pickThis is not a cheery read as it describes the Holdomor, a famine caused by Stalin‘s policies in Ukraine, in the early 1930s. The story is told from the perspective of Nyl, a Ukrainian boy, whose family stays on their farm instead of joining the collective. Focusing on one family‘s experiences, the author portrays many aspects of the horror of the situation, yet manages to end the story on a hopeful note.
#MiddleGrade #MiddleGradeMarch #Ukraine
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π§ We Crossed a Bridge and it Trembled #FoodAndLit #Syria
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
π§ The Hobbit #FellowshipOfTolkien
π§ Daisy Jones & the Six
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π Winterkill
π§ Our Missing Hearts #LitsyBookClub
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads & start Alias Grace
π All print books pictured are on my April TBR
pickI finished the last few fairly short chapters this morning. I just couldn‘t stick to the #ChapterADay any longer. I didn‘t love this book, but I also think it might have been better if I‘d read it more straight through. It‘s still a light pick because I think it was an interesting story of several characters, and I was always curious to know what would happen to them.
#PemberLittens #audiobook #1001books
Good grief! How long is this going to go on? I caught up with our readalong schedule last night and read Volume 2 Letter 34 (four full issues in Serial Reader) this morning. Clarissa is still at home and resisting her family‘s plans. I‘m so ready for something else to happen.
#Clarissa #SerialReader
Happy Tolkien Reading Day!
I finished listening to The Hobbit last night, and spent some time this morning with the notes and illustrations in my annotated edition. I love this illustration of Smaug, and the lines from Bilbo‘s poem seem a perfect ending to another reread.
#FellowshipOfTolkien #audiobook #quote #reread
pickThis book shares first person accounts of Syrians. It‘s divided into several sections from the increase in authoritarianism, through protest and war, to flight to other countries. The author interviewed people from 2012-2016 who had left Syria.
I didn‘t feel like buying groceries to make something for #FoodAndLit, so I made these simple barazek cookies.
#nonfiction #audiobook #Syria #ReadTheWorld #ReadingTheWorld
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π The Incredibly Dead Pets of Rex Dexter
π Cannery Row #AuthorAMonth
π§ The Black Stallion #ChildrensClassicRead2023
π§ Rain is Not My Indian Name
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
π§ The Hobbit #FellowshipOfTolkien
π Winterkill
π§ We Crossed a Bridge and it Trembled #FoodAndLit #Syria
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads & listen to more audio
pickI never went through the horse crazy phase that some of my friends did, and I never read this as a kid. I think I appreciated some aspects more as an adult comparing certain details to what I learned about this era of horse racing when reading about Seabiscuit. Things work out a little too conveniently, but that‘s what made it such a fun listen today as I worked around the house. π
#ChildrensClassicRead2023 #MiddleGradeMarch #audiobook
Saturday morning breakfast and a new book! This is a story of the Holodomor in Ukraine in the early 1930s.
#MiddleGrade #MiddleGradeMarch #Ukraine #BookAndBreakfast
so-soThis was a fairly short #YA book, and although it was ok, I never felt compelled to keep listening. Rain deals with a lot of loss and considers how she connects to her own Native American heritage. #Kansas
This is an updated edition of a book originally published in 2001.
* I received the #audiobook through the Libro.fm Educator #ALC program. #Librofm
Audio duration: 3 hours 43 minutes
pickI thoroughly enjoyed this short novel by Steinbeck. It touches on some heavy topics in the difficult living of his characters, but it‘s lighter than his longer novels I‘ve read. As expected, I loved his descriptions of the people and places of #California.
βCannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream.β
#AuthorAMonth #FirstLineFridays #quote #1001books
pickThis was a fun middle grade read with some pretty dark humor. Rex isn‘t a great friend, but he‘s a reasonably believable middle school boy. He wants a dog but instead gets a pet chicken that dies a tragic death almost immediately. Then, he‘s haunted by the chicken and some recently deceased zoo animals which leads him to solving the mystery of the zoo animals‘ deaths.
#MiddleGrade #MiddleGradeMarch #MsDsLibrary
I‘ve stayed caught up listening to chapters of The Hobbit, and tonight I spent a little time perusing the illustrations and notes in my print edition with supper. I always enjoy the βBarrels out of Bondβ chapter as Bilbo continues to figure out how he can truly be independent, innovative, and helpful to the dwarves.
#FellowshipOfTolkien #ReadAndEat
I finally started Cannery Row and, as if often the case with Steinbeck, I‘m loving the descriptions of people and places. Then we get this fun little discussion as well.
celebrate vs. celibate π π€£
#AuthorAMonth
I‘ve been following along with the #ChapterADay readalong of Middlemarch without commenting or posting much, but a few quotes in today‘s short chapter caught my attention.
The discussion preceding this quote in chapter 72 is a frustrating one as all the men tell Dorothea what she shouldn‘t do, but I did appreciate the humor of Cecelia‘s response, even if she didn‘t mean it to be funny.
