October Book Report

Portland, ME, October 2024

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

““I once attempted to flirt with her our freshman year of college, complimenting her sandals before class. She didn't respond, just glared at me with a scowl that would've liquefied helium, for which I repaid her many years later by marrying into her family and sitting next to her every Thanksgiving.”" ― Harrison Scott Key, How to Stay Married

I made no progress on any of my various goals or challenges. 

 Here are the books I finished in October 2024: 

1. Lethal Treasure by Jane Cleland (3-stars)
2. How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told by Harrison Scott Key  (4-stars)
3. The Productivity Project by Chris Bailey (4-stars)
4. Murder on the Half Shelf by Lorna Barrett (3-stars)
5. The Five Years Before You Retire by Emily Guy Birkin (3-stars)
6. Georgia by Dawn Tripp (5-stars)
7. Not That Fancy by Reba McEntire (3-stars)

August Book Report

Hampton, NH, August 2024

I finished 9 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“In her new, albeit fragile, mood, this letter does not unduly distress her. One lesson she has learned is that any opinion expressed by a person who does not understand how to use an apostrophe may be disregarded with impunity.”
― Jean Hanff Korelitz, The White Rose

I made absolutely no progress this month toward any of my various goals and challenges. There are currently 134 books on my owned-but-not-read shelf.

 Here are the books I finished in August 2024: 

1. Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood (4-stars)
2. The White Rose by Jean Hanff Korelitz  (4-stars)
3. Fatal Family Ties by S. C. Perkins (3-stars)
4. Scents and Sensibility by Spencer Quinn (3-stars)
5. Dolled Up for Murder by Jane K. Cleland (4-stars)
6. Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews (3-stars)
7. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride (audiobook, 3-stars)
8. The Historian's Toolbox by Robert C. Williams (3-stars)
9. Murder with Puffins by Donna Andrews (3-stars)

July Book Report

A favorite reading spot
July 2024

I finished 10 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading: 

“The act of mothering is not limited to the bearing of children.”
― Ariel Lawhon, The Frozen River

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 135 still remaining because I added one)  
• 2 counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge (or they will once I write them up)
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• All 10 count towards #20booksofsummer24!

 Here are the books I finished in July 2024: 

1. The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark (audiobook, 3-stars)
2. Blood at the Root by Peter Robinson (4-stars)
3. Rosemary Remembered by Susan Wittig Albert (4-stars)
4. Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami (4-stars)
5. The Life List by Kate Christie (audiobook, 4-stars)
6. Tide and Punishment by Bree Baker (4-stars)
7. We by Yevgeny Zamyatin (3-stars)
8. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon (5-stars)
9. Revenge of the Middle Aged Woman by Elizabeth Buchan (4-stars)
10. James by Percival Everett (4-stars)

The first of July marked the end of another Canadian Reading Challenge that I did not complete. I decided to take a break from that challenge, at least for a while. I plan to continue to keep an eye out for interesting-looking books by Canadians, but fitting 13 of them into my reading year has been a problem for me in recent years. 

June Book Report

Manchester, NH June 2024

I finished 5 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“There could be no picture making,” the film director Orson Welles flatly declared, “without pastrami.”
― Ted Merwin, Pastrami on Rye

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 0 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 135 remaining) 
• 1 was from my #NonFicNov TBR 
• All 5 count towards #20booksofsummer24!

 Here are the books I finished in June 2024: 

1. Jasmine Moon Murder by Laura Childs (3-stars)
2. Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli by Ted Merwin (3-stars)
3. All it Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff (5-stars)
4. You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz (4-stars)
5. 1000 Words by Jami Attenberg (3-stars)

I didn't get much finished this month, but I do have 7 books currently in progress so next month should have a higher finish number. I will be seeing Korelitz speak in October at the NH Book Festival so I have begun a deep dive into her backlist. 

April Book Report

Manchester, NH; April 3, 2024

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“We’re so old now,” I said, “that we can actually see the patterns. It’s a little terrifying.” 
― Michelle Huneven, Search

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining;
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 1 was from my #NonFicNov TBR (oddly, it was a novel)
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in April 2024: 

1. Eleanor Roosevelt: The War Years by Blanche Weisen Cook (5-stars)
2. The Little Book of Dog Care by Ace Tilton Ratcliff  (4-stars)
3. The Divorce Colony by April White (4-stars)
4. The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain (5-stars)
5. The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd (3-stars)
6. Search by Michelle Huneven (5-stars)
7. Seven Sisters by Earlene Fowler (4-stars)

Three 5-star books in one month! 

Readathon Wrap-up

Yesterday I participated in the April 2024 Dewey's 24-hour Readathon. I didn't stay awake for the entire 24-hours, but I did spend an entire day focused on reading my out-of-control pile of library books. Now on to the wrap-up survey!

