Stats for May 2025. I‘m actually surprised that I managed to finish this many books/pages, given that we were traveling for the first two weeks of the month!

This book wasn‘t what I expected—and that‘s not a good thing. I don‘t like romance. But the back cover summary intrigued me —is it about two serial killers finding love? How would that even work? Halfway through, though, it veered unevenly into standard rom-com — and I promptly lost interest and skimmed to the end.

This #AuthorAMonth book wrecked me. It‘s the 5th Everett I‘ve read; every one has been an incredible experience. He published 3 versions of this book, where the stories diverge at 3 different fulcrum points — where thoughts either do/do not lead to actions and plans that are/are not followed to completion. The differences seem minor, but tiny choices have big impacts on the outcome. My version was C: If you‘ve read A or B, tell me your thoughts.

9 years?? Time certainly flies when you‘re reading with fellow book lovers!

@Kshakal , happy Litsyversary to my Litsy twin!

Fun and quick read about the guys who made watching arguments entertaining. 👍🏼 I always enjoyed “Siskel & Ebert” — they were smart, sharp and opinionated. In this bio Siskel comes across as a jerk, though. 👎🏼 The “pranks” he played on Ebert behind the scenes weren‘t very funny — it sounds more like bullying to me. 😖 Thanks to @JoeMo and #AuldLangSpine for putting this one on my radar!

Tried to read this for #BookedinTime, but I have to throw in the towel. The narrative is plodding and pedantic and the dialogue comes across as lectures by the characters. Life is too short —moving on.

This book was funny and weird and provocative and brilliant and completely bonkers. And I couldn‘t put it down. Percival Everett is an absolute gift to literature. #AuthorAMonth
 @Soubhiville

It used to be “War & Peace” or “Les Miserables” (I don‘t remember which one is longer!) — until the #Clarissa Crew took down this monster (all 1,781 pages/ 943,000 words of it). It‘s considered the longest novel ever written in English. I will never not brag — and complain — about finishing this one. 😄

#sundayfunday
@BookmarkTavern

I‘ve known for years that I should read this classic but the description of it as “romantic suspense” left me feeling lukewarm about picking it up. But I needed a paperback for our trip, so I packed this one and figured that would finally force me to read it. I‘m glad I did. I wouldn‘t classify it as “romance” at all—just delightfully creepy Gothic suspense. Check this one off the list. ✔️

So excited to arrive home from vacation to find this in the pile of bills and junk mail!

The only word that comes to mind to describe this book is “interminable.” It was probably a good thing I was stuck on an 8-hour flight or I may not have finished it.

When I was a junior in high school, my English teacher told us about her escape from Budapest during the 1956 revolution, and how she swam to freedom across the Danube River with a backpack that contained only a change of clothes and a copy of “Hamlet.” (You try explaining that you don‘t care for Shakespeare after that story…) She was brilliant and terrifying and she scared the crap out of me. And she pushed me to become a better writer … ⬇️

My husband and I have made it to Budapest on our trek through Eastern Europe. I‘ve tried to pick up a book in each country (but I missed out in Bulgaria and Croatia—not enough time to track down bookstores in the towns where we were that sell English editions). Anyway, I couldn‘t decide between a nonfiction and a fiction for Hungary —so I got them both. 😀 My carry-on is bursting at the seams now. Good thing we‘re heading home this weekend! 😬

This is the book I picked up from the Serbia leg of our trip through Eastern Europe.

Today‘s find in Belgrade: the Serbian edition of “Cutting for Stone.”

It‘s been slow going with this book so far —I‘m trying to read but I keep getting distracted by the gorgeous views of the Danube. (This is just after sailing through the Iron Gates, with Romania on one bank and Serbia on the other.)

On a bus tour into the mountains of Bulgaria and the woman next to me pulls out a paperback while her friend takes care of the photos. I feel like she‘s one of us. 😀
(It‘s a Lee Child thriller. I peeked at the cover.)

That moment when you‘re reading a book that randomly mentions a country — and you just happen to BE in that exact country! 🤯😀

Stumbled onto this gorgeous bookstore in Bucharest‘s Old Town today. It‘s located in a former nobility palace. What did I buy? After a tour of Transylvania, it had to be a copy of “Dracula” — of course!

My husband and I are traveling in Romania right now. I love looking at books—even in languages that I can‘t read!

Excellent biography of Martin Luther King, Jr. that examines his full life: his beliefs, his actions, his insecurities and his failures. In other words —a portrait of a man who had his flaws like any other human, but who rose to greatness and met the moment when it mattered.
Chunkster Petite category of #ChunksterChallenge2025 ✔️

April stats. Nonfiction is inching back up, so that‘s a good sign that my brain isn‘t as scattered and shattered from the news and events going on in the country and the world and I can concentrate again. Although I still want to stick my head in a hole and escape.

What an absolutely lovely little book! I‘m not crying —YOU‘RE crying.

This collection of letters between an American scriptwriter and the staff of a British bookstore in London restores my faith in humanity and confirms my belief that book people are the best people.

Listen to the audiobook —the narrators are delightful.

I eagerly awaited this, Adichie‘s first fiction outing in 10 years. I adore her writing, and “Americanah” is a favorite read. This one follows 4 women whose lives intersect and interconnect before/during/after the Covid-19 pandemic. I enjoyed it, but thought it was uneven in parts. I was drawn to Kadiatou‘s story but Chia‘s musings on past boyfriends left me feeling meh. Still recommend for the beauty of Adichie‘s prose.

