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merelybookish

merelybookish

Joined September 2016

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Hair for Men: A Novel by Michelle Winters
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A River Dies of Thirst by Mahmoud Darwish
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merelybookish
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Methinks Bea Arthurs as Maude inspired the cover art for this 1970s novel.

Ruthiella Definitely! 😂 6d
LeahBergen Ha! 😆 6d
sarahbarnes Oh definitely. 😁 6d
53 likes3 comments
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merelybookish
Hair for Men: A Novel | Michelle Winters
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Coordinating book and cat on a lazy Saturday morning. This is new novel by Canadian writer who I (kinda) knew in high school. She was cool back then and is cool now. So far, so good.

Suet624 How fun that you know the author. 3w
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 3w
LeahBergen That‘s awesome! 3w
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merelybookish @Suet624 Yes! I went to a reading and she signed my book and acted like she remembered me 😁 3w
merelybookish @dabbe can never resist a kitty photo op 3w
merelybookish @LeahBergen her first novel was nominated for a Giller so she's the real deal. 🙂 3w
dabbe @merelybookish Don't ever stop! 🤩🤗🤩 3w
LeahBergen Margot! I just received a surprise parcel from you! Is it for a Halloween swap? 🤔 3w
merelybookish @LeahBergen No. Just a random surprise. 🙂 Salvaged a few books that screamed your name. 3w
LeahBergen Oh, that‘s so lovely and thoughtful! I‘ll open it today when I get home! 2w
44 likes10 comments
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merelybookish
Leaving: A Novel | Roxana Robinson
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Pickpick

Former sweethearts Warren and Sarah reconnect in their early 60s and fall in love again. But Warren is still married, and has to choose between Sarah and his family. A soft pick. It treads a very fine line between carefully observed & dull. It also has one of the most annoying characters I've experienced in a while. And having read the reviews on here, I went in prepared for a shocking ending. And actually, the ending worked for me. 👇

merelybookish This book feels old-fashioned in a way, wrestling with moral questions like: what does it mean to make a promise? What happens if you break it? And so I found that refreshing even as I found some of the prose to be tedious. 2mo
merelybookish Picture of my final floral bounty from the garden. 🌹🌻🌸 2mo
Leftcoastzen Pretty flowers ! 2mo
merelybookish @Leftcoastzen Thank you! I am enjoying them while they last. 2mo
58 likes1 stack add4 comments
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merelybookish
Light Lifting | Alexander MacLeod
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Rainy Saturday and managed to finish two books. Even better, they both fulfill a #192025 prompt. And they coordinate. 😀
Anais Nin's diary has been my morning coffee read and I've been making my way through the MacLeod collection for a few weeks. The stories reminded me a lot of his father's (Alistair MacLeod) writing. Quintessential Canlit.
Anyhoo feeling accomplished and grateful for an un-schdeduled Saturday.
@Librarybelle

Librarybelle What a great way to spend a Saturday! 2mo
48 likes2 comments
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merelybookish
Shred Sisters | Betsy Lerner
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Pickpick

Wallace's face might say otherwise, but I liked this book! Amy Shred is the younger sister. Her big sister Olly is magnetic, beautiful, & talented. She's also erratic, manic, dangerous & mentally ill. Amy grows up in her shadow as Olly appears & disappears from her family's life. Amy enters adulthood & tries to build a her own life & Olly continues to haunt her. Both sisters are frustrating but the story of their sisterhood is moving. #netgalley

AlaMich What a beautiful face! 🖤🤍 2mo
merelybookish @AlaMich we find it hard to resist. 2mo
Ruthiella 😻😻😻 2mo
dabbe #preciouskittyface 🖤🐾🖤 2mo
sarahbarnes This sounds good! 🐱 2mo
52 likes5 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

An idealistic Ruth Reichl becomes a food critic. The growth of her writing career parallels the emergence of modern American cuisine in CA. (I recognized many of the young chefs she writes about as Top Chef judges.) At the same time as she talks food, Reichl weaves in her personal life: her father's death, extramarital affairs, the demise of her 1st marriage, moves, a failed adoption.
Overall an easy and engaging listen.
#192025 @Librarybelle

Librarybelle I have her books on my to read list! 2mo
Leftcoastzen Love her books 2mo
willaful This was such a tearjerker! 2mo
61 likes1 stack add3 comments
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merelybookish
Alongside | Anne Compton
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A hodge podge of books I bought this past week at the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store and the Boys and Girls Club book sale.
All for charity folks! For charity!! 😇😁
I absolutely bought the Martha Grimes mystery for the cover. Ditto for The Stone Angel.

