#WondrousWednesday

1. Now I don‘t care, but as a kid, I wished I‘d been named Naomi. I thought it was pretty. 😊

2. My current feral cat living in my front yard I usually call Fluffer Nutter Butter instead of Tom. He is very fluffy. His now deceased brother I called Skinny Minnie instead of Tim. 😻

3. It‘s not a favorite, but I assumed Bryony was a made up name when I encountered it in Mary Stewart‘s “Touch Not the Cat”, but it‘s for reals. 😅

#Hashtagbrigade
#ChunksterChallenge2025 Bitsy chunkster 544 pages
#AllergictoChunksters

I‘m not sure if I love or hate the ending? Set in the mid 19th cent., this is the story of Maggie Tulliver who, were she a man, would have had the education and success she deserved. She‘s smarter than her father, who favors her, and her brother, who loves her but holds her back. Phillip is her intellectual equal. Stephan I think she‘d eventually tire of…

Murdoch is for me an acquired taste and only to be enjoyed in measure. She‘s impossible to read quickly.

This is farce set in late sixties London, Bradley Pearson is a retired civil servant and unsuccessful novelist. Told from his POV, which is questionable, it‘s what happens when instead of writing his magnum opus, his life falls apart, with no little help from his own ineptitude, jealousy, and solipsism. Wickedly funny at times and quite dark.

#WhereAreYouMonday

I‘m only 100 pages in, but this is a kind of a Victorian detective novel where I suspect the sleuth will be traveling a bit between England and Scotland looking for clues and witnesses to overturn a “Scotch Verdict”.

#weekendreads

Trying to get to my #Roll100 picks before the end of the month! 🤞

Hello #EBBR armchair detectives! I hope all are having a good weekend, especially if you are in the US and have Monday off. This is a quick reminder to get your mitts on the next book for June.

I vaguely recognize the cover of this one, so may have read it before? 🤔 We‘ll see if anything feels familiar when I dive in.

This monthly buddy read is open to all! If anyone would like to be added to or removed from the tag list, let me know. 😃

#WhereAreYouMonday

I‘m in Nebraska with Alexandra Bergson and family as they try to farm and prosper while so many of their neighbors fail and move back to the cities to try their luck.

This is also the fourth book on deck for the #ShelfSweeper readathon. 😊

#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

A charming Cinderella story, though I felt a little sorry for bad-girl Cora. Also, when Bunny fainted, I laughed, it was so melodramatic- which was I think not the intended reaction. 😂

Aesthetician Ann, from an impoverished but proud and upstanding middle class family, meets cute Sir Timothy. Will class differences hold back true love? If you‘ve ever read Susan Scarlett before, you know the answer. 😍

#OffMyShelf “indy press”

After the intensity of “The Trees”, maybe Everett just wanted to have a little fun? This book is pretty goofy, with just the slightest edge. It did make me laugh. A James Bond like spoof. Professor Kitu (born Ralph Townshend) has made a career out of the study of nothing. When he‘s approached by a super villain who wants to harness nothing to achieve world domination, he agrees. He‘s up to nothing. Nothing happens. 😂

Hello reading friends. I hope you all had fun reading this month‘s #EBBR book. I missed the solutions for three of the cases! 😅 My powers of deduction seem to be getting worse!

I must say, winning a pie a day for a month in The Case of the Blueberry Pies sounded delicious! 🥧😋

#TLT #ThreeListThursday

Thank you for the tag @dabbe 😊 I‘ve picked for my three, some Zola titles I‘ve not yet read. I will nominate all three for next year‘s #HashtagBrigade selections. 🤞 I know that Zola super fan @sisilia will support this! 😂

#14Books14Weeks

📚This is my stack of 14 books to read between May 26 and September 1. The library copy of “Kristin Lavransdatter” is only a place holder, since I actually own it on Kindle. All the others are from my physical shelves. 📚

#weekendreads
#shelfsweeper

#TLT. #ThreeListThursday

Thank you for the tag @dabbe . 😊 My three are books that I have read with the #HashtagBrigade and probably would not have picked up otherwise! 😃

#OffMyShelf “Owned > 5 years”
My first completed book for #Shelfsweeper readathon . 😃

I listened to this on audio, read by the author. It was like a very long podcast…entertaining but I don‘t know that much will stick. But I don‘t think it‘s Gladwell‘s intention to write a how-to about how to create social movements or ad campaigns. He‘s more interested in exploring the fascinating and contradictory nature of human behavior and thought.

Come celebrate @peanutnine ‘s milestone of 100k Litfluence by telling her about one of your favorite BlameitonLitsy titles. Details about this #100KGIVEAWAY are in her original post.

My pick is The Cazalet Chronicles, which I‘d heard of prior to Litsy, but it was really the effusive praise from Littens that tipped me over the edge!

