Reading – Peaceful Reader

Fall Books

I love when you finish a book and you hug it and want to start over again. When this happens I go through the rolodex in my brain and imagine who would also love this story. Recently this happened when I finished read Jeff Zentner’s The Serpent King, a story about three teenagers struggling to survive in their small Tennessee town. Zentner created such interesting characters in Dill, Lydia, and Travis with their own idiosyncrasies and some very unfortunate family situations. It was an amazing read.

Jason Reynolds was at the library conference in St Louis last month and he was a great speaker. He mentioned two things about his life that stuck with me. 1. He takes a bath everyday to relax and soak away all his anxiety/troubles. He holds a lot of heartfelt energy from writing and the kids that he meets in school visits. 2. He wrote something years ago that later was produced into Soundtrack, an only-audio book that is scripted. I put it on hold while I was sitting in the conference and was it arrived I was amazed at the brilliant writing; it was a great listening experience. Listen to this NPR interview with Jason. He is so open and honest. Love his books.

High Tide in Tucson : Essays from Now or Never by Barbara Kingsolver was such an interesting read. It was written in 1996 and talks a lot about George Bush and the Iraqi war. Her essays are vibrant and I was happy to learn more about her life. So much of what she talks about is still very relevant today.

The Anxious Generation : How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Caused an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt took me a long time to read because I’m not a strong nonfiction reader BUT I powered through. One of my big complaints about nonfiction or books with studies/graphs, etc is that they are too long and that is true of this one. I did learn a great deal and was already in the “computers are not helping us as much as we think” camp especially where social media is concerned. We spend far much time buried into technology. Last night my husband and I went out to dinner and we sat near a table of 6 college aged females and until their food arrived their faces were glued to their phones; no chatting or sharing going on.

I’m headed off on a fun vacation to San Diego with my daughter over the next week and I’m very much looking forward to the sun. I had two books packed and two books ready on my kindle and I realized that might be overkill so I unpacked The Seven Year Slip and will read that later.

Fall catch-all

I love fall recipes especially all things with butternut squash! I recently made a spicy butternut squash pasta recipe from the NY Times that was so good I made it twice in one week. As the weather changes we are always look for heartier dishes to warm us up. I’m in the middle of planning our upcoming Thursday meal which I now like to call our Un-Thanksgiving or our Grateful Day. Growing up my family and Greg’s family both celebrated the holiday with all the traditional fare and I used to help my mom prepare a turkey and all the sides but then we just stopped. For many years I prepared other dishes we liked instead such as vegetable lasagna or food from India. The last few years I’ve made vegan Wild Rice Soup; that and some fresh hot bread from the oven makes a perfect meal. This year the only thing I have my heart set on is skin-on mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy. Otherwise I’m still searching for ideas. Tristan has two vegan pies, apple dutch and pecan, on order from New Pioneer Coop in Cedar Rapids.

In between cooking I’ve read:

Dry by Neal Shusterman because it is on a banned book list and I was curious. My first Shusterman book and I will read more. (4 stars)

The Rachel Incident by Carolyn O’Donoghue because I heard it reviewed on a podcast. (4 stars)

We are called to Rise by Laura McBride because it showed up in my free library. (3 stars)

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros because two librarian friends highly recommended it and it was getting a LOT of attention. I liked it and am happily waiting to read Iron Flame. You should probably love high fantasy to enjoy this. (5 stars)

Fellowship Point by Alice Elliott Dark because it’s our book club choice for November and I am enjoying it but I’m only half way through the 579 pages. (probably 4 stars)

There are a lot of good series to tuck into for fall:

Everything Now on Netflix – Japhy and I discovered this and loved it. It’s about a young girl’s struggles with anorexia and a lot of high school drama but it’s very real in it’s depiction plus it takes place in London.

All the Light We Cannot See limited series on NF- I loved the book and was looking forward to this. We have one more episode to watch. Mark Ruffalo is amazing as is the young daughter and the young German radio genius. The Nazis are all sufficiently creepy as hell.

Lessons in Chemistry on Apple TV – I loved the book and the series has not disappointed at all. It veers from the book but it is captivating. Brie Larson plays the great Elizabether Zott with zest.

I’ve also made a habit of going to yoga a few times a week at Cota Studios and love practicing in person with other people after years of doing yoga alone with Adrienne in my upstairs studio. Sam is a relaxed and knowledgeable instructor who brings calm and joy into the practice. I really appreciate the gift of this studio in our community.

