead to shame. That shame leads to me acting like a heifer.
Much like Brown, I'd really rather not deal with vulnerability and shame, but we're here now. She definitely has a way of helping me not to feel so alone.
Audio version is all the better for her narration of the book.
12/8/24 Just reread on Kindle. This puts this book in a very rare category: books I have read thrice. Why? Clearly, I still haven't learned how to handle shame and guilt. Also, this book will play a small role in my new WIP, but I can't tell you what because that would spoil the surprise.]]>
author: Brené Brown
name: Sally
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/08
date added: 2024/12/11
shelves:
review:
9/23/19 I'm still processing this book, but I do highly recommend it.
7/13/22 Just finished listening to the audio version. An important takeaway is that I often create entire scenarios that may or may not be true. These fictitious mind-reading exercises often lead to shame. That shame leads to me acting like a heifer.
Much like Brown, I'd really rather not deal with vulnerability and shame, but we're here now. She definitely has a way of helping me not to feel so alone.
Audio version is all the better for her narration of the book.
12/8/24 Just reread on Kindle. This puts this book in a very rare category: books I have read thrice. Why? Clearly, I still haven't learned how to handle shame and guilt. Also, this book will play a small role in my new WIP, but I can't tell you what because that would spoil the surprise.
]]>
Bookstores have always been unlike any other kind of store, shaping readers and writers, and influencing our tastes, thoughts, and politics. They nurture local communities while creating new ones of their own. Bookshops are powerful spaces, but they are also endangered ones. In The Bookshop, we see those stakes: what has been, and what might be lost.
Evan Friss’s history of the bookshop draws on oral histories, archival collections, municipal records, diaries, letters, and interviews with leading booksellers to offer a fascinating look at this institution beloved by so many. The story begins with Benjamin Franklin’s first bookstore in Philadelphia and takes us to a range of booksellers including The Strand, Chicago’s Marshall Field & Company, Gotham Book Mart, specialty stores like Oscar Wilde and Drum and Spear, sidewalk sellers of used books, Barnes & Noble, Amazon Books, and Parnassus. The Bookshop is also a history of the leading figures in American bookselling, often impassioned eccentrics, and a history of how books have been marketed and sold over more than two centuries—including, for example, a 3,000-pound elephant who appeared to sign books at Marshall Field’s in 1944.
The Bookshop is a love letter to bookstores, a charming chronicle for anyone who cherishes these sanctuaries of literature, and essential reading to understand how these vital institutions have shaped American life—and why we still need them.]]>
author: Evan Friss
name: Sally
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/06
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
The history of Egyptology is often told as yet one more grand narrative of powerful men striving to seize the day and the precious artifacts for their competing homelands. But that is only half of the story. During the so-called Golden Age of Exploration, there were women working and exploring before Howard Carter discovered the tomb of King Tut. Before men even conceived of claiming the story for themselves, women were working in Egypt to lay the groundwork for all future exploration.
In Women in the Valley of the Kings: The Untold Story of Women Egyptologists in the Gilded Age, Kathleen Sheppard brings the untold stories of these women back into this narrative. Sheppard begins with some of the earliest European women who ventured to Egypt as travelers: Amelia Edwards, Jenny Lane, and Marianne Brocklehurst. Their travelogues, diaries and maps chronicled a new world for the curious. In the vast desert, Maggie Benson, the first woman granted permission to excavate in Egypt, met Nettie Gourlay, the woman who became her lifelong companion. They battled issues of oppression and exclusion and, ultimately, are credited with excavating the Temple of Mut.
As each woman scored a success in the desert, she set up the women who came later for their own struggles and successes. Emma Andrews� success as a patron and archaeologist helped to pave the way for Margaret Murray to teach. Margaret’s work in the university led to the artists Amice Calverley’s and Myrtle Broome’s ability to work on site at Abydos, creating brilliant reproductions of tomb art, and to Kate Bradbury’s and Caroline Ransom’s leadership in critical Egyptological institutions. Women in the Valley of the Kings upends the grand male narrative of Egyptian exploration and shows how a group of courageous women charted unknown territory and changed the field of Egyptology forever.]]>
author: Kathleen Sheppard
name: Sally
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/06
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
With compelling and often humorous stories from his own life, Bible scholar Peter Enns offers a fresh look at how Christian life truly works, answering questions that cannot be addressed by the idealized traditional doctrine of “once for all delivered to the saints.�
Enns offers a model of vibrant faith that views skepticism not as a loss of belief, but as an opportunity to deepen religious conviction with courage and confidence. This is not just an intellectual conviction, he contends, but a more profound kind of knowing that only true faith can provide.
Combining Enns� reflections of his own spiritual journey with an examination of Scripture, The Sin of Certainty models an acceptance of mystery and paradox that all believers can follow and why God prefers this path because it is only this way by which we can become mature disciples who truly trust God. It gives Christians who have known only the demand for certainty permission to view faith on their own flawed, uncertain, yet heartfelt, terms.
]]>So, the past few years have been challenging. I saw the title. I saw it was on sale, and I picked this one to read.
Some folks are big mad about this book. Big mad.
I am not one of them.
But I'm not going to proclaim it as the definitive book on the subject, either.
I will say that I believe firmly in God's syllabus, and this was a suggested reading. While Enns's tone sometimes irked me, I did find a lot of good reminders here. Namely, my desire to be "right" isn't as important as doing my best to love my neighbor.
I also firmly believe that inclusion > exclusion, and that it's not my place to tell people whether or not they're going to heaven.
This book didn't speak to me as much as, say, Searching for Sunday, but I'm not sure it warrants some of the vitriol of other reviews, either.
At the end of the day, Enns's beliefs mirror at least one of mine which is this: requiring certainty doesn't leave room for faith.]]>
author: Peter Enns
name: Sally
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/28
date added: 2024/12/04
shelves:
review:
Sometimes I like to look at other reviews before I finish writing mine. Wow. What an...interesting experience for this book.
So, the past few years have been challenging. I saw the title. I saw it was on sale, and I picked this one to read.
Some folks are big mad about this book. Big mad.
I am not one of them.
But I'm not going to proclaim it as the definitive book on the subject, either.
I will say that I believe firmly in God's syllabus, and this was a suggested reading. While Enns's tone sometimes irked me, I did find a lot of good reminders here. Namely, my desire to be "right" isn't as important as doing my best to love my neighbor.
I also firmly believe that inclusion > exclusion, and that it's not my place to tell people whether or not they're going to heaven.
This book didn't speak to me as much as, say, Searching for Sunday, but I'm not sure it warrants some of the vitriol of other reviews, either.
At the end of the day, Enns's beliefs mirror at least one of mine which is this: requiring certainty doesn't leave room for faith.
]]>
Except trouble is never far away where the Thursday Murder Club are concerned. A local news legend is on the hunt for a sensational headline, and soon the gang are hot on the trail of two murders, ten years apart.
To make matters worse, a new nemesis pays Elizabeth a visit, presenting her with a deadly kill or be killed...
While Elizabeth grapples with her conscience (and a gun), the gang and their unlikely new friends (including TV stars, money launderers and ex-KGB colonels) unravel a new mystery. But can they catch the culprit and save Elizabeth before the murderer strikes again?]]>
I want to be Elizabeth when I grow up, but I think I'm more Joyce except for [spoilers removed]
There's so much heart in these books amidst the silliness: Elizabeth's love for her husband, the friendship between Ron and Ibrahim, and just...Bodgan.
Very British, very fun.]]>
author: Richard Osman
name: Sally
average rating: 4.61
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/03
date added: 2024/12/04
shelves:
review:
I adore this series. It's a mystery with a found family with a hint of romance.
I want to be Elizabeth when I grow up, but I think I'm more Joyce except for [spoilers removed]
There's so much heart in these books amidst the silliness: Elizabeth's love for her husband, the friendship between Ron and Ibrahim, and just...Bodgan.
Very British, very fun.
]]>
He's a priest, and here is his confession.
There are many rules a priest can't break. A priest cannot marry. A priest cannot abandon his flock. A priest cannot forsake his God. Tyler Bell has had no problem playing by the rules for the last three years after a family tragedy set him on the path to priesthood. That all changes when the delicious, sultry voice of Poppy Danforth sinks its claws in him through the screen of his confessional booth, and he can't get her sins out of his head.
It should be easy to put his impure thoughts of her to rest, considering the vows Tyler has taken. It should be nothing to overcome what the sight and sound of her does to him, when his life with the Church means everything. But once he has his first forbidden taste of those red lips, Tyler can't help but break all his rules for Poppy―no matter what it might cost them both.]]>
Listen, I like to think I'm a tolerably open-minded reader, but this one was too much for me. The scene that absolutely had me noping out? [spoilers removed]
But, seriously, this is just...not for me.
1. He's one of those dominant heroes who really likes to boss the heroine around. No, thank you. Don't tell me what to do. Almost all of the book is in his POV, too, and I often find these heroes who are supposedly so "manly" to not be my jam.
2. He's breaking his vows, and his doing so makes *me* nervous. I take that sort of thing very seriously.
3. I have trouble believing that someone who likes sex that much would become a priest in the first place. [spoilers removed] But I will readily admit that I am overthinking it. That's not the point of this book.
Your mileage may vary, but if you thought The Happy Hour Choir or Rachel Held Evans's Searching for Sunday were sacrilegious, do I have some bad news for you about this book.
On the other hand, if your kink is a dominant man/borderline alphahole who wants to get it on in all kinds of forbidden places--and if reading about sexy times in a church setting doesn't bother you--then this book just might be for you. Carry on. Please do not let me yuck your yum.]]>
author: Sierra Simone
name: Sally
average rating: 3.48
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/26
date added: 2024/12/01
shelves:
review:
Whew, I had to tap out on this one.
Listen, I like to think I'm a tolerably open-minded reader, but this one was too much for me. The scene that absolutely had me noping out? [spoilers removed]
But, seriously, this is just...not for me.
1. He's one of those dominant heroes who really likes to boss the heroine around. No, thank you. Don't tell me what to do. Almost all of the book is in his POV, too, and I often find these heroes who are supposedly so "manly" to not be my jam.
2. He's breaking his vows, and his doing so makes *me* nervous. I take that sort of thing very seriously.
3. I have trouble believing that someone who likes sex that much would become a priest in the first place. [spoilers removed] But I will readily admit that I am overthinking it. That's not the point of this book.
