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Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes

Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes

Joined December 2023

Wife, mom, grandma. Retired English adjunct prof. Lifelong reader. Reads across most genres, except romance. #NetGalley reviewer
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Tombland by C. J. Sansom
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Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey, Ruth Hulbert (illustrator)
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Weyward: A Novel | Emilia Hart
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4/5🌟
3 different timelines about 3 related women generations apart. One is tried as a witch because of fear. One is naive about the ways of the world because her father turns their home into a prison and pays an awful price. One escapes an abusive relationship until her past finds her. Each one finds the strength to seize the story of their lives and build something new.

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#FirstLineFridays

“Samuel Adams delivered what may count as the most remarkable second act in American life.”

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Little House Set | Laura Ingalls Wilder
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#TLT #ThreeListThursday

3 favorites on the list:
The Graveyard Book
Little House in the Big Woods
A Wrinkle In Time

3 that should‘ve been on the list
The rest of the Little House books 😁
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Mrs. Mike

Three on my TBR pile
One Thousand and One Nights
Howl‘s Moving Castle
One of the Moomin books.

Singout Yes to the Witch of Blackbird Pond. Makes me want to read it again. 2w
dabbe Yeah, it tons of Dahl's books can be on there, why can't Wilder's? Thanks for playing and sharing. 🩶🩵🩶 2w
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willaful Howl and the Moomins are wonderful! 2w
20 likes1 stack add6 comments
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1) Yes
2) At the Coffee Shop of Curiosities

#Two4Tuesday

TheSpineView Thanks for playing! 🤩👍 2w
15 likes1 comment
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Schooled in Murder | Victoria Gilbert
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4/5 ⭐️ New cozy mystery releases tomorrow. This one features Jennifer “Jenn” Dalton, mystery author and director of Clarion University‘s writing center. She decides to solve the murder of a cantankerous professor when a student Jenn knows well is accused of killing him. The book is fast paced. Plenty of red herrings to keep a reader guessing. It the 1st book in the Campus Sleuth series.

#cozymystery #Netgalley

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Filling the Big Empty | Rhonda Browning White
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5/5 ⭐️. This novel places the reader into Stump Branch, a West Virginia mountain community decimated by mountain top removal mining and opioids. Jasper and Romie, high school sweethearts are trying to make a living in an environment that threatens to destroy them. It is also a novel of perseverance, second (and third) chances, and hope. ⬇️

Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes Disclaimer: I first read about Jasper and Romie in a writing workshop 11 or so years ago while studying for my MFA. Rhonda and I were in the same program, and she had written a short story that ended up being the first chapter in the novel. I was excited to read this novel and find out what they‘ve been up to since those workshops. 🙂 (edited) 3w
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#Two4Tuesday

1. To read more of my TBR stacks.
2. Tagged book. It releases this summer. “A Botanist‘s Guide to Rituals and Revenge” is the 4th book in the series.

TheSpineView Thanks for playing and Happy New Year 3w
14 likes1 comment
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#SundayFunday @BookmarkTavern

This whole series, The Christmas Tree Farm Mysteries, is set at Christmas. 🎄 🎅🤶🎁❤️📚

BookmarkTavern Oh that‘s cute! Thanks for answering! 1mo
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The Snow Child | Eowyn Ivey
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1. Remote cabin with snow

2. The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey. Not specifically Christmas-drawing a blank there, book wise-but has the mountains, snow, and Alaska. A favorite book by a favorite author. 🙂❤️🏔️

#Two4Tuesday

TheSpineView 🤍❄️🤍 Thanks for playing 1mo
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Gingerbread Danger | Amanda Flower
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1. Putting up the tree with my grandkids.

2. Good question. I‘ve already read the tagged book. Probably something from my Kindle Unlimited books. 🤷🏼‍♀️Most of the books I want to read are back home in Ohio. I‘m currently in Alaska helping out family, so most of my books aren‘t here. My Kindle and I pad are though. And a few physical books. Oh hey! I just remembered books are waiting for me at the post office! 🎉🥳

#two4Tuesday

TheSpineView Love book mail! Thanks for playing 2mo
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Put aside one book and picked up this one. So far, so good. 🤞🏻

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The Overstory: A Novel | Richard Powers
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I‘m having a hard time reading this book. I just started it, but I‘m setting it aside for now. It‘s too dark and depressing. I‘m not getting rid of it though. I want to try it again later. Maybe. I‘ve read a lot of past posts and it seems like I‘m in the minority. 🤣

TracyReadsBooks You‘re not alone in having trouble with this book. I made it all the way through but it was an unpleasant reading experience. Ultimately, I appreciated what the author was trying to say but I didn‘t like the book. 2mo
Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes @TracyReadsBooks Good to know it isn‘t just me. 🙂 I have too many other books to read to plow through this one. 2mo
22 likes2 comments
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Black Woods, Blue Sky | Eowyn Ivey, Ruth Hulbert (illustrator)
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Birdie knew her mistake as soon as she cracked open her eyes.