Honorable mention goes to Cranford by E. Gaskell. I didn‘t really like North and South, but I LOVED Cranford!

#WhereareyouMonday

This Monday I‘m in 1930s Syria at an archaeological dig with Dame Agatha and her second husband, Max Mallowan. Some of my favorite Poirot novels are those set in the Levant region, so I am looking forward to this memoir.

Slow but steady progress with #SeriesLove2025 . This is book 2 in the 5 book series set in England during WWII.

Howard excels at writing interesting characters that are fully human, with all the good and the bad that comes with that. And her balance is impeccable as well with this exceptionally large cast of an extended family and their servants.

The UK/US covers are a little bland IMO, so I have included some of the foreign editions for fun.

#OhCanada
#ShelfSweeper
#4Elizabeth
#WeekendReads

#ThreeListThursday
#TLT

Thank you for the tag @dabbe 😊

I agree, the list was particularly Pratchett heavy! 😅 Pictured are three titles that I would like to re-read and lucky me, the tagged book is going to be the #HashtagBrigade pick for September! 🥳

These are all books I physically own that I hope to read in May for the #ShelfSweeper readathon hosted by @Tove_Reads and @Andrew65 .

I didn‘t see any from @eanderson ‘s list that happened to coincide with my plans but I will still be reading in her memory #4Elizabeth ❤️ If there is a heaven, surely it is a library.

Happy Spring #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub members! Our choice for May is the tagged by club favorite Susan Scarlett, aka Noel Streatfield. Based on previous books by her, I expect a heroine we can root for and a baddie we can love to hate! 🤞😂

Be sure to tag everyone when you post blurbs or a review so we can like and comment. Read at your own pace.

All are welcome. If anyone wants to be added/removed from the tag list, let me know.

@LitsyEvents

#whereareyoumonday
#roll100

I‘m on the home front in Britain in 1940. The extended Cazalet clan has taken up permanent residence on the Sussex estate. Told mostly from the perspective of the third generation of the family teenagers Louise, Clarey, and Polly who experience the uncertainty of life during wartime while also navigating the transition from childhood to adulthood.

#weekendreads

Busy weekend for me, but I do have all three on Kindle, so I might be able to squeeze a little in here and there on my phone. 🤞😬

I‘m going to try to read all six of my May #Roll100 options. 🤞

Tagging @BarbaraBB and @CarolynM because I know you will cheer me on to read your favorite Iris Murdoch. 😅

🎲 3 - The Black Prince
🎲 30 - Shadow and Bone

🎲 4 - Tell Me How You Live
🎲 40 - The Law and the Lady

🎲 7 - Baby Doll Games
🎲 70 - Dr. No

#EBBR

Ready for another round with our favorite boy detective? Time to put in your hold or otherwise grab a copy of the tagged for May.

Looking at the cover of the 1967 edition with the polar bear, I remember the solution to that particular mystery! It‘s weird what sticks from childhood, huh?

This buddy read is open for all-if anyone not tagged wants to be, let me know. Equally, if anyone wants to be removed, say the word.

@LitsyEvents

#OffMyShelf “New Author”

Little Bee flees violence and murder in Nigeria only to encounter prejudice and indifference in England. She seeks out a British couple and their horrific original chance meeting and its repercussions are revealed.

I appreciated the message in this book, which calls for compassion towards asylum seekers, but I didn‘t get on with the style. It felt too heavy and obvious. Glad to have experienced this author however.

#OffMyShelf “Award Winning”
#ChunksterChallenge2025
#AllergictoChunksters

Longlisted for the 2020 International Booker, it also won two German awards per the back flap.

It took me two months to read this 1275 page monster. It‘s a multigenerational saga about a Georgian family from 1900 to 2007. Very melodramatic - I didn‘t particularly like it but appreciated the mental workout of reading in German. I read it w/ a friend & complained to her. 😂

#WhereAreYouMonday

Apparently based on Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, I am still with Maggie Tulliver and co. in the mid 19th century reading for #HashtagBrigade . The “real river” is the Trent and it is quite imposing looking. “Floss” sounds so sweet and gentle. But the Trent is known for its dramatic flooding that can even change the course of the river.

#moodboardcontest #mbc

Congratulations @dabbe on your 200k milestone! 👏👏👏

My mood board is a selection of dream libraries and book nooks on Pinterest. It is a reflection of where I go in my head when I need a break from reality. I find them soothing to look at. ☺️

#whereareyoumonday

I appear to be in Kingston upon Thames in greater London some time earlier this century with a young Nigerian refugee, Little Bee, and a recently widowed mother and her young son. There‘s a bit of a mystery as to how they are connected and what Little Bee has escaped.

Checking in with my #EBBR pals! I was bested in three cases. I‘ll put in under a spoiler comment my issue with one particular.

Fun fact: we find that Encyclopedia lives in a state with a coastline! I‘m imagining Oregon.

