Weekends | Book Chatter

sunday-matters (1)

For months now, my reading pace has been excellent. My secret is having all the books I want to read lined up and ready to go. But then, I read a slow book and my perfect little reading world began to tilt and fall off its axis. I quickly lined up a few reads to motivate me to keep going and then, those books didn’t seem all that exciting. Now, I am back to square one and working on that book line-up again. If I manage two reviews a week and keep it that way, that will make me very happy. If I can do so with great books, even better.

Right Now:

Coffee, church, youth group, a long walk. In that order. Maybe some takeout later while watching a movie.

This Week:

Very happy to report that I snagged a vaccine appointment for my daughter for tomorrow! I was worried that we would have to wait a long time since they just opened it up to 16+ but the school district worked out a deal and voila, first appointment tomorrow. Yes!

On Wednesday, our book club will meet online to discuss Anxious People which I read awhile back and enjoyed very much.

Reading:

I am currently reading Three Perfect Liars. I feel like it is a good choice to jumpstart the reading train again. It’s reminding me of the movie Baby Boom. A young professional takes a six month maternity leave only to return to her temp, sitting at her desk and working with her most important client. It’s very readable and pulls you in quickly.

I do think Northern Spy will be my next read. It was recently chosen for Reese’s book club.

Also, don’t forget to enter my giveaway for Promises to Keep!

Watching:

I mentioned in one of my recent posts that we started to watch THEM on Amazon Prime. A black family moves to an all white Compton in the 50s and let’s just say their welcome is less than ideal. It’s a mix of racial motivated horror as well as supernatural horror linked to events in the past. It’s terrifying on many levels and has quite a bit of violence and disturbing imagery. We just finished it. I heard that there will be another season but I don’t know how there could be. What kept us watching is the acting.

Grateful for:

Good coffee. Need I explain? I wish we had more indie coffee shops around me though. The local chain leaves a lot to be desired IMO.
Having passionate kids. My son is heading up the planning for a memorial for Kristin Smart. She disappeared 25 years ago. They just arrested two people and the anniversary of her disappearance is coming up. She was a Cal Poly student so he, and a group of others have been planning for a memorial in her honor. It will be a collection of art works, letters, etc. He was recently in the news if you’d like to read more.

What do you have planned today? What are you reading that I must know about?

Sunday Matters

This is very early in the year for us to be experiencing these warm temps. It feels like summer! My brain has a little catching up to do. I am not yet thinking about summer reading lists although I know a few of you have already started to think about your lists. This warm weather does have me thinking about BBQ’d food and fresh fruit though!

Right Now:

We have our normal church activities today. We take two separate cars to church because right after the service, I head to youth group so I won’t be home until after 1pm. Makes for a late Sunday walk with the pup but she usually understands as long as it’s not too hot! If so, we will have to wait until it cools off. She doesn’t mind a pre-dinner walk either.

This Week:

No big plans or appointments this week. The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is virtual this year and I have two fiction panels I hope to catch at the end of this week. One is with Shuggie Bain author Douglas Stuart and the other will feature many fiction authors. They both conflict with other things I have going on but I am hoping to pop in for some of each.

Reading:

This past week I reviewed We Begin At The End (loved) and Vera (was ok).

I just finished Liane Moriarty’s The Husband’s Secret. Any time I need a book to grab my attention I reach for Moriarty but I think I have read nearly everything she has written now. She has been my go-to author during this pandemic. Excuse me Ms. Moriarty, can we get a new book please?

That leaves me pondering what to read next. I have a review copy I need to get to but it comes out in May so I will probably hold off. Maybe Shuggie Bain even though I know it will be a heavy read. Or, possibly Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood. Have you read it? I bought a beautiful copy of it a couple months ago.

Watching:

We are trying to find a new British show to watch. Preferably a crime drama. We have viewed many clips but haven’t settled on anything yet.

Last week we watched the new Kong vs Godzilla movie on HBO Max. It was not great. No story, but the fight scenes were good. I just remember growing up with the old B&W Godzilla movies and the newer movies miss the mark, in my opinion. A lot of the movie theaters that just re-opened are showing it though so I suspect it will do well.

Grateful for:

Warm weather fruit. I am not much of a fruit eater until the warmer weather hits. Grilled peaches with vanilla ice cream cannot be beat.
All of the vegetarian and gluten-free options that restaurants offer now. Makes eating out so much easier for me.

Are you doing anything fun today?

Chatting with friends about books and life…