CSeydel Some good stuff here!! 3mo
merelybookish @CSeydel Yes! Was quite pleased about the Manning and the Gardam! 3mo
Leftcoastzen Icing on the cake ! 3mo
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LeahBergen Nice! 👏 3mo
Cathythoughts ❤️ 3mo
jlhammar Great haul! We‘re reading the Gardam in September for #EuropaCollective. Feel free to join us! 3mo
54 likes6 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

My March through the Betsy-Tacy books continues. Enjoying the high school years!

kspenmoll Love their covers! 3mo
LeahBergen So good! 3mo
52 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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merelybookish
The Life of the Mind: A Novel | Christine Smallwood
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Pickpick

What is the point of being an academic during late stage capitalism? What's the point of teaching classes, working on articles, attending conferences when the dream of life in the ivory tower is long dead? That's what Dorothy is struggling to figure out as she sees two therapists, copes with a unexpected miscarriage, and interacts with friends & colleagues who seem better prepared for life.
As a former academic, this book was HIGHLY relatable👇

merelybookish And it might have been triggering, but enough time has passed and I'm on the other side. It was actually affirming to read this now. Sure, I miss aspects of the life, but like Dorothy, the dream never quite could become reality. Objectively, it's a solid character study of a disillusioned woman with a somewhat unsatisfying ending. But highly recommend to any other recovering academics! 3mo
merelybookish This is the antidote to Possession for anyone in the #byattbuddyread who wished they were a literary scholar. 😆 @Graywacke 3mo
Graywacke Oh boy 🙈 No discovered private letters around every corner?! 3mo
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merelybookish @Graywacke Sadly no. 🤣 3mo
sarahbarnes 😆😆😆 3mo
vivastory Haven't really said “Hi“ in a bit. Hope you are well! 3mo
merelybookish @vivastory Hey Scott! 👋 I'm good. I've been working a lot which is good/ bad. Two of my kids are moving out at the end of the month which also feels good/bad. So that's what's going on with me. How are you? 3mo
vivastory That is a lot of changes for you! Hope that everything goes smoothly for your family. Not much new here, Work is work, Looking to transition soon to a different position. Looking at taking some time off towards the end of August. Otherwise, not much. Reading, watching movies etc 3mo
51 likes2 stack adds9 comments
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merelybookish
Life in the Garden | Penelope Lively
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Pickpick

Spent my weekend in the vegetable garden (check out my potatoes!! 😁) listening to the tagged book. Lively considers various topics: gardens as metaphor, time and the garden, garden style, etc. I enjoyed some chapters more than others but can agree with her overall premise that a life in the garden does affect how we engage with the world positively.
It also inspired me to grow more flowers and so I ordered a bunch of tulip & daffodils bulbs. 🙈

Leftcoastzen Ooooooo, taters! 3mo
kspenmoll Yum, potatoes! The book sounds like a good one. Stacked! (edited) 3mo
Tamra 😍 3mo
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Ruthiella What a crop! I‘m impressed! 🍠👏👏👏 3mo
BarbaraBB Wow impressive! Looking forward to the flowers! 3mo
janeycanuck Whoa, good crop! We‘ve given up on potatoes, it never works for us. 3mo
sarahbarnes Wow, so impressive! Good work! 🌱 3mo
merelybookish @kspenmoll It was a good listen! 3mo
merelybookish @BarbaraBB Yes, fingers crossed the deer don't eat them. 3mo
merelybookish @janeycanuck Thanks! Potatoes are pretty consistent but that's about it. 3mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes Thanks!! 😊 3mo
BarbaraBB So cool you have deer to eat them 🤩 3mo
58 likes1 stack add15 comments
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merelybookish
The Modern Fairies | Clare Pollard
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Pickpick

Thoroughly enjoyed this novel set in the literary salons of 17th century France that fostered fairy tales as we have come to know them. Charles Perrault features as one of the main characters. It's a fun mix of actual fairy tales, profiles of the various tellers of these tales, and the intrigue and politics of Louis XIV's court. When is a story ever just a story?

sarahbarnes This sounds very fun. 3mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes It was! I skipped through it pretty quickly! 3mo
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merelybookish
Life among the Savages | Shirley Jackson
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My stack of books from NYC. Sarah and I had so much fun! ❤️
The top one with faded spine is a collection of short stories by Cora Sandal (not in the database). Especially pleased with the 1st edition Laurie Colwin. (And grateful to @sarahbarnes for climbing the ladder to retrieve it at Westsider Books.)
Proud to report I've already read tagged book courtesy of a prolonged travel day home. So well done me! 😁

sarahbarnes We did do a great job finding some good books! 📚😁🩵 3mo
Ruthiella Awesome haul! I‘ve read either that or the other Shirley Jackson collection of women‘s magazine essays and they are interesting. Another window into a fascinating author. 3mo
squirrelbrain Great haul - sounds like you had a fabulous time! ❤️ 3mo
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vivastory I have only one Jackson novel left to read, so I will be reading her nonfiction soon. I have heard great things about Life etc. Sounds like a great time with Sarah! (edited) 3mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella I really enjoyed it! It made me Lol which I needed as my flights kept getting delayed. 3mo
merelybookish @squirrelbrain Thanks! Such a treat to shop with another book lover who gets it! 😁 3mo
merelybookish @vivastory We had a ball! And it is very different from the one novel I've read by Jackson, although arguably they both spend a lot of time on the house and domestic relationships. Just minus the creepiness. 3mo
66 likes7 comments
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merelybookish
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Panpan

Road tripping to NYC, my partner and I listened to the tagged Murakami novel. . . and, we hated it. This is my second attempt at reading him (I bailed on IQ84) and I just do.not.get.it! 😳 Honestly it reminded me why I don't read many male authors. 🤷
But I'm in New York City for 5 days and I get to meet up with @sarahbarnes so life is pretty good. 😁

sisilia Hahahaha I have love hate relationship with Murakami 4mo
Ruthiella Enjoy your trip! I‘ve only read Norwegian Wood and it was okay. (edited) 4mo
LeahBergen Enjoy your holiday! Other than Murakami … 😆 4mo
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Cathythoughts I know what you mean about the male authors. Ive started to find myself steering clear for the most part. Have a lovely trip ❤️ (edited) 4mo
youneverarrived Enjoy NY 🤍 4mo
sarahbarnes LOL. I promise not to bring up Murakami the whole time. 😆 Can‘t wait to see you! 4mo
61 likes6 comments
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merelybookish
Bridget Jones's Diary | Helen Fielding
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Maybe some books are better left remembered and not re-read. 😐

