July is here #AuthorAMonth readers! It‘s time to try a classic with Virginia Woolf. I‘m going with one of her short books on Serial Reader. What do you plan to read?

#AuthorAMonth is a no pressure challenge to honor Litsy nominated and voted upon authors. There are several prizes at the end of the year. Track your reading and see the rules on the google sheet linked below.

As always let me know if you‘d like to be added or taken off the list.📚

At some point Libro.FM had a sale and I got this audiobook.

The author lives in the suburban Seattle area, and this is a series of essays about the wildlife she finds in her own area. Birds, bugs, fungi, plants, she talks about a little of everything.

If you read a lot of nature writing some of this will likely be familiar to you, but even so I found it engaging.

New to me- slime molds. I‘ve never thought very much about them. Cool!

Thank you so much for the recommendation @BarbaraBB !

What a beautiful novel in letters. Sybil prefers letter writing to any other communication. She writes to friends, family, favorite authors, customer service reps, really anyone.

She‘s in her 70s and her vision is failing. The fear of that and grief over two huge losses in her life become the backbone of the story.

I cried more than once, and I laughed plenty.
Recommending!

This is one of those books I‘ve heard about for most of my life and thought “someday I‘ll read that.” I‘m so glad I finally did! I‘m sure it‘s one I‘ll read again. Celie learns so much in her life, overcoming abuse and learning about love and making a life for herself that she feels good about.

I watched the movie in the last year so the story was familiar, but the book was much better. Of course.

Loved, possibly my best book of the year.

Well, at about 30% I‘m giving up. I am not finding this particularly funny, and I don‘t really like the main character. I know he‘s supposed to learn about who he is and grow as a person, but I‘m over it.

#hailthebail

This audio was only an hour, so I think this would be considered a short story probably.

The story of a girl who spends a summer helping relatives on their farm. It‘s scary at first, but she finds them kind and more caring than her own parents, and thrives in their care. It‘s not all sunshine though, as there is a secret that overshadows.

Beautiful writing, I will put one of Keegan‘s books on hold.

July‘s #bookspin comes from a very limited selection, since I‘ve packed all but 3 of my books 😱. The other are audio from Libby and Libro.FM. If I happen to have enough time for more there‘s always my kindle or the library! Hopefully my shelves will be set back up by the end of July. 📚

Are we completely sure this was written by Kevin Wilson? It lacks the humor and the wittiness and weirdness we know him for. It really doesn‘t feel like him at all. But maybe he was trying something different?

I did enjoy it, I thought it was an interesting story. It just wasn‘t what I expected at all. And the ending felt abrupt, like the book was unfinished.

Oh well, hopefully he‘ll return to his old style with the next book.

For July #AuthorAMonth. I have found Serial Reader to be a great way to get through classics. It‘s a free ap, and there are a lot of Woolf books on there, from 7-25 “issues”. Each “issue” is about a 10 minute read, making it easy to read for 2 short sessions a day and complete a tough classic in a month! I think I‘ll probably read her this way.

Hello #AuthorAMonth readers! We‘re down to about one week left with June‘s author John Scalzi. I hope he‘s been making you laugh.

July brings us to a classic with Virginia Woolf. I haven‘t read anything by her before and I‘m looking forward to it! Any recommendations for where to start?

Andy Weir may be an auto-read for me at this point, and I‘m not sure I can say that about any other scifi author.

This one is a heist in a lunar colony. Jazz is hired to sabotage the smelting company on the moon so a billionaire can take over their contract with the lunar government. Of course things don‘t go as she planned, and a fast paced race to avoid the law, a mafia, and save the day ensue.

Projects Hail Mary is still my AW fave, but 👍👍.

I really liked this stand alone dark fantasy! It‘s pretty heavy, with themes of colonialism and oppression and exploitation, among other things. Definitely see content warnings.

There‘s a well defined magic system and two main characters I really cared about. There were several reveals I wasn‘t expecting, and the end was a surprise.

A tragic car accident spurs events in this intense family and neighbors drama. I really liked it, though it jumps around in time quite a lot.

Morning snuggles and reading.

The cover and title made me pick this up used somewhere, and it‘s been on my shelf for some time.

It‘s a low pick, but I found it fun and silly. How often do you get to read a heist book with 5 retirees as the criminals? It looks like there are a few more in the series. While I won‘t rush out to get them, I‘d read more if I found them in a LFL or at a library sale.

Goonies never say die! Thank you for the birthday gifts @Hooked_on_books ! The glass is perfect, so cool that you remember my favorite movie. I just read that it released 40 years ago this week.

All of the books sound great, and I‘m faced with the dilemma once again of what to read first! Seeing that you chose The Wall as the winner of a recent award makes me lean towards it.

Thank you Holly! (Happy to see Powell‘s stickers, glad you‘re back)

Thank you for the sweet birthday gifts @Mitch ❤️
The socks are so cute and soft, and the soap smells amazing!