I‘m reading the ARC for this book. I was so excited to be approved! #netgalley #arc

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

behudd Oh I have loved her other books! 2mo
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I'll Be Home for Mischief | Jacqueline Frost
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Reindeer Games Tree Farm looks to establish the new world record for largest gingerbread man. But when a body is found in the cookie cutter, murder takes center stage.
🎄Christmas theme
🎄Great characters
🎄Solid mystery
🎄Book 5 in a series
🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄/5
🎄I love this series that takes place in Mistletoe, Maine.
#cozymystery #Christmas #NetGalley #IllBeHomeForMischief
🎄This book releases tomorrow.

TEArificbooks Looking forward to it 2mo
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A Tale Of Three Trees
One tree clinging to summer.
A second tree conceding it is time for fall.
The third tree embraces fall in red-leafed glory.

These three trees caught my attention yesterday at our local park. Each in different stage of fall, despite their close proximity to each other. 🍃🍂🍁

#fall #falltrees #October #fallcolors

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Gorgeous 🍁🍂 3mo
Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Oct. is one of my favorite months. 3mo
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Body in the Bookstore | Ellie Alexander
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4/5 ⭐️
When an old college acquaintance ends up dead in a secret room at The Secret Bookcase bookstore, bookseller Annie Murray is swept up in the investigation.
This book is a quick read. There are several plausible suspects, a plot that twists and turns, and an ending that ties up all the loose ends. I‘ll be reading the second book in the series.
#cozymystery #bookstore #secretbookcasemystery

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Body in the Bookstore | Ellie Alexander
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“When your best friend is murdered, it can be kind of hard to get over.”

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

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Apple Cider Slaying | Julie Anne Lindsey
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Corn maze
Pick apples
Nature walk
Bonfire
Curl up with a book
No apples 🙂
Chili and cornbread
Apple cinnamon

#WonderousWednesday

@Eggs

Eggs Thx for joining in! 3mo
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5/5. Based on the shipwreck of the Essex. A whaler based out of Nantucket, it was sunk when an angry sperm whale rammed it. This story was the inspiration for Moby Dick. The portrayal of cannibalism the crew was forced to resort to in order to stay alive is horrifying. (Side note-apparently cannibalism became so common after shipwrecks that when survivors were rescued they were quick to say when they hadn‘t resorted to cannibalism 😳)

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#FirstLineFridays

Like a giant bird of prey, the whaleship moved lazily up the western coast of South America, zigging and zagging across a living sea of oil.

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5/5 ⭐️ for me. The first in a new-to-me cozy mystery series. It ticked a lot of my boxes even though I solved the killer‘s ID early on. Boxes ticked: witty dialogue, solid relationship between main characters, well-developed setting. There are a total of 11 books in the series, at least so far. I‘ve ordered the next two. 🙂

#cozymysteries #cozymystery #EnglishVillage #LadyHardcastleMystery

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The Busy Body | Kemper Donovan
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Mehso-so

I finished this book because I wanted to know the murderer‘s identity. And now that I think about it, I can‘t remember who that was. I only finished a short time ago. 😳 I didn‘t much care for the characters, and I won‘t be reading any more in this series. This is the first book in the series.

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I‘m emptying out bins of books-stored because of drywall work and painting in my office. I forgot about this one. Small book, but full of bookish art and essays. 🙂 I‘m putting it on my desk where I can easily reach it.

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The Busy Body | Kemper Donovan
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#WonderousWednesday

1) Leaving with 4 or so books. My mom would drop me off at the library while she went to the grocery store around the corner. Every Saturday morning.

2) ARCs and various online bookstores.

3) Currently reading The Busy Body. It‘s not wowing my sock off or anything, but it‘s a good read. Will pass it on to my daughter when I am done.

