A continuation of Ruth Reichl's first memoir Tender at the Bone. Takes you through her life as she establishes herself as a food critic, her first divorce, her second husband and her want to become a mother.
Decent read.

A very soft pick for its cozy vibes. However, at places it was a little bland for me.

Beautiful descriptions of nature but the plot was a little flat for me. Amazing that it was written by a 12 year old though...
The illustrations by Jackie Morris are lovely.

A quiet mystery which perhaps was not the most riveting. The interaction between Sloan and Crosby does lend to the witty exchanges in the book.

Really liked "seeing into" the life of a neurosurgeon. Henry Marsh is aware of disasters and the triumphs in a neurosurgeons life and he reflects on how he has changed through his time in the profession.
Loved the wry humour in the essays.
#roll100
#24in2024

I generally enjoyed this - parts 1 and 2 more than part 3 as I enjoyed the more historical aspects. Part 3 was more in terms of what we can do to help us get out of the mess we are in. Generally enlightening.
Read this as part of #naturalitsy
@AllDebooks

A short novella in epistolary form. It's crazy that this was written in the 1930s without hindsight of what actually did transpire. Within this short book, it encapsulates the mood of the time.
#1938

A short essay about how a good teacher /coach can help shape a kid's life and a look at how nowadays parents are reluctant to push their kids into the uncomfortable.

Reportage from around the 1960s. Gives a view of Poland post Stalin. There is a general sense of decay in all the pieces and each piece has hidden depths.
A book to be dipped into and read when the mood fits.
#1962

Between a pick and a so-so. What I liked was the strong sense of place which really was described well. What I didn't was the narrator, Mai, who was a bit too whiny and self-absorbed for me. I nearly bailed a couple of times but hung on to hear the conclusion.
#Vietnam
#roll100

My first David Sedaris read. Decently quirky and entertaining. I probably enjoyed 70% of the stories - especially those about his encounters with the French language.

Starting this series again as I stopped 2 books in the last time. Enjoyed this as much as I did the last time.

This started out clever but am about a third into the book, and the characters are beginning to grate on me. So I am going to put this aside.
I'll just watch the movie for the summary. 😅

This seems to be the last in this series that I have really enjoyed. This mystery centered on a snoring husband, money laundering (during India's 2016 demonetization exercise), and a disappearance during the 1984 anti-sikh riots.
The topics tackled may be serious, but Vish Puri and his mother really do know how to enliven the situation.
The audiobook is a good way to enjoy this series.

The story of the cancer cells which became one of the most important tools in medicine. It deals with both the historical aspects as well as the fallout on her descendants. Also tackles the legalities of human tissue samples.
#roll100
#52bookclub24
#toldinnonchronologicalorder

Was struggling to decide whether to DNF this or not. 1/3 through the book and it has no "spark" for me. I am interested in finding out about the tribes in India but this book does not seem to delve too deeply into it so will need to hunt for one that does.
##roll100

Phryne sets out to solve a disappearance and a murder and in the process takes her plane out to the mountains in Australia (near Talbotville). I enjoy the series mainly because of the historical setting e.g. the Green Mill was an actual dance hall in Melbourne.
#52bookclub24
#setinacitystartingwiththeletterm

1. Hercule Poirot - Agatha is the reason I love this genre 😃
2. Lord Peter Wimsey
3. Amelia Peabody

@dabbe
#TLT
#Threelistthursday

A soft pick as the ending seemed predictable. However, the general setting and the nyonya food was accurately described. Listened to this on audio and realised that Singaporeans pronounce "syiok" different from Malaysians. ?

Never read this before. Delightful! And I love the illustrations!

The last book of the series. A soft pick as the mystery did have a few twists. But I didn't like the distance between Lucy and Robert in this one. They didn't work together as a team as in previous books and there was a bit of sniping between them. 😔
All in all I found the first 2 /3 books of the series better than the later ones. But glad I have finished the series. 🥳

It was an interesting premise based on Margaret Cavendish (who I didn't know before this), but this book, written in vignettes, did not manage to hold my attention throughout.
#52bookclub24 #aboutfindingidentity
#24in2024

A sweet heartbreaking book about a boy who confronts living with / dying of cancer. I teared up in places. Did not expect to like it so much so this was a pleasant surprise.
#roll100
#52bookclub24 #agrievingcharacter

It was a little long and reiterated points multiple times. However, this book made me more aware of how much UPFs have invaded the food system. If nothing else, it will make me read food labels a whole lot more and reduce my intake of fizzy drinks. The audiobook did have chatty /interview sections between the author and his brother, which helped ground the book a little. #naturalitsy

According to my tracking, I read this about 10-ish years ago. Picked it up on audiobook again as Disney has a new TV series out. I would say that it still holds up and it is just as enjoyable.

