Short, heartwarming, and full of humor. Some of the language is a bit dated, but the moral is still as relevant as it was in the 1800s.
I still think the best screen version is the Muppet version 🎄

This is a "modern interpretation" of Epictetus' teachings, rather than a word for word translation. It's easy-to-read and chock-a-block with great advice and sage wisdom. I don't doubt that I will read it again in the future.

This was a fascinating read. Two different ships wrecked on opposite sides of the same island in 1864. The two groups of survivors had vastly different experiences; one group worked together to survive, while the other suffered from starvation and a lack of leadership.
A great read for anyone who enjoys survival stories or maritime history.
The photo is of the remains of the wreck of the Grafton in the late 1800s.

A delightfully macabre story in the same vein as The Addams Family. A fun, easy read with some poignant moments.

This book was ok. Personally I'm not a fan of Bradbury's writing style, but the story was fun and spooky.

I saw this tree at Jack's Pumpkin Glow festival in Philly this weekend, and it reminded me of the tree in the book 🎃

📕 The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
📼 Legends of the Fall
🎶 Autumn in New York

#manicmonday @JoScho

This book just wasn't for me.
It's too bitter and cynical for my taste, and the author seems to have a very dim view of marriage and relationships. It's kind of like reading the literary equivalent of an Alanis Morrissete album.

At the beginning of this novel, we are introduced to 3 members of the Blackwood family: 18-year-old Merricat, her agoraphobic sister Constance, and elderly Uncle Julian. They are the only survivors of a poisoning that killed the rest of the family 6 years earlier.
It's atmospheric, but disturbing stories with unreliable narrators aren't really my cup of tea. It was under 200 pages, but it still seemed longer than it needed to be.

- After Dark
- Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland
- Dream a Little Dream Of Me

#manicmonday @JoScho

I feel like Pratchett took a hodgepodge of ideas and scenes from his previous 4 books and smooshed them together to make this book. It's not bad but it doesn't really bring anything new to the series. But even if it's not Pratchett's best it was still amusing and I liked the characters.

I'm trying to decide which non-fiction book to read next. Do I want to read about rabies, mummies, a saint, Danish burial mounds, or Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition? 🤔
Has anyone read any of these?

This book was sooo good. I loved the dreamlike atmosphere and the unique characters. Pick this up if you like magical realism or historical fiction.

The photo is of Henry Taunt, a Victorian photographer that inspired one of the characters.

A cute cozy mystery about a newspaper reporter, a Siamese cat, and an art critic.
The ending was a little disappointing but I enjoyed the book overall.

1. Shiloh
2. The Little Rascals
3. Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine
🐕🐩🐕🐩🐕
#manicmonday @JoScho

This is a retelling of The Iliad from the point of view of Briseis, a former queen and the war prize of Achilles.
A beautifully written but very depressing book.

Arrrrr 🏴‍☠️
#alphabetbookishquiz
@RealLifeReading

Basically The Terminator but with angsty teenagers instead of killer robots.

My to-read shelf is getting a little crowded

This is 4th Discworld novel, but it can be read as a standalone book. Death hires a teenaged apprentice and then decides to take some time off.
It's fast-paced and, at times, poignant. What it lacks in character development it makes up for with madcap humor.

The latest book from my #Bookishly subscription.
Isn't the cover great? 😆

Well written, charming, insightful, poignant. Can't go wrong with Steinbeck.

I'm heading to Monterey next week so I'm brushing up on my Steinbeck.

A very sweet story. If you like historical fiction or time travel romance then this is a great read. It starts pretty slow, and the ending felt a little abrupt, but overall it was very enjoyable.
#timetravel #historicalfiction

Well-written and hard to put down.
If you like well-researched historical fiction with strong feminist undertones, then you will probably enjoy this book.
Personally I found it difficult to sympathize with the main character - she did a lot of questionable things and made a lot of bad choices - but this was a fun read nonetheless.

I received this advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.
#thethreemusketeers #ARC #historicalfiction

The other day I asked my grandfather to recommend me a book.
He gave me this stack and said "When you're done with these, I have some more to give you." He apparently has more confidence in my reading speed than I do.
So I guess I'll be reading L'amour for the foreseeable future.
Just finished Fair Blows the Wind...now I guess I'll start on Sackett's Land.

This was an enjoyable story, despite the fact that the heroine was a wishy-washy doormat and the hero was a shameless womanizer.
I can't say that I liked the ending very much.

Imagine a cross between The Monkey's Paw and Frankenstein, but with beer, sex, and a zombie cat. That will give you a pretty good idea of what this book is like.

The first 400 pages or so were more depressing than scary. The fear factor doesn't really pick up until about the 80% mark.

