@BarbaraJean on Litsy

Quick check-in for #KLBR! How is your reading going? What do you think of the story so far?

I've read up through the end of Part 1. I found the first two chapters slow going (though I loved Kristin's interactions with Brother Edvin), but when I got to Chapter 3, I had a hard time putting it down!

And this is indeed #DoorstopKristin--I've been using my reading pillow to prop the huge thing up as I read 😆

rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, MaureenMc, Daisey, AmyG, Gleefulreader, JenlovesJT47, Texreader, MeganAnn, AnneCecilie, Caterina, Bklover, Andrea313, Suet624, Deblovestoread, Librarybelle, Leniverse, CrowCAH, lauraisntwilder, staci.reads, Ruthiella, julieclair

TheBookHippie I adore this book. 22h

Suet624 As you say, you need to be patient at the beginning and understand that this is the start of a long story. Be patient. You‘ll get hooked. 22h

Ruthiella I‘ve only read the first chapter so far, but I like it! 21h

See All 8 Comments

Librarybelle I hope to start this weekend! 20h

Deblovestoread I‘ve started but haven‘t gotten very far. Life has been interfering as it does. (edited) 19h

Daisey I‘ve read the first part and am enjoying it. 17h

AmyG Exactly…..it got to a certain part where I was all in. I am hoping I get to Book 3. Life has been BUSY and allI want to do is just read. 9h

AnneCecilie I haven‘t started yet, but have taken the book down from the bookshelf 😊 6h

40 likes8 comments

BarbaraJean

L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1922-1925 | Lucy Maud Montgomery

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMJournals

We‘ll be starting Volume 5 of LMM‘s journals this week! Schedule is above. As usual, I‘ll post a check-in on Saturdays.

(And, Emily of New Moon is coming up next for our re-reads! We‘ll start reading Emily on June 22.)

JenlovesJT47, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks

BarbaraJean @JenlovesJT47 Are you still interested in joining in for the journal reading? I don‘t want to bother you with tags if not—just let me know. As always, no pressure 😁 1d

TheAromaofBooks Is it weird that I'm kind of excited about starting the journals again?? 😂 22h

17 likes2 comments

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent

What did you enjoy (or not enjoy!) about the book?

If you read this as a child, does it still hold up for you as an adult?

Is there anything else you‘d like to discuss about Beautiful Joe?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Like I said earlier, this definitely worked better for me as a child than it did as an adult, although I still found it to be an interesting read. However, it was a lot sadder than I remember! There were a few times that I was a bit startled by violence stated so casually. Did I just not notice it as such growing up? I definitely focused more on the positive parts of the story, and those were the memories I brought forward. 23h

17 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent

Do you think Saunders‘ choice of Joe as a first person narrator is effective? What does this add to (or take away from) the story?

Joe meets several other animal friends during the story: the other pets at the Morris home, the performing animals he sees in Riverdale, and Dandy “the Tramp.” What did you think of these other animals and their stories?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, TheAromaofBooks

JenlovesJT47 I am terribly behind on everything, I‘m so sorry! Going to download this now. 💚💚💚 thank you for all of the hard work you do for this group! 🤗 1d

BarbaraJean @JenlovesJT47 I understand—I have overloaded my reading this summer and there‘s too much to keep up with! Jump in when you can, but no pressure! 1d

TheAromaofBooks I did think using Joe as the narrator made the story more personal, and also worked with Saunders's goal of (to some extent) humanizing animals. Adding in the stories of other animals sometimes felt like a bit much - for instance, the chapter on Mr. Wood's hunting memories seemed kind of pointless. But other times it illustrated a concept otherwise outside of Joe's purview. 23h

15 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent

Beautiful Joe is based on a true story & was written for a contest sponsored by the American Humane Education Society (Joe‘s real-life home of Meaford, Ontario was changed to Fairport, Maine). Its goal was to teach children to be kind to animals.

Do you think Beautiful Joe is effective in teaching this message? Why or why not?
What do you think in general about stories whose main goal is to teach a message?

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks I enjoyed this more growing up than I did as an adult, but I think part of that is that as a kid, some of the lessons felt fresh. Not that I was ever mean to animals (forever memory is my dad threatening to make me drink gross water from the chicken's waterer that I hadn't washed out properly - “if you don't want to drink it, they shouldn't have to“ - which in retrospect isn't true since they cheerfully drink gross puddle water BUT the lesson ⬇ 23h

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) worked 😂) but a lot of the lessons here are just about not being careless, and also about being willing to stand up for those who aren't able to speak for themselves. BUT the story definitely comes across as kind of preachy, more like a collection of little sermonettes on animal welfare. So I do think it works, but perhaps worked better when it was written and the idea of an animal narrator was still rather novel, and when many ⬇ 23h

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) animals were still used for work rather than pets. I realize there are still lots of farm animals today - some of which are in bad conditions - but I feel like the majority of us interact with pets, not livestock, which wasn't true when this book was written. 23h

14 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

The Little Book of Joy: 365 Ways to Celebrate Every Day | Joanne Ruelos Diaz

#5JoysFriday!

💐 Thank you notes & flowers from my EfM group
🦖 A T-Rex shadow I saw on a walk
🪻 Larkspur from the garden
🐸 Frobbits by India Rose Crawford: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1885169772337248?fs=e&s=TIeQ9V&fs=e&mibextid=wwXIf...
🖋️ Reading through poems I‘d saved years ago & coming across “God Says Yes to Me” by Kaylin Haught (Poem ⤵️)

DebinHawaii

BarbaraJean I asked God if it was okay to be melodramatic
and she said yes
I asked her if it was okay to be short
and she said it sure is
I asked her if I could wear nail polish
or not wear nail polish
and she said honey
she calls me that sometimes
she said you can do just exactly
what you want to
Thanks God I said
And is it even okay if I don‘t paragraph
my letters
Sweetcakes God said
who knows where she picked that up
what I‘m telling you is
Yes Yes Yes (edited) 2d

Amiable That shadow is pretty epic! 🦖 2d

dabbe 💙🩵💙 2d

Suet624 All of this …. the poem, the shadow, the flowers … is spectacular. 2d

27 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

“I have no feeling of guilt regarding the books I have not read and perhaps will never read; I know that my books have unlimited patience. They will wait for me till the end of my days.”

Bookwomble I need to read this book. Ironically, it sits unread on one of my shelves! 😄 3d

BarbaraJean @Bookwomble 😂 It has unlimited patience! It will wait for you! 2d

charl08 Love this book. Due a reread. 2d

28 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

“…multinational companies have ensured that, on the one hand, users will not protest against being turned into consumers, since they are supposedly "in control" of cyberspace; and that, on the other hand, they will be prevented from learning anything profound, whether about themselves, their immediate surroundings or the rest of the world. Commenting in 2004 on the usefulness of the Web as a creative tool, the celebrated American comic-strip ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d)…artist Will Eisner explained that, when he first discovered this electronic medium, he believed it to be an almost magical source of new artistic inventions, but that of late it had become “merely a supermarket to which consumers come to look for the cheapest possible product.”