Your mileage may vary, but if you thought The Happy Hour Choir or Rachel Held Evans's Searching for Sunday were sacrilegious, do I have some bad news for you about this book.
On the other hand, if your kink is a dominant man/borderline alphahole who wants to get it on in all kinds of forbidden places--and if reading about sexy times in a church setting doesn't bother you--then this book just might be for you. Carry on. Please do not let me yuck your yum.
]]>
Nina and William are underpaid adjunct professors at the same university, where winter break is no break at all: ’tis the season to make extra money. When their holiday side hustle has them stranded by a blinding blizzard in the middle of nowhere, there’s nothing to do but cuddle up for warmth and play a game of Never Have I Ever to pass the time. But in the game of love, secrets never stay secret for long�
Olivia Dade’s All by My Elf is part of Under the Mistletoe, a stirring collection of December romances that thrill and tingle all the way. They can be read or listened to in one swoony sitting.]]>
This is what Phyllis Bourne would lovingly call "big dumb sexy fun." Mind you, I still have a quibble with "dumb" because these characters are professors for heaven's sake. Big sexy fun.
Anyhoo, a quick holiday read with humor and heart.]]>
author: Olivia Dade
name: Sally
average rating: 2.58
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/21
date added: 2024/11/22
shelves:
review:
Dade had me at repurposed Weinermobile.
This is what Phyllis Bourne would lovingly call "big dumb sexy fun." Mind you, I still have a quibble with "dumb" because these characters are professors for heaven's sake. Big sexy fun.
Anyhoo, a quick holiday read with humor and heart.
]]>
Each of the investigations Maroney explores in this book highlights an individual case and the people involved in it, and in each account he explains how the transgressors were caught and what lessons can be learned from it. Whether the clients are a Middle Eastern billionaire whose employees stole millions from him, the director of a private equity firm wanting a background check on a potential hire (a known convicted felon), or creditors of a wealthy American investor trying to recoup their money after he fled the country to avoid bankruptcy, all of them hired private investigators to solve problems the authorities either can't or won't touch. In an era when it's both easier and more difficult than ever to disappear after a crime is committed, it's the modern detective people are turning to for help, for revenge, and for justice.]]>
Well, corporate intelligence was in the title...so this book is for people who want to see how private investigators work with larger companies, in foreign countries, or to investigate political fraud. I think I was looking for more domestic/everyday kinds of cases.]]>
author: Tyler Maroney
name: Sally
average rating: 3.12
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/21
date added: 2024/11/22
shelves:
review:
research
Well, corporate intelligence was in the title...so this book is for people who want to see how private investigators work with larger companies, in foreign countries, or to investigate political fraud. I think I was looking for more domestic/everyday kinds of cases.
]]>
Cult of the Dead Cow is the tale of the oldest, most respected, and most famous American hacking group of all time. Though until now it has remained mostly anonymous, its members invented the concept of hacktivism, released the top tool for testing password security, and created what was for years the best technique for controlling computers from afar, forcing giant companies to work harder to protect customers. They contributed to the development of Tor, the most important privacy tool on the net, and helped build cyberweapons that advanced US security without injuring anyone. With its origins in the earliest days of the Internet, the cDc is full of oddball characters -- activists, artists, even future politicians. Many of these hackers have become top executives and advisors walking the corridors of power in Washington and Silicon Valley. The most famous is former Texas Congressman and current presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke, whose time in the cDc set him up to found a tech business, launch an alternative publication in El Paso, and make long-shot bets on unconventional campaigns.
Today, the group and its followers are battling electoral misinformation, making personal data safer, and battling to keep technology a force for good instead of for surveillance and oppression. Cult of the Dead Cow shows how governments, corporations, and criminals came to hold immense power over individuals and how we can fight back against them.]]>
This is one of those books where one person after another keeps getting introduced before you can finish really getting a handle on what's going on. Probably very interesting for hackers, but not as relevant to the particular information I was looking for.
10/10 No notes on the hacker group name, though]]>
author: Joseph Menn
name: Sally
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/18
date added: 2024/11/18
shelves:
review:
Research
This is one of those books where one person after another keeps getting introduced before you can finish really getting a handle on what's going on. Probably very interesting for hackers, but not as relevant to the particular information I was looking for.
10/10 No notes on the hacker group name, though
]]>
Quick, fun read.]]>
author: Margaret Stohl
name: Sally
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/15
date added: 2024/11/16
shelves:
review:
I'm not sure why it took me so long to read this. Stohl really captures the movie versions of Romanoff, Stark, and Coulson. Often I don't have a lot of patience for teen protagonists, but Ava and Alex are definitely an exception. I loved the classified reports interspersed with the story.
Quick, fun read.
]]>
Cybersecurity is the protection against the unauthorized or criminal use of electronic data and the practice of ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of information. Being "cyber-secure" means that a person or organization has both protected itself against attacks by cyber criminals and other online scoundrels, and ensured that it has the ability to recover if it is attacked.
If keeping your business or your family safe from cybersecurity threats is on your to-do list, Cybersecurity For Dummies will introduce you to the basics of becoming cyber-secure! You’ll learn what threats exist, and how to identify, protect against, detect, and respond to these threats, as well as how to recover if you have been breached!
The who and why of cybersecurity threats Basic cybersecurity concepts What to do to be cyber-secure Cybersecurity careers What to think about to stay cybersecure in the futureNow is the time to identify vulnerabilities that may make you a victim of cyber-crime � and to defend yourself before it is too late.
]]>Hey, hi. Yeah. In true Sally fashion, I read this book third. Maybe, I would've understood several terms from the other hacker books if I had, oh I don't know, read this one first.
Caution: if you suffer from anxiety, as I do, this book will convince you there's a hacker around every corner. I mean, there probably is, but...yeah. I have plenty of things to worry about. That said, lots of info here to help you be more secure.]]>
author: Joseph Steinberg
name: Sally
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/15
date added: 2024/11/16
shelves:
review:
Research
Hey, hi. Yeah. In true Sally fashion, I read this book third. Maybe, I would've understood several terms from the other hacker books if I had, oh I don't know, read this one first.
Caution: if you suffer from anxiety, as I do, this book will convince you there's a hacker around every corner. I mean, there probably is, but...yeah. I have plenty of things to worry about. That said, lots of info here to help you be more secure.
]]>
When she arrived at MIT in the 1990s, Alien was quickly drawn to the school’s tradition of high‑risk physical trespassing: the original “hacking.� Within a year, one of her hallmates was dead and two others were arraigned. Alien’s adventures were only just beginning.
After a stint at the storied, secretive Los Alamos National Laboratory, Alien was recruited by a top cybersecurity firm where she deployed her cache of virtual weapons—and the trespassing and social engineering talents she had developed while “hacking� at MIT. The company tested its clients� security by every means possible—not just coding, but donning disguises and sneaking past guards and secretaries into the C‑suite.
Alien now runs a boutique hacking outfit that caters to some of the world’s biggest and most vulnerable institutions—banks, retailers, government agencies. Her work combines devilish charm, old‑school deception, and next generation spycraft. In Breaking and Entering, cybersecurity finally gets the rich, character‑driven, fast-paced treatment it deserves.Ěý±Ő±Ő>
Y'all, this one is a journey. Even if you aren't interested in hacking, this is a tale of a VERY interesting woman. Elizabeth Tesseman, aka Alien, goes to MIT and starts the original "hacking," breaking into buildings and exploring places on campus. Through a winding road, she works at Los Alamos and a hospital and for people who hack into businesses--with permission--to find weaknesses.
Her story is very much a woman's story. She's often outnumbered by men. She's often taken advantage of by men, although she never once complains about it.
My favorite part of this story is that she finally goes off on her own and, when she does, she TAKES CARE OF HER EMPLOYEES. I often say there are two kinds of people in this world: those who think everyone should have to suffer everything they've suffered and those who think they should try to make things better for the people coming up behind them. Alien is the second.
Often, this nonfiction book does read like a thriller. What I really hope most, though, is that Alien has found every happiness.]]>
author: Jeremy N. Smith
name: Sally
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/13
date added: 2024/11/14
shelves:
review:
Research
Y'all, this one is a journey. Even if you aren't interested in hacking, this is a tale of a VERY interesting woman. Elizabeth Tesseman, aka Alien, goes to MIT and starts the original "hacking," breaking into buildings and exploring places on campus. Through a winding road, she works at Los Alamos and a hospital and for people who hack into businesses--with permission--to find weaknesses.
Her story is very much a woman's story. She's often outnumbered by men. She's often taken advantage of by men, although she never once complains about it.
My favorite part of this story is that she finally goes off on her own and, when she does, she TAKES CARE OF HER EMPLOYEES. I often say there are two kinds of people in this world: those who think everyone should have to suffer everything they've suffered and those who think they should try to make things better for the people coming up behind them. Alien is the second.
Often, this nonfiction book does read like a thriller. What I really hope most, though, is that Alien has found every happiness.
]]>
Ghost in the Wires is a thrilling true story of intrigue, suspense, and unbelievable escapes -- and a portrait of a visionary who forced the authorities to rethink the way they pursued him, and forced companies to rethink the way they protect their most sensitive information.]]>
I found this fascinating, but I'm not built like Mitnick. I couldn't keep doing illegal things that would hurt my mother and grandmother. Listen, I fully believe that the book that was thrown at him was disproportionately large. I also believe that someone should've asked LONG ago if he could use his powers for good, too. My heart just aches for his mother and grandmother.
Buy, hey, I learned about phone phreaking and social engineering and all kinds of fun stuff so yay.]]>
author: Kevin D. Mitnick
name: Sally
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/12
date added: 2024/11/14
shelves:
review:
Research book.
I found this fascinating, but I'm not built like Mitnick. I couldn't keep doing illegal things that would hurt my mother and grandmother. Listen, I fully believe that the book that was thrown at him was disproportionately large. I also believe that someone should've asked LONG ago if he could use his powers for good, too. My heart just aches for his mother and grandmother.
Buy, hey, I learned about phone phreaking and social engineering and all kinds of fun stuff so yay.
]]>
Stanley Milford, Jr., was raised with the inherent belief that the supernatural regularly touches our lives. Growing up between multiple worlds and cultures, as a Native American with parents and family of both Navajo and Cherokee descent, he was raised to respect his roots with a firm upbringing in traditions from both tribes.