A sweet book about a young American girl's trip to Europe in the 1800s. I read the first 2 books years ago and have decided to continue with this series.

Weaves the stories of a quilting circle together. I thought it started off with promise but started flagging at the halfway mark.
I think I prefer the movie.
#24in2024
#roll100
#atleastfourdifferentpov
#52bookclub24

A murder occurs to a new staff member of the family and Lucy and Robert need to investigate and guard their family.
The audiobook was pleasant so this was a soft pick.... the next book will be the last in this series.

The mystery was a little weak but I love Lord Peter Wimsey and the cast of characters... so it's still a Pick!
#roll100 #1930 #192025

I really enjoyed this take on time management. It has a pragmatic view on what is really achievable.

I am sorry to say I did not enjoy this as much as I thought I would. I think it was a little too episodic for me and it moved a little too slowly at times, with very little character development. At the end of the day, I just really felt sad for DQ but I did appreciate Sancho a whole lot more. Glad that @TheAromaofBooks organised this readalong and it is finally off my shelf.
#chunkster

Decent-ish continuation to the series, if the mystery was a bit odd.

Love the choices you have made @erzascarletbookgasm 🤗🤗
Merry Christmas to you and your family!
#jolabokaflodswap23
#jolabokaflodswap
@MaleficentBookDragon

I found this one a bit lacking in comparison to the other books in the series. The murder was a bit ho hum and the suspects were irritating. 😅😅

A lyrical and poetic memoir about a refugee and his thoughts on displacement. This book is set after the Oslo Agreement so reflects the situation during that time.

Didn't realise this was supposed to be a YA advice book when I picked it up as the blurb was a little misleading. However, that was not the real issue - it was the non-chronological nature of this that threw me. At each section, I was trying to place where she was in her life.
#roll100

it's been sent!

#JolabokaflodSwap23
@MaleficentBookDragon

Am on a Phryne Fisher kinda kick recently. This book is as entertaining as the first with more concentration on the mystery this time.
If there is a small quibble - there were a couple of characters named Jack.... couldn't the author have picked another name? 😅

Between a pick and a so-so for me. I enjoyed trying to piece together the clues from the letters and emails but felt that the murder happened too late in the book. Also was not a huge fan of the way it rounded up (which felt rushed and the twist was odd).

This book flies and I loved it as much as the first. The title itself - when an explanation was provided at the end, added alot of heart to it.

An interesting premise and written from the view of his "friend" Al Manheim.
A little flat in places as Sammy just kept on running. However, I really liked the first third of the book. And I liked the ending.
#roll100

A slow book which had some beautiful writing. Circe is one of the lesser characters in Greek mythology and the retelling is from her view. A few Greek gods and more prominent Greek characters make appearances throughout the book.
#roll100

Made me laugh and tear up (especially in the last quarter of the book).
An introduction to the therapeutic process. I enjoyed the stories of her patients slightly more than hers.

A slow mystery but with alot of dry wit to in the banter to carry it through.

A good start to the series. Set in Melbourne, Australia, Miss Phryne Fisher investigates and solves multiple crimes. Liked her go-getter attitude.

Perhaps not as engaging as the previous books but it still captures India. And Mummy-ji is still a star!

Audio narration was good. Mystery was a so-so as it seemed to drag in bits. Let's see if the next one in this series is better as I have liked her other books.

More enjoyable than I thought it would be - I felt like I learnt something about philosophy 😀.
The audiobook was engaging and approached the subject matter in a humorous way.

Between a pick and a so-so as it took a while for the story to get going. It was also darker than I thought it would be. However, all in all, fairly enjoyable.

The last book of the series. Through it all I have loved the lyrical writing and it's take on Fairy Land.