Wow, this one was heavy. I can see why it was a finalist for the Pulitzer. Family saga that spans the second half of the 20th century. And really, what‘s more American than baseball and serial killers? 😂 This family keeps having eerie brushes with serial killers over the course of their life struggles,of which there are many. I listened to the audio, and I think the matter-of-fact narrator suited the material well. This is a good one.

I finished this audiobook today. First finish in 2025! This was a lovely short book, about a child who is temporarily fostered due to family overwhelm and economic circumstances. I read too much true crime, so I kept waiting for something horrible to happen, but it didn‘t. Poignant, though. Restored my faith in good people. I‘m on the waiting list at the library for her other books, and I look forward to them.

I finally jumped on the bandwagon and started this series. Full of tropes - unreasonably feisty heroine, good at hunting with a bow, pretty enough but fairly ordinary except for her feistiness, is sentenced to fairyland a la Beauty and the Beast. Incredibly hot male fairies find her irresistibly attractive. She has to save the fairy realm against impossible odds using cunning and bravery. The fresh writing made it all enjoyable. On to book 2!

This was lovely. A fun, gentle novel about a department store that sells dreams, and only to people who are asleep in their own worlds. I loved it.

I‘m loving this book. Just the kind of lovely escapism I need right now.

I‘m slowly making my way through this one in 20-minute bites each night, while my kids do their evening reading time for school. Wow, Henry Ford was such a crank. And SO SO SO on the autism spectrum. Between him, and Dr. Kellogg up at the Battle Creek Sanatarium…what the heck was going on up there, Michigan? Also, Ford reminds me of H. Ross Perot, but with antisemitism and paranoid xenophobia. #readingtheamericas #brazil

I have other books I need to finish right now, but I made the mistake of cracking this one open tonight. I am captivated. Those other books may have to wait.

I blew through this quartet quickly - just kept reading because I enjoyed the universe that the author created. I love a good dystopia. These stories are related, but can be read as stand-alone books. It had been years since I last read The Giver, and I was pleased to discover the other books. All good.

I‘ve been bingeing the old episodes of the My Favorite Murder podcast lately, so I decided it was time to read the hosts‘ book. Fun, fast read, with autobiographical stories. If you like the podcast, you‘ll like the book too!

I FINALLY FINISHED! I was doing a group read of this book earlier this year, hosted by @Lindy , but life intervened and I got bogged down around part 16 of the book. But I kept plugging away and I did it! Well worth the time to read it, I learned so much about post-partition India. But…even though I pretty much knew who Lata would marry, I was unhappy with the choice. Girl deserved better. Too bad she couldn‘t stay single.

This was entertaining and wryly clever right up until the end. I want to read the rest of the trilogy now. And I also want to visit Finland. They have an odd, almost absurdist turn of mind there, I think I‘d like it 😊 If you are not familiar with Finnish quirkiness, try this trilogy, or a book in the genre of “Finnish weird.” That‘s a thing. Johanna Sinisalo is a good author to start with.

Extremely complicated and not as satisfying as I hoped it would be, but still interesting writing. It‘s still a pick, I was just hoping to love it rather than like it. I listened to the audiobook. Because of the twisty plot, I wonder if I would have enjoyed this book more in visual form.

“The last time I was here was with Lizard Man and AK. Both men tried to kill me but ended up killing themselves instead.” Oh, is that all? 😂 This is the e-book for July at my library - unlimited copies, no waiting. I am enjoying its extremely wry Finnish humor. The fact that the abnormally serious and logical main character (autism spectrum?) has inherited a kids‘ theme park is amusing in itself. Now I want to read the first book in the series.

Late to this one. Like everyone else, I have some quibbles about which books ended up on The NY Times list of 100 best books of the 21st century. For me, “A Little Life” should have been on here somewhere. And where is Margaret Atwood? I was surprised that I‘ve only read 24 of these books, but so many are on my endless TBR 😂 I‘ve been meaning to read them, truly!

EDIT: The readers‘ favorite list is up now for comparison. A Little Life is #11.

https://www.listchallenges.com/litsy-rolling-stones-best-songs-from500to401

I‘ve heard 71/100. I am sadly deficient in hip-hop.

Top 4 faves - couldn‘t get it down to only 3
- Midnight Train to Georgia, Gladys Knight and the Pips - absolutely my favorite song on this list!
- Passionate Kisses, Lucinda Williams
- Uptown Funk
- California Dreaming

#tlt @dabbe
I hate tagging people, sorry. Everyone play, it‘s entertaining!

Still not loving the narrator, but I am hooked on the story anyway. I can‘t stop listening. If only they had chosen a calm female voice, like the woman who narrated Station Eleven. That would have been perfect. The omniscient narrator in this book is an AI who‘s referred to as female, for goodness sake! What was the publisher thinking with this fussy male audiobook narrator? Anyway, enjoying the book and all the sci-fi twists!