That would serve him well when he joined the fabled Navajo Rangers, who are equal parts police officers, archeological conservationists, and historians, responsible for overseeing the massive 27,000-square-mile Navajo Nation. When Milford first became a ranger, he handled mundane, everyday cases such as cattle inspections and domestic disputes, but that quickly gave way to utterly bizarre and shockingly frequent cases of mysterious livestock mutilations, skinwalker and cryptid sightings, unidentified aerial phenomena, and malicious hauntings.
InĚýThe Paranormal Ranger, Milford recounts all the stories from the logical, factual, and serious perspective of a law enforcement officer. Far from the tinfoil hat and conspiracy crowd, Milford’s Native American worldview and investigative training provide a chilling, realistic perspective on what logic dictates should not be possible.]]>
[spoilers removed]
Say what you will about aliens, crytpids, and ghosts, but Milford and I can definitely agree on the fact that there are things in this world that none of us can explain.]]>
author: Stanley Milford Jr.
name: Sally
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/11
date added: 2024/11/12
shelves:
review:
I think I saw Milford on Unsolved Mysteries talking about Bigfoot and skinwalkers, so when I saw this book I wanted to know more. The first part is a deep dive in his life. The next part is about the various cases he investigated as part of a "real life X Files."
[spoilers removed]
Say what you will about aliens, crytpids, and ghosts, but Milford and I can definitely agree on the fact that there are things in this world that none of us can explain.
]]>
At the start of WWII, the US found itself in desperate need of an intelligence agency. The Office of Strategic Services (OSS), a precursor to today’s CIA, was quickly formed—and, in an effort to fill its ranks with experts, the OSS turned to academia for recruits. Suddenly, literature professors, librarians, and historians were training to perform undercover operations and investigative work—and these surprising spies would go on to profoundly shape both the course of the war and our cultural institutions with their efforts.
In Book and Dagger, Elyse Graham draws on personal histories, diaries, and declassified OSS files to tell the story of a small but connected group of humanities scholars turned unlikely spies. Among them are Joseph Curtiss, a literature professor who hunted down German spies and turned them into double agents; Sherman Kent, a smart-mouthed history professor who rose to become the head of analysis for all of Europe and Africa; and Adele Kibre, an archivist who was sent to Stockholm to secretly acquire documents for the OSS. These unforgettable characters would ultimately help lay the foundations of modern intelligence and transform American higher education when they returned after the war.
Thrillingly paced and rigorously researched, Book and Dagger is an inspiring and gripping true story about a group of academics who helped beat the Nazis—a tale that reveals the indelible power of humanities to change the world.]]>
author: Elyse Graham
name: Sally
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/04
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
Before 2020, American Indian reservations made up roughly 55 million acres of land in the United States. Nearly 200 million acres are reserved for National Forests—in the emergence of this great nation, our government set aside more land for trees than for Indigenous peoples.
In the 1830s, Muscogee people were rounded up by the US military at gunpoint and forced into exile halfway across the continent. At the time, they were promised this new land would be theirs for as long as the grass grew and the waters ran. But that promise was not kept. When Oklahoma was created on top of Muscogee land, the new state claimed their reservation no longer existed. Over a century later, a Muscogee citizen was sentenced to death for murdering another Muscogee citizen on tribal land. His defense attorneys argued the murder occurred on the reservation of his tribe, and therefore Oklahoma didn’t have the jurisdiction to execute him. Oklahoma asserted that the reservation no longer existed. In the summer of 2020, the Supreme Court settled the dispute. Its ruling that would ultimately underpin multiple reservations covering almost half the land in Oklahoma, including Nagle’s own Cherokee Nation.
Here Rebecca Nagle recounts the generations-long fight for tribal land and sovereignty in eastern Oklahoma. By chronicling both the contemporary legal battle and historic acts of Indigenous resistance, By the Fire We Carry stands as a landmark work of American history. The story it tells exposes both the wrongs that our nation has committed and the Native-led battle for justice that has shaped our country.]]>
author: Rebecca Nagle
name: Sally
average rating: 4.45
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/04
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
“We have more Native stories now, but we have not heard one like this. Whiskey Tender is unexpected and propulsive, indeed tender, but also bold, and beautifully told, like a drink you didn’t know you were thirsty for. This book, never anything less than mesmerizing, is full of family stories and vital Native history. It pulses and it aches, and it lifts, consistently. It threads together so much truth by the time we are done, what has been woven together equals a kind of completeness from brokenness, and a hope from knowing love and loss and love again by naming it so.� � Tommy Orange, National Bestselling Author of There There
Reminiscent of the works of Mary Karr and Terese Marie Mailhot, a memoir of family and survival, coming-of-age on and off the reservation, and of the frictions between mainstream American culture and Native inheritance; assimilation and reverence for tradition.
Deborah Jackson Taffa was raised to believe that some sacrifices were necessary to achieve a better life. Her grandparents—citizens of the Quechan Nation and Laguna Pueblo tribe—were sent to Indian boarding schools run by white missionaries, while her parents were encouraged to take part in governmental job training off the reservation. Assimilation meant relocation, but as Taffa matured into adulthood, she began to question the promise handed down by her elders and by American society: that if she gave up her culture, her land, and her traditions, she would not only be accepted, but would be able to achieve the “American Dream.�
Whiskey Tender traces how a mixed tribe native girl—born on the California Yuma reservation and raised in Navajo territory in New Mexico—comes to her own interpretation of identity, despite her parent’s desires for her to transcend the class and “Indian� status of her birth through education, and despite the Quechan tribe’s particular traditions and beliefs regarding oral and recorded histories. Taffa’s childhood memories unspool into meditations on tribal identity, the rampant criminalization of Native men, governmental assimilation policies, the Red Power movement, and the negotiation between belonging and resisting systemic oppression. Pan-Indian, as well as specific tribal histories and myths, blend with stories of a 1970s and 1980s childhood spent on and off the reservation.
Taffa offers a sharp and thought-provoking historical analysis laced with humor and heart. As she reflects on her past and present—the promise of assimilation and the many betrayals her family has suffered, both personal and historical; trauma passed down through generations—she reminds us of how the cultural narratives of her ancestors have been excluded from the central mythologies and structures of the “melting pot� of America, revealing all that is sacrificed for the promise of acceptance.]]>
author: Deborah Jackson Taffa
name: Sally
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/04
shelves: to-read
review:
]]>
author: Sasha Fenton
name: Sally
average rating: 5.00
book published: 1996
rating: 0
read at: 2017/10/23
date added: 2024/11/03
shelves:
review:
Read this one for research. I don't think my tarot card reader is going to delve too much into this. For one thing I kept forgetting which was Apollo and which Mercury and I couldn't tell if I had whorls or peacock eyes. Eh. I obviously do not have a talent for this.
]]>
Victorian Amelia Peabody continues to journal her Egypt adventures, toddler Ramses left in England. Husband Radcliffe Emerson's old friend Lady Baskerville fears a curse killed her husband Sir Henry, and soon engages the attentions of American Cyrus. The will funds continued excavation. But a lady dressed in white floats, flutters, spreads fear, and more death.]]>
I got a little lost in the mystery, but the true joy of Peters is characterization, so it's fine to be a long for the ride.
I can't speak to the portrayals of the Egyptian people, and I know ideas on archaeology have changed over the years. I can say that Peters at least doesn't use any slurs as Christie does in Death on the Nile and, well, several other books. Le sigh.]]>
author: Elizabeth Peters
name: Sally
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1981
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/31
date added: 2024/11/01
shelves:
review:
I find Amelia Peabody highly amusing. I find her relationship with her husband, Emerson, to be charming. The whole opening section about Ramses? It's refreshing to see motherhood portrayed in less than saccharine ways.
I got a little lost in the mystery, but the true joy of Peters is characterization, so it's fine to be a long for the ride.
I can't speak to the portrayals of the Egyptian people, and I know ideas on archaeology have changed over the years. I can say that Peters at least doesn't use any slurs as Christie does in Death on the Nile and, well, several other books. Le sigh.
]]>
However, he isn't prepared for this extraordinary beauty's stubbornness and fire, nor for the vivid way she heals, then steals his heart.]]>
Even better? Dr. Viveca Lancaster is the heroine we all want to read about. She's a doctor, pool shark, crack shot. She's witty, intelligent, and compassionate. She wins over the naysayers and makes friends with children, church ladies AND retired sex workers. No wonder Nate Grayson can't get enough of her.
Similarly, Nate Grayson is a hero to swoon over. Sure he may start the story unconvinced that a woman can be a doctor, but Vivid makes a believer of him and he is man enough to let her be a woman.
I love the respect shown for the indigenous community. I love that I learned about lacrosse, 19th century medical practices, and all sorts of other historical events.
All in all, and utter delight.]]>
author: Beverly Jenkins
name: Sally
average rating: 4.30
book published: 1995
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/26
date added: 2024/10/26
shelves:
review:
Few authors of historical fiction/romance are as good as Jenkins at creating a world for the reader to sink into. Never have I wanted to go to Michigan more than I do after having read this book.
Even better? Dr. Viveca Lancaster is the heroine we all want to read about. She's a doctor, pool shark, crack shot. She's witty, intelligent, and compassionate. She wins over the naysayers and makes friends with children, church ladies AND retired sex workers. No wonder Nate Grayson can't get enough of her.
Similarly, Nate Grayson is a hero to swoon over. Sure he may start the story unconvinced that a woman can be a doctor, but Vivid makes a believer of him and he is man enough to let her be a woman.
I love the respect shown for the indigenous community. I love that I learned about lacrosse, 19th century medical practices, and all sorts of other historical events.
All in all, and utter delight.
]]>
The holly-jolly holidays aren’t for everyone, least of all when you look back on that one Christmas when there were two definitely haunted dolls waiting for you and your sister under the tree. You have to assume that’s where it all started.
And so it was for Jenny Lawson. Now, she lives in the land of eternal Halloween, as evidenced by her interior decor and general state of darkness. (Although, if you ask her, her taxidermy zoo is less dark, more delightful. But not everyone has taste, so what are you going to do?)
