Welcome to Litsy!

Off to host tonight's Book Club at the local Cafe. I'm told there will be tea and scones (and Pimm's Cup!) in honour of this month's very British selection.

This was a charming book about lovely people. Major Pettigrew and Mrs. Ali are wonderful characters, and their later-in-life romance is beautifully written.

It took a while to get into but it turned into a cute later-in-life romance. Major Pettigrew is pretty stuffy and was kind of a dishrag to read about but then he kept getting himself into uncharacteristic situations and it was funny to see him try to bluster his way out of them.
Nearly everybody else in the book is insufferable.
Finished 11/9/2022

#Movie2BookRecs @Klou
Prompt: Queen Bees

Late to the party…

1. Tagged
2. A Million Little Pieces by James Frey
3. History - Why We Can‘t Wait by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thanks for the tag @TheRiehlDeal ! 🙌
Thanks for asking @Eggs 🙌
#WondrousWednesday

#SundaySoapbox

To little old ladies, often looking for romance &/or historical fiction:

•Major Pettigrew‘s Last Stand
•Books by Anita Diamant
•Books by Alice Hoffman (the local, Massachusetts setting goes over well; I guide them to certain titles, depending on if they‘re open to a bit of the fantastical)

To kids:

•The Bad Guys
•The Princess in Black
•Lulu & the Brontosaurus
•Piper Green & the Fairy Tree
•Oliver & the Seawigs
•The Terrible Two

Help me find a gentle, feel-good read? So much heaviness lately and I‘d love help finding a warm, light but thoughtful book I haven‘t read before. Thanks for any recommends!! :)

Such a wonderful story about Major Pettigrew and this small place he calls home. The widowed Major deals with a family death, an arrogant grown child, and a budding new relationship with the woman who owns the local shop, who also happens to be an “outsider.” Will he figure it all out in time to have his second chance? A delightful read! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 ❤️📚

Another stunningly gorgeous day! Reading in my favorite spot for a bit and getting some Vitamin D before football. #sundayfunday #frontporchsitting ❤️📚☀️

Loved the Major and Mrs Ali. Simonson portrayed village life well, with all their insular quirks, biases, and foibles. Rural England and Pakistan collide in a clash of cultures and traditions, with lots of wit, charm, and dry humor. The Major‘s obsession and reverence for his Churchill added to the charm. Won‘t say how long this has been gathering dust in my TBR, but so glad I dusted it off. Enjoyed it a lot. Adorable cover art too.

Light, charming, with a lot of irritating characters, but luckily some enjoyable ones too. Loved major Pettigrew's sarcasm. Very well narrated by Peter Altschuler.

This was a lovely audio book😊

My hubs brought in the mail tonight and this gem was in it! A surprise from @EadieB ! Thank you so much, love! 💕 You are so sweet! I‘m ridiculously excited to receive this and read it! I‘m so grateful for you and our group! xoxo

What a wonderful story! I needed a break from my current reads of tougher topics, and for a lighter read. I loved Major and Mrs Ali. Simonson developed such amazing, realistic characters, from ones I fell immediately in love with, and others with absolute loathing😂Creating well developed , realistic characters whose stories, hardships, and lives we become intwined with is an amazing skill, and she did not fail in that regard.

Guys! I finally finished it! 😅 I originally picked up this book in December 2017, and i have no idea why it took me so long to get back into it. I‘m glad I gave it one last go before passing it along, because I ended up truly enjoying it. ♥️ #MarchUnshelfing

Here is a #bujo spread I created while listening to another audiobook that I‘ve started and put down too many times to count. I‘ll give it one last chance before I bail and unshelf. #MarchUnshelfing

I would like to continuously create a #bulletjournal spread for #theunreadshelfproject each month going forward. So far I love how this one is coming along. 🤍

I really enjoyed this sweet story of an older, white English widower who falls for a widow of Pakistani heritage. The small town bigotry they face is hard to read (as it should be) but dealt with well I felt. It felt very British all around.

A feel good book about love in a small town. I always appreciate it when an author doesn‘t shy away from the love lives of people over 40.

“Oh, I can manage perfectly well,” she said, and brought the tray to the nearby #desk, nudging the small stack of leather books aside with one corner. “You must rest. #QuotsyJan20

When Mrs Ali from the village shop comes to collect the paper money, she finds Major Pettigrew in a state of shock, having just heard of the death of his brother. The two become friends despite the disapproval of family and friends on both sides.

Sweet, funny romance between two people who are going against their respective cultural and family traditions, though some of the supporting cast do not rise above being just caricatures.

The Major wished young men wouldn‘t think so much. It always seemed to result in absurd revolutionary movements or, as in the case of several of his former pupils, the production of very bad poetry.

“Extra relatives are useful, I suppose—additional bridge player at family parties, or another kidney donor,” he babbled. “I congratulate you.”