This sleight of hand is achieved, every time a reader locks onto the Web, by stressing velocity over reflection and brevity over complexity, preferring ⤵️ (edited) 4d

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …snippets of news and bytes of facts over lengthy discussions and elaborate dossiers, and by diluting informed opinion with reams of inane babble, ineffectual advice, inaccurate facts and trivial information, made attractive with brand names and manipulated statistics.” 4d

BarbaraJean Ooof. This was published in 2006, and I think it‘s MORE accurate today than it was then. 🙁 4d

lil1inblue 😨 😨 😨 3d

30 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

“There is an unbridgeable chasm between the book that tradition has declared a classic and the book (the same book) that we have made ours through instinct, emotion and understanding: suffered through it, rejoiced in it, translated it into our experience and… essentially become its first discoverers…”

CSeydel Oh that‘s really interesting 4d

BarbaraJean @CSeydel Right?! The difference between a book that‘s a classic—and that same book, which we‘ve discovered for ourselves, almost creating it for the first time through our own experience of it. 🤯 4d

lil1inblue I'm sold. Stacked. 3d

BarbaraJean @lil1inblue It‘s so good! I love his insights into reading and collecting books! 3d

37 likes1 stack add4 comments

BarbaraJean

The Orb of Cairado | Katherine Addison

My library copy of The Orb of Cairado is a signed special edition! 😮

MemoirsForMe 😍😍😍 4d

33 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

L.M. Montgomery's Complete Journals: The Ontario Years, 1930-1933 | L M Montgomery

Every so often I‘ll look for info on the publication of the final volume of L.M. Montgomery‘s Complete Journals. We‘re moving along with #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMJournals, and I have this nagging worry they won‘t publish the last volume—in time for our buddy read, or at all! I found an “Ask Us” option on the publisher‘s website, so I asked! It took a couple weeks, but I got this reply today. So—probably not in buddy-read time, but someday!

lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Oh my gosh, I didn't realize that the journals didn't go all the way! 😳 So sad!! 4d

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks When we started, I assumed the last volume would be forthcoming soon, since volume 6 was published in 2017 and volume 7 in 2019. I was naively optimistic! 😬 I'm not sure what to do when we get to the end of vol. 7. I guess we could switch over to the selected journals, which are all published, but I really prefer reading the complete ones (the selected ones don't have her pictures included!). 4d

TheAromaofBooks Yes, and as we've seen, sometimes the selections seem to want to... well, follow an agenda sounds strong because I don't think anyone has a secret plan to rewrite LMM's life lol But I definitely feel like I have gotten different vibes from LMM's complete journals than I did from her biographies that quoted her journals, if that makes sense. 4d

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks Oh, I absolutely agree! You‘re right, agenda is too strong a word, but it IS interpretation for sure. Just the process of selecting what stays and what goes imposes someone else‘s filter and interpretation on LMM‘s words (even if it‘s just the boring WWI parts!). I want to be able to read all of it and decide for myself what‘s important—rather than have somebody else cutting out what they think isn‘t important! 4d

26 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

BookSpinBingo | Untitled

Relieved that June‘s #BookSpin numbers didn‘t add to my over-full June reading (too much 😂)—the #DoubleSpin pick is also my book club pick for the month. And the BookSpin landed on one of my #192025 spots, which I need to make a bit of progress on. I‘m hoping for a #BookSpinBingo right down the middle, with 3 free spots!

📘BookSpin: Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie (a book from the 1920s—40s)
📗DoubleSpin: The Music Lesson by Victor Wooten

TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! Looks fantastic!! 6d

29 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

🤖 Finished System Collapse yesterday, completing my Murderbot re-read
⚔️ Started Guards! Guards! for #OokBOokClub
🐶 Beautiful Joe is ongoing for #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent
📚 I‘ve been parceling out an essay per day of The Library at Night, which is my May #BookSpin and also a pick for my #50x50 challenge

rachelsbrittain

rachelsbrittain Love Murderbot! 1w

29 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

Woodworking | Emily St James

This library hold arrived early for my #CampLitsy25 reading. I need to start it soon, since it‘s due back on June 11!

#SundayFunday

BookmarkTavern

BookmarkTavern That looks like an interesting read! Thanks for answering! 7d

28 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

BookSpinBingo | Untitled

Another month without a bingo 😆 (even though one book ended up on the board twice 🤦🏻‍♀️)

🐏 I completed my #DoubleSpin: Black Sheep (a delight!)
📚 I‘m halfway through my #BookSpin: The Library at Night (also a delight!)

12 books completed
3 re-reads
6 library books
3 from my TBR

Favorites:
🐏 Black Sheep
☀️ Raybearer
🌳 A Timbered Choir

TheAromaofBooks

BarbaraJean I just noticed that my three favorites are the three I read from my TBR. Hmmm. Great buying choices, former me! 1w

TheAromaofBooks Yay!! Fantastic month!! Black Sheep is one of my favorites. 6d

31 likes2 comments

BarbaraJean

Guards! Guards! | Terry Pratchett

“…a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read.”

📚💜📚

#OokBOokClub @julesG

julesG 🦧 1w

36 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

Telephone | Percival Everett

pick

I‘ve been wanting to read more by Percival Everett (having read James last year), so I took the #AuthoraMonth inspiration to squeeze this into my May reading. It‘s so good, and so different from James. The narrative shifts between Zach‘s family and his job as a professor, and his efforts to unravel the mysterious pleas for help he‘s found in clothes ordered from eBay—two very different plot lines, yet the book doesn‘t feel uneven. ⤵️

Soubhiville

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) Following Zach as he processes grief and impending loss—and also avoids it—is an interesting study in control and letting go, and in the human need to effect change in the face of helplessness.

Everett‘s technique of publishing three different versions, with three different endings, fascinates me. I read version A, and I initially liked the ending until I thought about it a bit more. I felt like it dropped some major threads, leaving ⤵️ 1w

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) them unresolved and causing me to wonder a lot about how that particular plotline was (or wasn‘t) resolved in the other versions. I‘ll put my thoughts on the ending under a spoiler tag! ⤵️ @Amiable Would love to hear how your version ended! (edited) 1w

BarbaraJean My version ended with Zach reaching the border with the women, seeing Lt. Deocampo on the other side, then the women being waved through the checkpoint back into Mexico. The narrative leaves Sarah (and Meg) behind, with Sarah in a care facility and no real resolution to the family side of the plot. It‘s of course fairly clear what will happen to Sarah, but I wanted some resolution to how Zach would navigate his marriage in the wake of that loss. 1w

See All 6 Comments

willaful Oh man! That sounds so interesting but having to choose which ending to read would make me a bit nuts I think. 1w