Because I‘ve loved her recent books about the female assassin squad, I thought I‘d give this series a try. I was disappointed. While I liked Veronica Speedwell‘s sassiness, this felt more like a light romance than a mystery —the murder happens in the first few chapters, but it takes 200 pages before Veronica & Stoker begin to investigate it. And there‘s a lot of disbelief that must be suspended. I doubt I‘ll continue with the series.

When it‘s finally Friday evening after a long week and the hubby is working an overnight so you have the house to yourself and you can settle into the couch with a stack of books and a giant mug of camomile tea. 🥰🫠

Congrats on your 200k milestone, @dabbe ! Here‘s my mood board. It‘s not super cheerful —every day since Jan. 20 has been more challenging than the day before it. Trying to maintain my resolve and commitment to making good trouble, but the mountain feels higher and more dangerous every time I can bring myself to look at the news. I worry about my Marine son, I worry about the economy and I worry if we‘ll even have a country next year. Mood: 😵‍💫

From the moment of her unexpected birth in 1905 until her death more than 85 years later, Daisy Stone Goodwill experiences all the ups, downs, humor, melancholy, sadness, grief and joy of childhood, young adulthood, marriage, motherhood, widowhood and old age. In other words—a life, lived. This book gave me all the feels.

If you‘re going to attend a protest in DC, of course you also have to make a trek to Politics and Prose!

My husband, youngest son and I traveled to DC this weekend to participate in the Hands Off protest there. Current estimates at the moment are that 5 million people attended more than 1,400 protests around the world today. Keep the momentum going! We are the people—and we have the power! #resist

A sobering and unflinching account of the author‘s internment at Auschwitz in 1944-1945. After the camp was liberated by Soviet troops, Debreczeni, a reporter in Hungary before the war, wrote down his experience in this memoir. Because of the Cold War, it wasn‘t published outside of the country until recent years. While it‘s harsh and horrific, it‘s also moving, poetic and beautifully written. Highly recommend.

I‘d never read a Rainbow Rowell book, so when I saw this on the library shelf I figured I‘d give it a try. Almost 100 pages in and I‘m throwing in the towel. The main character is annoying, the dialogue is trite and stilted… and the worst offense? It‘s just so incredibly boring. 😖 Moving on.

Reading stats for March rebounded from the lull that was February. However, I‘m still not reading as much nonfiction as I normally do (it‘s usually close to 50/50). Pretty sure my brain is craving an escape from reality these days and just can‘t handle anything more at the moment. 😖😬

Another assignment for our sexagenarian assassins! This one doesn‘t have quite the same fun and witty banter as the first book, but it‘s still a rollicking romp. And the women are just as badass as ever.

While I‘m loving the trend of colorful edges, I‘m not sure I can get on board with this one! I‘d be too squeamish to hold it, I think! It‘s very … realistic-looking. 😳😬

Another fabulous book with the gorgeous edges —this one I purchased. Because … Adichie. 😍

Stopped in to Barnes & Noble for a browse and I‘m captivated by the gorgeous edge papers on some of the new paperbacks. Isn‘t this beautiful? 😍

When it‘s been a really crappy month (year?) and your boss lets your team know with a gift that she understands and sees you. 😀

#notbookrelated

Loved this sequel to “Count the Ways,” which picks up in 2010 and follows Eleanor and her family through 2024 —with mention of many of the historical events in America. (Trigger warnings if you don‘t want to relive several school shootings, the 2016 election, the pandemic, George Floyd‘s murder or the Jan. 6 insurrection of the Capitol, for example.) These characters feel real to me now and I will miss them.
#transrightsreadathon

#Resist

Amen. 🙌🏼

#resist

Just downloaded this one from Hoopla —the sequel to “Count the Ways.” I‘d forgotten that Eleanor‘s oldest son is transgender! So I‘m jumping in and participating in #transrightsreadathon. ❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜

A day late (and a dollar short) for #weirdwordwednesday — but wanted to share anyway! I just finished the tagged book about the Dutch colony that first settled NYC. This section mentioned some of the Dutch words that were mutated into the English language and are still part of our lexicon 400 years later. As a word nerd, this type of stuff fascinates me!
@CBee

Fascinating account of New Netherland, the Dutch colony on the island of Manhattan that predated the Pilgrims. After the English took control of the colony in 1664, the narrative shifted in favor of the “victor” and much of the Dutch history was lost. This book draws on a research project at the New York State Library that included the translation of thousands of original documents from the 17th century.

I was surprised by the pedestrian writing in this book. After 20 pages, I looked to see if it‘s tagged YA. Nope. Maybe it's a debut novel? Again, no. I kept going, but my eyeballs continued rolling. Several plot points strained credibility. Was I supposed to believe that a 6-year-old child who had received almost no education could read and understand a book with words like "indigenous" and "captivity"? In the end, this book disappointed me.

The fact that I now understand this reference when it randomly appears in books almost makes The Year of Reading #Clarissa totally worth it.

Almost.

😀

Sounds about right. 😄

I was lukewarm about picking up this book because I thought it would be a typical madcap rom-com about a glitzy wedding in Newport. It was not at all what I expected—and that is a very good thing. It‘s funny and over the top, yes. But it has way more depth than I expected. It‘s more reflective and insightful and introspective than I expected. I couldn‘t put it down, and when I finished I immediately texted a friend: “You need to read this!”

When Hubby is working overnight and the wind is howling outside and you have the bed to yourself and you can hunker down with your pile of books. 🥰