#PemberLittens #SerialReader #quote
I‘ve been following along with the #ChapterADay readalong of Middlemarch without commenting or posting much, but a few quotes in today‘s short chapter caught my attention. I think there‘s some real truth in this comment by Dorothea in chapter 72.
βPeople glorify all sorts of bravery except the bravery they might show on behalf of their nearest neighbors.β
#PemberLittens #SerialReader #quote
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π§ My Selma
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
π§ The Hobbit #FellowshipOfTolkien
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads - March is a busy month for me, and keeping up is about all I can manage.
π Start Cannery Row #AuthorAMonth
π Maybe choose a #MiddleGradeMarch read
pickSet in the 1960s, these are stories of Willie Mae‘s childhood in Selma, Alabama. Many describe everyday aspects of her family life, some are about her first job babysitting for a white woman, and some are directly related to the Civil Rights Movement. These include seeing Martin Luther King, Jr. speak and the arrests of her older siblings for their participation in a march.
#Librofm #ALC #audiobook #MiddleGrade #nonfiction #MiddleGradeMarch
I got caught up with our Clarissa readalong this morning with breakfast. The letters from her family to her, especially all while in the same house, are incredibly frustrating, but I do enjoy the reading experience much more when we hear from different characters.
#Clarissa #1001books #SerialReader #BookAndBreakfast
I‘ll probably listen to the audio for the most part during this readalong, but I also love the annotated edition of The Hobbit. In chapter 1, βAn Unexpected Party,β there are several different illustrations featuring Bilbo & Gandalf. These 2 are from the 1975 Romanian edition & the 1962 Portuguese edition.
#FellowshipOfTolkien
Today was windy but beautiful, so Luthien and I took a long #audiowalk. π§
I listened to a few chapters of Middlemarch. π¬ #PemberLittens
I listened to some early letters that it‘s been a while since I read in #Clarissa to refresh my memory. I‘m still a bit behind on reading, but I‘m almost caught up.
Finally, I decided after all that seriousness, I will listen/read The Hobbit before Tolkien Reading Day. So much more fun! #FellowshipOfTolkien
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π§ The Time Machine
π The Paris Wife
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads
π Choose some #MiddleGradeMarch reads from my class library
pickIt was a beautiful evening to read by a fire for a bit. I finished this book, and I felt the same as I had through most of the story. I really enjoy the way Paula McLain writes historical fiction, but I was just continually waiting for things to go badly. I felt wonderfully connected to Hadley‘s story and loved the descriptions of the places they traveled. Additionally, The Sun Also Rises is my favorite Hemingway so far, so I enjoyed that aspect.
so-soThis is another early science fiction book that just hasn‘t seemed to age well. It was an ok short listen, but I was not at all invested or impressed. #audiobook
This is my March #Reading1001 #TBRTakedown book, and in reading about its inclusion on the #1001books list, I was interested by how it was compared to News from Nowhere which I was not impressed by either.
February #BookSpinBingo
I completed 10 books this month along with keeping up with MiddleMarch & Clarissa. My favorite was Lessons in Chemistry. 4 books completed are on the #1001books list & 5 count for #ReadingTheAmericas2023!
#ReadingStats #MonthlyStats
I made some time to catch up on reading Clarissa this morning with breakfast. I finally got to Lovelace‘s first letter, and I have to say I enjoyed reading a different voice after all the letters between Clarissa & Anna. It‘s a bit hard to read without thinking of what I know about the story, but even so, I don‘t think I‘d trust Lovelace due to his emphasis on conquest and revenge.
#Clarissa #quote #epistolary #BookAndBreakfast #SerialReader
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π§ Evidence of the Affair
π§ The Murmur of Bees
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
π The Paris Wife
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads
π Start March reads
pickThis book had a slow start, but once I became familiar with all of the family, I was fully invested in their story. I thoroughly enjoyed the magical realism in this story that included a boy always accompanied by bees and able to sense the future.
#ReadingTheAmericas2023 #Mexico #ReadingTheWorld #ReadTheWorld #translated #audiobook
This book has been on my TBR for too long, but I‘m finally started! I want to read it, but I‘ve also had a hard time picking it up because I know parts of it are going to be tough.
#ReadAndEat #Roll100 book 26
pickI had planned to listen to Daisy Jones for this month, but I put it on hold too late and it‘ll be a while before I can get to it. So, I went ahead and downloaded this through Prime reading. It‘s not at all the kind of story I would pick up on my own, but I did think it used the epistolary format very well and I listened straight through.
#audiobook #epistolary #AuthorAMonth
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π Eddie Whatever
π§ Lessons in Chemistry #LitsyBookClub
π§ Out of the Silence: After the Crash
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads
π Choose another audiobbok
pickThis was a quick listen, just under 5 1/2 hours at original speed. It describes physical aspects of the survival of the 1972 plane crash in the Andes, but it‘s even more about the mental and spiritual experiences of the author. This includes the brotherhood of the survivors and how the experience impacted the rest of his life.
