😭❤️

In a quest to understand the human mind, Brene Brown and her team ask the hard questions. I'm captivated to see the parallels in myself and I had never noticed before about some behaviors I gravitate towards- especially regarding seeking closeness by over sharing and finding common a common foe. I need to do better. I also read the Sandy Hook section the day after yet another school schooling (time time in Wisconsin) and find myself grappling...

This one is hits close to home with navigating mental health.

Second Michael P. Branch and now I have a comparison - it's like a High Elevation Nevada setting similar to Mike Rowe. Does that make sense? Like, each chapter is separate but together they string an ongoing daily life narrative similar to a biography but also packed full of things you've never wondered about. I found the flatulence section quite intriguing and tried to read it out loud to my family. They weren't nearly as impressed as I.

I grew up with Rebecca St. James music and now my kids are huge For King and Country fans. This book overlaps a lot with the recent movie highlighting the Smallbone matriarch in their transition from Australia to America, but has lots of other reflections and words of wisdom from the mom of 7.

On par with Alan Gratz' Ban This Book comes a fictionalized yet based on a true story of the author's experience of book censorship at her school. In this book the town also has strong options of dress codes, candy, and pizza delivery among other things. Themes of parental mental health are also worth mentioning.

This book was refined and recorded some 50 years after originally being written. Listening to it is very emotional, within such a short story you come to understand each and every character and their motivations. It takes a wonderful writer to transport readers like that.

A wonderful follow-up to The Swedish Art of Death Cleaning. A small portion of overlap in content but purposely placed among stories of her past, worries over the pandemic (written in the thick of C-19), and the realities of being 86 with some medical scares but otherwise healthy. This series is motivating to readers of all ages.

I will read anything Ann Clare LeZotte writes; this one is a modern story. Her Martha's Vineyard trilogy left me feeling so educated as a reader. I'm not obtuse to what it's like for deaf children to be born to hearing parents who don't desire to learn sign language. This book, written in verse gave me Matilda vibes (minus the magic).

Really good, just felt like I had already read it because it was so similar to Hatchet but in a different setting. The end is wide open for a follow up- wonder if that was the intent but Mr. Paulsen died before it happened.

Not what I was expecting (a mermaid graphic novel). Owell.

Short stories with a running narrative that gives voice to the places I've visited but from the perspective of being local instead of just passing through. Naming their first daughter may have been my favorite in this book.

Couldn't find title but these were all cute short stories.

First attempt at Manga. The sign language being what drew me to it. I've read many books with sign from different cultures: Martha's Vineyard Sign, Aslan, Black sign, ASL, and now Japanese Sign. I find it absolutely fascinating. Attraction being a major theme in this series it's easy to see how facial expressions aren't just for communicating but also big "tells" in terms of holding back words/signs and still presenting as confident and curious.

Granted I was in 8th grade when the tragedy of September 11, 2001 happened and was sheltered from much of the news but I had never heard of Gander, Newfoundland in any other historical context even as an adult let alone the hospitality the community shared with so many when American Air Space was shut down grounding flights for days.

Couldn't begin to tell you how many times I've shelved this while working in the library and had never read it. Regretting waiting so long. I love dual stories that twist together like this, told in alternating pictures and traditional chapters, that weave together for a full picture. It also has deaf/Deaf representation which I continue to seek out. The author has a wonderful section at the back about education and additional resources.

What a downer. I don't think I want to ever see a memory care unit nor be faced with the possibility of placing a loved one or being placed in one ever. Don't read for a good time, but to induce thought provoking tears over the loss of a pool/lifestyle, and mind.

Written in snippets before and after WW1 we learn of a young mother's need to give her baby to her parents to raise as her brother due to societal expectations. The author's note at the back shed much light on a time frame I rarely read in historical fiction- WW2 is much more common, in my opinion.

November 2024
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2024SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks

Lots of audio for the month and aiming to tackle the shortest books on my TBR list in attempt to hit end of year goals.

1 ARC
1 Dystopian
1 Graphic Novel
5 Historical Fiction
1 Thriller
1 Biography
2 Poetry/Free Verse
6 NonFiction

It's A Wonderful Life × Before We Were Yours (Lisa Wingate). Heartbreaking, reality for far too many and how the actions of one can redirect the future for another.

Perfectly satirical sequel.

I long for the days of my childhood and that of Brunswick. When you weren't expected home until the streetlights came in and neighbors were our best friends and even closer than family. As a parent, it's just different now- but maybe not- and we are just hyper aware of who we permit with our kids.

Verse paired with art for a more complete visual experience of being black and the Covid pandemic.

This is intended to be read over the course of 100 days, but I listened to this as a straight audiobook and found it motivating to keep myself in check so that finding fun and enjoying fun is easier. I loved listening to Annie F. Downstairs podcast so letting her narrate her own book was just like a big ol' hug. I especially loved her parts about book club and reading being a source of enjoyment, learning, and community.