1. I read from 5 different books yesterday. One was my current chapter-a-day book (War and Peace) and the others were from my current batch of books checked out from the library. One of them I started and decided to send back to the library unread because it was too much like another novel I have going right now. It may come back in the future. 
2. I finished 3 books during the readathon. I enjoyed them all, but The Postman Always Rings Twice (which I will post about later) was my favorite. The Divorce Colony and The Little Book of Dog Care were my other finishes. My partner also finished 3 books (and a bunch of magazines). He focused on books he had already started. 
3. My goals for readathon were to enjoy a leisurely day of reading with my partner and his dog and to make a dent in my library pile which had gotten out of hand. I accomplished those things.
4. My snacks and meals worked out very well. I planned ahead (which always helps!) and had everything prepped to go into the crock-pot for dinner (taco soup -- which was delicious). A trip to the market Friday after work set us up with plenty of snacks (including carrots cut into chips which were great to eat while reading). In the evening we opened a very nice vintage Zinfandel which was a lovely treat. I think I finally have my food/beverage plan for readathon dialed-in. Planning ahead is key.
5. I enjoyed this readathon a lot. It was relaxing, companionable, and I got a lot of reading done. I didn't push myself to do the 24-hours. I started at the appointed hour (8:30am in my timezone) and went to bed around 11pm when I was sleepy. I did a couple of the hourly photo challenges on instagram, but didn't stress about trying to do them all.  
6. I won't be continuing any of the books I started during readathon because I finished them all! My out-of-control library pile is now back down to a normal size. 

March Book Report

Edmond, OK, March 2023

I finished 12 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

[Doing one thing at a time] "...attempts to reduce the cognitive toll of feeling like everyone needs you at all times. All things being equal, workflows that minimize this never-ending stream of urgent communication are superior to those that instead amplify it. When you're at home at night, or relaxing over the weekend, or on vacation, you shouldn't feel like each moment away from work is a moment in which you're accumulating deeper communication debt. in the age of the hyperactive hive mind, we've become used to this despondent state as a necessary consequence of our high-tech world, but this is nonsense."--Cal Newport, A World Without Email, p. 113

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 2 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining)
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• none were from my #NonFicNov TBR -- but 1 was a second book by and author I discovered through that project
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in March 2024: 

1. What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast by Laura Vanderkam (audiobook, 3-stars)
2. A World Without Email by Cal Newport (5-stars)
3. Boom Town by Sam Anderson (4-stars)
4. Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear (5-stars)
5. Southern Lady Code: Essays by Helen Ellis (4-stars)
6. The Power of 2: How to Make the Most of Your Partnerships at Work and in Life by Rodd Wagner (3-stars)
7. The Lantern's Dance by Laurie R. King (4-stars)
8. A Beautiful Mess Happy Handmade Home by Elsie Larsen (3-stars)
9. The Quiet American by Graham Greene (4-stars)
10. The Week: A History of the Unnatural Rhythms that Made Us Who We Are by David M. Henkin (audiobook, 3-stars)
11. Slow Productivity by Cal Newport (4-stars)
12. The Tuesday Club Murders by Agatha Christie (5-stars)

I think I need a sabbatical from work because I am way behind on reading my library books. The pile just keeps growing! Reading sabbaticals should totally be a thing.

February Book Report

January 2024, NYC

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“A person was like a city. You couldn't let a few less desirable parts put you off the whole. There may be bits you don't like, a few dodgy side streets and suburbs, but the good stuff makes it worthwhile.”
― Matt Haig, The Midnight Library

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (with 136 remaining because I added some)
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 2 were from my #NonFicNov TBR 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in February 2024: 

1. Things to Look Forward To by Sophie Blackall (3-stars)
2. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (4-stars)
3. I Think You're Wrong, But I'm Listening (4-stars)
4. An Overdose of Death by Agatha Christie (3-stars)
5. Be the Unicorn by William Vanderbloemen (3-stars)
6. Nightwood by Djuna Barnes (3-stars)
7. Fabulous Feathers and Fillers by Sue Nickles (4-stars)

I didn't have any good February pictures so I picked one from a trip I took last month to visit my sister. 

I ended up abandoning my Classics Club spin title (Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne) and am currently reading 5 different books. I expect to finish all but one of those (War and Peace, which I am reading slowly, but am liking) in March.