@AmyG thank you for the birthday gifts! You chose a terrific variety of books 🩷. I‘ll probably start with Forgotten on Sunday since I loved Fresh Water for Flowers so much. I love the puppy themed notepads 🐶. I didn‘t realize mason jars came from Colorado, now I know, can‘t wait to hang this tea towel in my new kitchen. Thank you Amy!

My heart is heavy as I sadly share that I lost my sweetest boy Igor. He was diagnosed about a year and a half ago with HCM, a form of heart failure that sphynx cats are prone to. On Monday it progressed to the point that I had to let him go. He was 12 years old.

I love you forever my beautiful boy.

I know many of you admired him from afar.

This is Slocumb‘s second book, and I‘ve read both this year now. I liked this as much if not more than the first. I still found it somewhat predictable, and wish it could have ended differently, but it was quite good.

Meh. This felt not so different from The Circle, just more of cyber-corporations getting more ludicrous and digging roots further into every aspect of humanity. It‘s a tense read, funny and scary at the same time because it‘s easy to see the parallel with reality.

I‘d definitely say #borrowdontbuy but also I wouldn‘t say you‘d miss much if you skip it.

Happy June #AuthorAMonth readers! It‘s time to pick up some books by John Scalzi.

What do you plan to read this month? Do you have a favorite previous read by him you would recommend to first time readers?

#AuthorAMonth celebrates one author every month as voted on by Litsy members. Here is the link to the Google form with rules and contest entry:

https://forms.gle/1F1BmkcTBh7uPXNp9

As always let me know if you‘d like to be tagged.

I wanted to like this more than I did, for me it was between a pick and so so. Cozy fantasy about an arboretum where you can plant your loved one‘s ashes and they can grow into a magical tree. Some of the characters have dark secrets, and the consequences are causing their home to crumble. Frank is a Beast, and there are cupids, witches, and a fairy and magic is normal.

Read on kindle so here are Igor and Venkman making goofy sleepy faces.

June‘s #bookspin I‘m keeping it more simple as I prepare to move. 1-10 and repeat the same books for 11-20. I may lean towards more audio than usual while I‘m packing. I hope I have time for all 3 of my book club books and one for #authoramonth, we‘ll see!

Happy Pride Month 🏳️‍🌈

May is almost over #AuthorAMonth readers. It seems most folks have really liked their Percival Everett books 🙂.

In a few days we‘ll be picking up John Scalzi. I‘m going to have to go to the library to see what they have, since annoyingly Amazon has rights to most of his recent books and audiobooks. That really bugs me. But still, I‘m looking forward to it because he always makes me laugh.

An island theme park, similar to West World or Jurassic Park but for Dungeons and Dragons and Fantasy lovers, has been hijacked by the creators and a force field is keeping the corporate owner out.

Addy is hired, along with a few mercenaries, to sneak in and get the shield removed.

The writing isn‘t great and it‘s a little predictable, but I still loved it for its many fandom references- unicorns, sphynx, dragons, LOTR and more!

This is exactly what it says it is: the story of a supportive family caring for each other. Two members of Knox‘s family are trans, and this is about their coming outs and the family‘s adjustment to those life changes. It‘s beautiful when love wins and supporting your loved ones is your highest priority.

I knew this would be excellent because I‘ve been seeing Litsy reviews for the last several years. It really is eye opening and perspective changing. I‘d love to see it on curriculums. I‘m glad I own the audio, I could see listening again. I need to pick up her other book soon.

Featuring Igor in his blanket fort. 😸

Family drama about Isabelle, an aspiring novelist, and her emotionally distant very famous father who is a prize winning author.

It‘s not a bad book, just felt kind of surface level emotionally for me and somewhat predictable. I liked it but didn‘t love it.

Kevin Wilson writes quirky novels that I usually love in their strangeness. This book of short stories gives you little bites of that, each one showing a character doing their best to struggle through a challenging life event.

I only rate it so-so because I‘m not a short story fan. It‘s a good collection, I just prefer novels.

Isn‘t this cover weird and wonderful? It fits one of the stories.

#doublespin

This short book packs a lot of emotion! Rocky and her husband and two adult children are vacationing on the New England shore for a week. Her menopausal experience and memories of having and raising the kids blend with what they are all going through in the trip to create a whole atmosphere. There isn‘t a plot to speak of, but if you‘re around her age you‘ll likely relate to the bulk, even if you didn‘t have kids. Excellent.

Read for my “Death Becomes Us” bookclub.

What a useful book! I will get a physical copy to use the workbook part at the end.

If you want help deciding what should happen to your body after you die, this is a great reference. It discusses lots of options and how to let your family or caregivers know your wishes.

I think it is a kindness to let your loved ones know, so they won‘t have to guess or make hard decisions in a time of crisis.

I was here for the travel and food part of the story, and the characters were sweet. I did not care for the casual sex contest storyline, but given that all of the characters were respectful and open about feelings and intentions, it was handled in the best way it could have been I guess.

Low pick for me- I would recommend reading the blurb before you pick it up.