I‘ve just started this audiobook, and I HATE the narrator. Terrible choice. They should have picked someone altogether less histrionic. I may have to start over with a non-audio version. This guy sounds like he‘s used to narrating arch but cozy mysteries set in the English countryside, not dystopian fiction.

I loved this book! What fun! A team of four retired female assassins in their early 60s suddenly have a hit taken out on them, and now they‘re on the job again to eliminate the threat. They kick all kinds of ass, they are smart, fearless, and still in pretty good shape, they can still kill with the best of them, and they can MacGyver themselves out of any situation. And they‘re snarky and funny. Jason Bourne, eat your heart out.

I loved this book! It‘s been on my TBR list since 2017…once I started it, I couldn‘t put it down. The writing was beautiful, and the story was unusual and dystopian. I love a good dystopia. The author‘s descriptions of how the bees experienced scents and pheromone signals were incredibly vivid. I understand Laline Paull was on the 2023 Women‘s Prize shortlist. Not surprised, she is a compelling writer. I want to read all her work.

Interesting and entertaining, this book focuses on cultural attitudes about menstruation, particularly during the 19th-20th centuries in the United States, with a heavy emphasis on advertising and marketing of “feminine products.” This is not a heavy scientific book, more a book that shows how advertising/culture has reinforced the idea of periods as negative, sometimes weirdly. Illustrated with vintage ads for feminine products!

I‘m enjoying this audiobook. It‘s like Daisy Jones and the Six, but with more cultural relevance. Somebody please make this a movie and cast Lupita Nyongo/Viola Davis as Opal!

I‘m enjoying this. Cozy English mystery, where the dog‘s thoughts are part of the narration. He‘s a failed police dog named Rex Harrison who is not terribly obedient 😂 His owner is a retired police detective who gets involved in solving crimes. I have a Shepherd mix named Carter whose thought process reminds me a lot of Rex. Smart, with a mind of his own. 😉 He enjoys taking up 2/3 of our couch. Shown with Lilly, our beagle/pit mix.

Well, that was weird. It was clear all along that something bad was going to happen, but I wasn‘t expecting something so visceral, and for the book to end so abruptly. Three stars out of five for the beautiful writing alone. Now I really must track down the movie that was made of this and watch the stellar cast interpret this story (Christopher Walken, Helen Mirren, Rupert Everett and Natasha Richardson!).

I‘m about halfway through this audiobook, and I really need someone to hug me and tell me it‘s going to be okay. 😢 That Leonie…good grief, such bad judgment! With every new bad decision, I groan, and then feel sad for her poor kids ☹️

I‘m not sure I can narrow it down to three!

This Is Spinal Tap
The Breakfast Club
Pretty in Pink
Say Anything
Twilight Zone: The Movie
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Moonstruck
Fast Times at Ridgemont High

I see why friends have been telling me to read Maisie Dobbs. The first book is so good! It‘s a trope I‘ve seen before (plucky wartime nurse comes home to England after the war, solves mysteries), but I‘m OK with that. I‘m not so sure I‘ll be into the espionage themes in later books, but I enjoyed the first book so much, I‘m willing to try the rest of the series.

I‘ve been wanting to read this one for a long time, and it doesn‘t disappoint. The Christopher Moore snarky humor vibes are strong.

Just started. This is the best first chapter I‘ve read in a long time!

Tag, everyone!

1. Flying to Texas to see my mom, returning on Easter Sunday to eat candy with my kids :)
2. I haven‘t really had one yet, but several three-star ratings. The level of the sex scenes in The Kiss Quotient was way too much for me, though. I‘m not a hardcore romance fan.
3. Little Women! I read it over and over again, and also several of Alcott‘s other books. I still have my Little Women series hardbacks from childhood.

I stumbled across this event on my hometown library‘s website. I would totally go to this, and I may suggest it to my local library. I think a local bookstore was doing something similar this year - need to follow up. Also? I‘d attend a similar event that listened to an audiobook together in installments, although that might be harder to organize.

Bought myself a birthday present! 🥳

I love musicals, but I‘m aging myself a little with these choices 😆 #tlt

1. Cabaret
2. Jesus Christ Superstar
3. Camelot

3.5. Honorable mention for Spamalot, which I got to see on Broadway with Tim Curry, David Hyde Pierce, and Sara Ramirez 😁
Plays, hmm. I‘ve seen a lot, but one of my all-time favorites is Twelfth Night. And Noises Off! SO funny!

I thoroughly enjoyed this story of women in an Indian village finding a way out from under negative circumstances. Yes, a few husbands got killed, but they needed killing. 😂 Kidding, sort of. They were pretty horrible men. This was a lively read that moved along quickly. I just loved the way the bad guys tripped themselves up with their own inflated egos. Sweet justice.