BiblioLitten Certainly! 4mo
willaful The Suck Fairy can be cruel.... 4mo
Cathythoughts Maybe 🤔 Still, it was so good the first time 😆 4mo
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merelybookish @Cathythoughts I loved it when I read it back in 1997! Just finding all the dieting discussion (the norm then) bothersome. 4mo
merelybookish @willaful Haha I guess! Sometimes what you love at 25 doesn't have the same appeal at 50. 4mo
merelybookish @BiblioLitten The good news is I have less tolerance for diet culture now. 4mo
willaful @merelybookish 👏👏👏 4mo
45 likes7 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

First of all, if you read this book for dirt on Tendler's marriage and split from comedian John Mulvaney, you will be be disappointed. While there are oblique references to her marriage & divorce, he is never named & no deets are given. His absence is conspicuous. What Tendler does share is her decision to enter a psychiatric hospital for depression, self harm & suicidal ideation in early 2021. The book flips between her treatment & her history 👇

merelybookish With men starting with her relationships in adolescent up to meeting her (unnamed) husband. At the hospital, she undergoes rigorous testing and starts to feel understood. Her relationships reveal a history of poor treatment and general poor self-worth. For Tendler, there is a short line between misogyny and her mental health. Tendler is vulnerable and I found both timelines compelling (although I was waiting for Mulvaney). Tendler struggles & 4mo
merelybookish finds healing. Systems like patriarchy do hurt us. At times, she was a bit clueless about her privilege. She paints herself as aimless and unsuccessful but she also describes socializing in elite circles and passing on opportunities many would love to have. (She worked as a make up artist on sets before deciding she didn't like it.) Nevertheless, it's a moving memoir about mental health and healing. Thanks to #netgalley. 4mo
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merelybookish
Sweet Danger | Margery Allingham
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My book haul from an antiques store that is going out of business. $3.50 for the lot.

vivastory Nice haul! I have been meaning to read more Munro. I have loved what I have read. 4mo
Texreader Score!! 4mo
Ruthiella What a steal! 4mo
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merelybookish @vivastory I love Munro! I am hoping read and reread her books over the next year or so. I own most of them but this is one I don't have. 4mo
merelybookish @Texreader @Ruthiella I know! I was eyeing a few others and wondering if I should go back. 😬😆 4mo
vivastory “Something I've Been Meaning to Tell You“ was one of my favorite reads of '22. I'm eyeing “The Beggar Maid“ as my next read as it looks to be a collection of interconnected stories, which I love 4mo
TheBookHippie I‘m here to add more Alice love! What great find! 4mo
merelybookish @vivastory I haven't read Something yet but enjoyed The Beggar Maid last year. And yes, they are linked. So is her first collection 4mo
shawnmooney Quite possibly my favorite Alice Munro collection! 🥰 4mo
vivastory @merelybookish I'll def. check that one out as well. Thanks for the rec! 4mo
merelybookish @TheBookHippie Yes! If you know you know! 4mo
merelybookish @shawnmooney Oh cool! That's good to know. 4mo
CarolynM Great haul, and sensational bargain! 4mo
BiblioLitten Nice!! 4mo
Leftcoastzen Very nice! 4mo
MemoirsForMe So cool! 🙌🏻 4mo
quietjenn Great finds! 4mo
LeahBergen Awesome! Two DE Stevensons that I don‘t own, too. I would‘ve scrambled over you to get at them if we were shopping together. 🤣🤣 4mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen Lol. I thought of you! 😄 I could have used your expertise. There were quite a few Stevenson books and I didn't know which ones to choose. So I did some googling. 4mo
LeahBergen We need a Litsy Emergency Hotline number. 😆 4mo
Cathythoughts Great stuff 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻♥️ @LeahBergen Yes ! A hotline number 😂😂🤣 4mo
Centique Omg those Stevenson covers! Gorgeous 😍 And i laughed to think of you and @LeahBergen battling for them! 😂 4mo
62 likes23 comments
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merelybookish
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Aspirational reading.
The past few weeks have been VERY busy with end of school. My daughter graduated from high school and it was go-go-go.
Needless to say 50 days of solitude sounds pretty good.

Tamra Yes, indeed it does! 4mo
Cathythoughts Sounds perfect ❤️ Congratulations on your daughter. 🎉Time flies ❤️ 4mo
BarbaraBB Congratulations! I hope you will enjoy the book and some solitude 🤍 4mo
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LeahBergen Aww, graduation! 🥰 4mo
vivastory Congrats 🎉 Hopefully things are calmer now 4mo
merelybookish @Cathythoughts @BarbaraBB @LeahBergen Thank you! It was good. Tears haven't come yet, but I'm sure they will. 4mo
55 likes6 comments
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merelybookish
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Kinda dropped all my other reading when this arrived from #netgalley yesterday. I have followed Tendler on IG for a while and enjoy her art and aesthetics.
Also curious to get the tea on her divorce from John Mulvaney. 👀

sarahbarnes Wow. Sounds very good. 5mo
45 likes1 comment
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merelybookish
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Just made the dangerous discovery how easy it is to order books from Blackwell's. 😬 More loopholes might have slowed me down. 😂
Tagged book not available in North America yet. My eldest was recently diagnosed with Autism and so doing some catch-up, and most of the good resources seem to be in the UK.