I very much enjoyed this historical fiction that takes place during WWI in Oxford. Peggy and her twin Maude live on a houseboat and work in a bookbinders. It‘s from Peggy‘s point of view, and with her we learn about how books were made at the time (are they still? I imagine the process has changed a lot), volunteer in a makeshift hospital for war victims, and attempt to win a college scholarship in a time poor women didn‘t get to go often. ⬇️

My May #Bookspin and #Doublespin. I hope I‘ll have time to get to both of them. The next two months are going to be very busy.

Happy happy birthday to my Mom, @Yenya1954 ! I‘m sure you‘ll spend some of it reading, and I hope it‘ll be a great book. Love you!

It‘s May #AuthorAMonth readers! Time to pick up our Percival Everett books.

#AuthorAMonth is a no-pressure, no-commitment Litsy challenge. The goal is to celebrate the works of a particular author each month. Authors were chosen through polls by Litsy participants. Read as many as you like, skip months when needed, it's entirely up to you! ⬇️

My sister recommended this to me, and I really liked it. It‘s a translated dystopian story about a girl who grew up in an underground prison with 39 women. They have no idea why they are imprisoned. One day they hear sirens and the guards run off while the door is open, and they venture out into the world.

It‘s a short book but spans the MC‘s entire life. Strange and haunting.

Ok this was just as fun as everyone said. I‘ve got book 2 on hold.

Palahniuk is very hit or miss for me, mostly because his narrators are almost always unreliable and unlikable, and often the grossness factor goes beyond my limits.

This one does have its very gross moments, but I did get pulled in by the story which was fast paced and in a twisted way I was rooting for the MC.

Just a low pick, as the middle dragged a bit and I didn‘t love the ending. Definitely 🍌👖.
#doublespin

I can‘t believe it‘s time for May‘s #bookspin list already! Where has the year gone?

Here is yet another “slice of my bookshelves”, plus a few options for my topic bookclub: May‘s topic is a book with a map. And Advice for Future Corpses is for another bookclub.

What will @TheAromaofBooks choose for us this time?

I read The Mercies by this author a couple years ago and loved it, so when this book came out I bought it right away. It‘s sat on my shelf for some time, as we all know happens… but I finally pulled it down and I think it is just as good as the last one!

I can‘t imagine hundreds of people dancing for days on end, some of them until they die, and no one is sure why.

The historical event is strange but it is Hargrave‘s characters that hook me.

I didn‘t know what to expect with this book, it was a book club pick.

It‘s from the point of view of Flora 717, a sanitation bee in her hive in an orchard. Yes, it‘s from the point of view of a bee, and takes place in a beehive mostly. It‘s fictional, but on googling the bees‘ habits I found a lot of the hive‘s habits and actions are described accurately.

If you can handle strange and you like nature writing, I would recommend this.

Happy Sunday #AuthorAMonth readers! Happy Easter if you celebrate.

We are more than halfway through April already, and I hope you‘re enjoying this month‘s author Kate Quinn. Your reviews have inspired me to add a few of her books to my TBR.

A look ahead to May which will bring Percival Everett. Perhaps you are ready to place your holds or orders soon.

Happy Reading!

Add me to the list of folks who didn‘t expect to like this book based on the cover. 😆

Phoebe is deeply depressed when she walks out of her job and books one night at a fancy hotel on the Rhode Island coast. She finds she is the only person in the hotel who isn‘t part of a wedding. She meets the bride in the elevator, and her plans start to go awry.

Funny and quirky, I really enjoyed it. Great narration too. Thanks for the recommendation!

This was recommended to me by myTBR, and I liked it. It‘s historical fiction, loosely based on a true story. Jacqoutte was a queer female pirate with her own strong code of ethics. There are many bloody battles and a love story I was there for.

This is the second book in a row I‘ve read about a deep love of music from a young black man‘s point of view. This one was my #bookspin.

Stephen‘s parents moved to London from Ghana, and they all believe the only thing that might solve your problems is dancing. This is a beautifully lyrical slow moving story that focuses on love in many forms.

I loved this one. The way the author talks about music made me feel like I was there playing with the main character, a violinist. I did feel like some bits were unrealistic, specifically the ease of crowdsourcing funds, but it wasn‘t enough to deter my enjoyment of the book. Look forward to reading his next book!

Here‘s a little blep face from Sietje.

April‘s #bookspin and #doublespin. Thanks @TheAromaofBooks !

I‘m not sure I‘ll make it through Lullaby. I sometimes can‘t handle how gruesome Palahniuk can be. But it‘s number has come up so I‘m going to try.

It‘s no surprise to me that Wild Dark Shore was my March favorite. I had to add the Shadow and Bone trilogy as my first Wild Card though. Yes I‘m counting the whole trilogy as one complete work. 🙂📚 Cuz I can.
#bookbracket

Hi #AuthorAMonth readers! Tomorrow is April 1st, time to start on those Kate Quinn books. @CatLass007 wants you all to know several of her books are available for free on Audible if you use it.

Here‘s the link to the Google form if you‘d like to start keeping track of your reads for the drawings at the end of the year.

https://forms.gle/1F1BmkcTBh7uPXNp9

All the details are at the top of the form.

Happy reading! 📚❤️😁