January 2024 Book Report

January 2024, Manchester, NH

I finished 11 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

"I still live by the Southern Lady code: If you don't have something nice to say, say something not so nice in a nice way. For example: 'Your Instagram is beautifully curated' is Southern Lady Code for 'Your real life must be a hotter mess than spaghetti and meatballs in a clothes dryer.' But I would never write such a message in your comments. My thoughts on your business are not the world's business." --Helen Ellis, Kiss Me in the Coral Lounge

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 2 were from my owned-but-not-read shelf  (currently at 137 books)
• 0 counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 counted toward the 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• 1 counted toward the 2024 What's in a Name Challenge
• 0 were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 3 were from my #NonFicNov TBR 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 

 Here are the books I finished in January 2024: 

1. An Incomplete Revenge by Jacqueline Winspear (4-stars)
2. Death in Print by G. M. Malliet  (4-stars)
3. Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy (3-stars)
4. Congratulations, The Best is Over by R. Eric Thomas (audiobook, 4-stars)
5. Kiss Me in the Coral Lounge by Helen Ellis (4-stars)
6. The Interpretation of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld (3-stars)
7. Orwell's Roses by Rebecca Solnit (4-stars)
8. No Good Tea Goes Unpunished by Bree Baker (audiobook, 3-stars)
9. Jamaica Inn by Daphne DuMaurier (4-stars)
10. The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel (3-stars)
11. Alone in the Kitchen with an Eggplant (5-stars)

A good start to my reading year -- a nice mix of books and several 4-star reads!

December Book Report

NYC, December 2023

I finished 12 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

"Dragonflies with stained-glass wings stitched invisible threads in the air. The two friends gazed down at the land below, watching the cloud shadows bruise the earth."  --Tan Twan Eng, The House of Doors

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was a book I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• none counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• none were from my (new) Classics Club List 
• none counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• none counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• 1 counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge - which finished it off before the end of the year
• 1 was from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 2 were from the mystery series I was trying to make progress on this year

 Here are the books I finished in December 2023: 

1. Messenger of Truth by Jacqueline Winspear (4-stars)
2. Finish by Jon Acuff  (3-stars)
3. Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley (4-stars)
4. The Search: Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World by Bruce Feiler (3-stars)
5. The Art of Stillness by Pico Iyer (3-stars)
6. The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng (5-stars)
7. The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger (5-stars)
8. The Snow Queen by Michael Cunningham (3-stars)
9. The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal about Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power by Deirdra Mask (audiobook, 4-stars)
10. The Twelve Clues of Christmas by Rhys Bowen (4-stars)
11. The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande (3-stars)
12. The Witching Year by Diana Helmuth (4-stars)

I had a very good reading year in 2023. Lots of new-to-me authors and a dozen 5-star books. I completed all my challenges except the TBR pile one which I made good progress on but, as usual, didn't finish.

November Book Report

Manchester, NH Fall 2023

I finished 13 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“The fact that we often judge the pleasure of an experience by its ending can cause us to make some curious choices.”
― Daniel Gilbert, Stumbling on Happiness

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was a book I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• 1 counted toward the 16th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• none counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• none counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• none counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge
• 3 were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 5 were from the mystery series I am trying to make progress on this year (3 different series)

 Here are the books I finished in November 2023: 

1. 10 lb Penalty by Dick Francis (4-stars)
2. A Spoonful of Poison by M. C. Beaton  (4-stars)
3. A Handcrafted Life by Tiffany Francis-Baker (3-stars)
4. Peril in Paperback by Kate Carlisle (4-stars)
5. Falling in Love by Donna Leon (audiobook, 4-stars)
6. A Cookbook Conspiracy by Kate Carlisle (3-stars)
7. Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert (4-stars)
8. The Book Stops Here by Kate Carlisle (4-stars)
9. The Blessing Way by Tony Hillerman (3-stars)
10. The Violent Bear it Away by Flannery O'Connor (4-stars)
11. Imagined London by Anna Quindlen (3-stars)
12. Book Club Reboot by Sarah Ostman (3-stars)
13. Solitude by Michael Harris (3-stars)

This month I went on a mystery-novel binge and I finished my 2nd Classics Club list. Overall it was a good month for reading. 

October Book Report

 

Dublin, Ireland, October 2023

I finished 9 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“It is possible to adore those newly come into your world, to envision, no matter how late in the day, a happily entwined future with those who have not been part of your past.”

― Mohsin Hamid, How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was a book I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• none counted toward the 16th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• 1 counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• none counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge (I finished it)
• 1 counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge
• 1 was from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 2 was from the mystery series I am trying to make progress on this year

 Here are the books I finished in October 2023: 

1. The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith (3-stars)
2. How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid (5-stars)
3. Readers Advisory Guide to Horror by Becky Spratford (4-stars)
4. One Book in the Grave by Kate Carlisle (3-stars)
5. Naughty in Nice by Rhys Bowen (4-stars)
6. Feels Like Home: Relaxed Interiors for a Meaningful Life by Lauren Liess (3-stars)
7. Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie Mallowan (4-stars)
8. The Godwulf Manuscript by Robert B. Parker (3-stars)
9. Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport (4-stars)

I haven't come up again on the reserve list for the audiobook of The Violent Bear it Away which I am half-way thorugh. When I get it back I will be able to wrap up my Classics Club list. Meanwhile I have been on a bit of a mystery binge.