slategreyskies If your eldest is still younger, this book is pretty good for helping with social cues. I noticed your post didn‘t mention age, so it may not be relevant for you. 5mo
Bookwomble Jessica Kingsley Publishing do a fantastic range of books on neurodivergence, with sections both on and for children. I'm not sure what their shipping costs outside the UK will be, but perhaps worth you checking them out. https://uk.jkp.com/ 5mo
merelybookish @slategreyskies He's 22 but a young 22. 😉 I will check it out. Thank you!! 5mo
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merelybookish @Bookwomble Thank you! I appreciate the recommendation! As I mentioned, the material coming out of the UK seems more advanced than what's current here. 5mo
Bookwomble @merelybookish You're welcome ? I thought after I posted that I'd no idea how old your son is! They do a range of adult focused books, too. I think there's been more of a focus on "curing" autism in the US than in the UK, and more on support and acceptance here, though there's certainly a long way to go as there are still many common misconceptions prejudice. 5mo
Hooked_on_books I love resources like this! Much of the time I think the age of technology we live in is not so great, but access to books with ease that would be much harder to get (or even know about) is fabulous. I ordered a couple of Women‘s Prize longlisted books from them, as they have no US pub date, and they came faster than I thought they would. 5mo
Libby1 This book is EXCELLENT. I hope you can get a copy. 5mo
merelybookish @Bookwomble Yes, that sounds accurate.. I think there's a slight shift in North America but it's slow. 5mo
merelybookish @Hooked_on_books Yes, I mourned the loss of Book Depository and hadn't really invested getting books from the UK since then. So I am glad it's available AND it's dangerous. 😉.What's crazy is that it's about the same price as buying books from Indigo (the Canadian book chain). 5mo
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merelybookish
The House In Paris | Elizabeth Bowen
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Listening to A House in Paris on audio.
I have 2 stories left in the Munro collection and started book 4 of Betsy-Tacy series.
All books which knock off prompts for #192025 @Librarybelle
#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

Librarybelle Yay!!! 5mo
LeahBergen This is a good one in the Betsy-Tacy series! ❤️ 5mo
merelybookish @Librarybelle I've been making good progress lately but still a ways to go! 5mo
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merelybookish @LeahBergen Good to hear! I like that they are getting a bit older. 5mo
LeahBergen I prefer the high school and later books (probably because I first read the series as an adult !) 5mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen I'm guessing I will feel the same! 5mo
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merelybookish
Cold Comfort Farm | Stella Gibbons
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Pickpick

An absolute delight! Loved it.

Tamra Such a great cover! 5mo
LeahBergen It‘s so bizarre and good. 😆 5mo
merelybookish @Tamra Yes!. This is the audio version. 5mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen Indeed. Flora is like Emma but without the comeuppance. 5mo
59 likes1 stack add4 comments
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merelybookish
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My #bookreport.
📗 Winter Rose by Patricia A McKillip. A Tam Lin retelling. Agree with reviews that say language is beautiful and story is confusing.
🎧 Happily by Sabrina Orah Mark - a series of personal essays using fairy tales to explore motherhood, writing, race, grief, etc. Some are brilliant.

#Weeklyforecast - a break from fairy tales. 😉
📗 some Alice Munro ❤️
🎧 Finally getting to Cold Comfort Farm

BarbaraBB Some Alice Munro 🤍 5mo
47 likes1 comment
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merelybookish
Winter Rose (Winter Rose, #1) | Patricia A. McKillip
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#Caturday on the catio . 🐱 I'm into another Tam Lin retelling, unseasonally set in winter.

MemoirsForMe 😻😻😻 5mo
Leftcoastzen Awwww 😻😻👏 5mo
Cathythoughts Lovely picture ♥️ 5mo
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LeahBergen The catio looks so inviting! 5mo
Ruthiella 😻😻😻 5mo
dabbe 🖤🐾🐾🖤 5mo
Centique Beautiful cats and catio! 5mo
Mimi28 😻😻😻😻😊😊😊😊🩷🩷🩷🩷 5mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen If you're ever in NB... 5mo
merelybookish @Centique Thank you! Technically a verandah but catio is cattier. 🐱 5mo
58 likes12 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

After @Aims42 excellent reviews reminded me how much I wanted to read this series, I was excited to find it on Libby. I binged the audiobook over the long weekend while gardening and chauffeuring kids. The plot is a bit of a convoluted mess but who cares when you have phlegmatic Oxford scholar/sleuth Hilary narrating events. The humour is very wry and very British. Pity the poor fool who has to go Cambridge. A delight indeed!

Aims42 Eeeeeek! I‘m so glad you enjoyed the first book! “Convoluted mess” is an excellent description 🤣 5mo
batsy This series is so good! 5mo
Cathythoughts I must try her ! ❤️ 5mo
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

Taking #landback protests to a new level, two Metis youth move a herd of bison into a downtown Edmonton park. Activist Grey is determined to make a real difference while Ezzy, whose been in & out of institutions, his whole life, just wants to support Grey. Their plan works, sort of. But if course there are no easy fixes to colonialism or its impact on generations. Helping the bison doesn't save Grey or Ezzy from having to find their own path.

merelybookish Lots to like about this novel AND I found it took me a long time to read. The novel flips back and forth between their perspectives. I preferred Ezzy's as the writing of Grey's character didn't work as well for me. 6mo
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merelybookish
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One of my literary lodestars. 😔💔 Maybe more than any other writer, she's helped me make sense of myself and the world.

