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Bellevue Square
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
81 posts | 39 read | 36 to read
From award-winning and bestselling author Michael Redhill comes a darkly comic literary thriller about a woman who fears for her sanity--and then her life--when she learns that her doppelganger has appeared in a local park. Jean Mason has a doppelganger. At least, that's what people tell her. Apparently it hangs out in Kensington Market, where it sometimes buys churros and shops for hats. Jean doesn't rattle easy, not like she used to. She's a grown woman with a husband and two kids, as well as a thriving business, and Toronto is a fresh start for the whole family. She certainly doesn't want to get involved in anything dubious, but still . . . why would two different strangers swear up and down they'd just seen her--with shorter hair furthermore? Jean's curiosity quickly gets the better of her, and she visits the market, but sees no one who looks like her. The next day, she goes back to look again. And the day after that. Before she knows it, she's spending an hour here, an afternoon there, watching, taking notes, obsessing and getting scared. With the aid of a small army of locals who hang around in the market's only park, she expands her surveillance, making it known she'll pay for information or sightings. A peculiar collection of drug addicts, scam artists, philanthropists, philosophers and vagrants--the regulars of Bellevue Square--are eager to contribute to Jean's investigation. But when some of them start disappearing, it becomes apparent that her alleged double has a sinister agenda. Unless Jean stops her, she and everyone she cares about will face a fate stranger than death.
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blurb
Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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The day after watching Everything Everywhere All at Once, I came across this passage in the tagged novel: “it‘s everything everywhere all the time.” 🤪

rabbitprincess I really should watch this movie! 12mo
Soubhiville Such a great movie and title. Planning a rewatch soon. 12mo
Lindy @rabbitprincess @Soubhiville watching it is an exhilarating experience! 12mo
25 likes3 comments
review
Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

If you are up for a wild ride, this one is a lot of fun. A warm, witty logic puzzle made up of doppelgängers, autoscopy, murder, transdimensional cookery, and a large number of people with varying degrees of mental health. Bookshop owner Jean is an unreliable guide through the mayhem, but I loved her anyway. #CanadianAuthor

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Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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“No-mind is administered in small doses at first. That allows the subject to acclimatize to super-high doses before they get any of the negative side effects like death or sporing.”🤪

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Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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When Ian gets home, he encourages the kids to go downstairs and play a board game. This is like asking them to wear top hats, but their father has a convincing way.

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Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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May was on its way, thank god. We were getting inoculations of sun. Winter here arrives, stays, persists, goes away a little, then comes back and people start leaping off the bridges. That‘s approximately March, when jumping is at its apogee, but even then, winter isn‘t over. What it likes to do is go away for a week in April and then return for three days and finish grandpa off.

marleed That‘s a great line! 12mo
Lindy @marleed The dark humour in this novel appeals to me, especially right now when I‘m sick of winter. 12mo
35 likes2 comments
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Lindy
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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I have a bookshop called Bookshop. I do subtlety in other areas of my life.

CarolynM 😆 12mo
34 likes1 stack add1 comment
review
hdhubbard
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
Panpan

4/10

First half of the book is a snooze, last half a lot happens but I felt it was an unfinished or rushed ending. If the intent was to blur the line between reality and hallucinations, the author definitely succeeded. Not something I would read again,

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BeeMagical
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

Book 82? 3⭐️

I won‘t lie, I‘m still a tad confused by this one? I think if I read it again, a lot more would make sense now!

Jean has been told she has a doppelgänger, but has never seen her. After countless stakeouts, things begin to take a very real and strange turn..

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BeeMagical
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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How curious…

Everything is connected✨

Suet624 🤣🤣❤️❤️ 2y
IuliaC Synchronicity 😁 2y
29 likes2 comments
review
NaomiO
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

Loved this book. Definitely a great read. Some parts we hard to understand, but it is a book that takes you on an in depth look and journey into mental illnesses. I also loved reading a book that takes place in the city I live in, in an area that I adore. It gives me a whole new look into Toronto!

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NaomiO
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill

" Navigate a world where half of everything you know is a reflection, a refraction, or a memory"

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Jess861
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Mehso-so

Photos from Pinterest and Google Images

Bellevue Square was an ok read. It was well written and had some good twists but I found the middle portion of the book to be somewhat confusing. It brings up a great discussion about mental health and awareness. Just wasn't what I was expecting - which doesn't necessarily mean it is a bad book.

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emilycoc
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

I read a few reviews before starting this one and didn‘t think I‘d enjoy this, but I did! Edit: this is my 5th book of 2019!