September Book Report

A visitor, September 2023

I finished 7 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

“I don't think I could love you so much if you had nothing to complain of and nothing to regret. I don't like people who have never fallen or stumbled. Their virtue is lifeless and of little value. Life hasn't revealed its beauty to them.”
― Boris Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 2 were books I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• 1 counted toward the 16th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• 2 counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• none counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge (I finished it)
• 1 counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• none were from the mystery series I am trying to make progress on this year

 Here are the books I finished in September 2023: 

1. Flash and Bones by Kathy Reichs (3-stars)
2. The Kelloggs: The Battling Brothers of Battle Creek by Howard Markel  (audiobook, 4-stars)
3. Gluttony: The 7 Deadly Sins by Francine Prose (3-stars)
4. The Rubber Band by Rex Stout (4-stars)
5. Loonshots by Safi Bahcall (3-stars)
6. Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak (4-stars)
7. Readers Advisory Guide to Romance by Robin Bradford (3-stars)

I should have completed my Classics Club list at the end of this month but I didn't quite get there. I was close, but when the library zapped back my half-finished audiobook of The Violent Bear it Away and someone else had it reserved I realized I would not make my set deadline. I should be able to finish up the list during October (assuming I come back up on the library reserve list).

August Book Report

Hampton Beach, NH 8/2023

I finished 10 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

"What you see and how you see it can change your life. A sleight of hand. A shift of perspective, and one can suddenly become an instrument of the Divine."
--Katherine J. Chen, Joan, p. 190

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 2 were books I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• none counted toward the 16th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 2 were from my Classics Club List 
• 1 counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• 1 counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge which I have now completed
• 1 counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge
• none were from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 8 were from my (continuously revised) #20BooksofSummer23 list which I completed on the very last day of August
• none were from the mystery series I am trying to make progress on this year

 Here are the books I finished in August 2023: 

1. Switch by Chip Heath (4-stars)
2. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick (3-stars)
3. Stolen by Ann-Helen Laestadius (4-stars)
4. Pint-sized Ireland by Evan McHugh (4-stars)
5. Joan by Katherine J. Chen (5-stars)
6. Maame by Jessica George (3-stars)
7. The Love Prescription by John M. Gottman (5-stars)
8. The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne (3-stars)
9. The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers (3-stars)
10. Africa is Not a Country by Dipo Faloyin (4-stars)

 I have completed one of my challenges for 2023, and by the skin of my teeth read my 20 books of summer within the allotted timeframe. The next goal is to complete by Classics Club list by October 1 (5 years from when I made the list). I have 3 books left to go and am in progress on one of them. There are 2 short-ish ones that I hope to finish during September so it will be a stretch but I might make this (self-imposed) deadline. 

July Book Report

July 2023

I finished 8 books last month.

A quote from this month's reading:

"James Runcie suggests that 'we write, and we read, not just to be entertained, but in order to work out who we are and how we might live a better and more meaningful existence on this frail earth.'" --Martin Edwards, Life of Crime (p. 620)

Here is my progress toward various goals and challenges:

• 1 was a book I own but hadn't read before (inspired by The Unread Shelf project)
• 1 counted toward the 17th Canadian Reading Challenge 
• 1 was from my Classics Club List 
• 1 counted toward the TBR Pile Challenge
• 1 counted toward the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge 
• 0 counted toward the 2023 What's in a Name Challenge
• 1 was from my Readers' Advisory Reading List 
• 1 was from the mystery series I am trying to make progress on this year
• 3 were from my (revised, again) #20BooksofSummer23 list

 Here are the books I finished in July 2023: 

1. The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean (audiobook, 3-stars)
2. The Life of Crime: Unraveling the Mysteries of Fiction's Favourite Genre by Emily Martin Edwards (4-stars)
3. Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens (3-stars)
4. Psycho by the Sea by Lynne Truss (3-stars)
5. The Building of Jalna by Mazo de la Roche (3-stars)
6. This Could be Home by Pico Iyer (4-stars)
7. Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie (5-stars)
8. Relaxing on the Porch by Megan Fulweiler (3-stars)

I finished more books this month than last, which is good. I am planning a week at the beach next month which usually bumps up my title count.