Eggs Thanks for sharing your memories 🫶🏻 8mo
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A Spindle Splintered | Alix E. Harrow
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Mehso-so

I read this last night before bed. Mistake. I had weird dreams all night. 🤣 Now I‘m dragging today. If I had really enjoyed the book the dragging today would‘ve been worth it. But at best I can say it was so-so. I enjoy reading different takes on fairy tales, but not this one. The world building didn‘t draw me in, and I didn‘t care about the characters-even the dying one. 😬 I think it was too short for what it was trying to accomplish. ⬇️

Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes I won‘t be reading the rest of the series. #fracturedfairytales #fairytaleretelling #alixharrow 8mo
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After hearing about this book for years, I finally bought a copy and read it yesterday. I enjoyed the epistolary format. It was a different and fun way to get to know the characters. I‘m glad I finally read it. 5/5 ⭐️

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The Thursday Murder Club | Richard Osman
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#nationaleggmonthchallenge

1) Tag a favorite mystery you read
Just one?! 🤔 Okay. The Thursday Murder Club

2) What is your favorite way to prepare eggs?
Scrambled. With lots of cheddar cheese. 😋

WildAlaskaBibliophile ❤🍳thank you for playing! 8mo
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I finished this last night. 4.5/5 ⭐️. Preachy is a spot or two, but overall I enjoyed it. Book addresses poverty, racism, class and other issues. A lot of characters to keep straight. The book is also a mystery when a dead body is discovered during construction. The who, how, and why is an unexpected twist that I enjoyed. James McBride can be difficult to read, but he‘s one of my autobuy authors. The Good Lord Bird remains a favorite. ❤️

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Untitled | Untitled
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#WondrousWednesday

1) family, 📚, 🏔️

2) 📝 🛫🌄 (my writing, spending summer with family, Colorado sunsets)

Eggs Oh lovely! Thanks for playing! 9mo
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#WonderousWednesday

1) Tulips

2) The Angel of Indian Lake by Stephen Graham Jones

3) Spend time with the grandkids

Eggs Yay the grands❤️❤️❤️ 9mo
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The Angel of Indian Lake | Stephen Graham Jones
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#Two4Tuesday

1) Done

2) It‘s a toss up between The Demon of Unrest by Eric Larson or The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride.

TheSpineView I haven't read anything by Larson but have several on my TBR list. 💙📖📚 9mo
Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes @TheSpineView I‘ve read most of his books. He‘s one of the very few non-fiction authors I auto-buy. 🙂 9mo
RamsFan1963 The Demon of Unrest is excellent. I'm trying to savor it, resist the temptation of swallowing it all in one big gulp. 9mo
Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes @RamsFan1963 Good to know. I think I‘ll read The Demon of Unrest next, then. 🙂 9mo
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Cold Wind: A Mystery | Paige Shelton
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#Two4Tuesday

🐴🐔Country/farm

🌋🏔️ Split time between Alaska (currently) and Ohio. 🏈(Grandkids in both places)

TheSpineView Thanks for playing 9mo
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Unknown Book 7535597 | Unknown Unknown
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#WondrousWednesday

1) Alone time (says introvert me 🤣)
2) Writing time
3) My family ❤️

Eggs Wonderful 👏🏻👌🏼🥰 9mo
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The Angel of Indian Lake | Stephen Graham Jones
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5/5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow. This book. What. A. Ride. I don‘t read a lot of horror, but this book/trilogy pulled me in from page one. This is book 3 of The Indian Lake trilogy. These aren‘t stand alone books.
Jade has returns to her hometown of Proofrock, Idaho after her release from prison. When the horrors of the lake arise once more, Jade must find it within herself, again, to fight for the hometown that has betrayed her over & over. #horror #IndianLake

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Limited Edition Murder | Lauren Elliott
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Read the #NetGalley ARC in two days. Addie Greyborne spends a year in England after the implosion of her wedding back in the States. Right before she‘s ready to come back home (again), she‘s pulled into a murder investigation. This is book 10 in the series. Moving the Addie to another country with a new cast of characters, while keeping #cozymystery elements really worked. And the ending! Ready for #11.
5/5⭐️ ❤️ Pub date 5/21/24
❤️ the cover

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The Angel of Indian Lake | Stephen Graham Jones
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#FirstLineFridays
#horror
#StephenGrahamJones
#IndianLakeTrilogy

The Savage History of Proofrock, Idaho opens looking through the eyeholes of a mask, with some heavy, menacing breathing amping up the menace.

