Got the chips and dip and the puppy in the same picture. #dailychallenge and even though he looks like he would eat the chips, he would never. This is the dog we rescued and he came trained not to eat human food even if it drops on the floor. He was just happy I was making kissing sounds and saying his name and giving him attention. He still has some puppy in him at one years old. The dip is salsa con queso. @Andrew65 @DieAReader

This was a good horror book and historical fiction. Quick read.

I loved the characters, the ghosts, the town, the animals. It was just a bit busy for a novel. I definitely want there to be a sequel and revisit the characters. I think if you like The Book Thief then you will like this book.

Read this one for book club. It is utterly heart wrenching and very difficult to stomach. However, it needs to be written about, as this bit of history is not taught in most schools. I never even heard about in college. Beautifully written.

Wow we got a clue super early for the April BOTM

I didn‘t buy myself a book last week, very proud of myself. But I did buy myself a bookend. I thought a black cat would be perfect for my witchathon read bookshelf. Sorry the lighting was terrible.

An amazing debut. Would not be surprised if this gets put in the year finalists.

I am working my way through this series. They are much lighter than your usual cozy mysteries. In this one, the mystery is solved in 24 hours which I liked. There was an editing mistake that stood out. But I will keep reading the others. This one also gave off the Autumn vibes.

This one gives off all the summer vibes.

My picks for the month.

Calling for February since my new book is my March book club book. For February, A Molecule Away From Madness is my favorite. Honorable mention for The Night Tiger.

I wish I read this one sooner. I didn‘t see the twists at the end coming, but I liked the ending.

Found the softest pillow and softest blanket for reading (at Target). Tonight is laundry night and I am going to sit in my library with the fire going and a candle and read for a few hours. And there are snow flurries outside, a sleeping dog, and tea.

This is the best medical nonfiction I have read since Henrietta Lacks. It needs way more hype. The book explores how various molecules led to neurological conditions, some rare some common. It explores the history and the scientists that discover and study the disease. It has specific examples of patients with the diseases. It is very narrative and easy to read. I learned a lot. It is short, less than 200 pages, read it in one day. Add it to stack

This was such a cute rom com. If you like You Got Mail you will like this book. I appreciate the recipes too. Good debut. Would make a good movie.

Recent book haul

Valentines gift from husband. For every gift giving holiday he gives me books with flowers in the title. A long time ago I told him I would rather him spend the money on books than flowers that die in a week, and a tradition was born.

This was good enough to read the next book when it comes out. I did think the main character was a little dense sometimes. Couldn‘t get to the deep dish pizza restaurant so I made these little pizza bites.

I liked it. Not my favorite of hers but it is good. I think there was a small pacing problem, because she spent 100 plus pages on the making of the album and only about 20 on the famous break up. But I liked the story and the structure. I think the parts I didn‘t like were “me problems” because the 70s rock n roll drug use was just not a era I wanted to spend much time in I will definitely watch the tv show and more of the author #authorofthemonth

Top pic for January with an honorable mention to The Last Chance Library

My picks for BOTM this month

This was a slow burn thriller. There are a bunch of twists in the end, some I saw coming, others I didn‘t. Overall, I did like it and there are some nice quotes in it. Just not my favorite thriller from BOTM.

This book is beautiful. The way the author describes the beauty and brutality of nature reminds me a little of Jack London, but it is very readable like The Secret Life of Bees or Where the Crawdads Sing. The book is set in the near future when climate change makes Florida sink. There is a coming of age story, and magical realism. I read it straight through last night. Deserves more hype and a ton of awards.

What did I just read?

This is my all time favorite tea, the organic cinnamon rooibos chai from DavidsTea. I always keep it in stock. I like to add honey and sugar, sometimes lemon and ginger. I could drink this all day.