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Gzot
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

I really enjoy reading novels set in my home city of Toronto. It adds a layer of reality to the story because I know where events are happening. Which for this book it resonates even more. I know the streets Jean walks on. I'm with her as she crosses Dundas into confusion. I knew the park she sat in and wondered what's real. The actual Bellevue park is gone now erased by the city. I wonder if Ingrid had something to do with it?

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emilycoc
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Going to start this one next - a read from my besty!

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Clwojick
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Putting a pause on this one, to read a few more comics and graphics. Thanks to a quiet house, and some good quality headphones, I am able to tackle these audiobooks at 3x the speed. That‘ll help me get through more of my stack this weekend.

My current time is 10hrs 4mins #24B4Monday

@TheReadingMermaid

BeansPage Woohoo!!! 10:53min for me! We're rocking this readathon! 6y
Clwojick @TheReadingMermaid Yeah we are! 🙌🏻 6y
71 likes2 comments
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Clwojick
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Starting the tagged audiobook while I tackle a project I‘ve been wanting to do for a while. I‘m creating a notebook specifically to organize and document my #NetGalley arcs. I have been approved for over 700 books since March, and I‘m finding it hard to track what books I have, when I‘ve read them, and which ones I‘ve already reviewed. This will take me a while to write out, but I‘m hoping to list all the ones I‘ve already #readandreviewed

MelissaSue81 Oh my! 700 is a lot of ARCs! How many have you read? 6y
FairyHighRoad That‘s a great idea! I have about 30 books and feel overwhelmed. I can‘t imagine 700!! 6y
See All 7 Comments
Clwojick @MelissaSue81 I‘ve reviewed 267 so far, but I have read about 20-30 more that I haven‘t yet reviewed. 6y
MelissaSue81 😯 6y
SilversReviews That is a lot of books, and I love your notebook. 5y
jillannjohn WOW! 700!!! I have like 5 I can‘t find time to get to. 😂 You‘re amazing! 5y
95 likes7 comments
review
melissajayne
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Panpan

⭐️⭐️ It was ok. Didn‘t really understand the point of it or what it was about.

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melissajayne
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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I love order. I also like shelving and cataloguing books. My first paid job after university was cataloguing books for a school district.

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melissajayne
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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melissajayne
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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review
emma.kate
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
Mehso-so

Consuming and confusing! Redhill does a great job of making the reader feel as off kilter and unsure about the nature of reality as his protagonist. I loved a lot of it. Sometimes I felt like skimming through overly dense passages to find out what happens... The end left me searching the internet for other reviews to try to understand what I might have missed. I'm also not totally convinced of his writing from a female perspective.

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Naomis-shelf
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Mehso-so

This was one of the weirdest books I have ever read. It makes you think like you have a mental illness. I could never tell what was real and what in the main characters head. I couldn‘t even tell you with certainty what her name was. It made me think about mental health and homelessness in a new way. I have a new understanding of how they impact one another. #24in48 #secondchallenge

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janeycanuck
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Mehso-so

Between a so-so and a pan... I just don‘t understand what happened - did any of the events of the book actually happen? Who was real and who was a figment of the imagination? Can anyone explain it to me?

Cinfhen It‘s a really beautiful photo...sorry can‘t help u with the book 😉 6y
Bibliogeekery I was also very confused by this book and wasn't sure what part was supposed to be "real". 6y
janeycanuck @Bibliogeekery oh, good. Glad I‘m not the only one! 6y
See All 6 Comments
janeycanuck @Cinfhen Thanks - the photo is what I like most about the book 😊 6y
Bibliogeekery @janeycanuck please tag me if someone provides an explanation because I would love to hear it! 6y
lisakoby Bailed. Takes the unreliable narrator off the cliff. 6y
19 likes6 comments
blurb
janeycanuck
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Beautiful night for some outdoor reading. This book is so weird, though.

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Clwojick
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Oooo! Found this at the thrift store for $3 today, and couldn‘t pass it up. Have any of my fellow Littens read this? Did you enjoy it? Please let me know. ☺️ #thriftshopping #thriftstore #greatfind

StephanieGeiser I love that mug!! 6y
PenguinInFlight I love the mug, too! 😍 6y
Clwojick @StephanieGeiser @PenguinInFlight I actually bought it at Walmart for $3 ♥️👌 6y
92 likes3 comments
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CathyJ
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Bailedbailed

I just could not get into this one and found the writing really hard to follow. Just too many good books waiting to be read to waste my time.

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susanw
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Total truth!!!!