This essay takes Jenny back to where it all started, from her humble beginnings as a trick-or-treater in the 1980s, on high alert for (logistically improbable) candy laced with razor blades and the (allegedly) ever-present threat of satanists on the loose. From there, she has risen from the candy-wrapper ashes of her childhood to claim her rightful lifestyle as the queen of Halloween.]]>
author: Jenny Lawson
name: Sally
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/22
date added: 2024/10/26
shelves:
review:
Jenny Lawson never fails to make me laugh. I loved this little essay on Christmas that ended up being about Halloween. Perfect short read for a book you read on your phone, too.
]]>
ĚýĚý
Part memoir, part self-help, You Will Find Your People uncovers the complex, frightening, and often vulnerable process of building real, healthy friendships and finally creating your chosen family. Lane Moore takes readers on a journey that examines and challenges the ideas of friendship we’ve seen in pop culture, answers every question you’ve ever had about friend breakups, and teaches us how to fearlessly ask for what we want in friendships once and for all.
ĚýĚý
Full of Moore’s hilarious personal anecdotes, advice on how to identify your attachment style, and real tools to create better communication and boundaries, this book is your personal guide on how to heal from your past friendships, improve your current ones, and finally have the friendships we know we deserve.
Ěý
“I love Lane Moore’s work, which is always funny, vulnerable, and wise, and I appreciate how seriously she treats the project of building a rewarding, secure adulthood around relationships other than the romantic ones we’ve historically been told are central.”�New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Traister]]>
This was, to quote one of my honorary nephews, not for me.
I've been exploring the idea of community. How do we build and or find community? How do we make friends as adults? How do we maintain friendships when life pulls us in different directions? I mean, I have friends. I have really great friends. I'm lucky enough to still be close friends with someone who went to freakin' kindergarten with me. But...
We've had the devil of time making and keeping friends as adults, especially other couple friends, a concept that I'm beginning to think is out-dated and nigh upon impossible.
Suffice to say, Moore's book didn't help me with these particular problems. The book is far more memoir than self-help. Lots of talk about boundaries and needs, which you can talk to your therapist about. Moore feels much younger than I am. I wouldn't know, though, because she has somehow meticulously scrubbed her age from the Internet. Quite a feat, and quite understandable for someone who works in entertainment.
I, on the other hand, am a crusty gen Xer who's been married for over 25 years. I'm also rural rather than urban and grew up the child of parents and grandparents who didn't have a lot of time for emotional needs. A house, clothes on your back, and plenty to eat. Those are your needs. Everything else is a want. As for boundaries, I think that's a concept kinda lost until you get to at least a middle class income. Folks are going to be in each other's business, and families have to help each other out.
That said, I'm solidly middle class now, and I've learned that if I have an impulse to scoff at something like "needs" or "boundaries," then that's probably a sign I need to examine that which I have scoffed at. I did not, however, have to do someone else's series of anecdotes about poor friendships along with several laments about how movies and televisions present friendships that are unattainable.
It is what it freakin' is.
This book is probably for younger folks and for folks who haven't yet married. That's my guess.]]>
author: Lane Moore
name: Sally
average rating: 3.21
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/17
date added: 2024/10/21
shelves:
review:
Edited to add: I wonder if I'm being too harsh with this book. I've been reflecting, that's for sure. I have been exceeding grateful for the best friendships of my life, too.
This was, to quote one of my honorary nephews, not for me.
I've been exploring the idea of community. How do we build and or find community? How do we make friends as adults? How do we maintain friendships when life pulls us in different directions? I mean, I have friends. I have really great friends. I'm lucky enough to still be close friends with someone who went to freakin' kindergarten with me. But...
We've had the devil of time making and keeping friends as adults, especially other couple friends, a concept that I'm beginning to think is out-dated and nigh upon impossible.
Suffice to say, Moore's book didn't help me with these particular problems. The book is far more memoir than self-help. Lots of talk about boundaries and needs, which you can talk to your therapist about. Moore feels much younger than I am. I wouldn't know, though, because she has somehow meticulously scrubbed her age from the Internet. Quite a feat, and quite understandable for someone who works in entertainment.
I, on the other hand, am a crusty gen Xer who's been married for over 25 years. I'm also rural rather than urban and grew up the child of parents and grandparents who didn't have a lot of time for emotional needs. A house, clothes on your back, and plenty to eat. Those are your needs. Everything else is a want. As for boundaries, I think that's a concept kinda lost until you get to at least a middle class income. Folks are going to be in each other's business, and families have to help each other out.
That said, I'm solidly middle class now, and I've learned that if I have an impulse to scoff at something like "needs" or "boundaries," then that's probably a sign I need to examine that which I have scoffed at. I did not, however, have to do someone else's series of anecdotes about poor friendships along with several laments about how movies and televisions present friendships that are unattainable.
It is what it freakin' is.
This book is probably for younger folks and for folks who haven't yet married. That's my guess.
]]>
Mind you, it ain't gonna be easy. Basically capitalism is the reason we are the way we are. We don't regulate the food industry, and they put God only knows what into our food. They intentionally include additives to make us eat more. Corporate profits are tied not only to increased sales but also to decreasing costs which is accomplished through any number of shady means.
Add to the food industry the fact that overeating is often a soothing mechanism for folks who've suffered trauma, and you have the shitstorm we're in now.
Hari doesn't answer the question of whether or not these drugs are safe because he can't. We don't know. He does look deep within to see if he started taking Ozempic just for his health or if he also was taking it for vanity reasons. He does explore what this drug means for fat acceptance and if there are dangers for those already prone to eating disorders.
As with all things, I don't think there's a definitive answer here. Yes, people are abusing this drug to stay thin. Yes, this drug has been helpful--even lifesaving--for others. Hard interviews fat activist Shelley Bovey, who first made waves for speaking out against the prejudice that fat folks face and then made a different set of waves for attending a program similar to Weight Watchers because her quality of life had greatly diminished. Her wise words relate to a whole heckuva lot more than weight loss:
"...things are never either/or. They are both/and."
As Harry says just before that "we have two tasks ahead of us--to learn to love our bodies however they are, and to learn to make our bodies as healthy and functional as we can. There is no contradiction between the two, because both are forms of self love."
]]>
author: Johann Hari
name: Sally
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/21
date added: 2024/10/21
shelves:
review:
Hari gives an interesting look at Ozempic, et al through both research and his own personal experience. Going beyond what the drugs are and what they do, he also looks at what has caused the current obesity epidemic and looks to Japan as an example of how we could turn this ship around.
Mind you, it ain't gonna be easy. Basically capitalism is the reason we are the way we are. We don't regulate the food industry, and they put God only knows what into our food. They intentionally include additives to make us eat more. Corporate profits are tied not only to increased sales but also to decreasing costs which is accomplished through any number of shady means.
Add to the food industry the fact that overeating is often a soothing mechanism for folks who've suffered trauma, and you have the shitstorm we're in now.
Hari doesn't answer the question of whether or not these drugs are safe because he can't. We don't know. He does look deep within to see if he started taking Ozempic just for his health or if he also was taking it for vanity reasons. He does explore what this drug means for fat acceptance and if there are dangers for those already prone to eating disorders.
As with all things, I don't think there's a definitive answer here. Yes, people are abusing this drug to stay thin. Yes, this drug has been helpful--even lifesaving--for others. Hard interviews fat activist Shelley Bovey, who first made waves for speaking out against the prejudice that fat folks face and then made a different set of waves for attending a program similar to Weight Watchers because her quality of life had greatly diminished. Her wise words relate to a whole heckuva lot more than weight loss:
"...things are never either/or. They are both/and."
As Harry says just before that "we have two tasks ahead of us--to learn to love our bodies however they are, and to learn to make our bodies as healthy and functional as we can. There is no contradiction between the two, because both are forms of self love."
]]>
author: Lucy K. Tsado Lamar University
name: Sally
average rating: 3.86
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/21
date added: 2024/10/21
shelves:
review:
Just doing a little research for a character. Did I understand all of this book? No. Do I have a better handle on cybersecurity? Maybe.
]]>
I had saved this one, along with several other books by my favorite authors, after the 2016 election and then especially during the pandemic. Perhaps my brain thought the world really was going to hell in a hand basket, and I would need some treats to tide me over in the great dystopia beyond. Last year I caught up on Joshilyn Jackson. This year I caught up on Kresley Cole. Now I have caught up on my Deanna Rayburn.
And wouldn't you know it...a book set in Transylvania in October. The Lord has a sense of humor.
Per usual, Rayburn delights. She has a type for her heroes, one I am 100% behind. Andrei, much like Stoker or Brisbane, is dark and mysterious. He even ends up with a scar. Naturally, it makes him eve more attractive. Theodora, much like Lady Julia or Veronica is independent, spirited, and curious. She's a writer. Yay!
Unlike Raybourn's previous works, this one is Gothic. Think very much Phyllis Whitney meets Bram Stoker. It was, of course, a Halloween delight. This one feels like an earliest work even though it was published in 2010? While I can thoroughly appreciate how Rayburn gets better and better, trust me when I say this novel does not suffer from being an earlier work.
Castles, werewolves, vampires your thing? Have fond memories of reading Mistress of Mellon? Jump on this one.
]]>
author: Deanna Raybourn
name: Sally
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2010
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/15
date added: 2024/10/16
shelves:
review:
I have told you before that at least 85% of my reading comes from the subtle nudges. I literally pick up books as the spirit moves me because I believe firmly in God's syllabus. Usually, the syllabus has me reading two books at the same time that have relevance to the world around me or to some concept that I need to learn. Sometimes, the spirit just likes to have a little fun.
I had saved this one, along with several other books by my favorite authors, after the 2016 election and then especially during the pandemic. Perhaps my brain thought the world really was going to hell in a hand basket, and I would need some treats to tide me over in the great dystopia beyond. Last year I caught up on Joshilyn Jackson. This year I caught up on Kresley Cole. Now I have caught up on my Deanna Rayburn.
And wouldn't you know it...a book set in Transylvania in October. The Lord has a sense of humor.
Per usual, Rayburn delights. She has a type for her heroes, one I am 100% behind. Andrei, much like Stoker or Brisbane, is dark and mysterious. He even ends up with a scar. Naturally, it makes him eve more attractive. Theodora, much like Lady Julia or Veronica is independent, spirited, and curious. She's a writer. Yay!
Unlike Raybourn's previous works, this one is Gothic. Think very much Phyllis Whitney meets Bram Stoker. It was, of course, a Halloween delight. This one feels like an earliest work even though it was published in 2010? While I can thoroughly appreciate how Rayburn gets better and better, trust me when I say this novel does not suffer from being an earlier work.