BarbaraJean @willaful I just put a copy on hold and took what my library gave me 😂 I had to look up how to tell which one I had—there are subtle variations in the cover and an A, B, or C next to the ISBN. Unless you know where to look it‘s not easy to tell which one you‘ve got. I‘d have loved a choose-your-own-adventure style ending, with all three possibilities in the same copy! 1w

willaful @BarbaraJean yes, I think my brain won't be able to read it until there is one. 😂 1w

41 likes1 stack add6 comments

BarbaraJean

Rilla of Ingleside: A Virago Modern Classic | L. M. Montgomery

I have this blog where I don't post as often as I'd like. But here are some reflections on a scene from Rilla of Ingleside, with a little Pollyanna thrown in. #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead-ers may be interested. Also: it‘s Christian-y. 🙂

https://commonplacehope.wordpress.com/2025/05/30/burning-coals/

#LMMReread #LMMAdjacent

31 likes

BarbaraJean

Audition | Katie Kitamura

I added a third library card this week, just so I could get in a shorter holds line for Audition. 4 weeks is better than 18 (or 10 for the audiobook, or 37th place out of 51 people waiting for one of 18 print copies), but I may still be late arriving at camp. 😂 #CampLitsy25

Megabooks, squirrelbrain, BarbaraBB

AmyG I hope many bail so you can get it sooner. 🤣 1w

BarbaraJean @AmyG 😂😂 I‘m banking on the fact that it‘s short, so even if people don‘t bail, they should finish more quickly!! 1w

squirrelbrain Yeah, hopefully you should be OK, looking at that! 🤞 It‘s really short as well, so even if you only arrive at camp in week 2 you can still join in! 1w

See All 11 Comments

Texreader I‘m having the same problem!! 1w

Roary47 I finally got it today. 🥹 (edited) 1w

Megabooks I hope you get it in time. Library holds can be crazy!! 😵‍💫 1w

Megabooks @Roary47 yay!! 1w

BarbaraJean @squirrelbrain @Megabooks I‘ll join the discussions whenever it arrives—hopefully by week 2!! Meanwhile I‘ve finished

Death of the Author: A Novel

BarbaraJean @Texreader 😩 Hope it arrives soon, for both of us!! I don‘t even want to think about where I am in line for Wild Dark Shore—that one‘s even less likely to make it to me this month ☹️ 1w

Texreader @BarbaraJean I know!! I had to put every #camplitsy book on hold and who knows if any will make it in time. 1w

BarbaraJean @Texreader SAME. They‘re all coming in the wrong order. The print version of Tilt is currently listed as “in transit” so I‘ll be reading July and August‘s books In June and who knows when I‘ll be reading June‘s books 😂 1w

40 likes11 comments

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

Just a little check-in halfway through reading Beautiful Joe!

🐶 How's your reading going?
🐶 What are your thoughts so far?
🐶 What stands out to you from the first half of the book?

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, TheAromaofBooks

BarbaraJean I read an extra chapter this week when I discovered I broke up the reading kind of in the middle of something. 😆 I'm enjoying this, but finding it a leeeetle too preachy. Well, maybe not so much preachy as light on both plot and character development. It feels like little vignettes strung together in order to fill in the gaps between its “don't be cruel to animals“ message. Which is a fine message. I just want more of a story! 1w

TheAromaofBooks I just started this one again today. I had forgotten how sad the first couple of chapters are!! 😭 I believe I read somewhere once that this story was originally written by Saunders as an entry for a competition by the Humane Society or some such organization, so I suppose the preachiness is inevitable 😂 1w

22 likes2 comments

BarbaraJean

Jane Eyre | Charlotte Bront�

😂 😂

rubyslippersreads 🤣🔥 1w

Ruthiella 😂😂😂 Go Bertha, Go! 🔥 1w

dabbe #berthabails! 🤣🔥🤣 1w

BkClubCare Wow, this made break into a knowing smile 😃 1w

42 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

“We don't read books in the same way sitting inside a circle or inside a square, in a room with a low ceiling or in one with high rafters. And the mental atmosphere we create in the act of reading, the imaginary space we construct when we lose ourselves in the pages of a book, is confirmed or refuted by the physical space of the library, and is affected by the distance of the shelves, the crowding or paucity of books, ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …by qualities of scent and touch and by the varying degrees of light and shade.”

I had never thought about it this way, but YES. I am loving the way Manguel talks about the experience of reading and collecting books. And I‘m loving the gorgeous pictures throughout! These are of the King's Library in Buckingham House in London and the “semi-cylindrical ceiling of the Biblioteca de Catalunya, Barcelona.” 😍 2w

willaful You might enjoy

What We See When We Read

julieclair This book sounds fabulous. Stacked. 👍 1w

BarbaraJean @willaful That sounds so interesting! I'll have to check it out. @julieclair I've had Manguel on my TBR for ages--I used to read a blogger who quoted him extensively--and I'm glad to find he measures up to expectations! 1w

julieclair @BarbaraJean I have never heard of him, so I‘m very glad you posted. 🙂 1w

43 likes1 stack add5 comments

BarbaraJean

Kristin Lavransdatter | Sigrid Undset

June is almost here, so I‘ve pulled out #DoorstopKristin and am gearing up to dive in on Sunday for #KLBR. I‘ve got my emotional support dumpster fire on hand just in case. Looking forward to reading along with all of you! What editions are you all reading? Single volume or individual books?

rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, MaureenMc, Daisey, AmyG, Gleefulreader, JenlovesJT47, Texreader, MeganAnn, AnneCecilie, Bklover, Andrea313, Suet624, Deblovestoread, Librarybelle, Leniverse, CrowCAH, lauraisntwilder, staci.reads, Ruthiella, julieclair

Booksblanketsandahotbeverage Love your Emotional Support Dumpster Fire! 🔥 2w

BarbaraJean @Booksblanketsandahotbeverage Haha—thanks! Me too!! 2w

Amiable Ha ha.. I have the same dumpster fire! My boss gave one to everyone on our team. 😄 2w

See All 20 Comments

Texreader I‘ve got the chunkster!! 2w

Librarybelle I have to the same edition, and I have an emotional support dumpster fire too! I bought one for myself when I picked up one for a friend…we all need one of those! 😂 2w

CrowCAH It will be single volumes. 2w

Deblovestoread I've got the full edition, but on my kindle. Love my dumpster fire, too. 2w

Gleefulreader I have the same edition. Very excited to start on this finally! 2w

Daisey I‘ve also got the same edition as pictured, but on Kindle. 2w

Ruthiella I have the same edition as pictured from Penguin in print from the library which I will keep as long as I can renew it, but I also own it on Kindle. I bought it on a whim for something like $5.99 a few years ago. (edited) 2w

Bklover I have the same edition too! For some reason I also have two different kindle copies- not sure why two, but one of them matches my book 2w

Leniverse Single volume, original language here. How will we do this? Weekly check-ins, or? 2w

Suet624 I have the three individual books as well as the entirety in the one large book published by the Book of the Month Club. I‘m primarily reading the individual books because the larger one smells a bit musty. 🙁 1w