SamAnne I‘m planning a reread of my favorite Munro collections. 6mo
BarbaraBB Well said Margot ❤️‍🩹 6mo
sarahbarnes Beautiful. ♥️ I haven‘t read her in a long time. 6mo
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Cathythoughts Beautiful words ❤️ I have a short story collection, I‘ve read a few and loved them. 6mo
merelybookish @SamAnne Was also thinking of doing some rereading! What are your faves? 6mo
merelybookish @BarbaraBB Thank you! 💕 6mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes Thank you! Fortunately she has a pretty extensive collection so lots to dip into! 6mo
merelybookish @Cathythoughts Thanks Cathy! I believe she'd be right up your alley! 6mo
Centique What an incredible talent we have lost in Munro. 😥 5mo
61 likes9 comments
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merelybookish
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My library holds came in and so my weekend is set. A bit of a contrast between Carter's fairy tales and Betsy-Tacy's small town Minnesota.

Cathythoughts Very nice. I have the tagged one stacked ♥️ 6mo
sarahbarnes Will be interested to hear your thoughts on Bloody Chamber. Sounds like a great weekend. 6mo
vivastory I hope you have a wonderful weekend 6mo
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Ruthiella I‘ll say that is a contrast! 😱 6mo
merelybookish @Cathythoughts The first story is 🔥 6mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes Love it so far. I also have some planting to do this weekend. 🌱 6mo
merelybookish @vivastory Thanks Scott! You too. 😀 6mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella Indeed!! ☯️ 6mo
sarahbarnes Enjoy that! 🌱🌱🌱 I‘m sad I won‘t have much of a garden this summer. I‘ll live vicariously through yours. 😁 6mo
batsy Love the Bloody Chamber collection ❤️ 6mo
56 likes10 comments
review
merelybookish
Nights At The Circus | Angela Carter
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Mehso-so

The book is a pick. The audio is a pan. So that landed me on a so-so.
Via an American journalist fascinated by Fevers, a part woman/bird aerialist, Carter introduces the many characters of a 19th century travelling circus: the lion tamer, strongman, clown, ringmaster and more all get extensive back stories. The circus world - and Carter's prose - is lavish & chaotic & strange. It's a bit like a Victorian novel on crack. And I'm sure I would 👇

merelybookish Have liked it more except the audio narration was SO annoying. It was like listening to actress Adjoa Andoh (Lady Danbury on Bridgerton) chew scenery for 12 hours. The accents! 😳🙄 Cockney, Californian, Russian, German, Kentuckian. She did them all! It became unbearable and definitely had a negative impact on my reading experience. 6mo
LeahBergen 😆😆 I think I would‘ve thrown in the towel! 6mo
Aimeesue Thanks for the warning! 😂 6mo
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batsy A Victorian novel on crack seems like an apt way to describe Carter's style! I've enjoyed what little I've read but this is one I haven't attempted yet. 6mo
Cathythoughts Oh dear ! That audible does sound trying. 😳 6mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen Unfortunately it didn't get really bad till I was more than halfway through. So I was reluctant to quit. 6mo
merelybookish @Aimeesue My pleasure! 😄 6mo
merelybookish @batsy I am going to read Bloody Chamber next! 6mo
merelybookish @Cathythoughts Indeed! Nothing wrong with some expression but I don't need accents. 6mo
56 likes9 comments
review
merelybookish
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Pickpick

I remember when this book was published in 1999 & how it was hyped as the next Bridget Jones's Diary.
I'm glad I waited till 2024 to read it.
It's not like BJD beyond having a young, single woman narrator. Jane is witty, smart, & uncertain, dating & working in NYC. It's more Sex & the City ➖ the fabulous wardrobe ➕ a bit more depth. Reading the stories while visiting Halifax, the city where I spent my early 20s, probably enhanced my enjoyment.

batsy I read this ages ago and remember liking it. You're making me want to revisit it 🙂 6mo
Ruthiella I remember being disappointed by this. I guess as a then 20 something I expected to relate more. Also this was a million years ago, when writing style meant nothing to me. 6mo
merelybookish @batsy I really liked it! I found it easy-ish but with substance. Maybe a bit nostalgic. 🙂 6mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella It was very hyped at the time! I quite enjoyed it. Might be interesting to revisit a story or two and see what you think now. 6mo
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merelybookish
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Packing for a quick weekend getaway. Four books seems reasonable right? 😁

Graywacke Looks good. Although, you never know when you‘ll stumble across 100 free hours of reading on a two day getaway. At least that seems to how i always plan. 6mo
Suet624 Just map out where the nearest bookstore is in the event you need it 6mo
Ruthiella Maybe just one more? 😆 6mo
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BarbaraBB You‘re living on the edge 😉 6mo
LeahBergen Add one more Betsy Tacy to the stack 😆 6mo
merelybookish @Graywacke Exactly! One needs to be prepared! 6mo
merelybookish @Suet624 Oh a visit to the bookstore is definitely on the docket! 6mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella Lol! I think you're right. 😉 6mo
merelybookish @BarbaraBB haha. Yes, it's risky. 😆 6mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen Oh I wish! Currently depending on the NB public library system and they don't have the whole series. 🙄 6mo
Cathythoughts Enjoy ❤️ 6mo
52 likes11 comments
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merelybookish
Nights At The Circus | Angela Carter
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I did not get on well with Angela Carter when I read her in my early 20s. We shall see if I'm ready for her in my early 50s.

