October #bookspinbingo board, I have broken up some longer books into parts in hopes that I can get through them. I just finished watching Ken Burns‘ film The US & the Holocaust, so now I am wanting to read more about that time period. Looking forward to an interesting reading month.

I finished this one really quick. I loved Smith‘s style of writing. The project he started was examining different places throughout the US & one in Africa. He was looking at the impact of slavery in the past & now the current views on racism. He visited Monticello, Thomas Jefferson‘s home, & how the current tours are changing to reflect what we know now & understand more about the role Jefferson had in slavery. He did discuss about how some

I finally finished last month‘s #shesaid pick. Some essays were better than others but it made me realize how many stories I have not read by Asian American authors. The author highlighted the continued racism and micro aggressions she has experienced throughout her life. It‘s another book to make me think & reflect about the experiences that others have. Another good book as I continue on with my Antiracism and examining Jedi principals (justice

Vivian is who I wanted to be in high school. I was quiet, like her, but not brave enough to speak out against unjust treatment of others or athletes that ruled the school. She started Moxie after finding her mom‘s Riot Grrls stuff… my favorite girl band(s) when I was a teen were 7 Year B!tch & Liz Phair. I related to this story, my misspent youth is many years past but now have found my voice. It‘s a bit different from the movie. #bookspin

Yusef Salaam is one of the exonerated Central Park five. He doesn‘t go into great deal about his experience in prison but does discuss how his Muslim faith helped him to survive & try to find peace in his experience. He discusses about how systematic racism continues to play a large part in the prison system. As well as how the system does not fully prepare released prisoners to acclimate back into society. Definitely a worth read if you are on a

This book is truly heartbreaking, frustrating, & so eye opening. It‘s a definite must for anyone working with families dealing with trauma, housing insecurity, poverty, education. The book highlights how inter generational trauma & systematic racism continue to harm and disrupt families especially in large cities. I‘ve worked with families in poverty & Section 8 housing but I feel like there is so much that I learned from this book. The system

Finished this one the other day (the fluff ball is in desperate need of a haircut & was a mess since it had been raining for 2 days straight…he‘s a SoCal dog & not used to all this rain). I was born in the mid 70s & love all things 70s. It was a good coming of age story. After Mary Jane babysits for one of the neighbors she realizes just how different the world is outside of her straight laced home. She begins to learn more about herself & who she

It‘s a cold rainy day in Boston, figured it‘d be the perfect day to sit & finish my book. My kids decided it was a good day for a Harry Potter movie marathon. Can‘t say that I‘m too upset about their choice. Although I might sneak in some reading since I‘m almost done with my book.

September #bookspinbingo board, looking forward to cooler weather & being able to curl up on the couch & read

August #bookspinbingo board, not a great month of reading…too much going on with getting my oldest off to college & not feeling very focused to read.

Finally starting back with #LitsyLove. It‘s been a few months but now things are settling down after moving cross country. Looking forward to hearing from everyone again.

Exciting day but bittersweet too. We dropped our oldest off at Virginia Tech today. He‘s a kid that struggled all through elementary school & we were told many times he‘d never make it to college. He‘s neurodivergent (ADD) & has worked hard so hard the last few years. It‘s paid off & now he‘s made it into one of his top schools for engineering. We‘re so incredibly proud of him.

It was evidently clear to me that Molly was neurodivergent/Autistic from the start. My question is was it the author‘s intention for Molly to be Autistic but instead dance around it by her seeming “quirky” or other characters calling her weird. It is important for there to be representation of Autistic characters in main stream stories but not their qualities being used as pitfalls of the character. This just gave me an ick factor of a mom of an

I read this for my #lmpbc non-fiction pick. If you‘re like me & have realized that the quality of clothing has gone done the last few years it‘s because of “fast fashion.” Big companies want us to spend constantly & satisfy our need by constantly producing new clothes. Those new clothes are at the detriment to our society environmentally (microfibers ending up in the water, clothes filling landfills & being dumped in countries like Ghana), women

@fredthemoose this is finally on it‘s way to you, luckily it‘s under 300 pages. Sorry it‘s taken me so long, between moving, thesis revisions, & getting my oldest ready to leave for college it‘s been a little more chaotic around here than usual. I mailed it today express mail, should be there Saturday by the latest. #lmpbc

It was fascinating to read about Selma Blair‘s childhood (as a person that has studied attachment theory at length there is so much to unpack about her childhood). I enjoyed learning about what lead her to her career. I wished though that she talked more about her MS diagnosis & her advocacy work. This has been such a big area for her the last few years so I think that it would been nice to learn more about this. The name dropping was a bit much

August 2022 #bookspin bingo board

I finally got 2 Bingo‘s for the month. I read 7 books this month, I loved them all, so it was a good month of reading. Still need to finish my LMBPC book for the month of July (sorry group, it‘s been a busy week with moving in). #bookpinbingo I also read my #bookspin book for this month

This is one of those books that is highly important to read, especially as white supremacy has been on the rise in the US over the last few years (per the Southern Poverty Law Center tracks hate groups). It is disturbing to read what goes on in some of these chat groups. I don‘t know how Lavin endured it. It was very eye opening. It wants me to get rid of all social media/google/you tube & keep my kids off of all of it. Definitely a must read.

