Fantastic audio production, but could you expect anything less from Tom Hanks? This book is different in a great way. I loved not only getting to know the actors and actresses throughout the shoot, but the background of how the film came to be and the behind the scenes people that make everything run smoothly. Interesting and I learned a little something about the movie business.

This song has always been a favorite of mine and so I‘m sharing that the song has become a Vox book 😂 If you‘re not familiar, Vox books are picture books that read (or in this case sing) along with the reader. Cheers to the next generation of strong, independent women! #Pop23 ~a book with a song lyric as it‘s title

I adored all the characters in this story; each of their eccentric personalities will stay with me a while. I loved how the story unfolded, how Elsa learns about and befriends her neighbors and the connections the neighbors have to one another. Elsa‘s emotions are raw and real in dealing with so much. I also really enjoyed the fairytale aspect of the story. And the ending is the typical feel good Backman ❤️ #pop23 ~a book you bought second hand

A simple storytelling story of a mom who tells her grown daughters of the summer she spent at Tom Lake in a theater production and her relationship with a special someone who became a famous actor. The story also ties in with her chosen life on a farm. Extra points for Meryl Streep‘s narration. #Pop23 ~a book that comes out in the second half of 2023

I enjoyed this #popsugar23 ~ a book about or set in Hollywood. Actress Kitty Karr passes away and unexpectedly leaves her fortune to another wealthy Hollywood family. The story goes between present day Elise tying up Kitty‘s estate and learning Kitty‘s secrets to Kitty‘s life growing up and how she made it in Hollywood. This one has Lessons in Chemistry and Evelyn Hugo vibes.

I‘ve enjoyed listening to this one over the last couple of days. Lesbian, atheist, hypochondriac Gilda lands a job as a secretary at a Roman Catholic Church. Most of this book is spent in Gilda‘s anxiety ridden head. Funny parts around a kinda sad story.

This was recommended to me and thrillers aren‘t my favorite genre. This one took a hot minute to get into but eventually I looked forward listening. I thought the twists were clever, but too far fetched or too many for one story?! Overall it was an okay read. #Pop23 ~a book about a holiday that‘s not Christmas (I‘m going out on a limb, using the British definition of holiday)

An autobiographical graphic novel by Craig Thompson. Craig shares his story growing up in central Wisconsin, his first love, and Catholic upbringing as well as his struggles with his faith and identity. Beautiful story and amazing art ❤️
#Booked2023 ~Quiet YA book

A friend from bookclub has been wanting me to read this for a while now. It‘s a great middle grades graphic novel to highlight deafness or really any disability. It touches a lot on feelings and being different from your peers. #ReadHarder23 ~a graphic novel that represents disabilities
#Pop23 ~a book with a rabbit on the cover

An extremely disturbing book that I could not put down! Fifteen year old Vanessa‘s relationship with her teacher is today‘s Lolita on steroids. Russell did an amazing job of putting me in Vanessa‘s head as a 15 year old and continuing into adulthood.
#Pop23 ~a book about forbidden romance

I‘m not sure what I missed with this one! I was really looking forward to this story with so many glowing reviews but for whatever reason, I just couldn‘t get into it. The world building and characters were good so it was either the writing or the story itself or most likely a combination of the two. #Booked2023 ~Afrofuturism book

I‘m not usually a fan of short stories. They always seem to leave me feeling unfulfilled and wanting more. These short stories were different. Twenty-one stories from authors of color; many different backgrounds, cultures and nationalities, all sharing a story about their time living in the America‘s southern states. Just a little snippet, enough to make you think but not necessarily needing more.

Pretty good listen! This is a story based around a cold case murder but it dives deep into white privilege and racism. I liked that you get to know the characters involved with Alice‘s final night as the timeline slowly unfolds. Narrated by Alice‘s much younger, awkward sister, the reader learns the effects of her sister‘s murder that she‘s carried with her throughout her life. #Booked2023 ~Sunshine Noir

Far from perfect, I enjoyed Connell & Marianne‘s relationship. It‘s messy, and sometimes ugly, and often miscommunicated, but throughout it all, their bond is beautiful. I really liked Rooney‘s writing style and look forward to reading more from her. #Pop23 ~a booktok recommendation *I edited this to a booktok rec

I liked the weirdness of this one but it dragged on and I struggled a bit trying to keep up with who is in what family. #Booked2023 ~Featuring neighbors

I loved this one and Kuang is becoming a favorite author of mine! My bookclub had a long and in-depth discussion about so many aspects of this story. I‘m going to have to read her Poppy Wars series now.

Books and chocolate? Yes please! This was a cute ADULT book by beloved children‘s author Sandra Boynton. It‘s a nonfiction about chocolate with all of her wonderful humor. It was recommended by a parent after storytime in which a Sandra Boynton book was shared. ❤️

I was curious about Hunter since he seems to be in the news a lot. His memoir talks about his many life heartaches, his alcoholism, drug addiction and his many, many bad choices. I‘m hoping he can continue his path of sobriety and I‘m cheering for him. I liked that he read his audiobook.