sarahbarnes I liked The Bloody Chamber when I read it for a class in college. I‘ve been meaning to reread it - I‘d probably get more out of it now. 6mo
Ruthiella I am interested in hearing what you think. I‘ve only read one novel and The Bloody Chamber collection. I find her akin to Helen Oyeyemi, and I personally have trouble with the fantastical aspects of their works. 6mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes I tried it but it was over my head. I have a greater appreciation for fantasy now, I think. 6mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella Oyeyemi is one of those authors I still haven't gotten around to! And I will let you know. Fantasy used to make me uncomfortable but hoping that I can 'get' it now in a way I didn't when I was younger. 6mo
48 likes4 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

How to account for bookish moods & whims? This does not seem like a book I'd want to read -- a twin biography of cousins, two mid 19th-century monarchs, King Ludwig of Bavaria, Empress Elisabeth of Austria. I didn't know a thing about them. I don't like historical fiction. And yet, and yet. I did like it. And it is just that, twin portraits from childhood to death of two people who suffered in their roles. Tons of privilege & perpetual misery. 👇

merelybookish It is quite straightforward. Ludwig and Sissy are terrible in many, many ways and still, it was compelling. Power corrupts and royalty is rotten. If that is your belief, it will be confirmed. And yet...there is fascination and a sadness for why we put people in such positions? Do I recommend it? Depends on your whims and fancies, I guess. But I did like it. 6mo
vlwelser I bought this at an indie last year. Because it's pretty. I should read it. 😂 6mo
sarahbarnes I may have to try this. Great review. 😁 6mo
merelybookish @vlwelser They both cared a lot about beauty so they deserve a pretty cover! 😉 6mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes Thanks! And yes, do! I'd love to hear your thoughts on it! 6mo
59 likes3 stack adds5 comments
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merelybookish
Betsy-Tacy | Maud Hart Lovelace
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Big into rereads and comfort reads right now. Just revisited this delight and wish ALL the Betsy-Tacy books were available on audio. (They're not.)

MaureenMc My 12 yo listens to this one every night to fall asleep. I definitely wish they had more of the series on audio! 6mo
LeahBergen Oh, I‘ll have to listen to this! I love the series. 6mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen I've only ever read this one and was ready to plough through the entire series! Hence the disappointment! 6mo
merelybookish @MaureenMc How sweet! Makes me happy it still connects with a 12 year-old! 6mo
42 likes4 comments
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merelybookish
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Current reading mood. Bright 🟡 🟡 🟡 🟡 covers.
These books are VERY different but enjoying both so far.

vivastory I just looked at the description of the Jemc & am intrigued. I remember liking Grip Of It 6mo
merelybookish @vivastory I'm not quite done but will review when I am. Part of my curiosity is what led her to write it. (Seems a random topic.) I had never heard of her before. 6mo
48 likes2 comments
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merelybookish
Enter Ghost | Isabella Hammad
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Pickpick

Sonia, a London-based actress of Palestinian descent goes to Israel to visit her sister. While there's she agrees to participate in a West Bank production of Hamlet. The result is a complex novel about how art can be both a personal and political force. I found it slow but gripping.
Reading this now, it provides insight into the plight and mistreatment of the Palestinian people by Israel since 1948. And now things are so much worse. 😔🍉

BarbaraBB So much worse 🥹 7mo
batsy 😔 7mo
Cathythoughts Great review, I must read this one. ♥️💔 (edited) 7mo
58 likes3 comments
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merelybookish
Hotel Du Lac | Anita Brookner
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Pickpick

It comes as no surprise to me that I loved this book! Especially since @leahbergen @vivastory @sarahbarnes @Centique @Cathythoughts all love it too. 😃
Brookner creates an uncomfortable, close world at an off-season Swiss hotel that caters to the just-so. It takes a while to understand why Edith has gone there to get away, and for her to figure out how she can leave with dignity. As in the best novels, nothing happens, everything happens. ❤️

merelybookish I love seeing different covers for novels. I really hate the bottom left. It's entirely too cheery for this book. 7mo
BarbaraBB Great these covers. I read this a long long time ago and think I had yet another one because I read one which my mother bought when she was young! 7mo
sarahbarnes Ah, glad you loved it, too! I had yet another cover from these as well! 7mo
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vivastory I'm so happy that you liked this one! I agree with you about the best novels,, too. I need to add Brookner to my reading plans for the year. That's a def miss with the cover design from Penguin. (edited) 7mo
Cathythoughts That‘s great you enjoyed it so much. You‘re making me feel like a reread … 👍🏻❤️ 7mo
batsy Definitely need to move this up the list! Fun seeing all these covers. 7mo
LeahBergen I‘m so glad you loved it, too! 👏 7mo
Centique I love your description that nothing happens and everything happens. I love books like that! 7mo
61 likes1 stack add8 comments
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merelybookish
Hotel Du Lac | Anita Brookner
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Monday morning. Would love to stay here with my cat and my book. (Which is so good so far!!)
Also, rarely do I read a book and feel my vocabulary is lacking. But Brookner! She has me looking up words constantly! 😅