Happy holiday however you celebrate. Do remember the real facts of this holiday in that those First People who came to the table in peace were later tricked through false treaties, tortured, and killed for who they were. Remember all that is going on in our world from sea to shining sea and that while we do have much to be grateful for we must think about how we can help and be empathetic and aware.

What a week!

School is back in session! And I’m exhausted! Physically tired but also happy tired. It was wonderful to see my students again and to realize once again why I teach.

This weekend I had the time to really relax. I’ve taken two naps, read two books, and ordered take-out. I slept in and had hot chocolate with a friend. I brought my mother lunch and visited with her for a couple of hours. I have to be ready for the week ahead; the classes and the days are going to be longer. I have to be mentally prepared for that.

Many students remembered why I was gone for part of last year and kindly asked about my surgery. I had a few students who just simply said “I’m glad you’re back.” It feels great to be safely back at school although it feels a little strange to be all together and not wearing masks. Two years in a row we’ve begun the year with masks on and while it feels great to be able to see and hear students it also feels a bit unhealthy. I know the virus is still around us and I wonder if we’ll have a surge in cases as everyone bundles together over the next few weeks.

I binge watched two shows this weekend while I was resting. The Lincoln Lawyer and Extraordinary Attorney Woo, both on Netflix, and both riveting to watch. Attorney Woo has subtitles so you have to be ready to pay attention but her character keeps you watching as a first year lawyer with autism.

Taylor Jenkins Reid, one of my favorite authors, has a book about to be released and I finished it recently thanks to an early reader copy on NetGalley. Carrie Soto is Back is a fantastic book about sports, competition, and tennis but even if you’re not into sports or tennis this book will keep you reading because Carrie Soto is a fascinating character. You can pre-order it anywhere right now.

August is one of my favorite months because I love the heat of summer but it also ushers in school. One of the joys of living so close to school is that I can walk or bike to work giving me time outside so I come into school feeling refreshed. This year my husband helped me out by buying me a retro-looking electric bike! So while summer is winding down I’m tooling to school in style.

The lazy days of summer

I like to do yoga in my pajamas. I do. Before the pandemic I went somewhat faithfully to a yoga studio with other like-minded folks and I enjoyed the camaraderie. I did. But when the pandemic hit I discovered the joy of doing yoga right upstairs in what used to be my child’s room. That child now owns a home of his own and only sleeps over on Christmas Eve so I turned it into a yoga/meditation home studio and reading corner. I love to wind my way from my bed to bathroom and then take a sharp right over to my studio all while still happily sporting bed head and soft pink pajamas. It’s a beautiful thing. I bring up Adriene’s monthly calendar and pick that day if I seem drawn to it or any of the other amazing videos she has on her YouTube channel and I just get down to it. After heart surgery it took me awhile to make it back to that room to specifically do yoga but I’m back there and I appreciate it all the more for the break.

I like to read in my pajamas. I do. Even on my patio which is in the back of my house and no one can see me except for the chickens and the dogs. They don’t judge. My reading time right now is on elementary-middle grade fiction for the state award books. I have to mix it up with a few adult books over the summer as well. On my Kindle app I’m reading Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid and I just finished That Month in Tuscany by Inglath Coooper. A friend lent me her copy of The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill and another friend highly recommended The Messy Lives of Book People by Phaedra Patrick. And on a recent lunch date my husband and I wandered into our local Barnes and Noble. We found quite a few books I’d like to read in my pajamas but we “only” walked out with three; All the Broken People by Leah Konen, The Promise by Damon Galgut, and The Pallbearer’s Club by Paul Tremblay. Also on my list to read are Lucy Foley’s The Paris Apartment, Justin Baldoni’s Man Enough, and Rebecca Serle’s One Italian Summer.

What else am I doing this summer while I am healing and on break before school begins again in August? Walking the dogs, cooking, and thinking…just processing all that is around me. I’m doing a lot of that in my pink pajamas.

Healing Everyday

As anybody knows healing takes time and it’s slow. I’m walking more with less heavy breathing and I’m doing some simple exercises that move my muscles around. I am anxious to get back to real yoga that includes downward dog, the “home” base for all yoga practices. I started driving last week which was exciting because we purchased a new car right after surgery. We thought the car was going to take a year to get to us but it arrived sooner and it made for a very smooth ride home from the hospital. Thank you to our son Tristan for finding the car and leading us through this process. We bought a Hyundai Tucson because its a good looking hybrid and will give us more space than our 2004 Prius.