I finished up this little rom-com book before work today. I enjoyed the way Henry told the story through a decade of vacations, alternating with the present vacation. I also liked the characters. It took me longer to finish because once I set the book down, I wasn‘t pulled back to it to see what would happen next. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
#Pop23 ~a book about a vacation

Strangely, I really enjoyed this book even though I couldn‘t stand the characters. They were all awful, and the plot was based on the characters awfulness. The story and the writing are top notch and would make a great discussion! Tons to discuss including the publishing industry, what an author should/shouldn‘t write about, mental health, cyber bullying, effects of social media. #Pop23 ~a book with a color in the title

This will take me a hot minute to process and is quite possibly the best memoir I‘ve ever read. I listened to the audio read by the author. It‘s his migrant story of making the trek from El Salvador to the United States to be reunited with his parents. He was 9 years old, traveling alone with a small group of refugees and coyotes. This one has all the feelings. #ReadHarder2023 read a book you know nothing about based solely on the cover

Lots of hype over this one! I adored the main character as well as the ‘supporting‘ characters. The 1960‘s setting was great and I loved the female takes against the patriarchy world of the time period. Reading this also made me nervous for my daughter going into the STEM field for her career, even in today‘s environment. 😬
#Pop23 ~a book with a pet character

For some reason, this book took me 5 weeks to read but I sure did love it! Kingsolver created a wonderful story about the western VA, eastern TN Appalachia country, the poverty that strickens these people, the foster care system and the opioids crisis. I‘ve read a lot of nonfiction on these topics and it was nice to read a fictional story. #booked2023 ~set in a mountain region
#Pop23 ~a book you think your best friend would like

I didn‘t care for this one at all, which is unfortunate because I loved People of the Book and Horse. The story had a lot of potential, but I found it to be a boring and annoying read. At least I completed #Pop23 ~a book with an alliteration in the title

I remember the news story of the SUV that was driven off the cliff in California. This is a journalistic approach to this incident. Jennifer and Sarah adopted two sets of siblings for a total of 6 kids. We learn the stories of both sets of families whose children were adopted as well as Jennifer and Sarah‘s story, and the time with these children. Such a sad story all around and an eye opener to the issues with the foster system\CPS in America. 💔

The Escape Artist is an excellent historic/biography that I listened to. It‘s the story of Walter Rosenburg, later Rudolf Vrba, who, along with Alfred Wetzler escaped Auschwitz. He is given credit to sounding the bell about what was happening at Auschwitz. A sad story but an important one. Winner of the National Jewish Book Award. #Booked2023 ~wrongly incarcerated main character #Pop23 ~a book with a map

Such a beautiful story of friendship and
family. And Marcellus the octopus was a wonderful addition to the story. All the feels for this one. Looking forward to a book club discussion next month.

“I am the law” This is the story of a KKK Grand Dragon in Indiana, 1920‘s; how he accumulated the power he did in 4 years and the woman who took him down. Thank goodness for women like Madge. D.C Stephenson was a horrible man, and I see similarities in another awful American figure today. This is why ALL history should be learned, not just some history. #Booked2023 ~about a monster

Excited to start this one! 😊

#Pop23 ~a book you meant to read in 2022 (checked out of the library for ~5 months!)
#ReadHarder23 ~a challenge from the previous years challenge “Best_Writing of the year *Stonewall Book Award, Asian/Pacific American award, National Book Award
I really enjoyed this story. It was slow at the beginning but I loved the 50‘s era, LGBTQ+ and Chinese American history, San Fran ❤️

Fitting to be finishing this at Lo‘s alma mater while dorm stuff get transported to a storage unit. ❤️ #WellesleyCollege

#Booked2023 ~Book was more weird than expected
(I had no idea it was about a possessed puppet!) I love how Hendrix intertwines different genres into his stories. This one begins laugh out loud funny, then gets creepy, a little gory, turns horror, yet stays consistently funny and has a sweet ending. Puppets are super creepy and Pupkin is no exception. It also reminds me how important communication is, especially among family.

I love this movie so I thought I‘d check out the book. Now to wait for vol 2 through an interlibrary loan.