Andrea313 I've got the same edition- looking forward to getting started! 1w

MeganAnn I‘ve got the same doorstop edition on my shelf. 😉 1w

BarbaraJean @Librarybelle @Deblovestoread Emotional Support Dumpster Fire buddies! @Amiable What a great boss! My *former* boss is one of the reasons I needed this 😬

@Leniverse It‘ll be interesting to hear your thoughts on reading it in the original language! I‘m thinking small weekly check-ins then one discussion post at the end of each book. I‘ll probably post thoughts along the way and hope others do, as well! 1w

julieclair I have had the individual volumes sitting on my shelf for years. I read book 1 and loved it, but never got around to volumes 2 & 3. I‘m looking forward to reading all 3 with my Litsy friends! Thanks so much for hosting this, @BarbaraJean ! 💙 1w

rubyslippersreads I‘ve got the same version, but the ebook. 7d

Caterina I have the same edition as you! A gift from my parents last year, who both read and loved the book recently. Looking forward to joining y'all. 😊 5d

BarbaraJean @Caterina It's HUGE... I'm having to use my book pillow to help me hold it up 😂 I'm so glad your BookSpin timing aligned so nicely with the buddy read!! 4d

46 likes1 stack add20 comments

BarbaraJean

Telephone | Percival Everett

“People, and by people I mean *them,* never look for truth, they look for satisfaction. There is nothing worse, certain painful and deadly diseases notwithstanding, than an unsatisfactory, piss-poor truth, whereas a satisfactory lie is all too easy to accept, even embrace, get cozy with.”

Now that‘s an opening line!!

31 likes

BarbaraJean

BookSpinBingo | Untitled

What‘s that? Next week it will be JUNE?! I‘m not ready!!

I took some time this morning to plan out my entirely unrealistic summer reading list and assembled my June #BookSpin list accordingly. Here we go, summer!

TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! And absolutely no pressure, but let me know if you're interested in loosely buddy reading All Creatures Great & Small, as I've been meaning to reread it for ages! 2w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks I would love to do a casual buddy read of All Creatures! Maybe later in the summer--late July or August? Unless you end up drawing 18 for BookSpin or DoubleSpin in June 😂 2w

TheAromaofBooks Yes!! Let me know whenever works for you. I am always down for James Herriot. Literally my brother's middle name is Tristan after the one in the books 😂 so we grew up on them but I haven't read them in way too long!! 2w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks Yay! I'll keep you posted--July should be less packed than June, although I'll let you know how things shake out after BookSpin numbers are drawn 😂 I watched some of the series growing up--my parents loved it--but I don't remember a lot. In the past few years, my dad read all the books & and complained about how much they changed for the series 😆 I've been wanting to read the books for a while, so a buddy read will be perfect! (edited) 2w

34 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

Queering Contemplation: Finding Queerness in the Roots and Future of Contemplative Spirituality� | Cassidy Hall

pick

This is a fascinating look at the practice of contemplation—a disentangling and a reframing that invites the reader to view contemplation through something other than a Western, patriarchal, heteronormative lens. Hall approaches contemplation from new directions and through new eyes for me, opening up new facets and angles I hadn‘t considered—or hadn‘t considered in just that way before. I kept thinking of Emily Dickinson‘s “tell it slant.” ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) Hall‘s focus is not necessarily on examining a queer experience of contemplation, but rather on queerness as a different stance, a different approach, engaging “openness, curiosity, and a little weirdness.” Another perspective-shifting, expansive read for my spiritual direction program. 2w

48 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

Oathbound | Tracy Deonn

pick

I was SUPER looking forward to this, and thought I was getting a conclusion to a trilogy, so the clearly-not-a-conclusion ending was frustrating. Add to that, this was definitely longer than it should have been and STILL didn‘t feel like it did much (other than a lot of stuff happening in the background but not on the page, and a couple of jaw-dropping revelations at the end). I enjoyed seeing Bree grow into her powers but ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …generally wanted to shake some sense into her as she repeatedly rushed into situations without thinking. All of THAT said, I still enjoyed it. It‘s just not a 5-star read like its two predecessors. I hope we get more of a consequential plot (and a less impulsive Bree) in the next book!

Annnnd, I read this back in March. One more catch-up review and I‘ll just have a handful of May books to review. 😆 (edited) 2w

willaful Completely get it. I kept shilly-shallying about whether to finish it and finally decided to leave it half done and maybe finish it before reading the next book. Though if the next isn't the last, I may be *out*. 2w

5feet.of.fury I also thought this was a trilogy until the end 😂😩 2w

BarbaraJean @willaful Totally makes sense! There's so much of the plot in this one that is just kind of pointless. I will read the next one, but I really hope she tightens up the writing and moves things along. @5feet.of.fury I hate it when I'm expecting closure and then as there are fewer and fewer pages left it becomes apparent that I'm not going to get it 😫 2w

willaful @5feet.of.fury Ugh, how frustrating for you! I was buddy reading them in a romance discord and we ALL thought that. 😫 Apparently she decided to make it longer somewhere along the way. 2w

51 likes5 comments

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

Today starts our #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead of Beautiful Joe by Marshall Saunders. This is one of our #LMMAdjacent books—Saunders was a contemporary of LMM, and another author who published with the nefarious L.C. Page Co. I‘ll post a check-in on 5/31 and we‘ll have our discussion on June 7. All are welcome—please comment if you‘re not tagged and you‘d like to be!

rubyslippersreads, JenlovesJT47, TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Looking forward to this reread - it's very Black Beauty ish 2w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks I‘m looking forward to reading it for the first time! (I haven‘t read Black Beauty either 🤦🏻‍♀️ or at least I don‘t remember reading it as a kid! Another gap to fill in my reading of classic children‘s literature!) 2w

TheAromaofBooks Oh dear! You really should read Black Beauty; it's genuinely a classic haha But, like Beautiful Joe, it's also a book written with a message/purpose in mind. To me, neither book is so polemic that it detracts from the story, but you also never quite forget that the author is trying to make a point about the way animals are treated. 2w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks I've been expecting that “moral of the story“ with Beautiful Joe, but I didn't realize Black Beauty was that way as well! I feel like so many classic children's books have a “message,“ but when they're done well I don't mind it. Like Pollyanna! 2w

TheAromaofBooks Exactly!! As long as there is still an engaging story and characters I care about, I don't mind getting a little moralizing as we go 😂 2w

34 likes5 comments

BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

pick

I loved this delightful children‘s classic and found it hard to put down! Initially I was worried it would be too sweet or too cloying—and there were moments that could have veered into toxic positivity—but I feel like Porter balances those moments with others that acknowledge the reality of grief and hurt and disappointment. Pollyanna‘s determination to look for—and be glad in—the good in every situation doesn‘t dismiss the reality of hardship ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …and pain, rather it gives her the determination to work for change where she can, and her childlike trust in others in turn calls out the best in them. This sweet book was a reminder to me to look for the good and to call out the good in others, as well. I‘m so glad I read this, and now I need to track down the various film adaptations! #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent 2w