While it is a sure sign of great freedom to drive out my driveway and run some errands I have to check myself while I get groceries, for example, that I can only carry small amounts to my car and cannot fill my cart up with boxes of sparkling water. And I love walking outside in my neighborhood but I can’t take my dogs with me unless someone else walks with me or I go on solo walks, leaving my dogs stunned as I walk away. I’m missing my daughter Japhy/Groovy Girl who headed back to Iowa City this week to her roommates and work. She was an amazing amount of help everyday while I recovered.

In between walks and driving about town I’ve read books and gathered more at our local library. I finished Louise Erdrich’s The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse and Love Medicine, both with same characters and I read them out of order. I do love her writing but both books have so many characters to keep up with and I had to flip to the family tree every other chapter. Right now I am reading Run River by Joan Didion for book club. I went to the library the other day with my husband while he browsed Playaway books and naturally I found two to read: Love is a Revolution by Renee Watson, one of my favorite authors and Simi Liu’s We were Dreamers; An Immigration Superhero Origin Story. I loved him in Kim’s Convenience and am interested in his story. I also have a large book bag filled with books from my school library to read for Iowa Children’s Choice nominees, our state award books.

In between reading I’ve caught up with some streaming. I finished This is Us and Bridgerton and am working on Julia (Child) and The Great with Elle Fanning. Japhy turned me on to Jane the Virgin and she and I watched a ton of that before she left. Now I have to wait for her return to watch more. Atlanta with Donald Glover and Black-ish are my go-to short shows that are easy to fit in as a break. I try to keep my binge watching to a minimum so that I can get lots of reading done but it’s a tough balance with so much good stuff out there. What are you reading and watching?

I made it!

Two successful surgeries at St Mary’s Hospital/Mayo in Rochester, MN and I am now recovering at home and have been for the last 3 weeks. My chest around the incision site is still very sore and my range of motion with my arms is limited but I am home and feel blessed to have made it. My extended family did such a great job of supporting me for over a week while I was there. Meals were bought, hotels stays were paid for and many, many cards and letters were welcomed. The first days of being home we had homemade meals delivered to us. It’s overwhelming to go through something like this and to feel the love from friends and family. Thank you to everyone who has helped in any small way.

It’s a little strange not to be going to school everyday as I laze about the house healing and going on small walks. I’ve read several books already including The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles which I loved almost everything about it. I’m also catching up on series like This Is Us which I was way behind on. And I have a lot of time to ponder the mess we are in. The anniversary of George Floyd’s murder, Robb Elementary School, the shooting in Buffalo and the Roe vs Wade controversy. Like my heart is healing but this is a lot of major trauma to think on and it is so, so very frustrating that we can’t pass solid gun restrictions, that we cannot get better police reform, and that the right to choose should be left up to women. How did the religious right and the NRA take over like this? (Ronald Reagan era?)

I’m thankful to have made it through two tough surgeries and I’m happy to be on leave from a job I love and that I will get to heal over the summer. I wish Covid wasn’t making such a huge comeback as many people I know are sick again. All we can do is get through this summer with grace and dignity, use our voices and our dollars to make ourselves heard about the important issues laying in front of us, and we can demand change by getting out the vote. Make this a life worth living, everyday.

What I'm looking forward to reading…

My reading goal for Goodreads is 70 books and considering I accomplished 65 last year I think this is a very feasible goal. There are so many great books on the horizon and I have a huge stack of Book-of-the-Month choices and a few books from my Christmas list. I’ve got plenty to read and this year once again I will probably have plenty of time to kick my feet up and read.

Here are the 9 that I’m most excited about:

To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara– I loved A Little Life and hope this one lives up to the buzz. This one weaves together three different timelines including a futuristic look at our world in 2093. I don’t own this one so if you have a copy let me know. Otherwise I’ll have to be on a wait list at the library.

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich-One of my favorite authors I’m very much looking forward to reading this “wickedly funny ghost story” according to the inside blurb! I do have a copy of this one signed by the author from her bookstore, Birchbark Books, in Minneapolis.

