#AuldLangSpine @CBee

I think I was a victim of my own outsize expectations here. This book fell a little flat for me and I‘m having a hard time articulating why. It has a lot of different plot threads and I‘m not sure they all work together to create a cohesive story. Then again — that‘s real life for you. I did appreciate the ending.

It‘s not just me, right? 🙃

All wrapped up and ready to go

I loved this way more than I expected to! I didn‘t know a ton about Martin Short going in, although I was generally a fan. This memoir hit the perfect balance between autobiographical storytelling, emotional depth, and comedy - he intersperses chapters with vignettes done in character of Jackie Rogers Jr, Ed Grimley, Jiminy Glick, etc. His “nine categories” philosophy is so down-to-earth and he just seems like an authentically decent guy.

Dalton, Maine, 1995. The characters we met in “The Road to Dalton” are back, coping with their various quiet griefs and everyday joys of their small town lives. Some ache to break free of the constraints of tiny Dalton, while others take comfort in the familiar embrace of their town and its land and people. Beautifully told. Can‘t wait for book 3!

This was such a treat to read. It‘s summer 1951 and 11-year-old Donal Cameron must take himself from Montana to Wisconsin to stay with relatives while his grandmother has surgery. Things don‘t go well and he soon ends up back on a westbound bus. It‘s humorous, heartfelt and honest. The people he meets along the way, the stories he collects, and just the cadence of the language all make this a joyful and immersive experience.

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

(Yes, still)

Ok so here‘s what happened … somebody here posted about their British Library Crime Classic subscription and I thought, ooh, I want that! So I decided to give it to myself for my upcoming 50th birthday. But then I was like, nah, shipping to the US every single month is too wasteful and expensive. And then … I had an idea … 💡😃

What are your favorite genres?
- Fiction: Literary, speculative, mystery
- Nonfiction: history & science

What are a few of your desert island reads?
- Robinson Crusoe maybe? a guide to edible plants?

What‘s your go-to reading snack?
- cheese, crackers & apple slices; or chocolates

Weirdest or most interesting place you‘ve read a book?
- halftime at NWSL championships
[cont‘d 👇]

#bibliologistbio @monalyisha

My #bookspin list for May is already ready 😅

Today‘s #tuesdaytunes is this new track from The Head and the Heart. I am digging their new album so far and - my husband got us tickets to see them at the Greek in September!

https://youtu.be/vLovUdCX4Tg?si=3u6Z3rGjdxLv1yap

#hyggehourreadathon

Congratulations @dabbe on 200k!! Incredible! But not surprising - you are a pillar of the Litsy community ☺️

Here is my mood board - #moodboardcontest #mbc

#midmonthcheckin
I never got around to posting this at the beginning of the month, so I‘m doing it now 🤣

Currently reading Entangled Life and The Shadow Rising. Both excellent, but I kind of have to be in the right mood.

Started and finished Where the Forest Meets the River by Shannon Bowring - an impulse read that I borrowed on Kindle (which means I can read it late at night while my husband sleeps).

Will probably bump Ghost Map to May.

My #camplitsy nominations (links and descriptions in the comments):

Free: My Search for Meaning, by Amanda Knox

Story of a Murder: the wives, the mistresses, and Doctor Crippen, by Hallie Rubenhold

Death of the Author, by Nnedi Okorafor

The Heart of Winter, by Jonathan Evison

#camplitsy25

#TuesdayTunes

Bears Den, “Spiders”
https://youtu.be/QLYdoN6pEHg?si=DWiyiSaT62pS4Ze5

Love, I‘m trying.

This is so well said — and so true of all areas of biology (and medicine), not just mycology.

“I have tried to find ways to enjoy the ambiguities that fungi present, but it‘s not always easy to be comfortable in the space created by open questions. Agoraphobia can set in. It‘s tempting to hide in small rooms built from quick answers. I have done my best to hold back.”

And the winner of the #50kgiveaway is …
@Bookwormjillk

Send me an email with your mailing address and a link to a TBR wishlist to shop from! I am carrieseydel(@)yahoo.com

With a dedication like this, you know it‘s going to be a good book! 🍄🍂

Enjoying a nice glass of Pinot Grigio on this warm evening while I dig into the fourth installment of the Wheel of Time

#hyggehourreadalong #hyggehour

#weekendreads

Spring Bingo board is live!

April #bookspin - The Ghost Map, which I‘ve been wanting to read for years (and now I own a copy!)

#doublespin - Forgotten on Sunday, an #auldlangspine pick that I‘ve been looking forward to reading but haven‘t gotten around to yet. Yay!

Even giving myself 3 months, I didn‘t get BINGO 😆

But now I get to regroup and redistribute the leftovers on the next board 😁

#bookspinbingo

Heeeeey look what I happened to catch! I want to celebrate reaching 50k with a lil old giveaway. To enter:

1. make a post sharing your favorite thing related to Litsy. This can be a hashtag, a game, a swap, a buddy read, a particular gift you got from a fellow Litten, even just a book you loved that someone here recommended. What do you love about Litsy?