TheLudicReader I loved this movie with Haley Mills when I was a kid. 2w

45 likes1 stack add2 comments

BarbaraJean

Rilla of Ingleside: A Virago Modern Classic | L. M. Montgomery

Dog Monday. Every single time. 😭😭😭

#SundayFunday
#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMReread

BookmarkTavern

BookmarkTavern Love this series! Thanks for sharing! 2w

37 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

The Library at Night | Alberto Manguel

“…for readers like myself, there are no ‘last‘ purchases this side of the grave.”

kspenmoll 😊 2w

Leftcoastzen I feel seen!😁 2w

36 likes2 comments

BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent—Pollyanna discussion—4 of 4

👒 Did you see any similarities here to L.M. Montgomery‘s books?
👒 Is there anything else from Pollyanna that you‘d like to discuss?
👒 Any favorite scenes or quotes?

rubyslippersreads, CogsOfEncouragement, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks, julieclair

BarbaraJean I see a lot of similarities with AoGG—the orphan taken in by a grouchy guardian who didn‘t expect her and doesn‘t want her. Like Anne, Pollyanna loves to talk—she chatters away the whole ride back from the train station—and she‘s expecting a very different welcome than she receives. Pollyanna also fits right in with Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. All three books are stories of endearing, cheerful young orphans taken in by strict guardians ⬇ 2w

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …who subsequently soften and open up due to the bright and cheerful child in their life. And yet, unlike RoSF, Pollyanna didn‘t feel derivative. (I realize RoSF was published first, then Anne, then Pollyanna—but reading RoSF, I felt like LMM read it, said “I can do this better,” and wrote Anne. 😂) Pollyanna has LOTS of similarities to Anne, but she‘s her own unique person with her own unique influence on the people in her life. 2w

BarbaraJean One of the things I struggled with throughout the book was the way it seemed to often base gladness on comparison. With the initial story of the game, the gladness comes from not needing the crutches. An attitude of “I'm glad I'm not like that person over there who needs crutches“ just didn't land well with me. The way the story plays out is more complex and nuanced than that, but there's still something there that bothers me! 2w

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CogsOfEncouragement I see the similarity that lessons are being taught. It is the same with Little Women and probably countless other books. The authors are holding us all to a higher standard of being other-centered.

2w

TheAromaofBooks One random thing that always bothered me about the movie vs the book was how in the movie they have Pollyanna sneaking out and disobeying her aunt and that's how she gets hurt. I think Porter went out of her way to create a character who enjoyed trying to please Aunt Polly and would have been horrified by that change in her story!! 2w

TheAromaofBooks I do think there are some similarities between Pollyanna and Anne, but I also think Pollyanna is really her own character. Her past and present are really quite different from Anne's. I don't think Pollyanna has the same depth and character development LMM gives us with Anne - this definitely feels like more of a children's book. 2w

TheAromaofBooks I'm probably going to reread Pollyanna Grows Up and Pollyanna of the Orange Blossoms. Porter wrote the former but not the latter - and after reading all about what a scoundrel Page was, I wonder whether he basically stole Pollyanna's character from Porter?? The “Glad Books“ go on for quite a while, penned by several different authors. A few years ago I read 7 of them - there were more, but Pollyanna in Hollywood was soooo terrible that I didn't ⬇ 2w

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) want to read any more books by Elizabeth Borton 😂 I had very mixed feelings about Pollyanna Grows Up, but kind of loved Pollyanna of the Orange Blossoms, which is about her marriage and first year or two of marriage and SO adorable. 2w

lauraisntwilder The stories have some similarities, but Anne, as @TheAromaofBooks said, is more fully developed. I need to rewatch the movie, but I was surprised the minister is actually not in the book very much. There's a PBS adaptation that I haven't seen, but I'm going to search it out and see what the differences are with that one. 2w

BarbaraJean @CogsofEncouragement Yes, there‘s definitely a lesson being taught here, and it‘s not subtle! And I think that fits right in with other children‘s literature of the time. But I loved the characters and it‘s such a sweet story that I don‘t really mind. @TheAromaofBooks @lauraisntwilder I agree—Pollyanna isn‘t developed as deeply as Anne, and Aunt Polly certainly isn‘t developed nearly as much as Marilla is in AoGG! 2w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks I didn‘t realize there was a whole SERIES beyond the sequel! (I just can‘t with the idea of “Pollyanna in Hollywood” 😩) I‘m conflicted about reading on—I was worried about an age-inappropriate relationship developing at the end of this one, and wondered if that‘s where the sequel might go. I have a feeling you‘re right with your speculation about Page stealing the character. Or he got Porter to sell him the rights for a pittance. 2w

TheAromaofBooks On all the other books “Pollyanna“ in the title is marked “Trademarked“ as are “The Glad Books.“ Harriet Lummis Smith write four books, and they were all pretty adorable. But when Elizabeth Borton took up the baton they went off a cliff immediately. Pollyanna Grows Up is kind of a split book, with the first half taking place about a year after Pollyanna ends, and the second half picking up 7 or 8 years later. As I was typing this, I was suddenly⬇ 2w

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) struck by a thought and I looked it up and it's true - Pollyanna was published 1913, the sequel in 1915, and then Porter actually died in 1920 - and the third Pollyanna book was published in 1924. So somehow Page ended up with the rights to Pollyanna after Porter's death, which frankly feels shady. I kind of need a tell-all biography of Page 😂 2w

TheAromaofBooks Also, when looking this up, I found this quote from an interview where Porter is talking about Pollyanna and how people picked on her for making her heroine “too happy“ - “You know I have been made to suffer from the Pollyanna books. I have been placed often in a false light. People have thought that Pollyanna chirped that she was ‘glad‘ at everything. I have never believed that we ought to deny discomfort and pain and evil; I have merely thought⬇ 2w

TheAromaofBooks (cont'd) that it is far better to ‘greet the unknown with a cheer.' “ I love that! 2w

BarbaraJean SO INTERESTING about when Porter died. And Page wanted to continue cashing in, so he enlisted (read: exploited) other authors to capitalize on the character. I would LOVE a tell-all bio of Page, but there doesn't seem to be one out there!