I loved this one. I took sign language in college & loved it. I would have loved to take more classes but it wasn‘t possible. My professor was deaf & we didn‘t have an interpreter in the class so we had to learn quick. I went to UNC Greensboro for my undergrad & the surrounding area had always had a large deaf population due to a school for the deaf being there (it‘s not closed but there are 2 others still in NC). In class we had discussions about

I haven‘t bought cookbooks in a long time but since we are now living in the northeast, I wanted to see if anyone had any really good cookbooks that they like. Anything with soups would be good, after living in San Diego for 11 years we have a few fall recipes we like but I know we can use more. I figured I‘d ask here to see if anyone had any really good recommendations (I do have nut & chickpea allergies). Thanks!

It took me a little while to get into this book (I started a few months ago & didn‘t make it far), finally went back to it & so happy I did. It was an amazing story but also very difficult subject matter. Adunni‘s story is compelling & one that unfortunately many young girls face daily in Nigeria. I‘m happy I finally sat to read this eye opening story. #bookspin #booked2022 prompt: author born in Africa

I appreciated May‘s journey into her later age diagnosis of Autism. She paired her diagnosis with a walking journey that she had become determined to do along the southern coastal path in England. She talked about the moments in her life that made her come to the realization of her diagnosis. My almost 13 year old is a late diagnosis. I really liked when May said that it wasn‘t that she wanted anything (in terms of treatment) but just the knowing

This was a super fast read for me since it was so shocking & a bit fascinating (don‘t know if that‘s the right word but it was very interesting). These 2 journalists from The New York Times broke the story of the Harvey Weinstein scandal. It was so unbelievable that for 25 years he abused & hurt so many women & no either seemed to not notice or care. It‘s heartbreaking to realize how women are just shoved money & sign a no disclosure so they can

Such a heartbreaking book written by Trayvon‘s parents. They both chronicle their experiences of what happened leading up to & the days after he was shot. Which was a bit slow to read since it was hard to read about their loss & grief. The last half of the book was about the movement & the trial, which was frustrating to read. Trayvon Martin‘s murder continues to highlight the racial injustice in the court systems as well as the daily inequities

Posting my July 2022 #bookspin bingo board, which I‘ve read my #bookspin book for the month (yeah). I loved this book, the story had so many layers to it. The book highlighted the continued misunderstanding of Puerto Rico as part of the US as well as the impact of Hurricane Maria. Olga is a strong & determined woman who is compounded by her past while trying to navigate the present. Definitely one of the best books I‘ve read this year.

June #bookspinbingo board, 4 books read for the month of June. Not too bad considering we were in the process of prepping for our move & then driving cross country (basically displaced for almost 2 weeks). No bingos but I also had to repack what books I originally wanted to bring (2 bags full of books was not feasible when there were other necessities that needed to fit in the minivan).

#LMBPC Group J: Nonfiction. Here is a few books I chose for this round. Since nonfiction is pretty broad I wasn‘t sure what anyone was particularly interested in/comfortable with. I‘m a nonfiction reader, primarily. I read a lot about social justice, disability, Autism, psychology, anything affecting people/children (housing, inequality, race, health). If any of these interest you please let me know so I can get a copy & start reading.

We visited Porter Square Books today, although we went to the one in Seaport. I wished I could have spent more time looking around but my younger two were becoming impatient. Definitely need to go back by myself to look around more. I didn‘t buy any books but I did find a puzzle.

We have recently moved to Boston (from San Diego). We are staying in corporate housing in the downtown/seaport district of Boston for a month till our place is ready. I took a walk this evening & found this cool book library. I resisted the urge to grab a book since I have realized with packing just how many books I physically have in the tbr pile.

Pic from our quick stop at Niagara Falls today while we are on “vacation” (I don‘t really think of a cross country drive from San Diego to Boston as a relaxing but we‘ve seen some cool things). Anyhow I liked this one, a fairly quick book in the midst of traveling. I‘m not a huge fiction reader but I‘ve like Emily Henry‘s books. I good, light summer read. I need to redo my #bookspin since this was not on there (I had to cut the # of books I packed

I didn‘t get a chance to read this when we were on actual vacation in Hawaii. We have started our cross country trek/move from San Diego to Boston. We are glamping tonight (my middle child is obsessed with RVs) outside of the Grand Canyon. I‘m hoping to get to read this while we travel.