#coffeeandabook

The rest of the world is a blur when I am reading. Even my overgrown backyard. It does keep the neighbors out. #happyintrovert

Really fun book about cultural connections in England between two widowers. The “last stand” turns out to be something different than you think is coming. Wonderful.

#LilithJuly
My first thought today was of this cover.... #thehat stand with the hats of the Major and Jasmina... the widow and widower at the heart of this funny, sweet and charming story. I‘ve enjoyed Helen Simonson‘s two novels that are set in the part of England where I‘m from... they give a lovely cosy feeling of home for me... 💕

I grabbed this book from my #TBR shelf. I didn‘t know anything about it and am not sure how I acquired it. I must have picked it up at a book sale. This is a story about two adults finding love late in life over the objections of friends and family. The two people are very different. Overall, I enjoyed the story.

I enjoyed this #audiobook so much! It is both a comedy of manners and something much deeper. The sweet love story between the quintessential Englishman and a richly-portrayed Pakistani shopkeeper stirs up age-old village prejudices about “us vs. them”. Simonson writes with wit, empathy, and subtle insight. I also recommend this author‘s second book, The Summer Before The War, and look forward to reading whatever she writes next.

A wonderfully written tale about love, family, community and the difference between doing what is right and doing what is expected. You will fall in love with Major Pettigrew and will cheer for him all the way!

With it being below zero outside for the foreseeable future this is my view for the next couple of days!!

But a crook of her finger when she ordered the second round must have been a signal to lubricate the proceedings with a #healthy dumping of gin. The cucumbers were positively translucent with shock and the Major himself felt a desire to fall asleep, bathed in the fragrance of the food and the iridescent light of the silk curtains. #QuotsyJan19

Well rounded, loveable characters. Very enjoyable read.

Oh, how I loved this. When I‘m looking for a good couch cuddle, a mug of hot tea, and a good quiet book on a rainy day, this is exactly the sort of book I‘m looking for.

"Two Americans in as many weeks was, he reflected, approaching a nasty epidemic."

???

Delightful! British humor, love, family discord, sneaky business, adventure: this book was a smorgasbord! I didn't want it to end!

1. Getting really into this! Need to finish it so I can start the second wheel of time book!

2. Not really. Dropping the teen off to play starfinder with friends. Hubby and I are going to play a bit of Pokemon go and maybe do some more yard work.

3. I love all the side dishes like pasta salad, potato salad, and Mac and cheese. Yummy!

#manicmonday @JoScho

2 more shifts before the used bookstore I work in closes. I was feeling pretty bummed out when a group of teens gave me the Skittles and wished me a happy National Kindness day. Really made my day.

The books are the start of my to buy pile. The good part about closing is buy one get one free!

A terrifically pleasant and heartwarming story of two souls in a lovely English village who have lost their spouses; and, amidst meddling relatives and other social structures, manage to become friends who fall in love.

Well, one kid woke up with fever and the other has been vomiting. It‘s only 830 am ☹️ looks like I‘ll have plenty of time to start this while tending to my babies. Pray for good juju and that these kids are well asap!

I started this one in audio and finished it last night with my ebook version. Wonderful heartwarming story, but I have to say I SWOONED for The Summer Before the War. Therefore I‘m extremely keen for a new Simonson, which I hope comes along soon.

I've been having a really hard time finding my flow with this one. I started it two weeks ago, and had to practically force myself to read some more today. I'm still only at page 138. 🙈 I do really like the characters, and I want to finish the story... but for some reason I'm just dragging my feet with it. Have any of you read this? Did you like it? Did you also find it slow in the first 1/4 ? Does it pick up? 😳

Reading and enjoying my coffee ( that may or may not have a splash of baileys in it 😉). Thank goodness my four day weekend is starting in 2.5 hours. It's been a rough ROUGH rough shift, and I have already cried twice. No joke. 🙈 I can't wait to run out of here @ 5:30pm.

Finally on my lunch. I'm going to ignore My Listy feed, and finally get a start on this book. It'll be hard though, because I'm having so much fun seeing what everyone got for #ssgp 💙❤️️

This book has been very patiently sitting beside me for the last 45 minutes waiting to be read, but instead of starting it, I've been having so much fun scrolling through my Listy feed snooping on everyone's #ssgp packages ❤️❤️❤️

“You are a very good man, for an old git.” ~

Absolutely, I agree! Major Pettigrew is not without flaws, because let‘s admit, we all have some. But never for a moment did I dislike him or find him dry and bland. On the contrary, he‘s a witty gentleman. If you haven‘t read this book yet, please do. Major Pettigrew was a wonderful read, even more so the second time around. The audiobook was a delightful way to catch up with some old friends.

#seasonsreadings2017 Day 5: Silver and gold

*fist bump *
Muchas gracias!

Catching up on #seasonsreadings2017 Day 2 : Only at Christmas
Got our tree today