Castles, werewolves, vampires your thing? Have fond memories of reading Mistress of Mellon? Jump on this one.
]]>
Leftovers can be so much more than the sum of their parts. Yesterday’s dinner, last week’s baking experiment, snack drawer remnants, and cheese drawer bits and bobs are all an opportunity to create something new and delicious. And the holidays—they’re a leftovers goldmine! Here We Go Again is dedicated to the recipes your leftovers deserve, whether they're the classics in your rotation, the dishes that maybe didn't hit the spot the first time around, or those last-ditch meal efforts you throw at your kids, only to have half the macaroni still left in the pot. They're also perfect for ingredients that would otherwise be trash-bound—those carrots threatening to go soft, the bunches of kale from the overenthusiastic farmers' market haul, that half a loaf of bread getting harder by the day, the nubbins of cheese that don't seem good for anything other than late-night snacking. Or the dreaded 1 cup of sour cream or buttermilk inevitably left in the back of the fridge from when you made something else with it.ĚýOr maybe it's the chicken breasts or steaks you stocked up on when they were on sale and are now sitting in your freezer, waiting for an invitation to be used. And of course, it's all the food staring back at you from your fridge after a holiday meal (and worked way too hard on to throw away!)
Ěý These are the dishes that we need right now—and in so many ways. We need to get food on the table, every meal, every day. We need to use the food that we have because we don't always know when we'll get to the store or how much we need to make our budget stretch. And above all else we need to take care of ourselves and our families with food that tastes good.]]>
Kelly Kapowski must be far more patient with cooking than I am, though, because there are a lot of ingredients involved.]]>
author: Tiffani Thiessen
name: Sally
average rating: 3.95
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
Well, this cookbook is stunningly gorgeous, and the pictures are fun. I like the idea of using leftovers.
Kelly Kapowski must be far more patient with cooking than I am, though, because there are a lot of ingredients involved.
]]>
But I digress.
These are all doable with their 6 ingredients. Lillien helpfully includes nutritional information so I can see calories, fat, protein, and fiber. I may actually buy one of these.]]>
author: Lisa Lillien
name: Sally
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
Of all the cookbooks I checked out of the library, this one had the most recipes that appealed to me. Maybe I just went to my mother's school of thought and have a preference for recipes that have--or could have--"easy" or "lazy" in the title. I suppose "simply" qualifies. Come to think of it, maybe this change in descriptor may suggest that we women are being a little easier on ourselves.
But I digress.
These are all doable with their 6 ingredients. Lillien helpfully includes nutritional information so I can see calories, fat, protein, and fiber. I may actually buy one of these.
]]>
author: Mr. Food Test Kitchen
name: Sally
average rating: 3.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
I found a few recipes here that interested me. Lots of sugar substitutes, though, and I'd rather just have fruit than get into the stevia.
]]>
Sara Lynn teaches fans how to master basic cooking techniques while offering loads of variations, like her sheet pan supper series that includes recipes for Ranch Roasted Chicken & Veggies, Chili Lime Shrimp Fajitas, and Halibut with Green Beans, Tomatoes & Olives. For cooks who want to mix itĚýup in the kitchen, Sara Lynn offers vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free alternatives, as well asĚýsimple swaps to make recipes more family-friendly.]]>
author: Sara Lynn Cauchon
name: Sally
average rating: 4.04
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
This one simply wasn't my jam. Nutritional info isn't included, and sometimes "healthy" recipes still have a lot of fat.
]]>
There were a few places where I cringed, though. While Minnick recognizes all of the women who helped him with the book in his acknowledgments and adds "thank you for opening my eyes to how women can always do a job just as well or better than men. In our long year together you six women changed my views on life more than you'll ever know," there were still...moments. He says that 90% of the women he interviewed for the book said they'd never been sexually harassed.
If that is true, then I totally went into the wrong line of work. And have lived in all the wrong places. But, you know, maybe that's true. I have no reason to doubt him. I can't find any of the other spots, but they were more opinion than recitation of fact. No need to let it keep you from reading the book, but it did bother me every now and again. Obviously it wasn't his intent.]]>
author: Fred Minnick
name: Sally
average rating: 3.49
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
A lot this book covers ground I already read about in Girly Drinks, but Minnick does eventually narrow his focus to whiskey alone. It's a history.
There were a few places where I cringed, though. While Minnick recognizes all of the women who helped him with the book in his acknowledgments and adds "thank you for opening my eyes to how women can always do a job just as well or better than men. In our long year together you six women changed my views on life more than you'll ever know," there were still...moments. He says that 90% of the women he interviewed for the book said they'd never been sexually harassed.
If that is true, then I totally went into the wrong line of work. And have lived in all the wrong places. But, you know, maybe that's true. I have no reason to doubt him. I can't find any of the other spots, but they were more opinion than recitation of fact. No need to let it keep you from reading the book, but it did bother me every now and again. Obviously it wasn't his intent.
]]>
She ends on a serious note� because the ultimate problem is the silencing of women who have something to say, including those saying things like, “He’s trying to kill me!�
This book features that now-classic essay with six perfect complements, including an examination of the writer Virginia Woolf ’s embrace of mystery, of not knowing, of doubt and ambiguity, a highly original inquiry into marriage equality, and a terrifying survey of the scope of contemporary violence against women.]]>
So many things she writes about either resonated with me or gave me more fuel for thought. It's amazing to me how much in the life I have tolerated that I shouldn't have had to tolerate.]]>
author: Rebecca Solnit
name: Sally
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/09
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves:
review:
This is the first Solnit book I have read. It will not be the last.
So many things she writes about either resonated with me or gave me more fuel for thought. It's amazing to me how much in the life I have tolerated that I shouldn't have had to tolerate.
]]>
New York Times bestselling author, acclaimed visionary and cultural critic bell hooks continues her exploration of the meaning of love in contemporary American society, offering groundbreaking, critical insight about Black people and love.
Written from both historical and cultural perspectives, Salvation takes an incisive look at the transformative power of love in the lives of African Americans. Whether talking about the legacy of slavery, relationships and marriage in Black life, the prose and poetry of Martin Luther King, Jr., James Baldwin, and Maya Angelou, the liberation movements of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, or hip hop and gangsta rap culture, hooks lets us know what love’s got to do with it.
Combining the passionate politics of W.E.B. DuBois with fresh, contemporary insights, hooks brilliantly offers new visions that will heal our nation’s wounds from a culture of lovelessness. Her writings on love and its impact on race, class, family, history, and popular culture will help us heal and create beloved American communities.]]>
The answer is no. But also very much yes. If you've read any bell hooks at all, you know she speaks truths both universal and specific. In fact, I think the universal can sometimes be found in the specific.
The crux of this book is that love is the answer. It's not more discipline. It's certainly not patriarchy. It's neither materialism nor any kind of domination. The only thing that will help us ever make this world a better place is love which, in its very nature, breeds tolerance and acceptance.]]>
author: bell hooks
name: Sally
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2001
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/09
date added: 2024/10/09
shelves:
review:
So...I saw bell hooks on sale, and I grabbed this. then I saw the subtitle and was like...is this for me?
The answer is no. But also very much yes. If you've read any bell hooks at all, you know she speaks truths both universal and specific. In fact, I think the universal can sometimes be found in the specific.
The crux of this book is that love is the answer. It's not more discipline. It's certainly not patriarchy. It's neither materialism nor any kind of domination. The only thing that will help us ever make this world a better place is love which, in its very nature, breeds tolerance and acceptance.
]]>
T'Challa, the Black Panther, returns to Wakanda to show Monica Lynne his home. But he finds violence in the streets, discontent brewing in his people, and the name Killmonger following him everywhere he goes. When a revered storyteller—and T'Challa's mentor—is murdered, he uncovers the first threads of a growing rebellion that threatens to engulf his beloved Wakanda.
Wakanda’s high-tech king must travel the savannah, into the deepest jungles and up the snow-topped mountains of his homeland in this prose adaptation of the landmark comics series by Don McGregor, Rich Buckler and Billy Graham. Discover the life and culture of the Wakandans, and see T'Challa channel the strength of his ancient bloodline to take out foes such as Venomm, Malice and the fearsome Erik Killmonger!]]>
What. A. Challenge.
This is a novelization of an original arc from the comic book, and, best I can tell, Thomas does a beautiful job of putting an originally visual story into words. I can sense some subtle modernization, and I really enjoyed her portrayal of the women characters.
If you love the movie, this is different. If you love Wakanda and can read this book understanding that, it is certainly quite the roller coaster ride plot wise complete with plenty of love for Wakanda in both description and characterization.]]>
author: Sheree Renée Thomas
name: Sally
average rating: 3.50
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/04
date added: 2024/10/04
shelves:
review:
I met Thomas at the St James River Conference, and I picked up this book of hers.
What. A. Challenge.
This is a novelization of an original arc from the comic book, and, best I can tell, Thomas does a beautiful job of putting an originally visual story into words. I can sense some subtle modernization, and I really enjoyed her portrayal of the women characters.
If you love the movie, this is different. If you love Wakanda and can read this book understanding that, it is certainly quite the roller coaster ride plot wise complete with plenty of love for Wakanda in both description and characterization.
]]>
The stories of fierce females from mythologyĚýandĚýfolklore are retold,ĚýplacingĚýwomenĚýfirmly at the centre of the narrative. Each powerful character will fire the imagination, entertain, and provoke debate.]]>
I especially enjoyed learning about goddesses and other women from nonwestern traditions since that's an area I don't know much about.]]>
author: Kate Hodges
name: Sally
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/03
date added: 2024/10/04
shelves:
review:
Informative overview of women from myths and different religious traditions. Hodges often ties in modern uses of terms like "harpy" as well.
I especially enjoyed learning about goddesses and other women from nonwestern traditions since that's an area I don't know much about.
]]>
1932. Cumberland Island off the coast of Southern Georgia is a strange place to encounter the opulence of the Gilded Age, but the last vestiges of the famed philanthropic Carnegie family still take up brief seasonal residence in their grand mansions there. This year's party at Plum Orchard is a lively young men from some of America's finest families come to experience the area's hunting beside a local guide; a beautiful debutante expecting to be engaged by the week's end, and a promising female artist who believes she has meaningful ties to her wealthy hosts. But when temptations arise and passions flare, an evening of revelry and storytelling goes horribly awry. Lives are both lost and ruined.
