What an indictment of colonialism ✨❤️ gorgeous descriptions 🪴 real magic is in the garden

📸 from Longwood Gardens in PA

I calculated my reading time for my comps exams today: https://www.omnicalculator.com/everyday-life/reading-time

Storygraph broke everything down for me: 41, 269 pages total.

This means, in order to be ready to take my exams in early September/late August. I will need to read for ~5 hours a day. This is totally doable and also I'm REALLY excited! I think I might hit 300 books this year 😲

We had a great time reading this. It begs to be read out loud and has very funny jokes for parents. I love Ayoade. Highly recommend!

Really fun playing in the snow today and then cozying up to read with some hot chocolate ☕️

Tolkien is so funny! I laughed out loud at the invention of golf— how had I forgotten about it?!

A perfect love letter to cats 🐈‍⬛ it was wonderful! I especially liked how each story didn‘t dismiss or resolve the person‘s problems, but rather showed how a slight perspective shift and some changes made it easier for them to cope and live with the way they were feeling.

It was also cool to see how the magic worked within the book. I really love these soft, cozy, and reflective Japanese books.

A lovely listen— I admire the cadence of Katherine May‘s prose. It‘s always a pleasure ❤️ this one ruminated beautifully on meaning-making, the personal magic created by nostalgia or encounters with nature. Perfect for walking through the botanical gardens near my home 🎄

She was figuring out her style for the series in this first one but it worked really well. A little trope-y but pas de trop.

Side note: my friend made me four of these mugs with different designs on them. They‘re all the perfect size! One of them can hold half a pot of tea and that‘s ✨perfect✨

this one was v spicy 🌶️ I was here for it, too! The predictability of this one felt more real in some ways— it just made sense to me that they would each have those issues.

I‘m not sure why but I gravitate to these when I‘m going through a stressful or difficult time. This one was my favorite of the three. I really loved how the couple related to each other and brought each other exactly the support they needed. 💕✨

It wasn‘t listed but the REAL book is Scallops and Sorcerers: Vampire Knitting Club: Cornwall by Nancy Warren, the second in the Cornwall spinoffs.

This was the perfect easy read, with some good faith clues and an easily solved (but still just challenging enough to be uncertain) murder.

I did read it super fast though, which is my only complaint with these. Knitting pictured is my Felix Cardigan (Berroco Mercado in Lupine)

What a gorgeous book 📕 started slow but was worth sticking it out. Fully realized tertiary characters, excellent literary references, and a puzzle with plenty of clues so you could suss it out.

This was a brutal holiday and I needed a good read. Thank goodness for these guys, even if they often want me to stop reading at the really good bits.

@wanderinglynn I so love everything from the last #travelingstars package! It‘s been a fabulous year— your gifts have been so gorgeous & thoughtful! I especially loved the tagged book & this glorious mug. Here‘s hoping it is my goddess year. At the moment I feel like the goddess of chaos 😅

 @Chrissyreadit your final gift finally came today! Late as usual, mea maxima culpa 😩 it‘s been a bit of a month so far— more details to come ❤️🙏

Sooo excited to be shelving the used book section at the shop today 🥲❤️🙏

I truly enjoyed 1 & 2 but part 3– still excellent as a metaphor but disappointing as a story.

I‘m still delighted with this book. It‘s likely to be very important to me in terms of literary research.

Still, I‘ll have to figure out why I‘m so reticent to approve the third part.

So pleased to receive such gorgeous gifts from @wanderinglynn for #travelingstars it‘s been so lovely all year & I constantly forget to post just how much they bring to my life ♥️🙏🏻thank you! I‘m beyond grateful 🥹💗I forget my phone exists but I‘m often thinking of my friends here

Excellent book, too btw I‘m excited to read it ✨

I haven‘t seen the movie (& don‘t plan on it tbh) but this was fun— unreliable, framed, epistolary narratives make me happy, as do the illustrations. Recommended for general weirdness & ✨vibes✨

📸featuring my fave new creepy snow globe— is it tiny bats w/ a normal-sized crow or normal-sized bats w/ a giant crow boy? You decide 🪦💀💗

What a great time! This romantasy features an enemy to lovers trope, fabulous queer characters, & a magic that makes sense as both system & metaphor.

The characters transform through their relationships & self-reflection, implicitly arguing love makes us into better, truer selves.