I love that quote from Porter. Greeting the unknown with a cheer is challenging!! This year, I've been trying to greet the unknown with curiosity, which I guess is a first step? 😆 2w

19 likes16 comments

BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent—Pollyanna discussion—3 of 4

👒 Pollyanna comes to have such a strong influence on so many people in her town—which of these did you find most meaningful?
👒 Were there any that felt unrealistic?

rubyslippersreads, CogsOfEncouragement, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks, julieclair

CogsOfEncouragement No, I actually thought that because of her age, and having not a bit of guile in her, people would allow her to influence them. Especially when she made good assumptions about what people were doing with their time and money. That of course they were generous, other-centered people. Her comments helped them see that it wouldn't be that hard to actually be the way Pollyanna assumed they were. 2w

TheAromaofBooks @CogsOfEncouragement - I totally agree!! I think if she had been older, it would have been harder to believe. But her innocence and confidence in the inherent goodness of the adults around her I think inspired those people to try to be that better self that she perceived. 2w

lauraisntwilder I think the only far-fetched part is that one kid would have managed to talk to that many people at all. But the story works, so I don't care. 😂 2w

BarbaraJean @CogsOfEncouragement @TheAromaofBooks Yes, I love that insight about Pollyanna's assumptions. Because she believes the best about others, she inspires them to live up to who she thinks they are! And it's believable because of her childlike innocence. @lauraisntwilder 😂 😂 I hadn't thought about that, but yes: the sheer number of people who descend upon Aunt Polly with their stories of how Pollyanna influenced them does strain realism a tad!! 2w

18 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent—Pollyanna discussion—2 of 4

😊 The term “Pollyanna” has come to mean someone who pretends everything is fine, someone who almost ignores reality in order to put a positive spin on things. Do you find that to be a fair characterization of Pollyanna, or an exaggeration?
😊 Do you LIKE Pollyanna, or do you think you‘d find her eternal optimism tiresome?

rubyslippersreads, CogsOfEncouragement, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks, julieclair

BarbaraJean I was pleasantly surprised that Pollyanna DIDN'T feel sugary-sweet and unrealistic. The moments when we see her grief over her father, and her concern over the real needs and hurts around her give the needed balance (and nuance) to her optimism. But I have to admit, there were moments when Aunt Polly got aggravated at Pollyanna's continual chatter and I understood exactly where she was coming from. 😂 2w

CogsOfEncouragement I adore Pollyanna. She is a child, and childlike. I feel she recognized the whole reason for the game is because life is hard, Pollyanna was not pretending all was sweetness and light. I'm not saying the definition is a bad one - I use this definition often actually - when I fail to see someone's true motivation for example. When I project good intentions onto someone who doesn't deserve it, I say that I was being too Pollyanna. 2w

TheAromaofBooks I don't feel like Pollyanna ignores reality, she just chooses to focus on the parts of reality that are positive 😂 I'm a super optimistic, upbeat person myself, so I think Pollyanna and I would totally get along haha 2w

lauraisntwilder I can see how the definition evolved, but Pollyanna isn't like that. She's trying to help people find the good, not telling them to ignore the bad. 2w

20 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent—Pollyanna discussion—1 of 4

👒What did you think of Pollyanna‘s “glad game”?
👒How did you handle disappointments and difficult situations as a child?
👒Can you see the “glad game” being a helpful way to respond to difficulties as an adult?

rubyslippersreads, CogsOfEncouragement, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks, julieclair

BarbaraJean At first, I found the glad game a little avoidant! Until the scenes where Pollyanna sobs in grief over her father and over being left all alone in the attic...and then I felt reassured that the book wasn't going to end up as wholly unrealistic toxic positivity. I didn't have the kind of hardships and grief Pollyanna confronted as a child, and I think I handled difficulties via emotional avoidance or just gritting my teeth and carrying on. ⬇ 2w

BarbaraJean (Cont'd) It's funny looking back now--I grew up in England (American family, though) and so the “carry on“ response pretty much tracks 😂 I see the glad game as a much healthier response emotionally, which is interesting since it initially landed with me as avoidant and unrealistic! 2w

CogsOfEncouragement I had a fairly easy childhood. I did find ways to look on the bright side of most things and encouraged others to do so too. I don't think that I used platitudes though, and I think that is key. 2w

TheAromaofBooks I always viewed it as more of a “look for/embrace the silver lining“ than blowing off the troubles. It's so easy to look at a scenario and only see the negatives, but Pollyanna really embraces the good parts of life. I think as an adult it's important to stop when we're feeling stressed or overwhelmed and take a moment for gratitude and finding some positives. It doesn't make the troubles go away, but sometimes it can help to find some balance. 2w

lauraisntwilder I had an easy childhood, but all the same, I've dealt with anxiety and depression off and on throughout my life. I think the game is a healthy way of reframing how you think about disappointments. When I look back at my childhood though, I honestly don't remember how I handled things. Going to therapy as a teenager changed my life. 2w

16 likes5 comments

BarbaraJean

The Book of Joy | Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu

#5JoysFriday!

1. Sunday jazz
2. Roses & larkspur from the garden
3. Making plans to print up Learned Slattern tote bags
4. Frogzwilliam Darcy: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1868740873949610
5. Listening at whim to my newly-restored music library and discovering that I still know every word to Lisa Loeb‘s “Stay” 😂

DebinHawaii

kspenmoll ❤️❤️❤️ 2w

TheBookHippie Yes tote bags!!!!!!!! I‘m so in!!! ♥️ 2w

Amiable Yay!! Learned Slatterns unite! 2w

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BarbaraJean @TheBookHippie It is happening!!! @Amiable Please note the italics on “Clarissa” 😁 2w

dabbe 💚💜💚 2w

Amiable @BarbaraJean I noticed and gave two thumbs up from here! 👍🏼👍🏼😀 2w

34 likes6 comments

BarbaraJean

Raising Steam | Terry Pratchett

pick

Another belated #OokBOokClub review…

I was excited to find Pratchett using chapters in the first two Moist Von Lipwig books, and sad he was back to no chapters here. My brain likes chapters. And while I do feel the earlier books are stronger, I did really enjoy this—chapters or no. It‘s dawning on me that I‘m a sucker for a train-ride setting!

Moist continues to discover new sides to himself here, and his interplay with Adora was fantastic, ⤵️

julesG

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …even if there wasn't a whole lot of it. I also liked seeing the introduction of Dick Simnel, sort of being mentored by Harry and Moist.

I‘ve really liked the Moist Von Lipwig books, and am sad there aren‘t a few more. I‘ve enjoyed seeing his character growth and the new ways his ingenuity plays out across these three books—plus the incisive social commentary Sir Terry weaves in along the way. 2w

julesG That wish for more books by Sir Terry will never leave me. 🦧 2w

BarbaraJean @julesG Seriously. My brain also starts on a bit of bargaining... wishing I could trade the Rincewind books for more Moist and Tiffany Aching (although the Tiffany Aching arc is just about perfect). 2w

38 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

Making Money | Terry Pratchett

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I need to start Guards! Guards! in the next few days, so I‘d better circle back and review a couple previous #OokBOokClub reads!