intothehallofbooks This one sounds really good! I‘d never heard of it before. Thank you for your posts. I‘ve just put it on my reading list. 😊 7mo
mcctrish I think I have this on a TBR shelf somewhere 🤔 7mo
sarahbarnes I loved this one! I still want to get to another book of hers soon. 7mo
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Tamra That‘s one of the few times I appreciate my Kindle. 😆 7mo
LeahBergen This book is brilliant! ❤️ 7mo
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 7mo
Cathythoughts This book 👌🏻❤️ 7mo
Dragon 😻 7mo
68 likes8 comments
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merelybookish
Hotel Du Lac | Anita Brookner
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A messy March storm (snow, freezing rain) is here for the weekend so happily hunkered down with this book that's been languishing on my TBR for eons.
Encouraging to see how many of my favourite Littens love it!

vivastory Hope you like it! 7mo
Cathythoughts I loved it. I love her. Look forward to your thoughts X 7mo
56 likes2 comments
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merelybookish
How You Were Born | Kate Cayley
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Pickpick

An excellent collection of short stories by Canadian Kate Cayley. (Originally published in 2014, this new edition is coming out soon with 3 additional stories.) Each story is a little gem, a careful observation of human behavior. Indeed in many of the stories, characters are observing others, and figuring out their own reliance on/distance from/ connection to other people. #netgalley

58 likes2 stack adds
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merelybookish
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I've been missing Proust in the morning, so decided to return to Woolf. I read the first two volumes of her diary a few years ago, so starting with Volume 3. There was immediate comfort to be back in her prose.

Leftcoastzen 👏🤩 8mo
batsy I love her diaries. 8mo
Suet624 That sounds like a great idea 7mo
61 likes3 comments
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merelybookish
Woods in Winter | Stella Gibbons
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Mehso-so

Kind of soppy and overly nostalgic for bygone days. Some pretty descriptions of nature.

LeahBergen I‘m often overly nostalgic for bygone days. 😆 8mo
TheLudicReader @LeahBergen same and the older I get, the worse it gets. 🤣 8mo
merelybookish @LeahBergen @TheLudicReader Fair! I am not immune either. (Oh the 90s!) Still, this book was mediocre at best..😉 8mo
TheLudicReader Haha, the 90s. I was thinking of the 70s @merelybookish 8mo
61 likes5 comments
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merelybookish
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Pickpick

This book landed more as a memoir than a history (which I guess is what "intimate" in the subtitle means.) While each chapter is dedicated to the work and ideas of an influential Black theorist, most of the book focuses on how these ideas helped the author make sense of her own life and experiences. A worthy project but I guess not what I was expecting. Definitely learned lots but I was left wanting to read more BY these women & less about them.

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merelybookish
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Bookoutlet strikes again! 😬🙈💸

LeahBergen Oopsie! 8mo
60 likes1 comment
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merelybookish
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I'M DONE!! 🎉🎉 After 15 months, I wrapped up #morningswithmarcel.
It was a journey and there were some rough spots, but overall, I loved it. Brilliant! 🌸💗🌸

AlaMich Which translation did you read? I haven‘t read Proust but I read a very interesting collection of essays by one of his translators, Lydia Davis. She described in great detail her process and the problems that came up while translating him. It was fascinating. (edited) 8mo
sarahbarnes Wow!!!! That is amazing. Congratulations - that has to feel like such an accomplishment! 8mo
merelybookish @AlaMich I did the Modern Penguin Library edition. Each volume has a different translator but Lydia Davis did the first one. I can imagine he's challenging to translate! His vocabulary is rich! (I googled so many words!) But there's a lot of word play and he notices when people use idiom or local dialects. 8mo
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squirrelbrain Well done! 🎉🎉🎉 8mo
Librarybelle Congratulations! 8mo
batsy Amazing! 🙌🏾 Someday I hope to get there 💫 8mo
BarbaraBB Wow, you did that pretty fast! Glad you loved it and kudos for finishing 🏆🤍 8mo
julieclair Congrats! That's an achievement! 🏆🎉 8mo
Ruthiella Congratulations! 👏👏👏 8mo
dabbe Yowza! 🤩🤩🤩 8mo
Cuilin Congratulations 🎊🎉🎈 impressive. 8mo
Billypar Oh my 😮 ...nice job! I always think maybe I'll read the first volume someday but never imagined reading them all. 8mo
LeahBergen Woohoo!! 🥳 8mo
jlhammar Impressive! 8mo
Tamra Amazing! 👏🏾 8mo
MaureenMc 👏🎊👏 8mo
Leftcoastzen Kudos! 8mo
merelybookish @Ruthiella @dabbe @Cuilin Thank you!!! I figured you guys would understand! 😊 8mo
merelybookish @Billypar if you read the first one, you might want to keep going! 8mo
Centique You are truly a legend! 7mo
Suet624 That's amazing. Such dedication! 7mo
vivastory 🤘 🤘 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 7mo
merelybookish @vivastory thanks Scott. I feel like when I saw you in December I was at a low point. But I managed to get through it. 7mo
vivastory I will attempt it at some point in the future, but have no idea if I'll make it through. I'd like to read at least the first couple. Do you have any more big projects on the horizon? 7mo
merelybookish @vivastory Not really. I am reading Woolf's diaries again. There's Zola 20 book series but not quite ready to commit to that. 😂😱 7mo
72 likes26 comments
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merelybookish
Nelly's Version | Eva Figes
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Pickpick