📸 features the most whimsical shelf in my office, simply for vibes/the aesthetic

Mrs. Robinson was fascinating and depressing. Still, it was great hearing all about how suspicious Victorians were of women, sex, diaries, and more, mostly in that order.

I‘m so fascinated by how Victorians saw things and will likely keep reading about them for a very, very long time.

📸by IntoTheForestDark (ElliottBlackwe3)

What a great cover! I didn‘t like this as much as What You‘re Looking For is in the Library but not everything can change your life. This was still a lovely read— an ode to reading, really. Highly relatable 📚

Warning: this book may cause uncontrollable cravings for coffee & baked goods.

Seriously, though, what a great read! I had such a book hangover. Where is the full series?! Surprisingly poignant, this story moves beyond cozy to suggest a whole shifting of values & I‘m here for it.

📸featuring stationary art by Stasia Burrington

A bit late but perhaps better than never? Thanks @Yuki_Onna for the tag! @Eggs #wondrouswednesday

1. BooOoOook!
2. Mop the floor (with Florida Water)
3. Oof this one was tough but reading is faster!
4. Vanilla (but only if it‘s the real deal)
5. Pen (Fountain Pen)
6. Ask ALL the questions
7. Meet myself as an author
8. I like to snuggle chickens best
9. Online if it‘s clothes but in person for books
10. Snow snow SNOW snow snow SNOW snow

This is so much fun to read— great descriptions of nature and totally unrealistic characters but such a fascinating piece to reflect on and, dare I say, rail against? It seems I do.

Also I‘m pretty sure I should be getting ready to teach classes next week but um, there‘s this guy Valancourt who just showed up…so I‘m going to have to finish this chapter first. Close up of my cozy office shelf for the vibes

Enjoying #hyggehour with this excellent micro history of Victorian spiritualism. Delighted it includes small practices to get in touch with the era 🖤💀✨

@TheBookHippie @Chrissyreadit @jenniferw88

My favorite part of the new office I moved into today— everyone should have a cozy blanket and a basket of books in their space.

Rereading Ovid because my friend is (of course) so we can talk about it. I have this v pretty edition right up front next to my Tristram Shandy ♥️✨

Ready to start reading for comps!! These are just the print copies ♥️I would be a professional reader if anyone was hiring

Just read the two newest installments, this one & A Fatal Illusion (books 11 & 12), in the Lady Darby series

this series is descriptive, whimsical, romantic, & thrilling but just a touch anachronistic. Only a purist would complain & I am not ♥️

#hyggehour #withmystery @TheBookHippie @jenniferw88 @AllDebooks @Chrissyreadit

Such a gorgeous book, but also a great reference. I‘ve taken classes with Mdm. Pamita— she‘s lovely & so is her book! Highly recommend, both for shelf appeal & authentic content.

My mother came and helped me go through the kids books again! Bless her ♥️ perhaps one day I can go through mine but it will likely take a week!

Roasting potatoes in the oven, wrapped in a quilt, reading for class ♥️sometimes, life is paradise.

This really is one of the best books I‘ve read about writing. It‘s definitely geared towards those who have to publish as part of their profession, but I think it would work for anyone who wants to write 📝

A window into one of the most brilliant writers of the Renaissance. Browne greatly influenced Victorian understandings of ancient burial practices💀🖤Snorri Sturluson agrees

For more reading, there‘s this really cool article about him and how the discovery and disinterment of his grave contributed to his Victorian popularity: http://thelondondead.blogspot.com/2023/06/the-enduring-influence-of-sir-thomas.h...

He remains influential today 🖤

Book porn!!! Look at that portrait! And the inscription!! I‘m in love with a tiny book ♥️💀

Finished cleaning out the fridge and it truly shines ♥️ grateful to have food and a place to keep it

Reading this again even though my Literary Ghosts class has drawn to a close 💀🧛🏻‍♂️🐦‍⬛👻 #hyggehour very cozy cleaning out the fridge 😂🎉 still counts as self care even if it isn‘t pretty or luxurious

Rereading on audiobook bc project 2025 📸Red Emma‘s bookstore

Sad day attending a beloved uncle‘s funeral but lovely bookstore near the wake with a fine selection of occult books, horror memorabilia, & vinyl ♥️💀purchased this beauty & two histories of ghosts

The newest Nancy Warren Vampire Knitting Club as a reward for finishing my reading for class 🧛🏻‍♂️🧶it‘s so cozy and perfect for #LitSolace #Midsummersolace #Hyggehour

@TheBookHippie @Chrissyreadit @jenniferw88 @AllDebooks

Featuring the embroidery project I did during class because Zoom kills me.