1959. Reclusive painter Cleo Woodbine has lived alone for decades on Kingdom Come, a tiny strip of land once occupied by the servants for the great houses on nearby Cumberland. When she is visited by the man who saved her life nearly thirty years earlier, a tempest is unleashed as the stories of the past gather and begin to regain their strength. Frances Flood is a folklorist come to Cumberland Island seeking the source of a legend - and also information about her mother, who was among the guests at a long-ago hunting party. Audrey Howell, briefly a newlywed and now newly widowed, is running a local inn. When she develops an eerie double exposure photograph, some believe she's raised a ghost--someone who hasn't been seen since that fateful night in 1932.
As a once-in-a-century storm threatens the natural landscape and shifting tides reveal what Cumberland Island has hidden all along, two timelines and the perspectives of three women intersect to illuminate the life-changing power of finding truth in a folktale.
The Fabled
Is great for book clubs with its included discussion questionsMakes a great gift for readers of Alice Hoffman, Kate Morton, and Sarah Addison AllenFeatures a gentle thread of no spice, clean romance]]>
Cleo is the center of the story. She was on Cumberland Island during the summer of 1932, a time of tragedy and mystery. Frances comes to Cumberland Island after the death of her mother. She seeks answers because her mother was there that summer, too. Audrey is wrestling with grief and seems to not be connected, but her mother had a vested interest in that summer, too.
Any book about Cumberland Island is going to capture the wildness of nature as well as the opulence of the Carnegies who foolishly thought they could tame that wildness, and The Fabled Earth is no exception. The setting is wild and mysteries with the threat of an actual storm a metaphor for the actual storm of integration happening in the 1959 timeline.
The Fabled Earth is also a tale of privilege. Men have more than women. White folks have a ton more than Black and Brown folks. There's definitely a note of hope here, but there are still plenty of injustices that can't be solved.
In general, The Fabled Earth is perfect for readers who like stories that unfold gently over two different time periods, for those who like to see women come into their own, and for those who revel in poetic prose.]]>
author: Kimberly Brock
name: Sally
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/30
date added: 2024/10/02
shelves:
review:
The Fabled Earth is a love story about story. I'd say most of Brock's books deal in some way with the stories we tell others and the stories we tell ourselves. This one revolves around three different women, and we join them on their personal yet intertwined journeys to discover who they are, where they came from, and where they're going.
Cleo is the center of the story. She was on Cumberland Island during the summer of 1932, a time of tragedy and mystery. Frances comes to Cumberland Island after the death of her mother. She seeks answers because her mother was there that summer, too. Audrey is wrestling with grief and seems to not be connected, but her mother had a vested interest in that summer, too.
Any book about Cumberland Island is going to capture the wildness of nature as well as the opulence of the Carnegies who foolishly thought they could tame that wildness, and The Fabled Earth is no exception. The setting is wild and mysteries with the threat of an actual storm a metaphor for the actual storm of integration happening in the 1959 timeline.
The Fabled Earth is also a tale of privilege. Men have more than women. White folks have a ton more than Black and Brown folks. There's definitely a note of hope here, but there are still plenty of injustices that can't be solved.
In general, The Fabled Earth is perfect for readers who like stories that unfold gently over two different time periods, for those who like to see women come into their own, and for those who revel in poetic prose.
]]>
Fallen is set in Atlanta during a hot summer (Shout out to the Peachtree Roadrace!) when a serial killer is targeting cops. The hero, Ryan, is a cop. Lydia, his ex-wife, is an ER doctor who's getting to see more of him and his compadres than she would like. Both Ryan and Lydia clearly still have feelings for each other, but the death of their young son tore them apart and almost destroyed them both.
This book has it all: romance, suspense, a mystery that caught me by surprise. Ryan and Lydia's story was so heartbreaking, I had to stop reading on the plane for fear people would think there was something wrong with me. But then I was so compelled to see them through that I had to finish it. That's why no one in La Casa Kilpatrick had pants for a few days. (Meh. Who needs laundry?!)
As always, Tentler writes with the clean prose you want from a romantic suspense. Her characters show more depth than you usually get from this kind of story. The mystery was well played. All the little nods to Atlanta were a bonus. You can't beat the bargain of this book. I think it's my favorite of Tentler's books so far.
Merged review:
Oh my gosh how I loved this book.
Fallen is set in Atlanta during a hot summer (Shout out to the Peachtree Roadrace!) when a serial killer is targeting cops. The hero, Ryan, is a cop. Lydia, his ex-wife, is an ER doctor who's getting to see more of him and his compadres than she would like. Both Ryan and Lydia clearly still have feelings for each other, but the death of their young son tore them apart and almost destroyed them both.
This book has it all: romance, suspense, a mystery that caught me by surprise. Ryan and Lydia's story was so heartbreaking, I had to stop reading on the plane for fear people would think there was something wrong with me. But then I was so compelled to see them through that I had to finish it. That's why no one in La Casa Kilpatrick had pants for a few days. (Meh. Who needs laundry?!)
As always, Tentler writes with the clean prose you want from a romantic suspense. Her characters show more depth than you usually get from this kind of story. The mystery was well played. All the little nods to Atlanta were a bonus. You can't beat the bargain of this book. I think it's my favorite of Tentler's books so far.]]>
author: Leslie Tentler
name: Sally
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at: 2014/11/19
date added: 2024/09/29
shelves: georgia-romance-writers-authors
review:
Oh my gosh how I loved this book.
Fallen is set in Atlanta during a hot summer (Shout out to the Peachtree Roadrace!) when a serial killer is targeting cops. The hero, Ryan, is a cop. Lydia, his ex-wife, is an ER doctor who's getting to see more of him and his compadres than she would like. Both Ryan and Lydia clearly still have feelings for each other, but the death of their young son tore them apart and almost destroyed them both.
This book has it all: romance, suspense, a mystery that caught me by surprise. Ryan and Lydia's story was so heartbreaking, I had to stop reading on the plane for fear people would think there was something wrong with me. But then I was so compelled to see them through that I had to finish it. That's why no one in La Casa Kilpatrick had pants for a few days. (Meh. Who needs laundry?!)
As always, Tentler writes with the clean prose you want from a romantic suspense. Her characters show more depth than you usually get from this kind of story. The mystery was well played. All the little nods to Atlanta were a bonus. You can't beat the bargain of this book. I think it's my favorite of Tentler's books so far.
Merged review:
Oh my gosh how I loved this book.
Fallen is set in Atlanta during a hot summer (Shout out to the Peachtree Roadrace!) when a serial killer is targeting cops. The hero, Ryan, is a cop. Lydia, his ex-wife, is an ER doctor who's getting to see more of him and his compadres than she would like. Both Ryan and Lydia clearly still have feelings for each other, but the death of their young son tore them apart and almost destroyed them both.
This book has it all: romance, suspense, a mystery that caught me by surprise. Ryan and Lydia's story was so heartbreaking, I had to stop reading on the plane for fear people would think there was something wrong with me. But then I was so compelled to see them through that I had to finish it. That's why no one in La Casa Kilpatrick had pants for a few days. (Meh. Who needs laundry?!)
As always, Tentler writes with the clean prose you want from a romantic suspense. Her characters show more depth than you usually get from this kind of story. The mystery was well played. All the little nods to Atlanta were a bonus. You can't beat the bargain of this book. I think it's my favorite of Tentler's books so far.
]]>
Author Shahroo Izadi presents a new approach losing weight―without ever telling you what or how to eat. In The Last Diet. , she shares how the same evidence-based tools she used effectively with her clients who struggle with addiction helped her to lose over a hundred pounds, increase her self-esteem, and transform her habits around food and negative self-talk.
Diets often offer quick, short-term fixes and so-called miracle cures, but the real challenge is managing weight and changing habits over a sustained period of time. Everybody's journeys and needs are it’s about shifting the way we communicate with ourselves and our bodies every single day, in every aspect of our lives. Shahroo’s revolutionary kindness method gives readers the tools to embrace self-kindness and self-respect and in doing so change the narrative of health.
Using a custom-tailored plan, The Last Diet. will help you identify where your unhealthy habits come from, teach you how change them, and show you what to do when you slip up. Shahroo guides you through every step, helping you to draw out your own wisdom and find motivation to change your long-term habits and lose weight � for good.]]>
The crux of the book, however, is that we have to take care of ourselves and be compassionate with ourselves in order to truly lose weight. It's similar to Good Food, Bad Diet in that way.
I do like this approach to being healthier. The good Lord knows that beating myself up has never worked.]]>
author: Shahroo Izadi
name: Sally
average rating: 4.22
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/29
date added: 2024/09/29
shelves:
review:
We'll see if this really is the last diet....
The crux of the book, however, is that we have to take care of ourselves and be compassionate with ourselves in order to truly lose weight. It's similar to Good Food, Bad Diet in that way.
I do like this approach to being healthier. The good Lord knows that beating myself up has never worked.
]]>
To be a bookseller or librarian�
You have to play detective.
Be a treasure hunter. A matchmaker. An advocate. A visionary.
A person who creates “book joy� by pulling a book from a shelf, handing it to someone and saying, “You’ve got to read this. You’re going to love it.�
Step inside The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians and enter a world where you can feed your curiosities, discover new voices, find whatever you want or require. This place has the magic of rainbows and unicorns, but it's also a business. The book business.
Meet the smart and talented people who live between the pages—and who can’t wait to help you find your next favorite book.]]>
It's definitely a quick read, but I do have one quibble: often the present tense is used in places I don't think present tense should be used. For heaven's sake, it's a nonfiction book about book lovers; it's not a domestic suspense book. Using the present tense to talk about past events was utterly jarring and sometimes confusing. No clue why that choice was made.
But, hey, it's a bunch of stories about folks who are out here doing the Lord's work: getting books in the hands of people who need them.]]>
author: James Patterson
name: Sally
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/26
date added: 2024/09/29
shelves:
review:
While there were a few harrowing tales of librarians who've been harassed--fired even--over people who want to ban books, this book is primarily a love letter to librarians and booksellers. At least one bookseller is a fellow Borders alum.
It's definitely a quick read, but I do have one quibble: often the present tense is used in places I don't think present tense should be used. For heaven's sake, it's a nonfiction book about book lovers; it's not a domestic suspense book. Using the present tense to talk about past events was utterly jarring and sometimes confusing. No clue why that choice was made.