Picked this up at a used book shop on a whim & glad I did. It opens as Mrs Dean (an assumed name?) checks into a hotel. She has a suitcase full of cash & no memory of who she is or how she got there. She spends her days wandering the town, having awkward conversations & avoiding any attempt at deciphering her identity even though people show up claiming to be friends and family. Part of the fun was having no idea what was happening or how it 👇

merelybookish It would turn out. Figes was a minor feminist writer of the late 20th century. This book is about the stultifying lives of middle class women and the desire for escape. Not exactly a new theme but executed in an interesting way. 8mo
57 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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merelybookish
The Woods in Winter | Stella Gibbons
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My #weeklyforecast. A bunch of rando books in progress. 😁

The Woods in Winter by Stella Gibbons - from my ebook shelf
Fire & Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones - fairy tale reread
Nelly's Version by Eva Figures - hard copy off my shelf
Black Women Taught Us - nonfiction audio

review
merelybookish
Behind You Is the Sea: A Novel | Susan Muaddi Darraj
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Pickpick

My reading has been slow & erratic lately but I managed to finish 3 books this weekend.
📗Away by Jane Urquhart. Beautiful, lyrical story about an Irish family's immigration to Canada.
📗A Stranger in my Grave by Margaret Millar. Mid-century noir set in an affluent suburb of LA. Spotty plot but love how it tackles racial/ class issues
📗Tagged book. Excellent linked stories about the Palestinian community in Baltimore. Last story about 👇

merelybookish about a son taking his father's body back to Palestine to be buried was devastating. 💔 8mo
batsy I have Millar and the tagged book on my list 8mo
batsy And remember reading Away a long time ago and thinking it was lovely. I need to look up her other books! 8mo
See All 8 Comments
Cuilin I have the tagged book on hold on Libby. Glad to see many want to read it!! 8mo
merelybookish @batsy Millar is interesting! I want to read more by her! And tagged book is good...and important. And yes, Away was gorgeous. I guess this one is good 8mo
merelybookish @Cuilin Yes. Maybe it will help! I imagine it's devastating for author to be promoting a book while there is ongoing genocide in her ancestral land. 💔😓 8mo
Cuilin @merelybookish I hope it brings awareness. 🍉 It‘s absolutely heartbreaking. 8mo
BarbaraBB Glad to hear Away was gorgeous. Stacking that one! 8mo
58 likes8 comments
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merelybookish
A Short History of Music | Alfred Einstein
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I've been listening to Maggie Rogers's new single "Don't Forget Me." I loved her 2019 album Heard it in a Past Life. Didn't love her 2022 album Surender.
But based on this single, feeling hopeful for the one out in April! ?
@TieDyeDude #tuesdaytunes

BarbaraBB A new to me artist! Cool! 8mo
sarahbarnes Agree with all of these sentiments! 😃Her new song is great. 8mo
CBee Totally agree! Love her music 😊 8mo
See All 14 Comments
Billypar I still have to try the new single but agreed on her past albums. For me, it's not that 2022's was bad so much as Heard It in a Past Life is one of my favorite albums of the past 5 years or so. 8mo
batsy What @BarbaraBB said. I'm keeping a list of artists to discover thanks to this tag 🙂 8mo
TieDyeDude Aww, Maggie! Surrender was definitely different, but I still enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to the new record. For anyone new to her (@barbaraBB @batsy), she broke out by making Pharrell cry 😄 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAM1N1APk80 8mo
BarbaraBB Oow @TieDyeDude that‘s interesting 8mo
merelybookish @BarbaraBB @batsy She is worth a listen! And had no idea about the Pharrell story @TieDyeDude 8mo
merelybookish @sarahbarnes Well I'm not surprised we agree! 👯 8mo
merelybookish @CBee @Billypar I listened to Past Lives to the point where I almost can't listen to it anymore. Which is a bummer. 8mo
vivastory Heard It In a Past Life was the 5th album I added to my Spotify library. 💙 (edited) 8mo
CBee @TieDyeDude that‘s how I discovered her! I downloaded “Alaska” as soon as it was available ♥️ 8mo
CBee @merelybookish so I LOVE the new single. I‘ve listened to it a bunch today ♥️ 8mo
sarahbarnes 😁 👯 8mo
57 likes14 comments
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merelybookish
Fire and Hemlock | Diana Wynne Jones
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One of my intentions for 2024 was to do more re-reading, and now in mid(late) February, I've finally started one.
I read this back in 2018. I don't remember much except feeling confused. 🙃 It's Wynne Jones's retelling of Tam Lin, a fairy tale I apparently am drawn to.

review
merelybookish
Misty of Chincoteague | Marguerite Henry
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Pickpick

Spent a lovely Saturday morning doing some laundry and baking while listening to this #childrensclassic2024 pick. It's a simple story but the writing has depth and nuance. Even the horses (Phantom and Misty) have excellent character development. I was never a horsey girl but I might have been had I read this when I was young. 🤎🐎 @TheBookHippie

TheBookHippie ♥️🐴♥️ 9mo
audraelizabeth This is one of the few books ive reread in my life. My copy is quite worn out from my childhood reading. 9mo
58 likes2 comments