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Thanksgiving centerpiece. Here we are. A week away from Thanksgiving. I pulled out my Thanksgiving notebook so I could plan the meal, but once again, it will just be the two of us. After my daughter’s show wraps, she will hop on a plane to Seattle and spend Thanksgiving with her brother. They spent last Thanksgiving together too but in Kansas City. We thought about making reservations and we’ve been invited to a couple of meals but I just love an easy, going, Thanksgiving. I won’t be making
ALL the things, just the tried and true, must have dishes. It will still be nice. Plus, the pup loves to smell the turkey cooking.

My book club meets tonight to discuss The Essex Serpent. I was way behind on reading it because I got sucked in by the new King book but I ended up reading the club book in one sitting so I am ready for the discussion. I am still reading King but will add Murakami’s new book, Novelist as a Vocation.

My scans from last week showed a potential kidney stone but the doc hasn’t called me about it so maybe it’s a watch and see. I do not want surgery again and will avoid it like the plague. In other health news, the knees are getting better.

This past weekend we were out and about and the holiday rush is in full swing. We hit one of my favorite indie bookstores but I left empty handed. I had two books on my list and they didn’t have either one in the store. I can easily order them online but it’s not the same as buying books in person. Everyone else seemed to be buying up the store. I don’t like the craziness of the holidays but it was good to see all of the stores doing well again.

What are your plans for Thanksgiving? The Sunday after Thanksgiving student ministry is having a Turkey Bowl with flag football. I will be on the sidelines cheering them on.

Dinosaurs
By Lydia Millet
W. W. Norton & Company, 9781324021469, October 2022, 240pp.

The Short of It:

Brief but packed with meaning. The kind of read you keep thinking about long after turning that last page.

The Rest of It:

Her exquisite new novel is the story of a man named Gil who walks from New York to Arizona to recover from a failed love. After he arrives, new neighbors move into the glass-walled house next door and his life begins to mesh with theirs. ~ Indiebound

I have high praise for Dinosaurs. Millet tells the simple story of a man suffering from loss, but it’s not at all sad. It’s hopeful. It’s hopeful in the way Gil interacts with other humans. His quiet observations and his easy going manner, allow him to guide and inform those around him, but completely without judgement.

After his long trek from NY to Arizona, the hours spent walking in solitude allowed him to process the past so he could step into the future. He arrives at his new home with no expectations but when he sees that his new neighbors have a glass house, he realizes that he will probably get to know them quite well. Giving full transparency a whole new meaning.

It’s hard to tell you exactly why I loved it so much. Not a lot happens but through Gil’s observations, we see what drives and motivates humans to do what they do. To know someone who can so seamlessly step into your life, offer support and much needed friendship, without judgement, is rare. I throughly enjoyed these characters. They aren’t perfect but they are good people trying to do their best.

Highly recommend.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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