This was good, but not as tight & well paced as Elena Knows. I think perhaps because even though this is only slightly over 200 pages, the story was drawn out enough to lose a bit of steam. With Elena Knows the tension just ratchets up until BAM Claudia hits you over the head with the end.

With this if she could have somehow continued the railroad scenes as standalone chapters, they may have propelled the story better.

New bill with all kinds of good stuff on our governor‘s desk, including this provision. 😁 Also applaud the mental health education!

“It also includes a ban on book bans — language that prohibits public and school libraries from removing or restricting access to a book “based solely on its viewpoint or the messages, ideas or opinions it conveys” and that insulates library employees from discipline against them for complying with the new rules.”

So true; mature love is far more nuanced and complex than young love. ♥️ The singular is plural and the plural is singular. My husband and I were even younger.

Twisty! I did not want to put this down. It was the perfect balance of brain candy & puzzle to wind up what is always a fatiguing spring semester.

The title is odd and a bit misleading. And the end, well one needs to go into thrillers with a strictly entertainment mindset.

I‘ve been stalking the mailbox all day waiting for this to arrive. Anna Novella on book tube raved - apparently it‘s jaw dropping! 😲 I‘m going to dive in. 🤞🏾

Husband‘s request - brownies. Any bets on how long the pan will last?

I‘m not a baker beyond the basics and this companion is perfect support. Lots of helpful advice in it. #Mtcookbook

Oh, how any reader will love to loathe Undine. What a superficial, entitled, conniving, greedy, morally bankrupt twit! Add in short sighted; she‘d cut off her nose to spite her face.

🫣 I just realized this is an apt description of several unnamed individuals in US politics today.

My chunky bedtime read arrived! @Cathythoughts ♥️

I love to have a big fat novel to look forward to each night.

Out for a drive and all roads lead to book stores. 😊

Discovered a cute & well curated shop in Menomonie, WI, Dragon Tale Books. Had a super chat with the owner.

The tagged book is for me, husband got the other two, but I can guarantee I‘ll be the one rereading Wind-up Bird Chronicles.

At my husband‘s suggestion after talking about quiet fiction…..I‘m going to start this one.

It‘s a crying shame lilacs wilt so quickly after cutting because the fragrance is divine.

Just what you would expect from a golden age mystery - pure entertainment. 😊

The end made me laugh. #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

First deck read of the season. Ms. Hoot is back! 🦉

Indonesian Shrimp Fried Rice for #Mtcookbook! I love all of the concise options ATK offers in one place. I‘m a big fan of tables & charts with variations of something.

From now on my rice preference is basmati, as blasphemous to the stir fried rice tradition as that might be.

Tonight I‘m going to try the orange sesame. 😋 (With chili crisp of course.) ♥️

Score for $1.99 😃 Sometimes good things come to those who wait. I‘ve checked this out of the library a couple times.

Happily adding elevation to #Mtcookbook

I enjoyed this treacherous tale for the most part, but the end was questionable. It just…… ended…..unless I missed something. I needed something more.

The narration is impeccable.

Why was the setting nearly exclusively in one bed chamber or another? 😜 Unless chambers were the equivalent of apartments today.

I couldn‘t visit a shop on Saturday for Independent Bookstore Day, but I was able to support one of my favorites online. 💙

I know it‘s shocking I purchased a cookbook. 🤯 #Mtcookbook

Meh. It started off well, but began to unravel in the middle mainly because it introduced too many characters that weren‘t well developed. I had much higher hopes based on the blurb.

This was appropriately grim & brutal. 😒

Bowling, arcade, & swimming for 14 year old girls‘ party, while I get to do this! 💜💙 Last year I flew through Black Butterflies which was short listed for the Women‘s Prize, so I feel like I should continue the tradition and try Brotherless Night on my Kindle. (Not my favorite format.)

Good grief…..🤦🏽‍♀️ At least I didn‘t buy a duplicate this time, I borrowed it. I‘m glad I made the discovery because I really dislike due dates.

I also found Someone at a Distance by Whipple on my shelves and that has been in my Abe cart too. 🙄

The writing won‘t matter when Juliet Stevenson is one of the narrators. 😃

A twisty little tale of avarice. 🖤

This was “fun”, but didn‘t have the humor of Fremlin. Fremlin can be downright funny & sharp witted. I need more Fremlin in my life!

🤔 I was really excited about this book after hearing an interview with Dan on NPR - no plain tomato based sauces! Now that I‘ve thumbed through it, I‘m on the fence so I‘m taking that as a sign I shouldn‘t rush out to buy it. I like the creativity, but many of the recipes are probably best suited for leisurely weekend cooking and when the pantry is stocked with specialty ingredients. I do think I‘d really like the Asian fusion dishes.

My daughter is willing to try this as a summer buddy read with me. Looks like a good pacey vacation YA thriller. Plus it‘s a trilogy, in the event we like it.

I‘m still working on my son to pick a book ……🤞🏾

I‘ve tried both the audio & print and am having difficulty getting into this one. I really thought this would be squarely in my wheelhouse. Maybe I‘m not focusing and need to come back to it another time.

Husband‘s request and I happened to have all the ingredients on hand. Now the fam‘s sweet teeth are all satisfied for the weekend!