Tarana Burke was the original founder of the #metoo movement. She has worked tirelessly with young black and brown girls that have been victims of sexual assault. Burke is a survivor of sexual assault herself & she has worked to help others through their experiences as she worked through her own trauma. I enjoyed learning about her work in social justice & community activism. #bookspin book #nonfictionbingo: I‘m a Survivor

I just love TJ Klune so much, his writing is so beautiful. I, like many, am terrified of death & I was a little apprehensive about reading this book. I‘ve experienced a lot of death in my life. During my undergrad degree I did a clinical internship in Child Life. I spent about 9-10 months at Duke Children‘s Hospital for my training. I loved my experience but oh it was so hard too knowing when you go back in kids you saw the day before might have

The stories collected in this book are mainly from people living in the Chicago area. The author is a lawyer for the organization Access Living & she interviewed a wide variety of people for the book. It was a decent collection of stories. As an advocate & parent of a disabled child I am always interested to learn more about other peoples experiences. The book also highlighted the interaction of intersectionality & disability in peoples lives.

I‘m not sure who has my book (The Seed Keeper) but I still haven‘t gotten it back from #lmbpc last round. I‘m moving in a few days, we‘ll be having our mail forwarded to our new address. I‘d love to get it back at some point. Thank you!

June #bookspin book: Rest in Power & #doublespin book: We‘re Not Broken (this book has been my book spin or double spin book for the last 2-3 months, a sign that I really need to read this book).

May #bookspinbingo board: I got one bingo & read 6 books for the month of May. Not bad since the first two weeks of May were spent preparing for my thesis defense & then final edits.

My June #bookspinbingo board. Happy that summer is almost here & lots of good things to read. We leave for Boston in 2 weeks & I‘m still sorting through which books I can bring with me. Packing has made me realize that I have a lot of books to read (although have discovered ones I forgot I had). Excited to hopefully make it through more books now that grad school is done.

Sometimes you read a book that you didn‘t know you needed to read but was so perfect to read. I wasn‘t sure what to think of this short book full of short stories about animals & plants. But I really enjoyed the author‘s insight about each passing subject. The stories were tied to her personal experiences. I really enjoyed her use of language & writing style. Need to read more of her work. #bookspin #nonfiction2022: I‘m marvelous

TJR is becoming one of my favorite fiction authors. It was a decent story (aside from introducing way too many characters for a small part of the story, personally I hate having to keep up with 20 different characters). I enjoyed the story of the Riva siblings & their lives. It was a good, quick, mindless read. Although Evelyn Hugo is still my favorite TJR book to date. It was the perfect start to summer book. #bookspin

The little boy in this book has mysterious symptoms that doctors can not figure out. I spent about a year at Duke Children‘s doing my clinical hours for Child Life. So I spent a lot of time working with a lot of kids similar there & in early intervention. The mom highlighted the prevalence of racism & misdiagnosis of kids (which I‘ve seen lots of that, unfortunately). It was an interesting story about their experiences of dealing with a lot of

OMG yes, a million times over. I feel that with every IEP meeting. All I ever think when I hear about friends & their fights over IEPs, is didn‘t at one time the people doing this job go into it for a reason. Why do people feel the need to lessen what your child & family are going through? We have been fighting for 7 years to get an accurate school (& medical but that‘s another fight) for our son, he technically 10 years if you count being denied

Ugh, I totally get this. Sitting in an IEP meeting & listening to the results from your child‘s testing is so exhausting & it just hurts. It hurts because these numbers don‘t define your child but are necessary to access services. As an early intervention coordinator I sat with many families through the transition meeting for preschool (I had a lot of medically complex kids). It was hard then & it‘s hard now as a mom.

I‘ve always loved Stanley Tucci (especially in Julie & Julia). He‘s had such an interesting life. I have not watched his show on CNN about food in Italy, which I should probably watch. Anyhow great book, a very fascinating life. #bookspin this gives me bingo for the month (in all fairness though the row had 3 free spaces). #nonfiction2022, prompt: I‘m adventurous (I have realized in reading this book I‘m not very adventurous in my eating).

“But with a glimmer of willingness, language can do so much to squash independent thinking, obscure truths, encourage confirmation bias, & emotionally charge experiences such that no other way of life seems possible.” I really never thought a lot about how language can be used as a tool to manipulate people. I really liked this book & found it totally fascinating. #bookspin #nonfinction2022: I‘m an escapee, #booked2022: about a cult

I started reading this for #shesaid but life got busy & I didn‘t keep up with the conversations. But I finally finished & loves this book. It brought up lots of interesting points. Every day in the US it feels like women have a reason to be angry, looking at you the Supreme Court. This book was the perfect book for me to finish right now as I am about to go back into the working world. I feel things have changed a lot over the last 11 years since

Conversations with myself: You really need to start to narrow down what books you are going to take for the move, you don‘t need any more books……oh that looks like a good book, oh that one sounds interesting…..a few weeks later, how did I add all these books when I already had a huge pile. Well at least I (hopefully) officially finish grad school next week. Plus moving cross country means I‘ll need lots to read.

May 2022 #bookspinbingo board, I‘m hoping to get the tagged book read this month. It was my double spin book for last month & now my #bookspin book for this month. I guess it‘s a sign to get it read.