I am enjoying the goofy humor, like:

“I‘ve seen a match box and a boardwalk, but I‘ve never had to solve a pillowcase,” said Encyclopedia thoughtfully. 😂

“He‘s like a set of false teeth, always trying to get even” 🤣

I‘m excited to join in this summer with #CampLitsy25 ! These are my nominations. Whatever we end up reading, the experience and discussion are always enlightening.

This quiz was fun. I‘m mostly purple. One of the books suggested was Cloud Atlas , which I loved, which tracks. But I‘m also almost equally orange, which leans towards epic fantasy. Try it! https://www.readyourcolor.com/take-the-assessment

Thanks for the link and post @TheLudicReader ! 😊

#whereareyoumonday

Nancy and I head down to Florida. Perfect timing for spring break!

#weekendreads

Two chunksters this weekend. Won‘t finish either, naturally, but steady as she goes.

#50KGIVEAWAY

Congratulations on reaching this milestone @CSeydel ! 🥳 And thank you for the giveaway opportunity.

As others have pointed out, there are many, many things to love about Litsy. For this prompt, I‘m gonna say DISCOVERY. I love encountering books and authors I might not otherwise. It‘s an adventure! 😊

Hello fellow amateur sleuths! Time to pick up a copy of the next book for this month‘s #EBBR group read. I‘ll check in with y‘all in a couple of weeks to see how you fared!

This buddy read is open to all. Let me know if you would like to be tagged. 😃

I‘m going with library a ebook/audiobook combo this month unless, like with Cranford, I develop such a passion that I break down and buy a copy!

#HashtagBrigade

#WhereAreYouMonday

This Monday I find myself in an alternative historical, steampunk version of early 20th century Cairo, where magic and djinns are commonplace. A murder mystery with supernatural elements, this fantasy world that Clark has created is fantastic.

I‘m back on track with #OffMyShelf “Favorite Author” after a slew of library books paused my efforts.

This was very entertaining and one of her cleverer plots: three deaths, connected by method but the motive is obscure. The puzzle intrigues Poirot and brings him out of retirement. Mr. Satterthwaith, a reoccurring character from some non-Poirot short stories takes on the role of Hastings somewhat in aiding Poirot.

#weekendreads

Busy weekend for me, but should finish the Christie title today. 🤞

A couple of questions for any who have finished this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC pick. If anyone would like to be added or removed from the tag list, let me know.

🚀 What do you think about the novel‘s imagined trajectory for humanity? Do you see it as a positive or negative development? Did any of you also read “Almost Human”, one of our earlier group reads? It posits a very different possibility.

A couple of questions for any who have finished this month‘s #ClassicLSFBC pick. If anyone would like to be added or removed from the tag list, let me know.

🚀 The characters are fairly flat, which isn‘t uncommon for some classic SciFi. Did particular character or behavior stand out to you? Maybe Karellen? He‘s the only one present in all three sections of the book.

Thank you for the tag @Deblovestoread 😊

1. I don‘t have any good way of finding inner peace. It‘s always an uphill battle for me. So if you struggle too, you are not alone.

2. I don‘t know of any book personally that gives or helps maintain inner peace. But I do reread Agatha Christie novels for succor. I find them soothing. Probably because they are nostalgic and because there is always a clear resolution at the end.

#Two4Tuesday

My #Roll100 picks for April are pretty sweet. I already read Jazz back in February, so only have two “musts”.

Marking Time will work for #SeriesLove2025, as it‘s the second in the Cazalet Chronicles.

I own a physical copy of Little Bee and will make it work for #OffMyShelf

#WhereAreYouMonday

I spontaneously decided to jaunt to Cornwall, England. This is a Christie title that I‘ve seen adapted, but never actually read. This will also help me get back on track with #OffMyShelf because I own a physical copy. 🤞

My weekend plans for #weekendreads

1. Finish Mr. Loverman and Red Clocks for #Roll100 .

2. Get stuck in to Childhood‘s End for #ClassicLSFBC .

I‘m pausing on Das Achte Leben for now. Will pick up again in April. 🤞

A thumbs up because I do love Pratchett and the Discworld, but this has to be my least favorite thus far. I did laugh and appreciated the message about the abuse of power (all too close to reality alas) but the story was a bit of an unwieldy mess. Also, The Luggage 🧳❤️! IYKYK

#SeriesLove2025

Two thumbs up 👍! This was my 3rd time reading this and it never disappoints-especially since I never remember the details! 😆 If you‘re going to read one Victorian Gothic novel, make it this one; epistolatory and perfectly paced. Thank you to @BarkingMadRead for leading the #HashtagBrigade ! 🙏

This counts toward my #AllergictoChunksters / #ChunksterChallenge2025 at 626 pages!

I listen to this mostly and the Blackstone audio production was 👌