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid– I loved, loved, loved Daisy Jones and the Six and hope this one will be just as interesting. Set in 1983 the story takes place all in one day as the Rivas family prepares for their annual end-of-the-summer bash. Got this one from BOTM and it is on my up-next stack.

We are the Brennans by Tracey Lange-This story follows the life of Sunday Brennan as she makes her way back to her family after a drunk driving accident. This book was not on my radar until I heard the Readheads talking about it. More on that later.

Klara and the Sun by Kazua Ishiguro- Never Let Me Go has been on my to-read pile for awhile and I need to move it up and then read this one as well. Klara an AI Friend is the narrator and she has amazing skills of watching human behavior. I’m not a science fiction fan but this idea is intriguing.

People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry– Groovy Girl stole this one off my book pile over winter break. Another BOTM club pick I look forward to this relationship beach read about Poppy and Alex and the fallout from a bad decision that cost them their friendship.

The Family by Naomi Krupitsky- A debut novel about two best friends surviving through the shared experience in the Italian Mafia Family when the disappearance of one of their father’s begins to cause conflict in their lifelong friendship. (BOTM)

A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw – A mystery about a missing woman and a foreboding place known as Pastoral; a reclusive community founded by like-minded people searching for a better way of life. (BOTM)

As you can see I am way behind on my long list of BOTM-probably should cancel for the next few months as I catch up. I need to finish Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, and begin Kent Nerburn’s The Wolf at Twilight so I can return it to the friend who lent it to me (thank you Gabbi!) Plus my stepmother gifted me Amanda Gorman’s new book, Call Us What We Carry, and yesterday my mother-in-law recommended The Children’s Blizzard by Melanie Benjamin, and I have the Leigh Bardugo follow up series King of Scars and Rule of Wolves to read this winter (also on loan from friends).

Zowie! I should be off reading in a corner somewhere. What are you looking forward to reading?

Someone recently turned me on to the book podcast The Readheads Book Club starring four college friends. You feel like you’re part of the book club as they discuss a wild amount of titles! Luckily it only arrives once a month!

It is freezing here so I’m off to cuddle up and finish Bed Stories by Tao Lin.

Best of the Best Fiction 2021

It’s been a year, pretty similar to last year. Weird, crazy, shaking my head that this is the world we are living in right now. The pandemic is one thing but we have book bans and so much negative energy floating around out there. It takes all our effort to keep it cool, keep moving forward, making the meals, reading the books, and taking care of our people.

I’ve read an amazing amount of good books this year. Here are my five star books according to my Goodreads page:

Adult Fiction:

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley – technically under the young adult category I don’t want that to steer people away. I loved this story of Daunis Fontaine as she works to solve a mystery on the nearby Ojibwa Reservation.

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich– Based on Erdrich’s grandfather as he worked as a night watchman and fought for Native rights in a letter writing campaign that takes him and other Elders all the way to Washington DC. *Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2021

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett- Tells the history of the Vignes sisters as they venture outside their all-black community and how their decisions influence their families to come.

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid- Debut author struts a fabulous story about family and racism embedded into everyday lives when Emira, the young Black babysitter for a somewhat famous white family is accosted at a nearby grocery store.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig– This story hung with me for months as I thought about the choices we make that lead our lives down different paths just as Nora Seed is plummeted back and forth between alternative endings that ultimately lead her back to where she started.

When All is Said by Anne Griffin- Simple yet profound story of Maurice Hannigan as he sits in a pub reflecting on his life and the five people that made a difference to him.

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak- I just finished this book and loved it very much. It could have had the top spot but I wanted to honor the books I’d loved earlier in the year as well. Ada and her father navigate life after her mother’s death, alternatingly we learn their love story of a Turkish man and a Greek woman who save a fig tree. Another new author for me.

A Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet– This was such a mind-blowing short read that runs parallel stories about a vacation gone awry, teenagers in charge, and adults letting the world go to hell. Hmmm.

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz- Jacob Finch Bonner wrote one sort of good book years ago and now he teaches at a sub par school and at local writer’s workshops when one of his students leaves him with a book idea that later in life sends him on a life-altering journey. Korelitz is a new author for me and one I will read again.

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave– Mystery that kept me reading as Hannah Hall and her stepdaughter try to figure out what happened to Hannah’s husband and why it is so important to keep Bailey safe.