2. Tag me @CSeydel and use the hashtag #50kgiveaway

I‘ll pick the winner in one week!

Been listening to the long-awaited new album from Mumford & Sons, Rushmere. My favorite track, not surprisingly, is “Caroline” (okay but it actually might be my favorite even if it didn‘t feature my name! It‘s really catchy!)

#TuesdayTunes

I‘ve been reading this one a little at a time for a couple of months now, but it‘s really good and I‘m picking it for my March winner. It was a tight contest and I may yet add a February or March book as a wild card pick … looking at you, Intermezzo … we‘ll see

Final count for March!

Carried over from Feb:
Challenger - 5⭐️
Once Upon a River - 4⭐️
My Family and Other Animals - 4⭐️
Sam Neill‘s memoir was a strange, meandering experience but very entertaining, especially hearing him read it. 3⭐️

March:
Strange Sally Diamond - 3⭐️
The Dry - 4⭐️

Currently reading:
Last Bus to Wisdom
Entangled Life

April #bookspin

#weekendreads
Mostly I‘m working (trying to) because I have a feature due Monday and I am wrestling with the material. But when I need a break I have this to look forward to. It‘s so good!

My Book and beverage - coffee in my favorite mug #BandBDay @TheSpineView

The town of Gros Ventre was so far from anywhere that you had to take a bus to catch the bus. #firstlinefridays

Tore through this police procedure set in a dying, drought-plagued Australian farm town. I thought the author did a good job immersing you in the setting and the characters‘ lives and motivations. Well-plotted with good suspense and a satisfying resolution. Thank you @TheAromaofBooks for sending me this gift! #bookspin

Powerful and compelling. I‘ve seen a few reviews complaining that it felt like too much NASA history rather than focusing only on the Challenger itself, but I truly believe the historical context is necessary to explain some decision-making down the line that seems inexplicable on its own. There was a lot I didn‘t know about the Rogers Commission findings (I was only 10, ok) and I knew nothing about Thiokol‘s warnings about the O-rings. ✨5 stars✨

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

In a book with so many sad, heartbreaking moments, this sentence has to be the saddest.

“The Columbia Accident Investigation Board delivered its report on August 26, 2003, and concluded that many of the lessons of the Challenger disaster had gone unheeded.”

Of course for today‘s #tuesdaytunes I have to promote the new song from The National Parks, “Welcome to the Mountains.” We took a road trip to southern Utah this weekend to see them perform at Tuacahn Amphitheater, which is a gorgeous venue tucked among the awe-inspiring rock formations near Zion NP. Incredible show!

It took a while for this one to grow on me, but in the end I found it a poignant exploration of how we unnecessarily constrain ourselves with ideas of conventionality. Her descriptions of people‘s inner lives are vibrant and feel authentic. The ending didn‘t quite work for me - I have my doubts about some aspects of their arrangement - but it did feel cohesive with the rest of the story.

I‘m not sure exactly what I was expecting, I think probably one of those “see the world through the eyes of a neurodivergent protagonist, and realize that ‘strange‘ is in the eye of the beholder” type books. This was not that - it was a crime thriller, and a lot darker and more graphic than I expected.

#bookspin #auldlangspine

✨Magical realism
✨Historical setting
✨Large cast of characters
✨Multiple plot threads that intertwine in unexpected ways
✨Beautifully evocative writing

I always decide I‘m not going to do a Bingo card because I don‘t always read that many books in a month, and I can‘t help but feel pressured to fill out the card. But it looks so fun, I‘m sad to miss out … then I remember: I can do it however I want to! This is my quarterly #bookspinbingo 😁

#weekendreads

I have my work cut out for me this month … once I finish Challenger that is …

The books pictured include #bookspin and #doublespin from February AND March, plus two more #auldlangspine books I‘m still looking forward to.

I‘m not finished with this book yet, but I‘m still counting in as my favorite book of the month. Incredible storytelling; he expertly combines the human side of things with the technical details that I‘m so interested in.

Graphic is a little misleading because all three of the middle books are still in progress. Sadly I had my book club meeting for Once Upon a River today, and I‘m only about halfway through 😩 But it‘s really good so far! I‘ve enjoyed all of these books.

Work has been consuming this month and I haven‘t done as much reading as I‘d hoped. I‘m still working on Intermezzo and Challenger, and I haven‘t even started either of my February #bookspin books! And now it‘s time to pick books for March! Well, I‘ll get to it when I get to it…

This is a strange, melancholy book, but there are some beautifully expressed descriptions of complex human emotion.

“In her satisfied exhaustion … Margaret feels that she can perceive the miraculous beauty of life itself, lived only once and then gone forever, the bloom of a perfect and impermanent flower, never to be retrieved.” …

Can‘t believe my baby girl is 21 years old today! She doesn‘t hang out on Litsy anymore but I‘m still posting her a Happy Birthday because I‘m so darn proud of her 🎉

🎂2️⃣1️⃣🍷

When work pops up in the most unexpected places!
🧬🦟🌱

Best laid plans …

My holds came in on Challenger and Intermezzo, so I‘m bumping them ahead of my bookspin picks and reading them next.