There is still so much work to do.

I, like Lauren, find a lot of my value in what I can do for others. Trouble is I often give (or promise) too much of myself and then cycle in self-loathing as I struggle to build back up my inner-well.

Miscommunication trope
Snowed in
Audio Novella

Two women of the night track down the man killing them when nobody else seems to care. Vigilantes are motivated to protect their own and themselves when it comes down to it.

Parts felt very out of place for the 1800s setting but don't care enough to fact check to see if some mentions are known or even invented yet.

I'm not obtuse to the statistics surrounding missing indigenous women. Based on what became viral request for police to actively search for the letter writer should she go missing if effort to not become a statistic herself is powerful! This is a very quick read with a glossary for additional resources and information.

In an effort to create the perfect race we know a lot of what Germany went through in WW2 but often only focus on the Jewish people. Being disabled also puts you at risk and being Deaf one of those. Going into hiding or on the run to remain out of the institutions- holding cells for those yet to be euthanized. Others were sterilized. This is a free form poetry book written through the eyes of a young deaf teen during this period in our history...

Loved the concept: Parent Trap meets Freaky Friday but there were a lot of tough issues and just bad, bad parenting in this that took it from being a fun storyline to feeling like you are ease dropping on maybe the author (or someone she knows) very real family drama. I honestly might hate the mom in this book more than the mom in Nicola Yoon's Everything Everything.

Wow.

A very cute second chance romance.

Sarah Morganthaler

Oof. This one got me right in the feels. Amazing characters and more believable than most marriage of convenience tropes. Emma is adorable.

I think the parallel of Amish holding their own traditions, culture, and language is the perfect way of protecting the choices made by those who opt not to seek out or use voice & CI in favor of the Deaf community. You don't need to understand the choices of others to respect them.

I've literally never watched the Bachelor but this was eye-opening not just because of the show but also from a different perspective than I usually find in deaf/Deaf/HoH themed books- interactions with people who blatantly stereotype others have a profound impact on others and this is a good reminder of that. I hope in a few decades I get to read a follow-up book.

I think I want to be friends with Lynn Painter. I love her storytelling and musical connections, I enjoy every character she creates, even the ones I can get mad at for making dumb choices because they are that much more realistic. Humans are so flawed when it comes to love and Lynn's words capture that. I'm quite embarrassed to not get the Elizabeth Bennett possibility until the epilogue, I'll blame it on all the other nicknames she answers to.🤷

A good representation of how labels are harmful and you are never too young to make a positive impact on a person, family, and the community you call home.

5⭐ what a whirlwind!
For a teen thriller it really kept me guessing!

Very cute retelling of The Little Mermaid with a music scene backdrop.

I'm embarrassed to only just now have read this book for the first time.

Expand Your Horizons- Written the year you were born (1987)

I didn't realize how quick this one was but a combination of engaging story and the full cast audio was amazing.

I always enjoy Rachel Hauck's time slip narratives. This one alternates between several different decades in the 1900s from multiple perspectives but all centered around a beloved local roller rink. It is the hive of the community and the owner, an unwavering, mostly single woman who raised her two boys without much help from her husband who was rarely home. Reads with nostalgia- I felt like I could hear music as if my head created a soundtrack.

Publishes December 3, 2024

Dust is a YA book with a variety of themes that would work well for a book club discussion or topic driven papers. Thea is born partially Deaf to a family who refuses to believe it, her dad has premonitions causing the family to, stockpile resources, relocate and go off grid outside a community dealing with the reprocussions of corporate farming and the destruction of commodities. (Continued in comments)

Do you ever read a book that you automatically picture becoming a movie? That's what this one was for me. Scenes playing out in my head with impeccable detail thanks to the writing. The grief and mental health topics land hard enough to make me wish this book had a different cover. The cartoony graphics often make me assume it's a light romcom. First portion definitely gave me You've Got Mail x "Meet Me In The Margins" (Ferguson) vibes.

October 2024
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2024SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks

September 2024
Host of Maggie's Book Bites Podcast
Goodreads.com/MaggieCarr
#2024SpineStack
#MaggiesSpineStacks

Infant loss and death mentioned.
This will be a favorite of 2024 for me. Perfection.

This book is written without a clear beginning and end which feels more real. Readers get a window to just drop in and observe the world of a teen couple dealing with family issues, their relationship, and the complexities of senior year of high school and all that comes with figuring out the future. I appreciated, and laughed out loud, at the parents approach to more sensitive topics but their frankness meant they cared.

Giving myself permission to not really like the first person protagonists is still odd to me but I'm getting better at it with the help of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Liv Constantine.

I do feel like I'll be more interested in tennis now if I ever cared to watch, but like most sports it doesn't really hold much appeal to me. Captivating read though!