July‘s #bookspin and #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

A couple of weeks of reading here. Somehow Sunday passed me by without me noticing so I‘m a day late again. #bookreport #weeklyforecast

“The behavior modification techniques outlined in the following book are not based on scientific evidence or clinical research. Attempting to implement any of these techniques may result in serious adverse medical and/or psychological outcomes. (But it might be fun.)”

When this is the note preceding the novel, my expectations are higher. This promises entertainment, right?

This was a fascinating look at chickens and the culture that has risen up around raising them in the backyard. It is not a how to but rather one of those deep dives that will teach you a lot about these birds. I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Full review at: http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2025/01/review-under-henfluence-by-tove-danovich...

True to form, the #camplitsy conversation has already started so I‘m just picking this one up. 😂 The gorgeous flowers are from the local farmer‘s market this morning.

None of the books I‘m in the middle of are really keeping my attention so I thought I‘d give this one a try. It‘s not as light as I expected so far but there have been some hilarious lines at less than 1/4 of the way in.

*Also, just to toot my own horn a bit, I ran a race this morning and got 4th in my age group. I‘ve never been so tickled to miss a podium (usually I‘m not even close).

It‘s been a busy two weeks (but not in terms of reading) so here‘s the roundup for the past couple of weeks. #bookreport #weeklyforecast

Starting this one, which is my #doublespin book for a previous month.

A novel about mothers and daughters, their complex relationship and about disappointment and love and all the layers of a life shared closely. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/12/review-burst-by-mary-otis.html

I actually got a #bookspinbingo this past month. Didn‘t read my #bookspin or #doublespin books though. 😂

Almost didn‘t make it in time for #bookspin and #bookspinbingo for June.

With a mystery, a dysfunctional family, and the secrets of the past, this novel by Burns was very much a character study. My book club didn‘t love it but I rather liked it myself. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/12/review-mercury-by-amy-jo-burns.html

#bookreport #weeklyforecast

This is Thursday‘s book club book so I‘d better get cracking!

Finished a quartet, including the #sundaybuddyread but I‘m not participating in the discussion because I didn‘t stop reading until I was done and don‘t want to spoil it for anyone else. I revisited a childhood favorite, read a second beautiful memoir, and finished up the third in the Angel Tungaraza series for #serieslove2025 . #bookreport #weeklyforecast

Going to start this one for book club.

Although I fail miserably at this every year, I do love to create a pile to try and read from for #14books14weeks @Liz_M

Sitting in my car waiting for run club to start assembling so I‘m starting Memorial Days. Found it fascinating to read the (unfortunately necessary) addition to the legalese. This is the first book I‘ve noticed it in but I‘m sure not the last.

I found this (and the rest of the trilogy) at a used bookstore and couldn‘t resist. I first read these in late elementary school and loved them so I‘m diving back into them. Fingers crossed they hold up!

A couple of days late but here‘s my #independentbookstoreday haul (plus 3 ARCs they let me have). The sticker is a couple of years old but appropriate for the day, wouldn‘t you say? 😉

1. My whole house is a library. 😂 LibraryThing says I have 18,346 physical books but that‘s a little high since I‘m trying to rehome some (although this count doesn‘t include my husband‘s books, so maybe it‘s not too far wrong).

2. I was pretty much guaranteed to like this one because I loved the first one. This one wasn‘t quite as amazing but still good.

@TheSpineView

I can‘t believe that it‘s almost May! Here are my #bookspin #bookspinbingo options for the month. @TheAromaofBooks

This will double as my #shelfsweeper as well @Andrew65 @Tove_Reads

Unpopular opinion but I thought this novel about a sex robot with a growing sentience and free will and her nasty, cruel master never quite plumbed the issues it purports to raise, remaining superficial and/or dropping those issues entirely (Annie‘s whitewashed resemblance to Doug‘s ex-wife is one instance of this). Frankly, I was bored. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/10/review-annie-bot-by-sierra-greer.html

#bookreport #weeklyforecast I really do need to get back to these two books I set aside forever ago.

This character study set in a small town is both devastating and hopeful. It is a quiet read, one giving the reader access to the secrets and sorrows of the lives of those living in Dalton. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/10/review-road-to-dalton-by-shannon-bowring...

