So awesome to read about something you‘ve seen and admired. Designed by my favorite sculptor Bernini, made in 1649 in Piazza Navona, Rome, for Pope Innocent X.

“The Four Rivers Fountain is a seventeenth-century wonder, a tourist attraction to this very day. The center looks like a primeval rock from which water gushes and the obelisk rises. At the bottom of the rock are a horse, a lion, and a palm tree, writhing in theatrical contortions. ⬇️

❤️❤️❤️❤️ all things cats! This is hilarious! Thank you @BookishMarginalia for the card and Christmas stickers for #holidaycardswap! @TheBookHippie

And still so happy you‘re back on Litsy!

A chunky beautiful little blue jay! ❤️ Thank you @Skygoddess1 for the card for #winternaturecardswap! @TheBookHippie

Thank you @TheBookHippie for the cards and stickers for #holidaycardswap and #winternaturecardswap! I love the birds so much!

@BookwormAHN Thank you for the fun and the gorgeous card and all the goodies (❤️ Hello Kitty!) for #holidaycardswap and #winternaturecardswap! So awesome! @TheBookHippie

#wordoftheday

“By seventeenth-century standards, Innocent was thought to be financially incorrupt. Though he had given and received bribes on the way up, as everyone did, he was never accused in any capacity whatsoever of stealing money from the church, and his lifestyle had always been abstemious.”

At least our healthcare is better than this!!

#Italy #Jubilee #foodandlit

This author is an awesome nonfiction writer. Talk about bringing the 17th century to life!! This! 😂😂😂

#Italy #Jubilee #foodandlit

Last Wednesday daughter and I went to our favorite Italian restaurant and had pizzas that rivaled the best we had in #Italy. #Jubilee #foodandlit

#wordofthesday

“In addition, Olimpia gave dowries to seven poor girls in San Martino who otherwise would not be able to marry. In a touching tribute to her immured sister, Olimpia stipulated that for twenty years after her death, seven poor women would receive a nice dress on the Feast of Saint Orsola, Ortensia‘s patron saint.”

An oldie but a goodie #holidayhumor

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSKtV-RDn7E/?igsh=MTFvdG4weWpyd3ZucA==

The results are in! These are our #FoodAndLit countries for 2026. To participate read a book that takes place in the country or is by an author from the country. Also enjoy food from the country. Share your experience with the tag #FoodandLit & tag @Texreader and new teammates!

Welcome back to our founder @Butterfinger and welcome to our new artist @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick ! We will miss @Catsandbooks long-time teammate who gave her ♥️ to us!

New story

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSH-mtRjp3d/?igsh=MWZrNjdleTl6NXhtaQ==

My #naughtylistholidayswap is being mailed tomorrow. I had a little too much fun with this one! I mean really, I think we need to better define “naughty.” 😂😂😂 For the recipient, everything is wrapped, so open the package when you get it and let the contents spill forth. There will be no spoilers unless you read the card. Don‘t read the card!! @TieDyeDude @WildAlaskaBibliophile Thanks for hosting!

Pic to come when litsy lets me

Mini story:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSFmQKUjhY3/?igsh=aGhvYm9hanpuMWUw

No I‘ve never been to Powells and don‘t live anywhere near it but it‘s on my bucket list. So I follow it on Instagram and they‘ve posted their staff recommendations for all those fiction books featuring cats! First book recommended is tagged. Read the staff reviews here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSBcERbjUlg/?igsh=bHgycnNtY3pzYnph

😂 ♦️ ♠️ ♥️ 💰😂

#foodandlit #Italy #Jubilee

In case you haven‘t been following my #wordoftheday posts, my mom @Doll8455 is continuing her dramatic story using each word of the day. I look forward to her next post in the saga everyday!

#holidayhumor

#wordoftheday

“The most prestigious posting was to Spain, the greatest supporter of the Vatican. Spain controlled large chunks of Italy—the duchy of Milan in the north, and the kingdom of Naples, which shared the southern border of the Papal States. The second most important posting was to France, Spain‘s inveterate enemy and historically a far less supportive ally of Rome.”