This challenge is doing wonders for checking my books before the interwebs. 😊 #Mtcookbook

Such a classic tale of human virtue & vice. 😇😈 It was a tad slow going in the middle, but gained momentum on the other side.

Oh, I feel Celia‘s longing for Field Place. #PersphoneClub

@rubyslippersreads @quietjenn @CarolynM @andrew61 @LeahBergen @Cathythoughts @Caryl @sisilia @Aimeesue @elkeOriginal @Gissy @Bookbuyingaddict @julieclair @willaful @daena

Why yes this edition IS before my time. ☺️ Makes me feel young! I guess I‘m lucky my library system still has a copy to circulate.

By the way, I have 5 library books checked out and it makes me anxious, which is completely irrational. It reminds me though why I shouldn‘t order any while I have one checked out. It‘s also why I prefer to buy so I can hoard them on my shelf. 😜

Easier Italian Weddjng Soup #Mtcookbook

Anyone else freely write notes in your cookbooks? I do; on this page I halved the carrots & celery and doubled the tortellini. Kids enjoyed the soup despite the veggies. 🥕🥬

Beautiful adaption with Helen Mirren! Streaming on Amazon.

I appreciate the complicated & raw relationship between the two women.

No surprises here, except for my neighbors in WI. I may need to float some banned books across the river. 😒

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2024/04/16/npr-book-bans-2023-pen-america

I fell down the rabbit hole after your comment @Cathythoughts and found two movies - the one you mention from the ‘90‘s and this one from ‘56. What an iconic poster!

A fun romp through a classic 1950‘s mystery! Thanks @Cathythoughts for posting about it. 🕵️

I looked forward to reading a chapter of this chunkster each night. It is suspenseful, atmospheric, gothic, historical fiction with a couple of twists. It begs questions about what is “natural”, essential identity, and belonging.

Fayne lies within a disputed region between Scotland & England. Resolution either way will dissolve the title, which is central to the main idea.

I‘m a tad disappointed with the end, it was unnecessarily drawn out.

Each time I pick up this book to read I think of Mr. Greene.😭

“‘Unfortunately, it was a moment of sanity. All the rest seems madness to me.‘” #Perspephoneclub

Aside from Fahrenheit 451 in another lifetime, I don‘t believe I‘ve read anything else by Bradbury. This is the choice for my next IRL bookclub; one of the members rereads it each spring. 🤞🏾 I‘m not usually too keen on child protagonists, but I have read in reviews the language is enchanting.

Read this for IRL book club and I think I was the only one who liked it! It‘s a difficult tale to summarize but it‘s about the human condition. The absurdity he envelopes it in doesn‘t hide the sadness & consequences of loneliness. I read the prologue 3x because first, Vonnegut bares his soul in his own detached way, and second, it encapsulates the story which follows.

This is my first Vonnegut and I‘m glad to have read it.

Redemption per the kids for the green chile cornbread recipe from the tagged book - a “tamale” pie. My daughter reports the chiles are covered up. 😜

Freezing remainder of the cornbread for a future pie. #Mtcookbook

Sticky Honey Chicken & Green Chile Cornbread is what‘s for dinner. Smells fabulous in the house! #Mtcookbook

Speculative meanderings with the MC - not really in my wheelhouse.

This wasn‘t the reading experience of Peace Like A River, but to be fair I read it decades ago and no doubt my preferences have changed.

Buffalo chicken chili for an easy win on #Mtcookbook!

Kids were not thrilled with the beans, but husband and I loved it! After reading the ingredient list on a bottle of Buffalo sauce I opted for regular hot sauce instead.

Vanilla flavoring. It was entertaining enough to continue listening through to the end, but I won‘t likely remember it.

I was just taken for an absolute joyride of an April Fool‘s joke by Content with their newsletter announcing a name change to align with the city slogan, along with other new tidbits & links. Husband & I spent 15 minutes discussing and I even looked at the new commemorative sticker more than once before reading the label.

Hook, line, & sinker. 🤣🤣

There is a palpable tension and anxiety that builds in this novel because the MC Sunday seems so vulnerable, though there isn‘t anything explicitly threatening in it. I could feel how Sunday‘s rich inner emotional life conflicted with the flat affect of autism she presented. It was a relief when she quit struggling to conform to social expectations and allowed herself to just be. Worth a reread!

What?! 😳🫨😬😵‍💫 I am not going to pretend to understand this descent into madness & rage & starvation, in all of the senses of these words.

“The way everything belongs to nature, malicious and beautiful.”

Yup!! 😋 All Corner Pieces Baked Pasta #Mtcookbook

You know those delectable crispy & chewy pieces of pasta around the edges of any baked pasta dish? This is a whole sheet pan of them. Brilliant!

I‘m going to crisp it up even more next time.

Wishing I could be done working to start this one! I‘m intrigued by the blurb. 🫣

I am really surprised I haven‘t seen or heard more about this book! First, Blees is a poet so each word matters. Second, the structure is wonderfully imaginative in that the story unfolds over 25 chapters, each having a distinct voice, including that of inanimate objects. (Imagine the translation work! 😅) Finally, it was inspired by a true story, sadly.

It‘s the type of book that leaves an impression & something to think about. 👍🏾👍🏾