Ozzie is absolutely transfixed by the bold squirrel on the deck right out the window. Thankfully right before I took the picture he moved off my book so I can read.

If you enjoyed Peace Like a River, this novel by Enger will have a familiar (and yet very different) feel to the writing. A dystopian novel, an odyssey, and an unlikely found family relationship, this cli-fi is a warning and a threat. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/10/review-i-cheerfully-refuse-by-leif-enger...

I am having a hard time sticking to books right now. I think I‘ve read two chapters of each of these and then set them aside. Maybe I‘ll finish something soon! #bookreport #weeklyforecast On a cheerier note, I‘m almost done visiting all 22 of the indie bookstores of the Greater Charlotte Book Crawl and I completed a hard but fun trail half marathon yesterday. 😁

This felt derivative and the ending was incredibly rushed. There were a few twists but they were fairly unsubtle and easily guessed at. Readers looking for a Hunger Games like novel might like this one. I did not. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/09/review-this-great-hemisphere-by-mateo.ht...

A day late, per usual. #bookreport #weeklyforecast

Before I make my April board, I just need to celebrate getting 3 bingos this month! I never do well reading from my board but somehow, I did well this month. 😁 #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

It‘s not summer yet but I‘m in the mood for a gossipy summer read anyway.

I only just now noticed the two orange covers and two green covers from my reads this week. #bookreport but no #weeklyforecast

I finished the last book and the pollen onslaught drove me back inside so I‘m diving back into this one.

Pretty sure I won‘t change my mind on this #bookspin and #bookspinbingo board before next month. As per usual, I have book club books on here but also an Arab American book, a hearing impairment book, a Scottish book, and a book for Earth Day (April is the month to celebrate these things). And then I decided to declare April the month of reading from the unfinished series on my shelf. @TheAromaofBooks

I decided I needed a book I don‘t have to think much about and that I was pretty much guaranteed to enjoy so I picked this one up.

Three generations and more than seventy years following a Malayali Christian family in Kerala, this is a magnificent and epic story. Full review at https://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/08/review-covenant-of-water-by-abraham.htm...

A day late (or a week and a day) on my #bookreport and #weeklyforecast as per usual.

And now for something entirely different. The pollen drove me inside and Ozzie (who is not allowed outside) is pleased to have his lap back.

Sitting out on the deck (spring is here!) and getting back to this one that I set aside to focus on other must reads.

@AmyG Thank you so much for a lovely birthday package! 😘

I‘m getting a jump start on next week‘s book club book since Ozzie currently has me trapped on the couch.

#bookreport #weeklyforecast for the past two weeks. I might be getting smarter in my old age, but I‘ve started reading some of the books I earmarked for people for Christmas last year (and didn‘t give them) so I can give them to them this year. 😂

#bookspin and #bookspinbingo for March: books set in Ireland, books by women, and books gifted to me in past years by Littens (thanks to swaps and such) because it‘s my birthday month. @TheAromaofBooks

Got a #bookspinbingo at the 11th hour last night. I‘ll be spending the rest of today on the couch reading toward March‘s books because I ran a 10 mile trail run this morning with 1500 feet of elevation (which probably means nothing to most of you but it was *hard*—and beautiful and made me feel super accomplished but I may not walk again for days!). I‘ve definitely earned my couch time! @TheAromaofBooks

North Carolina is warming up so I‘ve headed to the deck for some reading in nature.

I can‘t seem to settle on my next book so I‘m going to see if a mystery will draw me in enough to stick with it.

Lackluster plot, poor writing, and strange authorial choices made this one a miss of epic proportions. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/08/review-life-oreilly-by-brian-cohen.html

I was cranking along through books but stalled out to go away for a weekend race with friends so not as many books the past two weeks as I‘d anticipated. #bookreport #weeklyforecast And yes, I‘m a day late again. 😂

Identity and he marginalizing of writers of color, Yellowface is a timely and thought provoking novel. It‘s a complicated and complex novel, well written, and rife with unlikeable and yet fascinating characters. Readers who enjoy satire will appreciate this view of publishing as well. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/08/review-yellowface-by-r-f-kuang.html