Classic. Highly suggest you make like Catherine Moreland and get your read on.

(Picture from an unrelated girl‘s night out event.)

📸by oreamnosoddities

#Naturalitsy #MidsummerSolace #Litsolace #WednesdayWanderings @Chrissyreadit @AllDebooks @TheBookHippie @jenniferw88

🧭 When I was 12, I joined a group hiking the trails along Skyline Drive; we kayaked back home
🌄🌇 Rural! I need trees and mountains ⛰️
🗺 absolute peace, stunning views, and waterfalls
😊I remember feeling so grateful— my mom and I were together a lot after my parents divorced and I was relieved, as if I could finally breathe

Reading this again for class and loving it! A nice, 4 hour read. Although I only had 4 hours total for homework today so I had to speed it up to 2.7x 😅

I‘ve read four books since Monday and I‘m exhausted but having a great time 📚

Reading my creepy kids the creepy classics— Eliot was really into the pigeons in Cinderella 👀🐦

A whimsical mystery featuring the Brontë siblings!

I read this as a reward for submitting an article to Brontë Studies— I doubt it will be accepted but it was a fascinating process!

The illustration comes from Elizabeth Southwart‘s Brontë Moors and Villages, which I also highly recommend

I really admire Charlotte Brontë‘s characters. The levity of observation alone makes me love them. This novel is an excellent example. I‘m also inclined to think this and not Jane Eyre is the more autobiographical work

Also my baby is now a kindergartener and is mad he doesn‘t know how to read yet. Guess we know what his summer project is! I‘m so excited for him to begin

Oof what an ending and what a lovely book— don‘t get me wrong, Jane Eyre is fantastic but why don‘t more people read Villette or The Professor?!

Speaking of which…happy graduation, my friends! Congratulations to all who celebrate 🎉 my colleagues and I truly love seeing everyone walk across the stage 🎓

Enjoying the tagged library ebook at work when I realized I could fit my ereader in the pocket of my dress, which made me realize I will be wearing this dress forever now.

An excellent book, this was a part of my teaching transformative texts reading list. I‘m so grateful I have this opportunity to learn about this program. So far it‘s been wonderful, both the book and the course!

The perfect book when you‘re not sure what to read or when you want to read another person‘s reading selections. I would have loved more lyrical essays than book reviews but alas, this wasn‘t memoir so much as a collection of best books 📚

Enjoying Ovid‘s cosmetics recipes along with my tea at the doctor‘s office. Every time I get a break I get sick 💀still, my doctor prescribed steroids so I should be able to luxuriate in bed while I read more on the art of love 💕 maybe I should get some barley tea for a mask— Ovid swears by it! I‘ll leave the lead out though 😅

It‘s a great day for some Brontë research! I feel like I‘ve emerged from my chrysalis like a cicada— this past Spring Semester was the hardest so far.

I learned Yiddish, made two websites, did three digital humanities projects, read over a thousand pages, including three textbooks, and wrote over 50 pages.

It sounds weird but, after all that, focusing on just one paper feels almost luxurious.

“You can have compassion without forgiving.”

What a beautiful message. Perfectly describes my feelings and experiences with those who hurt and, sometimes, continue to hurt others because of this.

In the attic

Where did deer antlers come from in our attic?
Like stray branches of some exotic tree.
They lay in a corner brown, twisted, petrified
Covered with dust.

Often I used to go up to the attic and look at the horns in their wild spin -
How would I accept such a twist of fate from which there could be no way out.

Thanks to @TheBookHippie for the recommendation! Sorry for my poor translation— it‘s only my first attempt

I‘m so excited to get these ✨signed✨copies for free! Sometimes my honor society advisor gig has cool perks 😎 I‘m also incredibly honored and lucky to work with these students— two of our officers were named All-American Scholars this year!

So much of this work is a bureaucratic nightmare but there are definitely glimmers to keep me grateful lol any other Higher Ed teachers out there?