This is a soft pick. There are many things I loved about the book - the readability, the combination of memoir and narrative nonfiction, how fascinating and mysterious the eel is. But honestly, I just don‘t care about eels enough and it felt like the whole book was just saying the same thing over and over (we don‘t know Jack about eels). I would definitely read another book by the author. Read for #naturallitsy @AllDebooks

This was an unexpected gem. I can see why it is on the National Book award long list. I loved the prose. Trigger warning: graphic body horror. The book itself was incredibly heavy even though it is under 300 pages. I will definitely get anymore books by this author though.

This book is utterly charming and an ode to libraries. Libraries aren‘t just place for books and information, but they are sanctuaries. This book warmed my very soul and gave me all the feels. First 5 ⭐️read of the year. A most read for everyone.

Another good one from the series. Loved seeing Diesel again since it has been awhile since she wrote one in his series. Had all the funny zingers, Lula moments, and other elements that keep me liking the series. Light easy read. Laugh out loud funny.

The glitch yesterday wouldn‘t let me post yesterday for #nationalhotteaday. But I reviewed the tea that they dumped in the harbor during the Boston Tea Party. Someone brought this for me from the Boston Tea Museum. It is called Singlo and is a green tea from China. In general, I am not a fan of green tea, but this one isn‘t the worst. It definitely needs sugar and honey added to make it taste less grassy. But if you like green tea, it is for you.

I read this for #authorofthemonth. I am a little disappointed. I heard good things, and there were some good things about the book. But it felt like the narrator was telling me a chaotic life story with tangents while bouncing on the balls of her feet. She was a bit maniac. Also it is clearly auto fiction and yet the author wrote herself into the book. I think she should have written it as a memoir if she wanted to focus so much on current events.

In honor of my Litsy anniversary and new screen name I got some new tea to review. I ordered the Tea Forte brand Warming Joy collection. Today‘s flavor is Winter Chai, a rooibos tea. This is a descent tea, but it needs some honey, sugar, and maybe a lemon slice. I do like this tea, but I like the DavidsTea organic cinnamon rooibos chai better. So I won‘t keep this one in stock, but I definitely would order it at tea shop.

In honor of my 6th Litsy anniversary I have changed my screen name from mdm139 to TEArificbooks. I feel TEArificbooks fits me better since I post tea reviews as well as book reviews.

These are the books I read in 2022 that made it really hard to pick a favorite book of the month and almost made it as the favorite for their month.

These are the best books I read for each month. January is at the bottom, working up to December on top.

This book was adorable. Perfect for a Hallmark movie. Best holiday rom com I read this year. And I would even read if I was stuck at the airport for four days like so many people are currently. It made me laugh out loud several times, but also gave me the warm fuzzies.

These are the books I read this year that were so good I immediately bought the sequel.

BOTM has switched over to the new challenges for 2023

Time for some end of the year wrap up photos. Here are all the nonfiction books I read this year. I try to read at least 12 each year.

My selections this month. I wanted the add ons more than the books for this month.

I got this book because we are doing a homeschool unit study on the periodic table of elements and my son is obsessed with the topic. I saw Bill Gates recommended it so I thought I should read it. This is a very good summary of periodic table, but also the history of chemistry and the evolution of scientific thought and technology. It is narrative, but some places require a bit more brain power to understand. Not for bedtime reading.

Wow. I think future generations need to read this book to see how bad this pandemic is. The fear, the unpreparedness, the politics, etc. this story also makes me livid (to say the least) that in a modern world people can ask multiple times for help and not receive any to the point people died. This book maybe very triggering.

One of my Christmas gifts. My new favorite reading spot. I may never leave.

This was a good thriller. I didn‘t see some of the twists coming.

Bookish problem - on the holiday with family over, every time I try to open my book someone talks to me.

Today‘s tea is called Sugar Pear Fairy. A fruit infusion tea. This tea is very subtle. Add nothing as it would turn the tea very bitter. Not good enough to keep in stock, but I didn‘t hate it. Overall, this advent calendar was their best yet. I liked all the teas, some better than others.

Today‘s tea is Santa‘s Secret. A black tea with just the right amount of peppermint. It has the cutest candy cane sprinkles. It is very smooth and well balanced. You can anything you want to it. I could keep this in stock.