Just received this advance copy of Milady by Laura Sullivan. It's a retelling of The Three Musketeers from the point of view of Milady de Winter. I can't wait to start reading it!

This week's #bookhaul ♥️📖♥️

Crocodile On the Sandbank is a parody of Victorian adventure novels. The mystery element was more in the tradition of Scooby-Doo than Agatha Christie. The most enjoyable part of the novel was the constant bickering between Amelia and Emerson, the cantankerous archaeologist.
Peters managed to balance the views of her characters well; they are not unrealistically modern, but they are also not so old-fashioned that they are offensive.

The Good:
Likeable characters, detailed world building, lots of swashbuckling action, appropriate for any age group or audience

The Bad:
Underdeveloped characters (especially the female characters), too much exposition, a lot of tropes, longer than it needed to be

Not the best fantasy novel I've read, but overall it was very enjoyable. I've already bought the next book in the series and I'm looking forward to reading it.

My first Agatha Christie book! I started it last night and I couldn't put it down. I've admittedly never really liked Hercule Poirot on the screen; the book-version of Poirot is much more likeable. I'm glad there are 32 more Poirot books; I'm looking forward to reading more 😀

I'm hoping this will get me in the spirit for Saint Patrick's Day.
This was one of my grandmother's favorite books. 🍀🇮🇪🍀

Cadfael, a middle-aged monk and former crusader, is an interesting and likeable character. He has just the right balance of scepticism and faith, as well as a healthy curiosity and a taste for mischief.
At just under 200 pages, this book was long enough to keep me interested, but not so long that it felt like a chore to finish. The outcome of the mystery was predictable, but there were enough twists and turns to keep me interested along the way.

I'm about halfway through Book II of the Riyria Revelations. It started a little slow but it's getting better.

Abercrombie has a talent for writing complex, morally ambiguous characters. The world building is subtle, and the tone is dark and gritty, but in a good way. I liked most of the characters, with the exception of Jezal and the two main female characters, Ferro and Ardee. Jezal is a jerk, and both Ferro and Ardee are one-dimensional. Otherwise, though, I really enjoyed this book.

My weird new hobby: historical cooking.
Recipes from ancient Greece and Rome, and Medieval and Renaissance England.

Imaginative, clever, and original. The ending was out of left field, but what else should I expect from Moore? I haven't seen the movie yet, but I hope it lives up to it's source material.

This may be the wordiest graphic novel ever.

Lost Horizon reminds me of the classic adventure novels by Kipling and Verne.
The story starts with the hijacking of a plane which is carrying 4 passengers. When the plane finally lands, the 4 strangers find themselves in a remote lamasery called Shangri La.
Shangri La is depicted as a perfect paradise...but there's a catch. The main character, Conway, is entranced by the beauty of Shangri La, but his friend Mallinson isn't as impressed.

The setting is unique, even if the plot isn't; it's not everyday that I read a murder mystery set in 16th century Germany.
The first chapter hooked me, but I had to slog through the middle. It picks up again towards the end, though. The story could have been told more economically; the book could have easily been reduced down to 300 pages without losing much substance. The characters could have used more development, too.

It was a strange experience reading the original book after seeing so many Hollywood adaptations and derivative stories. Even though I know the basic plot like the back of my hand, this book still managed to surprise me. The writing is a bit old fashioned, but it's a quick, easy read.

Pros: Beautiful writing, compelling plot. The characters are believable and I could sympathize with almost all of them.

Cons: Too many flashbacks and unanswered questions. Annoyingly ambiguous ending.

It borrows a lot from it's dystopian predecessors, but it's a unique and readable story in its own right.

Just discovered the #Libby app... So far, so good 👍

This story was written for Victorian men, so there were a lot of inside jokes and references to freemasonry that were over my head. It was enjoyable and short, but very dated. I honestly preferred the movie.

Short and sweet (about a third of the pages were photos so it's even shorter than it looks). I read this as a kid, but I enjoyed reading it again as an adult. It's message is still relevant. Who knew that a 120 page book about seagulls could be so deep? The recently added Part 4 changes the tone and meaning, though; it ends on kind of a depressing note.

This book has been on my to-read list for a while. I finally bought it so that I can read it before the movie comes out.

When you read this book you really have to think about the time period in which it was written. Some of More's ideas which were revolutionary in the 1500's would now be considered outdated. Readers also need to keep in mind that this book was somewhat satirical - it's likely that not all of his suggestions are serious. Even if you don't agree with More's ideas, it's an interesting and thought-provoking read.

I love reading sci-fi from the 50's and 60's. It's fun to read their predictions about the future. Sometimes they were spot-on; other times, not so much.

Literary scented wax tarts from #Frostbeard Studio... because why not 😉