Welcome to Litsy!

What beautiful words 😭

After nearly losing my mother earlier this year and my father‘s passing this month, I picked up this book and it is really hitting. Just 25 pages in, I want to get a copy for every mother and everyone I know who has a mother.

This is the second time I‘ve read this and I find it oddly touching. I think it‘s a family of 4 wives and 28 kids but I kind of lost track.

“Sons of beekeepers!”

This book is full of the best swear replacements I‘ve heard in a long time.

Trying to read at the dog park but distracted by all the cuteness.

I settled into this knowing I was reading a Christmas love story and forgetting there was a mystery involved. I was probably 2/3 in when I realized oh, wait a minute is this going to happen (insert spoiler here)… Well, yes that deed indeed go down, and yet it‘s still an RPE HEA. …I do love reading his little books this month even though it destroys my GR average page count for the year 😄

As a history buff, I was surprised to learn about the handcart companies the Mormons formed to trek through the plans and Rocky Mountains to settle in the Salt Lake Valley, aka Zion, as they called it. This book is about the women journeying through as part of the Martin Company, those who saw the worst tragedies because they started out too late and found themselves dealing with an horrific blizzard. Definitely a great read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

★★★★☆

First read in 2010. My wife Amy and I started the audiobook of this American nature classic last June while driving home from Moab, Utah, a place that is very special to us. Acknowledging Abbey's ableism, racism, sexism, and hypocrisy, one can't deny that he's a compelling writer. I wish all readers of this book could also read Robert Macfarlane's introduction. ⬇️

This was recommended by a coworker and has a chapter on Bridger Bowl (my home mountain!). Saving to read once the lifts start turning.

This had everything; mystery, violence, strong women, adventure peppered with a side of history. The book starts off with a letter Nora‘s father, an archaeologist, sent before disappearing on his quest for the fabled Quivira- the city of gold. The letter has instructions on how to reach there so Nora assembles a team to attempt it. But there are dark forces at play, with plans to foil Nora from reaching the ancient city to protect its secrets.