Stolen from @bookriot on Facebook

BkClubCare So true 6y
81 likes1 comment
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xicanti
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Bailedbailed

A couple months back, I read a novel I initially liked, then admired sans affection, then hated. I wish I'd bailed on it.

BELLEVUE SQUARE has almost nothing in common with that book, plot-wise, but as of the 100-page mark I've got the same vibe off it.

So goodbye, CanLit that seemed to embody several of my literary preoccupations but never spoke to my soul. Others will love you the way I couldn't.

44 likes1 stack add
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xicanti
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Gonna tackle a loaner book on this Easter Monday afternoon. BELLEVUE SQUARE came from my poshest aunt, who writes her marginalia with a fountain pen.

readordierachel Her handwriting is lovely! 6y
46 likes1 comment
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readherwriteher
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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I must know: HOW do you keep the oils from your skin staining your cloth hardcover books? It is driving me crazy. 🤯 HELP.

curious_niffler I‘d also love to know the answer😂 6y
readherwriteher @curious_niffler maybe there isn‘t one. 😫😫😫😫 6y
curious_niffler The struggle is real! 6y
readherwriteher @curious_niffler I‘m considering wearing little white gloves. I‘m anal like that. 😂🤷🏻‍♀️ 6y
curious_niffler Omg that‘s one hundred percent something I‘d do😂 6y
93 likes5 comments
review
Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

This was a really engaging read. The twists in the story were unexpected and confusing at times. It's hard to say much about the book, aside from the evocative description of Kensington Market in Toronto, without spoiling the plot. I'd be really curious to hear from those of you who read it. What did you think?? What even happened in this book? (You could mark your comments with spoiler alerts)

KarenJMcLean This is on my list. Thanks for the review! 6y
DebbieGrillo My friend and I did a buddy read of this last night. It took the two of us together to come up with this: Jean isn't real. She is a figment of Ingrid's imagination/hallucination, as a result of Ingrid's mental illness. We think... 6y
Bibliogeekery @DebbieGrillo Fascinating theory! So the main character is the hallucination! Wow. That does make sense - particularly with the ending! Did you like it? 6y
DebbieGrillo Even though it was confusing, I loved it! It think it helped to talk about it. 6y
Bibliogeekery @DebbieGrillo I loved it too! But I can imagine that it would be helpful to have someone to talk to about it. I found myself searching reviews and interviews online but nothing was quite answering my questions! 6y
54 likes3 stack adds5 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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My_novel_obsession Beautiful! 6y
AceOnRoam So beautiful. 6y
batsy Love this! 6y
Izai.Amorim Great picture 👍 6y
65 likes4 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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On the streetcar passing through Kensington Market as I listen to a book set in Kensington Market. #cheapthrills #eternalbooknerd

JanuarieTimewalker13 Hahaha!!! Love that!! 6y
BookishTrish ❤️❤️❤️Kensington Market 6y
80 likes2 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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#audiobookwalk. This book is so quirky - I like it but I'm still not sure what's going on! Bonus points for being set in so many familiar Toronto locations.

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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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This quotation got me where it hurts. I‘ve been having some problems with my memory lately and even though I am super passionate about reading I don‘t retain much for long afterwards besides general feelings.

Laura317 I am the same way! Glad to know I‘m not alone in that. 6y
JanuarieTimewalker13 Uhmm, I think it‘s hard when you‘re an avid reader to remember character‘s names.Think about how much more your taking into your brain than a non reader. Spoken by a woman who just put a bottle cap into a drawer instead of back on the bottle. Lol ...I need coffee. 6y
JanuarieTimewalker13 @Laura317 exactly!! I think it‘s this day in age, also. There‘s just too much vying for our attention. 6y
batsy Yes. I often have this panicky feeling of "where does it all go?" 6y
61 likes4 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Drinking coffee, listening to my audiobook and watching the snow fall in my backyard before my first client comes. ❄️☕📚😍

Cathythoughts Beautiful 6y
JanuarieTimewalker13 It‘s just gloomy icy rain here. Nothing like snow if you don‘t have to leave the house! So pretty and calming! 6y
73 likes2 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Audiobook at the optometrist. I *hate* that machine that puffs air in your eyes! I'm distracting myself with this quirky narrative set in very familiar Kensington Market (Toronto) locations!