Nobody told me this book was so depressing.

An absentminded reader‘s tale:
I was looking to see how much the tagged book was on Kindle. I have the audiobook from Hoopla. Sometimes I alternate between audio and Kindle when I‘m trying to finish fast. Amazon informs me that I *already bought* this book on Kindle, on June 19, 2017. 2017!! I forgot I had it. Here is a screenshot of the order. It was $4.98 total for both, so I got a heck of a deal that day. I‘m so glad Amazon reminded me. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Forgot to post back when I finished this book. I‘m going through the whole audiobook series in order on #Everand. Love this series!

I enjoyed this one, but the ending was heartbreaking. And so much drama over Alaric. Girl, you can do better. Exciting and handsome doesn‘t mean he treats you right. Venice was a lovely and mysterious backdrop, as always. I had early and accurate suspicions about the ultimate culprit, but it was still a fun read.

We are all Malati! #suitableboy2024

I like the character of Malati already. 😊 #suitableboy2024

Part 1 thoughts.
I like Lata, but my favorite character so far is her friend Malati.
Lata handled an unwanted chat-up like a queen. I wish I could have been that secure at her age.
Arun and Meenakshi deserve each other. If you haven‘t gotten to the last part of Part 1, oh boy, just wait till you see the stunt Meenakshi pulls. Awful people, awful child. Such entitlement.
Go, nerdy Prem! I‘m so glad Savita seems to appreciate him! #suitableboy2024

I just found out that this is available on Kindle Unlimited. Yay! I‘m going to try to follow along with the group read headed by @Lindy, but I‘m not sure I can keep to the schedule. Excited to try! #SuitableBoy2024

The only consolations of Alzheimer‘s, and they are small indeed, it that it doesn‘t hurt much, and that once the full nightmare is under way, you are long gone.

It‘s so good! I‘m visiting my mom, and bought this for her, but she‘s going to have to wait until I‘m finished with it 😂 I read half of it in one night, so I don‘t think she‘ll be waiting long!

Finished! Another delightful Posie Parker mystery. This one had a lovely happy ending for Posie that made me want to stand up and cheer! I‘m so looking forward to her exploring her new life circumstances in the next book. Recommended for those who like cozy-ish historical mysteries with spunky young heroines. I bet Posie Parker and Tuppence Beresford (from Agatha Christie‘s books) would have been great friends!

I would very much like to finish this audiobook today, if Everand would ever quit buffering and actually play the book.

Weird mix of fantasy and horror. I‘d love to see a movie adaptation, but I can‘t imagine how it could be done that would draw people to see it. It would look stupid in a movie trailer - talking animals? Reading it was a wild ride. Not as gory as I feared, but this vanity press needs to hire a better editor (brooch misspelled as “broach” TWICE). The backstory was intriguing enough to keep me reading. Three stars, entertaining, would recommend.

It took me awhile, but this is my #bookerdozen.
The Handmaid‘s Tale, Margaret Atwood
Oryx and Crake, Margaret Atwood
A Little Life, Hanya Yanagihara
Prophet Song, Paul Lynch
Trust, Hernan Diaz
Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel
Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro
Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders
Girl, Woman, Other, Bernardine Evaristo
The Amber Spyglass, Philip Pullman
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Susanna Clarke

Shocked at how few winners I‘ve read!

This book was chilling, because it seems so plausible. Tyranny has overtaken the government of Ireland, and “enemies of the state” are disappearing. When Eilish‘s husband is arrested, she struggles to keep her family safe while trying to locate him. Nightmarish and beautifully written. I want to read more by Paul Lynch. This one will make my #bookerdozen for sure, still putting together that list, the idea of which I stole from @vivastory .

Another stand-alone gem by Wodehouse. Sally is a nice girl of modest means who lives in a New York boarding house and has to work for a living. She suddenly inherits money, and her world changes. Again (see my previous review), hijinx ensue on both sides of the Atlantic, but true love triumphs in the end. A rags to riches to rags story with a happy ending. I loved sparky Sally and her practical approach to life.

I listened to this in installments on the Classic Tales podcast, wonderfully read by B. J. Harrison. It was delightful, as all of Wodehouse‘s pre-war work is. Young Jimmy pretends to be a master burglar, ends up breaking into the police chief‘s house, further complicates things by falling in love with the Chief‘s daughter. Hijinx ensue on both sides of the Atlantic. Apparently this has also been published under the title A Gentleman of Leisure.

I lost my dad shortly after Christmas. Aside from finishing The Feast of the Goat, I‘m sticking to lighthearted books for now because I‘m too sad for heavy literature. Lots of P.G. Wodehouse, lots of cozy mysteries and vintage-set mysteries. It‘ll be okay, eventually. I sure wish I had thought to ask my dad to read along with me in #readingtheamericas2023. He would have had interesting things to say about all my books. :(