But, hey, it's a bunch of stories about folks who are out here doing the Lord's work: getting books in the hands of people who need them.
]]>
But for almost seventy years, hot chicken was made and sold primarily in Nashville's Black neighborhoods--and the story of hot chicken says something powerful about race relations in Nashville, especially as the city tries to figure out what it will be in the future.
Hot, Hot Chicken recounts the history of Nashville's Black communities through the story of its hot chicken scene from the Civil War, when Nashville became a segregated city, through the tornado that ripped through North Nashville in March 2020.]]>
I picked up Hot, Hot Chicken because I had never heard of it only to be suddenly bombarded with advertisements for Nashville Hot Chicken.
Well.
The reason I'd never heard of hot chicken before is because a) I'm from West Tennessee and more of an occasional visitor to Nashville but, more importantly, b) I'm white. Hot chicken was first created in a segregated Black community in Nashville, and this book tells the tale of not only chicken but also the segregation of a city and how systemic racism has impacted the community where hot chicken was born.
Martin raises questions of cultural appropriation. She muses on whose stories get told and whose stories don't. Legend has it that hot chicken was created by a scorned wife, but we don't know--we can't know--which one of Prince's wives originated the recipe. He stole the recipe and made money from it, which brings up to the intersection of sexism.
Martin tells this tale in a lovely style. Not too academic, yet still informative. Nonfiction, but with a gorgeous narrative flow. She tells the unvarnished truth of the racism behind Nashville's housing travails, but she spares a little sympathy--empathy?--for Gerald Gimre. She says "as an educated, well-meaning white woman, it's easy for me to find answers. I like being right. I feel good when I've been helpful. But it's painful, humbling, even humiliating to sit down, shut up, and admit I may have been wrong, that I may not have even been asking the right questions. Any yet here I am, writing a book. No, I can't quite make that reconcile, either."
Whew. The way I relate to that moment of vulnerability. I live it. Might as well bring some ice cream because I often have to eat humble pie, and it would be nice if it were at least a la mode.
Anyhoo, this is a book about hot chicken, but it's about far more than hot chicken. the next time I want to sample hot chicken, I'll make sure I go to the source. You can be sure, that I'll be thinking of the history that went into the dish, the community, and the cooks.]]>
author: Rachel Louise Martin
name: Sally
average rating: 4.02
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/25
date added: 2024/09/29
shelves:
review:
The way I devoured this book...
I picked up Hot, Hot Chicken because I had never heard of it only to be suddenly bombarded with advertisements for Nashville Hot Chicken.
Well.
The reason I'd never heard of hot chicken before is because a) I'm from West Tennessee and more of an occasional visitor to Nashville but, more importantly, b) I'm white. Hot chicken was first created in a segregated Black community in Nashville, and this book tells the tale of not only chicken but also the segregation of a city and how systemic racism has impacted the community where hot chicken was born.
Martin raises questions of cultural appropriation. She muses on whose stories get told and whose stories don't. Legend has it that hot chicken was created by a scorned wife, but we don't know--we can't know--which one of Prince's wives originated the recipe. He stole the recipe and made money from it, which brings up to the intersection of sexism.
Martin tells this tale in a lovely style. Not too academic, yet still informative. Nonfiction, but with a gorgeous narrative flow. She tells the unvarnished truth of the racism behind Nashville's housing travails, but she spares a little sympathy--empathy?--for Gerald Gimre. She says "as an educated, well-meaning white woman, it's easy for me to find answers. I like being right. I feel good when I've been helpful. But it's painful, humbling, even humiliating to sit down, shut up, and admit I may have been wrong, that I may not have even been asking the right questions. Any yet here I am, writing a book. No, I can't quite make that reconcile, either."
Whew. The way I relate to that moment of vulnerability. I live it. Might as well bring some ice cream because I often have to eat humble pie, and it would be nice if it were at least a la mode.
Anyhoo, this is a book about hot chicken, but it's about far more than hot chicken. the next time I want to sample hot chicken, I'll make sure I go to the source. You can be sure, that I'll be thinking of the history that went into the dish, the community, and the cooks.
]]>
Must Love New Leash on Life (#2)
Must Love Fetch You Later (#3)
And stay tuned for lots more to come!
[email protected]
Be the first to hear about Claire's new
"Funny and pitch perfect." -Chicago Tribune
"Wildly witty" -USA Today
"Cook dishes up plenty of charm." -San Francisco Chronicle
"A hoot" -The Boston Globe
First the much-loved USA Today bestselling novel by Claire Cook. Then the romantic comedy movie adaptation starring Diane Lane and John Cusack. Now MUST LOVE DOGS is a series!
"Voluptuous, sensuous, alluring and fun. Barely 40 DWF seeks special man to share starlit nights. Must love dogs."
Divorced preschool teacher Sarah Hurlihy's first mistake is letting her bossy big sister write her personal ad. Her second mistake is showing up to meet her first date in more than a decade. Now she's juggling her teaching job, her big, rollicking, interfering south-of-Boston Irish family, and more men than she knows what to do with. And what's up with all these dogs that are suddenly galloping into her life?
"A hilariously original tale about dating and its place in a modern woman's life." -BookPage
"If Must Love Dogs is any indication of her talents, readers will hope that Claire Cook will be telling breezy summer stories from the South Shore of Massachusetts for seasons to come." -The Washington Post
"A laugh-out-loud novel . . . a light and lively read for anyone who has ever tried to re-enter the dating scene or tried to 'fix up' anyone else." -Boston Herald
"This utterly charming novel by Cook is a fun read, perfect for whiling away an afternoon on the beach." -Library Journal
"Claire Cook's Must Love Dogs, a book that's got more giggles than soda bread has raisins." -Hartford Courant
"Claire Cook (Must Love Dogs) has built a brand writing light-hearted women's fiction blending kernels of the absurd and comedic in compulsively readable combinations." -Shelf Awareness
"The exuberant and charming Claire Cook is one of the sassiest and funniest creators of contemporary women's fiction." -The Times-Picayune]]>
Here's what I love: voice, easy going prose, quirky characters, winey mac&cheese.
Here are my issues: the ending was a little more ambiguous than I like and Sarah found herself in some situations that embarrassed me on her behalf. Now, that said, she is a likably flawed character. She reminds me of some of Kristan Higgins's characters in how she does things while I'm grimacing and shouting, "No! No! Don't do that!" That is a me thing. I have no hesitations in recommending this book especially if you like heroines with a Bridget Jones bent.
Here's the deal: Sarah is divorced, and her nosy family thinks she needs to get back into dating. Her first attempt = running into her dad. *face palm* She fell for it because of how the ad said the guy liked dogs SO she incorporates that sentence into her own ad even though she doesn't have a dog. But she kinda does because her brother has a Saint Bernard names Mother Theresa who's adding to his marital strife. She kinda has the hots for another dog-borrower, John Anderson, but she's also attracted to the father of one of the kids in her preschool, Bob Connors. Her dad is dating the flamboyant Dolly as well as at least one other woman. Hilarity ensues.
Cook does this fabulous, fabulous character arc for Sarah, and really it's her story, a story about how she goes from depressed to taking charge of her life again. That kind of story could've easily been heavy-handed, but Cook writes it with a subtle touch. As to the men of the story, it's hard to get their perspective because the novel is told in first person from Sarah's POV. This is one of the rare occasions, I would say I liked the movie as much as the book. They're different but in a complementary way. I'd recommend both.]]>
author: Claire Cook
name: Sally
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2002
rating: 0
read at: 2014/08/17
date added: 2024/09/28
shelves:
review:
Okay, so a 4.5, maybe.
Here's what I love: voice, easy going prose, quirky characters, winey mac&cheese.
Here are my issues: the ending was a little more ambiguous than I like and Sarah found herself in some situations that embarrassed me on her behalf. Now, that said, she is a likably flawed character. She reminds me of some of Kristan Higgins's characters in how she does things while I'm grimacing and shouting, "No! No! Don't do that!" That is a me thing. I have no hesitations in recommending this book especially if you like heroines with a Bridget Jones bent.
Here's the deal: Sarah is divorced, and her nosy family thinks she needs to get back into dating. Her first attempt = running into her dad. *face palm* She fell for it because of how the ad said the guy liked dogs SO she incorporates that sentence into her own ad even though she doesn't have a dog. But she kinda does because her brother has a Saint Bernard names Mother Theresa who's adding to his marital strife. She kinda has the hots for another dog-borrower, John Anderson, but she's also attracted to the father of one of the kids in her preschool, Bob Connors. Her dad is dating the flamboyant Dolly as well as at least one other woman. Hilarity ensues.
Cook does this fabulous, fabulous character arc for Sarah, and really it's her story, a story about how she goes from depressed to taking charge of her life again. That kind of story could've easily been heavy-handed, but Cook writes it with a subtle touch. As to the men of the story, it's hard to get their perspective because the novel is told in first person from Sarah's POV. This is one of the rare occasions, I would say I liked the movie as much as the book. They're different but in a complementary way. I'd recommend both.
]]>
author: Stephanie Bond
name: Sally
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/09/28
shelves: georgia-romance-writers-authors
review:
I love this series.
]]>
Change when you eat and change your body, your health, and your life!
Diets don’t work. You know you know that, and yet you continue to try them, because what else can you do? You can Fast. Feast. Repeat. After losing over eighty pounds and keeping every one of them off, Gin Stephens started a vibrant, successful online community with hundreds of thousands of members from around the world who have learned the magic of a Delay, Don’t Deny® intermittent fasting lifestyle.
Fast. Feast. Repeat. has it all! You’ll learn how to work a variety of intermittent fasting approaches into your life, no matter what your circumstances or schedule. Once you’ve ignited your fat-burning superpower, you’ll get rid of “diet brain� forever, tweak your protocol until it’s second nature, and learn why IF is a lifestyle, not a diet.
Fast. Feast. Repeat. is for everyone! Beginners will utilize the 28-Day FAST Start. Experienced intermittent fasters will strengthen their intermittent fasting practice, work on their mindset, and read about the latest research out of top universities supporting intermittent fasting as the health plan with a side effect of weight loss. Still have questions? Gin has you covered! All of the most frequently asked intermittent fasting questions are answered in the exhaustive FAQ section.]]>
That said, I know for a fact that limiting daily caloric intake to lose weight does not work for me. I get to a point where I have to have fewer and fewer calories then I get frustrated by the deprivation and eat too much and gain it all back.