Tamra It‘s the worst part. 6y
AmyG I hate that, too. 6y
CouronneDhiver Ugh, yep. The whole process gives me the heebie jeebies 6y
See All 10 Comments
jfalkens I'm not sure if anyone likes that part 😂 6y
julesG I'm glad to be living on the other side of the Atlantic. No such machines here. No air being puffed against the eye. Whatever do they do that for? 6y
Tamra @julesG I believe it tests pressure for glaucoma. Someone correct me if I‘m wrong..... 6y
Scurvygirl I had the eye doctor yesterday. I fail that test, every year, they even try to do the blue light instead. Nope, big eye baby, right here. Luckily, now that I have Sjogren‘s Syndrome I have other tests to be done to check for potential eye problems.😿😹 6y
julesG @Tamra Ah! Then I'm too young for that. I suppose. 😜 6y
readordierachel OMG, I hate that machine too. It takes me forever to stop flinching enough for it to work. 6y
CaroPi I hate that machine too! But I had some operations in my eyes a couple of years ago. That machine is nothing compared to remove stiches from the eyes... And to be honest they don't hurt 6y
48 likes10 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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#audiobookwalk Can't get enough winter trees! Also - I'm enjoying this kooky book while wondering where it is heading!

HotMessJess 😻😻 6y
Kmmsellers Great picture! I love winter trees, too! 6y
63 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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I love that the Bellevue Square in this book is an actual park that I've spent a great deal of time in so it's extra fun to picture all the hijinks going on there. Here's the statue of the King of Kensington in the park. He's always in the middle of people's conversations.

shawnmooney That‘s wonderful! I picked up a copy at Xmas and can‘t wait to get to it! 6y
60 likes1 comment
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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DebbieGrillo I'm reading this now. 6y
Bibliogeekery @DebbieGrillo I'm so curious where it's going! 6y
2BR02B Lovely photo. 6y
68 likes3 comments
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DebbieGrillo
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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#truth "It's much worse."

laurieluna Me and my parents were talking about this today. I leave my phone in different rooms a lot so I don't get distracted by it. So many people complain about being time poor but how did everyone manage 20+ years ago? We don't sit down and talk in cafes anymore. It's all 'to go'. We don't know the value of an hour any more as we easily waste it watching videos of strangers doing the things we ought to be doing ourselves. 6y
Tkekacs 🙌🏻 6y
Crowcrumbs I was also just talking about this today too! We all get Amber and Silver alerts on our phones, but I wondered aloud, how can they do any good when we‘re constantly looking at our phone and never look up to evaluate our surroundings or talk to people around us? 6y
minkyb Love this! 6y
89 likes2 stack adds4 comments
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DebbieGrillo
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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1. Got my son to bring home donairs. Thanks @MinDea for the prompt to have an interesting (yummy) lunch.

2. I like commenting and getting comments, even better when this leads to conversations that lead to genuine connection.

3. Narrative poetry. I think the one that made me fall in love with the genre was called Life on the Refrigerator Door.

4. Sardines.

5. Coffee

#HumpDayPost

BeckyandBooks Yes to the coffee! 🙌🏼☕️🙌🏼 6y
Velvetfur I love your answer to question 2, that's so sweet 😊 6y
MinDea That looks yummy!!!! 6y
DebbieGrillo Have you ever had one? @MinDea It's Greek. Like a gyro but with a sweet garlicky sauce. So yummy! 6y
MinDea I love gyros! But haven't had that before and that sauce sounds yummy!!!! 6y
93 likes5 comments
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DebbieGrillo
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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"His philosophy is that as soon as something bad happens, it's already in the past, but good things reach into the future. So he ignores the bad things. I accuse him of toxic positive thinking; he says he's making his own reality to counteract the odds."

Bibliogeekery Are you enjoying it? I'm liking it so far! 6y
DebbieGrillo @Bibliogeekery Only on page 34, but so far it's holding my interest. 6y
Lcsmcat Interesting premise. I‘ll be watching for your review once you finish. 6y
93 likes3 comments
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Is that SUNSHINE I see?☀️#audiobooklunch

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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Coffee and audiobook before my first client arrives. Watching the rain and feeling grateful that I work from home today ☔☕📚

DebbieGrillo Starting this one now. 6y
65 likes1 comment
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Bibliogeekery
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Next audiobook!

CathyJ Oh I have this one ready to read soon! 6y
42 likes1 stack add1 comment
review
KendallMorganHall
Bellevue Square | Michael Redhill
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Pickpick

What a weird, weird, weird book. I don‘t know what to say about it without including spoilers like crazy. I wish I was in a book club so I could hear other people‘s take on the ending. I would definitely recommend this one, but it is probably not for everyone.

Reggie You had me at weird weird weird. Lol 6y
20 likes1 comment