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Untitled | Untitled
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#WonderousWednesday

📚Hardcover
📚Fiction
📚Historical
📚Recent
📚Water when reading 🙂
📚Physical
📚Print

Eggs 🩷💜🩷 10mo
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The Angel of Indian Lake | Stephen Graham Jones
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Yay for book mail! Also-book whiplash. Amanda Flower‘s book is a historical/cozy mystery mashup and SGJ‘s book is a horror novel.

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Trust | Hernan Diaz
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#FirstLineFridays

Because he had enjoyed almost every advantage since birth, one of the few privileges denied to Benjamin Rask was that of a heroic rise: his was not a story of resilience and perseverance or the tale of an unbreakable will forging a golden destiny for itself out of little more than dross.

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Neverwhere | Neil Gaiman
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#TLT
#ThreeListThursday

1) Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. Just finished it several days ago. 🙂

2) Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder

3) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

dabbe #'s 2 and 3: YES! 🤩 #1: now on my TBR. Thanks for playing. 💚💙💚 10mo
TheBookHippie #3 I read every December. 10mo
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#WonderousWednesday
1) Craig Johnson, Louise Penny, Carlene O‘Connor, Amanda Flower, Heather Weber, Kate Khavari,

2) Right now, the tagged book

3) Craig Johnson, Louise Penny, Amanda Flower, and Carlene O‘Connor (sorry. Choosing one was too stressful. 🙂)

Eggs Wonderful! Thanks for playing 🤗 10mo
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Trust | Hernan Diaz
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Started this one last night. Anyone else read it? I was drawn in by “At once an immersive story and brilliant literary puzzle…” from the description. I‘ll see if it lives up to the hype. 🙂

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5 star read for me. Genres: Historical (WWI), literary. The novel follows identical twin sisters Peggy and Maude, bindery girls for Oxford University Press. Issues of class, women‘s rights (or lack thereof) are woven throughout the book. What this novel brings to the forefront is the erasure of women and their contributions in history. If interested, read Williams other book The Dictionary of Lost Words first-there is crossover between the books

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#FirstLineFridays

Scraps. That‘s all I got. Fragments that made no sense without the words before or the words after.

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This was a quick cozy mystery read. Juni Jessup owns Sip and Spin, a vinyl record shop/coffe shop with her three sisters. When an aggressive potential investor ends up dead in front of the shop, Juni is determined to solve the mystery. The characters are well written. Plenty of suspects and motives kept me guessing. 📚e-copy provided by NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for review.
📚Pub date 3/26/24 📚 4/5 stars #cozymystery

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Currently reading this one and enjoying it. Love the cover as well. #historicalfiction #oxforddictionary

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1) Fairy

2) Emily Wilde‘s Encyclopaedia of Faeries and Emily Wilde‘s Map of the Otherlands. Looking forward to Emily Wilde‘s Compendium of Lost Tales

#TwoForTuesday

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Neverwhere | Neil Gaiman
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#FirstLineFridays

From the prologue: The night before he went to London, Richard Mayhew was not enjoying himself.

From Chapter One: She had been running for four days now, a harum-scarum tumbling flight through passages and tunnels.

behudd My favorite Gaiman! Such a good one 🤩 10mo
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Mongrels: A Novel | Stephen Graham Jones
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#TLT #ThreeListThursday

1) Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones

2) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

3) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Cheryl_Russell_BookNotes Thanks @dabbe for the tag! 10mo
dabbe I'm making a list, and checking it twice; gonna share with everyone whether they're naughty or nice! Thanks for sharing. 💚💙💚 10mo
13 likes2 comments
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#ThreeListThursday
#TLT

1) Quiet by Susan Cain. Life-changing book for me.
2) Hamilton by Ron Chernow
3) Killers of The Flower Moon by David Grann

Hard to limit to 3! 😄

dabbe #1: #metoo #introvertsunite! Thanks for sharing! 💚💙💚 11mo
Nameera Hello guys. I am a Clinical psychology student trying to study the psychological well-being empathy and fantasy engagement among Fiction and non fiction readers. It would be great you you take time to fill this form
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd8dX_2Udab9QKk4CXiI0CeScJNjf-HWh1gTYH8...
11mo
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