…assuming that the retiree is a book nerd. Most of the people around me these days are. And if you walk into the bookshop where I work, I am going to assume your friend or family member is a book nerd of the sort we usually get at the shop (unless you tell me otherwise,…
About a million years ago (in July of 2024), I went to a book event with an author that I didn’t yet know. The reason I went is that the novel he was reading from was an Arthurian story and one that I kept seeing everywhere (even though it was just then being published). I…
Now that all ya’ll are recovering from your midnight Emily Henry parties, I have a review for you. Just kidding. If you were at a midnight release party, you own the book and probably don’t want my two cents. Go read the book and enjoy. As for those of you who don’t know what I…
It’s poetry month! And as a result, I will be reading some poetry. Funnily enough, the first book of poetry I read was not poetry at all. It was flash fiction. It is such a slim volume, and I bought it at the same time as these other books of poetry on my shelf (about…
I kinda forgot that my “Read Me” category existed on the blog. Last year, I read Lucky Jim by Kinglsey Amis for a book club. I liked the book but acknowledged that it wasn’t aging particularly well because it is a satire, meant for a time and place. However, some of the writing—especially the physical…
I was looking at the line of April TBR book spines on my shelf last night, thinking about how good they all looked and wondering how many of them will disappoint me. I’ll say it yet again: I wanted to like Beasts of Prey (Beasts of Prey #1) by Ayana Gray. For a little while…
I work in a bookshop now. (They call that a bookseller.) I told you before but there’s no telling where you’ve joined this blog or how often you read it. I freaking love my job. Not only do I get to touch and smell and hug books while on the job, but it happens to…
I have been reading at least one picture book per month, this year. I love picture books. I sometimes feel like that’s cheating, to read a children’s book, but there is no cheating. I am making this up. I read Doug Salati’s Hot Dog because it won the Caldecott and Ezra Jack Keats awards a…
It’s silly that I am only blogging about this now. But let’s assume that you are interested in hearing about a fellowship experience at a writing (craft) conference; you don’t care how long ago I actually did the thing. For what it’s worth, it is now April 2025. I went to Martha’s Vineyard in June…
Neil Gaiman’s Sandman comic series has long been touted in various places as one of the best comics/graphic novel series out there. I have meant to read it for a while and finally snagged the first one because I mention it in the novel I am writing. As with some of Gaiman’s other works I…
I am on hiatus. Which is why I am making book recommendations for April a week into April. I will give you this much (and a few other blogs) and then disappear again for another week or so. Life. April is Easter, at least this year. (What’s with the lunar date thing?) I have yet…
I have addressed some of the drama surrounding NaNoWriMo in the past year to two years. But not really, because I have been a little confused about it while not knowing enough to hold some emotionally-charged opinion (which others seem willing to do). I have been a participant (and winner) of NaNoWriMo in the past,…
In one of my book clubs, we watch a movie based on a book each year. Last year we watched All of Us Strangers. Because Taichi Yamada’s book of the same name was not on my radar, I did not read the book first. But I ended up watching the movie twice. (I thought I…
I received Cute Foods Around the World from Cupkin as an ARC, but it has been quite some time. I took it with the family on a road trip in the summer to check it out, but it has been quite some time since then, as well. Better late than never? Hopefully for the Creative…
There is a new version of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison, The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. It has an additional 200 recipes and was published in 2014. However, I got my very beat-up copy in 2001 (when it was shiny and new), so this is a review using the old version, but…
I have been recommending The Vegetarian by Han Kang at the bookshop. The thing is, I recommend books sometimes that I didn’t really enjoy reading, because I understand that not every reader is me. If there is a connection there… I will recommend it. But the truth is that I have mixed feelings about The…
Is there a hotter book than James by Percival Everett? Sure, the popularity is waning by now, but there’s still no paperback, and we still keep it on the front table in a tall stack at the bookshop because even a year later, James is selling. It’s being read. People are loving it. And the…
Do I need to give a synopsis for And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie? It’s a classic. Well, I will anyhow. Ten people across England get an alluring message from a Mr. and Mrs. Owen asking them to come to an isolated island off the coast of Devon. After they arrive, a disembodied…
Comedy is really social, maybe even socio-political. Which is why a book like Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis hasn’t aged well. It’s funny (I can see that, or at least some of that), but the British academic satire from the 50s was mostly beyond me, at least emotionally. There were a few scenes that I…
In the past year I have read a few Irish books that I loved. Let’s throw those out there for suggested St. Patty’s Day reading: What are we looking forward to in March? Besides St. Patty’s Day and Fat Tuesday (because of paczkis)? Oh, and the year to finally begin for reals and stop being…
the starving artist 