Original!!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSC1CkkjkZt/?igsh=OG00MzhkZWY3ZnRw

#wordoftheday There‘s censorship and then there‘s burning at the stake

“Most popes usually let Pasquino [a gossiper about all things Vatican] and his friends have their say as a means of venting popular discontent against high taxes and injustice. But a few particularly annoying pasquinade writers had been incinerated at the stake. Even an execution didn‘t seem to dampen the ardor of would-be political columnists,… ⬇️

#holidayhumor

The countries for 2026 #foodandlit have finally been determined!! Hold on tight because we are traveling the whole world again this coming year! We are in the process of assigning countries to each month (it‘s not random—can you guess how we decide when to read which country?). I‘m so excited to share 2026 with you with our new and returning hosts! @Butterfinger @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick So keep watching this tag!!

Mini story

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSAWo-_DiL0/?igsh=MTBnM3JvYm95MDJpOQ==

#holidayhumor

Best one yet!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DR9pzQeDnyD/?igsh=MXMzYjVxNGthaHlkOA==

I listened to 3 versions of the audiobook and chose this one. It is also on sale for two more days for slightly more than the one in my previous post. #whattheDickens @Cuilin

It‘s not very expensive to begin with but if you want a deal, this version of the audiobook is on sale for two more days.

#whattheDickens @Cuilin

Finally posting my November stats

Eight books read last month, four were chunksters: two with 500+ pages and two with 400+ pages! Litsy challenges:

Curiosity Shop for #whattheDickens
Democracy for #authoramonth
Happy Isles for #Samoa and the remaining 5 for #Algeria for #foodandlit

#weekendreads @rachelsbrittain

#holidayhumor

#wordoftheday

“Late-fifteenth-century popes pondered what to do with the tottering basilica, hesitating to destroy something so sacred. But the irascible warrior pope Julius II (reigned 1503–1513) had no such scruples. The ancient basilica was torn down, its ancient papal tombs relocated and some of the art incorporated into the new church. Throughout the sixteenth century the new basilica was raised by fits and starts… ⬇️

Audio coloring tonight

I ♥️ how the 🦔 is making 🫖 probably preparing for a nice good 📕 to read.

😂😂😂

https://www.instagram.com/p/DR7G8dMjpKb/?igsh=aXRna2hsdjMwNW1l

Look what‘s going in the mail tomorrow!! #winternaturecardswap @TheBookHippie

Revenge, served 32 years later, was very cold indeed!!

#Italy #Jubilee #foodandlit @Catsandbooks

The original pope-mobile!

#Italy #Jubilee #foodandlit @Catsandbooks

#wordoftheday

“There were two signs that a pope had been elected—the bells of Saint Peter‘s would ring out in jubilation, and carpenters would demolish the masonry that blocked the windows of the loggia overlooking Saint Peter‘s Square. The tradition of sending smoke out of the Sistine Chapel chimney after each scrutiny—black for an unsuccessful vote, white for a successful one—was not instituted until 1903.”

Why knowing history can be helpful! He chose to be “Pope Innocent” instead of Eugenio. Good choice.

#Italy #Jubilee #foodandlit @Catsandbooks

https://www.bookbub.com/blog/historical-fiction-winter-2026-new-releases?positio...

Another good one!!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DR4jjy4DhUc/?igsh=MWs1bnNwN252dDV1dQ==

Our French Algerian main character describes the events in her teen years growing up alongside her family‘s hotel on the French Riviera. Sagesse (a beautiful first name) is a devil-may-care teenager, who along with her loud annoying friends, trigger the hotel‘s owner—her grandfather—to confront them with his rifle. While describing the aftermath of that event, Sagesse recounts the history of each family member. The most poignant story involves ⬇️

Listening to this book was an unparalleled experience. Our own @ImperfectCJ narrated it and she is marvelous!! An extraordinarily unpleasant man (whose voice appropriately grates) falls dead into florist Lila‘s marigold display at the town‘s festival. Feeling framed, and an intuition that the official investigation was not being taken seriously, Lila teams up with the pet shop owner Ethan to discover the murderer. It so happens, their pets, cat ⬇️

It‘s about time I start my holiday humor!!

Today‘s adorable mini-story

https://www.instagram.com/p/DR1_0kZDhrx/?igsh=MXY0amdpajlpcWExbg==

#wordoftheday

“Some were offended by his dismal and saturnine aspect, the reflection of a contumacious and restless soul, and in him one could see customs poorly suited to the placidity that the person carrying the name of the universal father should have.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/DRzXpXhjpeN/?igsh=MXJramtkeGpyMHo3Mw==

Listening to this audiobook now.