With the Post Office well in hand, Moist Von Lipwig now takes charge of the Royal Mint and the bank—naturally. New over-the-top characters are introduced here, but Pratchett manages to handle them deftly enough that it (mostly) felt like just the right amount of outlandish and ridiculous. I really enjoyed this ⤵️

julesG

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …but not as much as Going Postal. I felt like the social/governmental satire was stronger there, plus more Adora Belle! That said, there was still plenty of almost-too-relevant satire here. I‘ve been more and more intrigued by the slow reveal of Vetinari‘s character as I make my way through the Discworld, and this one was good for more of that—present-day parallels that edge right up against that boundary of too-close-for-comfort for me! 2w

julesG J'adore Adora Belle! 😉🦧 2w

BarbaraJean @julesG Yes!! 💜💜 2w

AlaMich I just started listening to

Guards! Guards!

33 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

Death of the Author: A Novel | Nnedi Okorafor

“We… had a profound love of storytelling. But no automation, Al or machine, could create stories. Not truly. We could pull from existing datasets, detect patterns, then copy and paste them in a new order, and sometimes that seemed like creation. But this couldn't capture the narrative magic that humanity could wield…Stories were the greatest currency to us, greater than power, greater than control. Stories were our food, nourishment, enrichment.⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …To consume a story was to add to our code, deepen our minds. We felt it the moment we took it in. We were changed. It was like falling.” 2w

36 likes1 comment

BarbaraJean

The Orb of Cairado | Katherine Addison

#LibraryHaul—my holds came in! including both #CampLitsy25 books for July 🤦🏻‍♀️ I‘m off to reorganize my reading schedule… 😆

Megabooks, squirrelbrain, BarbaraBB

julesG I feel honoured to be tagged, but it's @squirrelbrain who co-hosts the camp. 😘 3w

Megabooks That happens!!! 😂🤦🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️ I hope you enjoy them both!! 3w

squirrelbrain You can write some questions if you like! @julesG 🤣 3w

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BarbaraBB I have high expectations of both of them 🤞🏽🤞🏽 3w

BarbaraJean @julesG 🤦🏻‍♀️ I have the wrong month‘s books and tagged a non-host: #winning 😂 Updating the post now! (edited) 3w

BarbaraJean @Megabooks @BarbaraBB I‘m just hoping I have a good memory 😂 3w

squirrelbrain Onwards and upwards! 🤪 3w

Larkken This post is altogether very relatable 😂 3w

BarbaraJean @Larkken 😂😂😂 3w

julesG 😂😂 2w

49 likes10 comments

BarbaraJean

Clarissa: Or, the History of a Young Lady. Comprehending the Most Important Concerns of Private Life. ... By Mr. Samuel Richardson. In Eight Volumes | Samuel Richardson

So, after the #SundayFunday question I got to thinking about #Clarissa again and I made a thing. 😂 Then I looked into printing it onto t-shirts. It would be around $14-$25 depending on quantity and sizes/colors, etc. And I can't figure out how to get it to not have a white background, but give me a minute and maybe I can figure that out? Anybody interested?

Daisey, Lcsmcat, TheBookHippie, Amiable, LeahBergen

Lcsmcat I‘m in! 3w

TheBookHippie Oh I‘m so in 3w

LeahBergen 😂😂 This would make a cute tote bag! 3w

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Amiable @LeahBergen OMG, yes! Perfect book bag! I‘m obsessed with tote bags. 😄 3w

Amiable @BarbaraJean I think “Clarissa” should have quote marks around it because it‘s a book title if it‘s not italicized …(said the anal editor 😬) (edited) 3w

Daisey This is fantastic! I might be interested depending on specific details. @jewright Have you seen this? 3w

BarbaraJean @Amiable I appreciate the proper formatting!! I played with the fonts a bit more and got an option that lets me italicize the title 😁 @LeahBergen I love the tote bag/book bag idea! I found a cute tote bag option through Vista Print that's about $14 each, plus shipping costs: https://www.vistaprint.com/clothing-bags/bags/totes/large-tote-bag-with-23-handl... Hmm...
@Lcsmcat @TheBookHippie @Daisey 3w

TheBookHippie @BarbaraJean ooooo I prefer a TOTE!! 3w

TheBookHippie @Amiable 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 3w

Lcsmcat That looks good to me. 3w

43 likes10 comments

BarbaraJean

The Little Bookroom | Eleanor Farjeon

#BookHaul! I couldn‘t resist the NYRB children‘s book sale, and I #blameitonlitsy—specifically @TheBookHippie 😁

I‘m so excited about these! Three of them I‘ve been wanting to read for a while, and the Rumer Godden also sounded SO good—I justified buying it in order to get the maximum discount. Of course. 😆📚💜

TheBookHippie 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I got 8 and wrapped them for my birthday next week 👀🎉🤣 3w

BarbaraJean @TheBookHippie 😂😂😂 Yesss!! 🎉📚🎂🥳🎁Happy Birthday to you!!! 3w

LeahBergen Ooo, nice!! 3w

Tamra So very pretty! (edited) 3w

43 likes4 comments

BarbaraJean

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography | Marshall Saunders

Hello, Kindred Spirits!

Here‘s the schedule for the next few months of the #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead—including a couple of #LMMAdjacent books, Vol. 5 of the #LMMJournals, and for #LMMReread, the beginning of the Emily books.

I‘ll include the tag list for each book in the comments below. All are welcome—let me know if you want to be added to (or removed from!) any of the tag lists.

LitsyEvents

BarbaraJean Beautiful Joe: @TheAromaofBooks, @rubyslippersreads, @julieclair, @lauraisntwilder, @JenLovesJT47

Beautiful Joe: An Autobiography

BarbaraJean Journals: @TheAromaofBooks, @lauraisntwilder, @JenLovesJT47 3w

BarbaraJean Emily of New Moon: @kwmg40, @TheAromaofBooks, @rubyslippersreads, @JenLovesJT47

Emily of New Moon

See All 11 Comments

BarbaraJean Story of an African Farm: @TheAromaofBooks, @julieclair, @lauraisntwilder

The story of an African farm: a novel

TheAromaofBooks I bought this volume of journals before we moved and now I can't find it!! Three weeks to do some serious crate rummaging 😂 3w

BarbaraJean @TheAromaofBooks Oh nooooo! Hope you unearth it quickly! 3w

lauraisntwilder I don't think I'm going to end up reading Beautiful Joe. I'll be traveling right then and I already have my books for the trip picked out! 😄 Yes to all the others though, including Emily of New Moon, if you could add me to that one? I love Emily. Thank you!! 3w

julieclair I‘m going to bow out of Beautiful Joe. I didn‘t realize part of the story was about animal abuse, and don‘t think I‘m up for that right now. 💙 2w

BarbaraJean @julieclair Oof—I understand! I‘ll tag you back in when we get to Story of an African Farm. 2w

BarbaraJean @lauraisntwilder Got it! I‘ll tag you for everything except Beautiful Joe. 2w

julieclair @BarbaraJean Thanks! 😘 2w

24 likes11 comments

BarbaraJean

Untitled | Untitled

Not. Okay.