#nonfiction #memoir #audiobook #translated
#ReadingTheAmericas2023 set in #Argentina & author from #Uruguay
pickI loved this book. I don‘t quite agree with some of the descriptions of it, as parts of the story made me angry just as often as other aspects made me smile, but it was a great story. The distinctive personalities of the characters were wonderful, and it again made me truly appreciative of the women who paved the way for me to lead the independent life I do.
#LitsyBookClub #audiobook
Enjoying Mexican hot chocolate in my new mug and a few pages of this book before school this morning! Thirteen year old Eddie is volunteering at the Silver Brook retirement home for a community service project.
#MiddleGrade #MugLove23
I‘ve really been looking forward to this one, and I started listening to it on my evening walk.
#LitsyBookClub #audiobook #audiowalk
@vonnie862 This #MugLove23 package is lovely! Thanks so much for putting together a perfectly themed gift! I‘ll be trying the hot chocolate very soon, and I‘m intrigued to try out the wooden whisk. I haven‘t read The House on Mango Street since college, so I‘m also very much looking forward to a reread.
Also, thanks to our hosts for putting together a great swap!
I was the lucky winner of a Valentineβs giveaway from #TheBookishCouple Etsy shop and this Blind Date with a Book package is fantastic! Thanks so much Rachel!
Check out the shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheBookishCouple
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
All 3 completed this week are #1001books
π To Have and Have Not
π§ The Feast of the Goat
π§ Lady Chatterley‘s Lover
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
π Eddie Whatever
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads
π Choose another audiobbok
pickI didn‘t expect to enjoy this at all, but I found it better than expected and listened to the whole book today. Even when I did not like the characters‘ decisions, I found them mostly understandable due to the circumstances. It had quite a bit of discussion of classism. Then I watched the new movie on Netflix, which I felt was a reasonable adaptation. Of course it left out some detail, smoothed over other aspects, and added a few dramatic moments.
pickThis was a great historical fiction, but it was also sometimes a very difficult listen. It alternates between 1961 at the end of Trujillo‘s regime in the Dominican Republic when Urania is a teenager and the early 2000s when Urania returns to visit her family for the first time since. The 1961 timeline focuses on the assassination of Trujillo and immediate repercussions. The 2000s timeline focuses on Urania‘s reason for leaving.
so-soTonight I picked up cheeseburger pizza on the way home and then finished this book. Hemingway is hit or miss for me, and this was not a favorite. The book revolves around Harry Morgan but sections are written in slightly different ways. It was more violent and depressing than I expected with tangents that somewhat baffled me. Additionally, the racist language and attitudes were strong in many places.
#1001books #Reading1001 BotM #ReadAndEat
A late start for school this morning means I finally made time to bake muffins from this #cookbook a friend gave me for Christmas.
Confession: I find it nearly impossible to follow a recipe exactly as written. I used frozen cranberries instead of dried and apples instead of pears. I substituted in a tiny bit of wheat bran (Hobbit muffins should be hearty) and threw in a dash of cloves and allspice.
#FellowshipOfTolkien #BreakfastWithTolkien
I listened to several hours of The Feast of the Goat over the weekend and got to some tough chapters describing the torture of men arrested after Trujillo‘s assassination. So, I took a break today and read some more of my Hemingway book. This book also quickly turned more violent than I was expecting from the description, but I was happy to realize it‘s partially set in Cuba.
#1001books #ReadingTheAmericas2023 #DominicanRepublic #Cuba
#BookReport #DaiseysReadingWeek
π The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien #FellowshipOfTolkien π Wide Sargasso Sea #ReadingTheAmericas2023 #Dominica
π§ Unstoppable Us
#CurrentlyReading
π #Clarissa
π To Have and Have Not
π§ The Feast of the Goat #ReadingTheAmericas2023 #FoodAndLit #DominicanRepublic
π§ Middlemarch #PemberLittens
#WeeklyForecast
π Continue current reads
I spent a few hours continuing to listen to this book today, and I‘m really enjoying the way it‘s told from different perspectives. I also made chivo guisado, or braised goat, served with rice. It turned out well and I‘ve got a few meals made for this coming week.
#FoodAndLit #DominicanRepublic #ReadingTheAmericas2023 #audiobook #1001books #translated #ReadingTheWorld #ReadTheWorld
pickThis is a #MiddleGrade #nonfiction about early humans by the author of Sapiens. It describes ways humans evolved and used communication to spread across the world and become the dominant species. It was an interesting listen with relatable comparisons for younger readers. I would be curious to see the illustrations in the print version.
Duration: 3 hours 51 minutes
* I received this #audiobook through the #Librofm #ALC program for educators.
pickThis is a short novel, but there‘s a lot to consider, especially about culture and names. The Caribbean setting was vibrant, yet the feeling of conflict was ever present. There were shifting perspectives and it always felt a bit disjointed, reflecting how the characters never find a way to trust or communicate clearly. It‘s definitely an interesting companion read for Jane Eyre.
#ReadingTheAmericas2023 #Dominica #1001books
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