A great memoir for Asian Pacific American month! This memoir focuses on her parents health and the American healthcare for the poor. Living on the opposite coast and not being able to care for them as she‘d like causes a lot of anxiety and guilt that comes from that. I‘m looking forward to reading her first memoir, All You Can Never Know, focusing on her adoption.
#Pop23 ~a book published in spring 2023

There‘s been a lot of love for this book so I‘m in the minority for this one. There were definitely interesting parts, but some parts were a bore. It‘s well researched, an interesting overall book but too long for me. I am looking forward to discussing it at book club and I‘m pretty sure I know the readers of the group who will have enjoyed the book and those who DNF 😂

This was so well done! It‘s an LGBTQ coming of age story, part fiction, part autobiographical taking place during a week of scout camp the summer before Aiden goes to high school. It had me in tears at the end and brought back fond memories of my son‘s scouting years. All the feels for this one! Top 5 most challenged books in 2022 per ALA. #ReadHarder2023 #Pop23 ~a book that‘s been banned or challenges in any state in 2022

Happy National Library Workers Day to those that work the library world! ❤️

#Booked2023 pandemic
#Pop23 longest book on TBR
My laws! This was a terrific story! King‘s longest book to date (the uncut version.) I never felt a lull in the story. I loved the characters, and how complicated they were. Over the years, I‘ve been told time and again to read this one or how it‘s a favorite of King‘s work by so many, and I‘m happy to say, this one lives up to the hype! I loved it!

Brought this one home for Right to Read day. I probably won‘t start it until tomorrow, but it got the checkout today.

I loved the writing style of this autobiography, going through the years, highlighting historic events and pop culture. Overviews of the years rather than the nitty-gritty of daily life. The tie-in at the end was well done! #Pop23 ~A book that features two languages (translated from French)

Disclaimer: I have never watched a Harry Potter movie all the way through; however, my kid would binge the whole series, yearly 😆
I adored hearing Tom tell stories of his time growing up on the HP set, his shenanigans and personal stories of those he worked with. I constantly pictured a 12 yo Tom as Draco. I also loved what he shared about mental health and how open he is ❤️
#Pop23 ~a book based on a popular movie (thinking outside the box)

#Pop23 ~A book becoming a TV series or movie in 2023
Not my usual genre to be hooked on but I really enjoyed listening to this one! I liked how the author kept me wondering “who IS Owen and what could his past possibly be?”

Whelp, I figured out webcomics, & found a completed one! I used Tapas and read on my closing nights at work which is always slow. This one happens to have been published by Scholastic so I was able to compare the web & print versions and I loved the web version! Episodes came out weekly. It was interactive with the author/illustrator running contests, question & answers etc. It was really a lot of fun and I‘m looking for my next Tapas read!

#Pop23 & #Booked2023 ~a love triangle.
It‘s really the fictional story of Nan, Archie Christie‘s 2nd wife, and takes place during the eleven mysterious days that Agatha Christie goes missing which had actually happened. It was a decent mystery read with some twists at the end but nothing memorable IMO. @alisiakae @Cinfhen @BarbaraTheBibliophage

Yay! I remembered to enter #Booked2023 this quarter!
#4 Booked described with words “twist” - The Marriage Portrait
#6 Proper name in title -The Great Gatsby
#8 New in 2023 -Hijab Butch Blues
#11 Set in two+ time periods -The Waiting
#12 Title starts with a V or W -Waco
#15 Book featuring three generations -Memphis
#21 Gaslight fantasy -Interview with a Vampire
#22 By an author who‘s no longer living -No Longer Human

An in-depth account of Edgar Allen Poe‘s life. Living outside of Baltimore, there seems to be constant reminders of the poet/writer. I learned a lot about him through this audio and I enjoyed the thoughts surrounding his mysterious death. Now I need to visit his house museum & grave and check out the newly renovated Lexington Market while I‘m at it! #Pop23 ~a book where the main character‘s name is in the title

Marriage and family. It‘s not always easy. You have to work at it, compromise, and sometimes you find you are just not happy enough to stick it out in the long run. The characters also have many regrets in life, but life is about choices, growing, and learning along the way. Read this for a work program, senior center book club. #ReadHarder23 ~Read an author local to you #Pop23 ~A book about divorce

Bernie tells it like it is. He has suggestions but doesn‘t have a lot of clear answers on how to realistically fix the wealth inequity, healthcare, education etc in this country, but he brings it all up to fume about. It‘s good for Americans to hear what he has to say and to get mad about it. Loved his audio narration.

Fantastic read! The story of 3 generations of strong, black women from Memphis, TN and their ups and downs in this so called life. I really enjoyed the writing style. The chapters of each woman/narrator goes back and forth through the years and their stories are pieced together rather than going straight through a timeline. #ReadHarder23 ~listen to an audiobook performed by a POC of a book written by an AOC #Booked2023 ~featuring 3 generations

“I must now admit that I was still afraid of human beings, and before I could meet even the customers in the bar I had to fortify myself by gulping down a glass of water.” Some say this story is Dazai‘s suicide note. It‘s a sad and dark and painful story of Oba Yazo who has never had a connection to anyone around him. I wanted to read this before reading Junji Ito‘s graphic novel version. #Booked2023 ~by an author no longer living