TheKidUpstairs Neither do I! It's so unfair. 3w

willaful I feel like life should've arranged itself better than this! 3w

Ruthiella You have my sympathy! 😂 3w

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Andrea313 The world's REAL injustice. 3w

TheBookHippie Honestly how do we even function… 3w

dabbe 🎯🩵🎯 3w

42 likes6 comments

BarbaraJean

Clarissa: Or, the History of a Young Lady. Comprehending the Most Important Concerns of Private Life. ... By Mr. Samuel Richardson. In Eight Volumes | Samuel Richardson

Well, I HAVE to chime in on this one because I need to get all the mileage I can in proclaiming that I finished #Clarissa. 😆 All 950,000+ words of it. I used to brag about having read War & Peace, Don Quixote, and Anna Karenina… then I read Les Mis and Count of Monte Cristo and added them to the brag list, but Clarissa eclipses them all… in length but not enjoyment. 😂 Where are my other Learned Slatterns? Today is our day! #sundayfunday

BookmarkTavern

Amiable I KNOW, RIGHT?? 😄 3w

TheBookHippie Right?!?!?!?! Oy 3w

Amiable @BarbaraJean The only downside is that I have to explain what “Clarissa” is to brag about it because most people haven‘t heard of it. 😬🙁😳 But “W&P” always gets oohs and aahs. Even though that one was way easier to read! 3w

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LeahBergen Right?? It was brutal! 😂😂 3w

TheBookHippie @LeahBergen so brutal. 3w

TheBookHippie @Amiable and get a long stare after you explain it… 3w

Daisey So true! I also agree with @Amiable as well that it doesn‘t get the same reaction from most people as saying you‘ve read War & Peace or some of the other well know classics. 3w

BookmarkTavern Yeah I had never heard of this one until @Amiable mentioned it! That is truly brag worthy! Thanks for sharing! 3w

32 likes8 comments

BarbaraJean

Untitled | Untitled

I feel both seen and attacked.

(📷 via Tara Wine-Queen Writes)

Librarybelle OMG! It‘s like they‘ve seen my hold lists on Libby! 😂 3w

Bookwormjillk I‘ve been hacked 😂 3w

Ruthiella 😂😂😂 3w

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BarbaraJean @Librarybelle SAME, except I have a holds limit of 25, across two cards-- I want to know how many library cards this person has on Libby 😂 😂 3w

Librarybelle Right?!? I have a limit of 17 across 3 cards. 😂 3w

BookmarkTavern 20 for me! 😅😅😅 3w

39 likes6 comments

BarbaraJean

The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby | Charles Dickens

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I read this back in Feb/March with #WhattheDickens and then never got around to reviewing it!

In classic Dickens fashion, he spins an engaging, wide-ranging story, full of implausible coincidences and over-the-top caricatures of supporting characters. There are so many characters here that I love: from Nicholas and Kate to Smike and Miss La Creevy, Newman Noggs and the Cheeryble brothers. ⤵️

Cuilin, Texreader

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) I enjoyed this, but couldn‘t help but compare it with David Copperfield as I read—and I kept trying to figure out why I like DC better. I liked Nicholas and Kate much better than I liked David—David is so frustratingly naive, and Nicholas and Kate are far more self-aware and grounded. Many of the supporting characters (Mrs. Nickleby in particular, but also the Kenwigs and the theater troupe) were grating rather than amusing or lovable. ⤵️ (edited) 3w

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) I did find the Mantalinis ridiculous and hilarious (I frequently find myself saying “demn‘d” and “demnable” now), so there‘s that. But overall, the stakes felt higher and more serious here—and I think that combination of serious and silly just jerked me around a little too much.

Pictured with my World of Dickens puzzle 😁 (edited) 3w

Texreader Excellent review!! I loved this book and don‘t necessarily agree but I can absolutely see where you‘re coming from. Nicely said all the way around!! 3w

35 likes3 comments

BarbaraJean

Our Unforming: De-Westernizing Spiritual Formation | Cindy S. Lee

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Another book from my spiritual direction program—this was EXCELLENT. Cindy Lee reorients spiritual formation within non-Western approaches, and it was both illuminating & freeing for me. I grew up squarely within Western spiritual traditions. Encountering other approaches to Christianity while living in South Africa in my late 20s/early 30s was world-expanding, and Lee gives voice to a lot of approaches that I‘d been introduced to or partially ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …explored but hadn‘t fully acknowledged or articulated. She suggests shifting our orientation from linear to cyclical, cerebral to experiential, and individual to collective, examining how these orientations are lived out in non-Western traditions. This shift in perspective enriched my views of spiritual formation and gave me new entry points as I work with others who may come from different spiritual & cultural backgrounds than my own.⤵️ 3w

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) Lee has just published a new book specifically on BIPOC spiritual direction, which I‘m hoping to read over the summer:

Contemplative Witnessing: Bipoc-Centered Spiritual Direction

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BarbaraJean

Owning Your Own Shadow: Understanding the Dark Side of the Psyche | Robert A. Johnson

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Catching up on belated reviews (still)… I read this for my spiritual direction program back in March.

I don‘t have much of a background in psychology, so this was a great intro to the Jungian idea of the shadow: the aspects of ourselves, both good & bad, that we unconsciously hide or suppress. There‘s a lot packed into this slim volume, and I was surprised by—but appreciated—the connections Johnson makes to faith ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) …and the role that spirituality plays in the realm of the shadow. I was especially intrigued by the concept of the “mandorla”—the overlap between seeming binaries, where they can be held together in the mystery of paradox. 3w

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BarbaraJean

Pollyanna | Eleanor H Porter

#KindredSpiritsBuddyRead #LMMAdjacent - Pollyanna Chapters 1-16

A little check-in for the first half of Pollyanna!
👒 Is this your first time reading Pollyanna, or is this a re-read?
👒 How's your reading going so far?
👒 What stands out to you from the first half of the book?

rubyslippersreads, CogsOfEncouragement, lauraisntwilder, TheAromaofBooks, julieclair

BarbaraJean This is my first time reading Pollyanna, and I‘m finding it delightful! I had a hard time stopping halfway through 😆 I thought I might find her “glad game” a little cloying, but in context, it‘s not at all like that. I love how she‘s bringing new perspective to everyone around her just by being herself. 3w

CogsOfEncouragement I saw the movie a couple times as a child. This is my first read. I also had to make myself stop at the halfway mark because it is so fun to be in her world. I had an opportunity to play the glad game with a sweet friend who broke a finger this week. 3w

rubyslippersreads I‘ve read this so many times (most recently about a year ago), that I‘m not rereading, but I‘m enjoying the comments. One of the things that most stands out for me is remembering my mother always saying that an unattractive dress looked like it came from the missionary barrel. 😂 3w

lauraisntwilder I've never read it before, but I've seen the Haley Mills movie several times and as a kid I loved the made-for-TV adaptation called Polly starring Keshia Knight Pulliam. The book is so cute! I also had to stop myself from going past the halfway point. I love how exasperated Aunt Polly gets and how sweetly Pollyanna charms everyone. 3w

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BarbaraJean

Joined May 2016