What I do see that I think may be helpful is the idea of longer breaks between meals because I think I am insulin resistant and that the repeated small meals further create a monster. I've noticed that if I eat something sugary then I'll be hungry again in five minutes, so I try to eat any treats after something with protein and fiber.
At the end of the day, better whole foods and fewer highly processed foods, especially those with sugar. I think that's the ticket. If I'm going to do anything like this, I am NOT going to have one meal a day for the rest of my life, I'll tell you that. I have had some limited success recently with simply not eating between supper and breakfast while also making sure I'm getting more fiber and more fruits and vegetables.
Mercy. Someday someone will find a real solution to obesity, I hope. Goodness knows *I* don't have the answers.
I would say that anyone who's had disordered eating should stay far, far away from this book. I appreciate Stephens' warning that children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers should avoid this strategy. I also do appreciate her reminders that it should be about how you feel rather than how you look.]]>
author: Gin Stephens
name: Sally
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2021/10/17
date added: 2024/09/28
shelves:
review:
I'm still not entirely convinced that Intermittent Fasting isn't just a fancy eating disorder.
That said, I know for a fact that limiting daily caloric intake to lose weight does not work for me. I get to a point where I have to have fewer and fewer calories then I get frustrated by the deprivation and eat too much and gain it all back.
What I do see that I think may be helpful is the idea of longer breaks between meals because I think I am insulin resistant and that the repeated small meals further create a monster. I've noticed that if I eat something sugary then I'll be hungry again in five minutes, so I try to eat any treats after something with protein and fiber.
At the end of the day, better whole foods and fewer highly processed foods, especially those with sugar. I think that's the ticket. If I'm going to do anything like this, I am NOT going to have one meal a day for the rest of my life, I'll tell you that. I have had some limited success recently with simply not eating between supper and breakfast while also making sure I'm getting more fiber and more fruits and vegetables.
Mercy. Someday someone will find a real solution to obesity, I hope. Goodness knows *I* don't have the answers.
I would say that anyone who's had disordered eating should stay far, far away from this book. I appreciate Stephens' warning that children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers should avoid this strategy. I also do appreciate her reminders that it should be about how you feel rather than how you look.
]]>
She's the heart of O'Kane liquor.
He's the brains of the revolution.
They're facing a war that could end their world. Again.
On December 13th, the Beyond series comes to its climactic conclusion with Nessa and Ryder's story--and the final battle between the sectors and Eden.]]>
I did really relate to Nessa's learning new things and dropping them. Great line about whether Ryder was whiskey or knitting.
Merged review:
Hmmm. I feel like there was A LOT going on in this book. I almost wanted this one to the be the penultimate and then have the war end with a book about Markovic and Penelope. Or maybe I just wanted the series to keep going.
I did really relate to Nessa's learning new things and dropping them. Great line about whether Ryder was whiskey or knitting.]]>
author: Kit Rocha
name: Sally
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2024/01/13
date added: 2024/09/28
shelves:
review:
Hmmm. I feel like there was A LOT going on in this book. I almost wanted this one to the be the penultimate and then have the war end with a book about Markovic and Penelope. Or maybe I just wanted the series to keep going.
I did really relate to Nessa's learning new things and dropping them. Great line about whether Ryder was whiskey or knitting.
Merged review:
Hmmm. I feel like there was A LOT going on in this book. I almost wanted this one to the be the penultimate and then have the war end with a book about Markovic and Penelope. Or maybe I just wanted the series to keep going.
I did really relate to Nessa's learning new things and dropping them. Great line about whether Ryder was whiskey or knitting.
]]>
When Karen Hardeman sets foot on the Foothills University campus, it s her first step toward proving her abusive ex wrong. Just her luck, her first writing assignment in Intro to Romance sends her in search of the perfect hero a quest she s never managed to conquer.
Worse, her professor forces her to collaborate with the most overconfident, annoying guy in the class.
Seth Sayers is also at Foothills to find new direction preferably one that takes him far away from the family drama that s followed him since his father s death. He didn t mean to humiliate Karen by rewriting her manuscript from the hero s point of view. He blames the painkillers the ER doctor gave him after stitching up a wine-induced cut on his hand.
As their collaboration progresses, Karen begins to trust Seth with her manuscript, then maybe a little piece of her heart. But Seth s half-brother resurrects Seth s suspicions about his father s death. Until he finds the truth, he can t be the hero in anyone s life. Even his own.
Warning: Some alcohol consumption. Okay, writer amounts of alcohol consumption. There are also some adult situations, but nothing too explicit. It is a romance-writing class, after all."]]>
author: Cecilia Dominic
name: Sally
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2015/05/25
date added: 2024/09/23
shelves: georgia-romance-writers-authors
review:
Know what? I think Seth is pretty darn close to being a perfect man. Fun story about grad school kids writing a romance while dabbling in the trials and tribulations of the real thing. There's chocolate and wine and a freaky preacher. Plenty of psychoanalysis, and interesting ER trip, and an inside meta look at writing. Fun times.
]]>
author: Maya Angelou
name: Sally
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1994
rating: 0
read at: 2024/02/08
date added: 2024/09/23
shelves:
review:
Just glorious. Angelou's poetry ranges from fun to poignant to ceremonial. Her use of language is, of course, an inspiration.
]]>
Our a chooseable adventure so you can pick the path toward the career you've always wanted. We offer a promo game plan tailored to your personal style, strategy, and measure of success.
Your A Game explains the tools and rules of kickass genre marketing to let you make your best next move. We break down the tricks and traps facing all novelists so you
� build your personal brand into a professional force.
•Ěýpolish your public presence, online and in person.
•Ěýreach your ideal market and access your fans.
•raise each project to the next level.
Your career should be fun. Start playing Your A Game now.]]>
The book is structured in such a way that you can figure out your personality and then attack promotion with the understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of that particular personality. In other words, if you, like me, are easily overwhelmed then you can find specific strategies to help you lean into your strengths. If you, like me, aren't exactly sure what your archetype is, however, then you might flounder a little. My advice? Roll with it. At first I was a little daunted by all of the skipping around that's possible, but then I just looked at the table of contents and figured out how to read the book without skipping. See, I'm at least half-achiever which means that, back in the day, I read The Customs House before The Scarlet Letter even though it wasn't required.
But I digress.
I've already flipped back to the archetype section three times. The next time I launch a book I *know* I will be looking at the last few chapters of this book to review what it has to say about systematic launch parties and various strategies. I would recommend this book for those last few chapters alone.
Now, this book is geared toward genre, and I think a lot of the strategies like "unique but familiar" work better in genres, but I still think this book will be helpful for a fence sitter like me. Ask me again after my next book launch.
Merged review:
One of the greatest parts about this book is that it is, indeed, set up like a game. At first, I was like, "Nah. I don't know about this," but then I realized that framing promotion as a game was a great way to get me to lower my guard and listen to a lot of excellent advice.
The book is structured in such a way that you can figure out your personality and then attack promotion with the understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of that particular personality. In other words, if you, like me, are easily overwhelmed then you can find specific strategies to help you lean into your strengths. If you, like me, aren't exactly sure what your archetype is, however, then you might flounder a little. My advice? Roll with it. At first I was a little daunted by all of the skipping around that's possible, but then I just looked at the table of contents and figured out how to read the book without skipping. See, I'm at least half-achiever which means that, back in the day, I read The Customs House before The Scarlet Letter even though it wasn't required.
But I digress.
I've already flipped back to the archetype section three times. The next time I launch a book I *know* I will be looking at the last few chapters of this book to review what it has to say about systematic launch parties and various strategies. I would recommend this book for those last few chapters alone.
Now, this book is geared toward genre, and I think a lot of the strategies like "unique but familiar" work better in genres, but I still think this book will be helpful for a fence sitter like me. Ask me again after my next book launch.]]>
author: Damon Suede
name: Sally
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2019/10/26
date added: 2024/09/20
shelves:
review:
One of the greatest parts about this book is that it is, indeed, set up like a game. At first, I was like, "Nah. I don't know about this," but then I realized that framing promotion as a game was a great way to get me to lower my guard and listen to a lot of excellent advice.
The book is structured in such a way that you can figure out your personality and then attack promotion with the understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of that particular personality. In other words, if you, like me, are easily overwhelmed then you can find specific strategies to help you lean into your strengths. If you, like me, aren't exactly sure what your archetype is, however, then you might flounder a little. My advice? Roll with it. At first I was a little daunted by all of the skipping around that's possible, but then I just looked at the table of contents and figured out how to read the book without skipping. See, I'm at least half-achiever which means that, back in the day, I read The Customs House before The Scarlet Letter even though it wasn't required.
But I digress.
I've already flipped back to the archetype section three times. The next time I launch a book I *know* I will be looking at the last few chapters of this book to review what it has to say about systematic launch parties and various strategies. I would recommend this book for those last few chapters alone.
Now, this book is geared toward genre, and I think a lot of the strategies like "unique but familiar" work better in genres, but I still think this book will be helpful for a fence sitter like me. Ask me again after my next book launch.
Merged review:
One of the greatest parts about this book is that it is, indeed, set up like a game. At first, I was like, "Nah. I don't know about this," but then I realized that framing promotion as a game was a great way to get me to lower my guard and listen to a lot of excellent advice.
The book is structured in such a way that you can figure out your personality and then attack promotion with the understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of that particular personality. In other words, if you, like me, are easily overwhelmed then you can find specific strategies to help you lean into your strengths. If you, like me, aren't exactly sure what your archetype is, however, then you might flounder a little. My advice? Roll with it. At first I was a little daunted by all of the skipping around that's possible, but then I just looked at the table of contents and figured out how to read the book without skipping. See, I'm at least half-achiever which means that, back in the day, I read The Customs House before The Scarlet Letter even though it wasn't required.
But I digress.
I've already flipped back to the archetype section three times. The next time I launch a book I *know* I will be looking at the last few chapters of this book to review what it has to say about systematic launch parties and various strategies. I would recommend this book for those last few chapters alone.
Now, this book is geared toward genre, and I think a lot of the strategies like "unique but familiar" work better in genres, but I still think this book will be helpful for a fence sitter like me. Ask me again after my next book launch.
]]>