The Heart Principal by Helen Hoang-I’ve read all three of her sexy romance books and love them! All three have an interesting perspective from characters with autism, Asperger’s, grief, burn-out and other life variances. She writes from her heart.

Anxious People by Fredrik Bachman-This is an author I love and this book, while confusing at first, did not disappoint. Life is hard but also lovely.

I have so many favorite reads this post will have to be continued…

Young Adult, Elementary Fiction, and Nonfiction to follow.

Keep reading!

My feet are cold and I need a cup of tea

I’m under the weather as temperatures change here. I have the bare essence of a cold. My ears itch, my chest is a little raw, and I’m blowing my nose like crazy. In the midst of a pandemic being sick takes on new meaning. I sneeze at work at my students look at me like “ewww” and I wear a mask most every moment at school.

I take a wide array of cold remedies; most of them are on the natural side. At the first hint of something coming on I start with the Emergen-C packets in a glass of water and I take regular vitamin C by tablet as well. My friend Jen turned me on to Gypsy Cold Care Tea years ago and I still use it religiously. For some reason I now have to order it online because many stores just don’t carry it. No idea why. I also have NutriBiotic GSE (Grapefruit Seed Extract) liquid concentrate which I take by squeezing 8-10 drops into a small glass of water. While I do use all these very natural remedies I also use Vick’s VapoRub all the time. I can’t help it because it works for me. I do love a good hot bath when I’m not feeling well. I know even without testing that I don’t have Covid because when I had it last winter I was so, so tired all the time.

I did get an amazing amount of reading done last weekend just because I had a sleepless night on Friday so I read The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave-it was so good! I read until 11pm (late for me) and then I tried to sleep but was still awake at 12:30 so I read a little more and that’s kind of how the rest of the night went. I really enjoyed the mystery and Hannah Hall and Bailey’s relationship as they started to work together.

Now I’m furiously reading Dear Pink written by Michelle Angelle so that I can begin the next in (maybe) a series with connecting characters. Until Next Year just came out and both books are fun, romance novels with sexy main characters!

Stay healthy out there and happy reading.

Farewell to September

I can’t believe October begins tomorrow. Summer is my favorite weather season because I like the heat of the sun, the warm days on a boat or patio, and easy summer foods and beverages. Many people love all that about Fall; the pumpkin spiced everything, the sweaters, the leaves falling. We’ve had amazing weather throughout September and I hope October brings more of the same. Truthfully all the seasons provide something to love but when we veer towards winter I dread feeling chilled all the time. As with every month I’ve done a fair amount of cooking and reading this last week. Right now I’m enjoying Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, the 2nd in the series.

Last weekend I cleaned up an area of my living room and went through a stack of books. Weird right, that I would have a stack of books sitting right on the floor in any of the rooms in my house? As I sorted this particular stack of books I found a note from a friend inside the front cover that said “I’m going to want this one back” which is code for “this was very good!” so I promptly started to read it.

The Plot was amazingly good and written by Jean Hanff Korelitz, an author I was completely unaware of until now. I read the book in 4 days and while it has some creepy moments it isn’t over the top because I can’t handle scary. It has great plot twists and interesting characters. Now I want to read other stories by this author. She is a playwright and started an online book group, Book the Writer, that pairs authors with readers. Check out the EventBrite page to see upcoming authors. I would love to sit in on one of these sessions even though technical they all take place in NYC apartments. (After browsing the list I signed up for the online group with Jhumpa Lahiri and her new book Wherabouts. I’ll have to check if the library has a copy as I made a promise to myself about book buying after I moved that stack of books from one spot to another.

{Half-Baked Harvest image}

Sometimes my brain works overtime and I try to prepare something for book club that relates to the book we read. This is not always easy but reading Anxious People by Fredrik Backman the food question was very clear. The characters all eat pizza together in the apartment with the bank robber/kidnapper and so I made Roasted Mushroom Kale Pizza from Half-Baked Harvest and it was delicious. There were no leftovers. Last night I made Roasted Butternut Squash and Spinach Lasagna and it is amazing. We had it for dinner tonight with a salad and we had to force ourselves to stop picking at what remained in the pan. Two pieces is plenty…but oh, so good! I do want to make her Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew soon as well…I mean tomorrow is October after all.

Now I’m off to do a little bedtime yoga with Adriene and get myself mentally prepared for Friday.