I absolutely adored listening to Julie Andrews read her book. What a delightful story! 4/5⭐️ Thanks for sharing this YouTube find @MemoirsForMe - it was pure gold!💜
Read for July‘s #ChildrensClassicRead2025 pick
(August 10, 2025)

The hubby and I hit a few stops on the Leaskdale Loop today. It‘s a self-guided driving tour held on the second Saturday of each month from spring to fall in our area. Two of the stops were the LMM church and manse. We‘ll have to return as we didn‘t have enough time to visit her house. But the exhibit in the church was really interesting! And there was the beautiful garden with this LMM statue. Reminded me of the similar one in PEI. 😍

I‘m quite happy with my reading in July, my best month of 2025 so far. Hoping to top this in August and keep up with my #100DayProject2025 reading challenge. 🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽
(August 2, 2025)

This book wrecked me. It was such a devastating and unforgettable story. The ending just about broke my heart. 💔 This was very well-written with lots of character development and historical detail. I highly recommend the audiobook. 5/5⭐️
#LiteraryCrew
#100DayProject2025 Book 14/50
(July 31, 2025)

Authorship controversy aside, this was a good introduction to a forgotten WW2 tragedy. The Bethnal Green tube disaster was the focal point of the novel with each character tied to this event. Conflicting accounts of how the whole thing happened abound. I appreciated how MBB and Kathleen McGurl brought the event and the era to life. 3/5⭐️
#100DayProject2025 Book 13/50
(July 29, 2025)

I have so many books on the go. But ever since I came down with a bad cold last week (I‘ve since *almost* recovered), I cannot seem to get back into any of them. I‘ve been struggling with very low energy for the last two days and I haven‘t read at all. 🙄 I have no shortage of books to read at home but was out and about today and decided to visit our local bookstore. Maybe one of these will end my reading slump!🤞🏽
(July 26, 2025)

This was a cute first instalment in the series. I think the author did a decent job of including character traits of the original tv GGs and spot-on 1980s references (“It‘s not that I don‘t want to help you, Dorothy, I do…But I‘m no Jessica Fletcher. I have no idea how to solve a murder.) 3/5⭐️
#100DayProject2025 Book 12/50
(July 23, 2025)

Read these first two books in this series today. I know I‘ve read Peter Rabbit before, but I don‘t think I‘ve read the rest! I‘m going to try to rectify that shortly. The artwork in both make these 4⭐️ picks.
#100DayProject2025 Books 10&11/50
(July 19, 2025)

“Rose Nylund whispered into the lemon-yellow telephone receiver, twisting the cord tightly between her fingers, her words obscured by the gurgling of the coffee percolator.”

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
#100DayProject2025
(July 18, 2025)

I absolutely loved this book! Well-written and infinitely interesting, the story held me captive. I‘m so glad I read it in long chunks as I feel this added to my enjoyment of it. If you like family drama and family trauma, this book ticks all the boxes. 5/5⭐️
#100DayProject2025 Book 9/50
(July 15, 2025)

Today I finished this very sweet (no pun intended 😂) audiobook. On the surface, it seems like a very light read. And it was to a degree. But it also dove a little deeper to discuss themes of individual strength, found family, and economic challenges/inequality among other themes. 3.5⭐️
#100DayProject2025 Book 8/50
(July 14, 2025)

It‘s been a cozy morning of reading and relaxing. I had planned to garden before it got too hot outside but since it‘s pouring rain, I hunkered down with this book. I loved it! The artwork is great, the story fun, and the campiness on point. And I just learned that there‘s many more issues in the series! Lots to look forward to. 5/5⭐️
Book 7/50 #100DayProject2025
(July 13, 2025)

I LOVE that there‘s a villain called Bookworm! Was he in the original Adam West series? If so, I completely missed him! Mind you, by the time I started watching Batman, I probably missed a bunch of shows. Loving this campy comic so far! “Dreadful… no bouquet of decayed parchment and India inks!” 😂
#100DayProject2025

I started reading this in 2023 but just finished it today. 😅 I even had a second cuppa this AM! (Very rare, I usually only have 1 in the morning, but it was so beautiful out and I wanted to nestle in with my book and coffee.) Glad I returned to the story of Taylor and Turtle who deserve all the happiness! 4/5⭐️
#100DayProject2025 Book 6/50
(July 11, 2025)

I realized late yesterday when I started listening to this that it‘s an Audible Plus selection that will disappear from my library on July 15th! So, I really delved into it today and I‘m quite enjoying it so far. All the recipes and baking have me wanting to start making my own cupcakes! 😅
Image credit: Pinterest
#100DayProject2025
(July 10, 2025)

Up next…
#100DayProject2025
(July 9, 2025)

Every now and then, I find myself yearning to read something silly and fun. Stephanie Plum always fits the bill and this installment in the series was no exception. There were a number of lol moments while Stephanie et al. worked on catching the bad guys. Excellent palate cleanser. 3.5⭐️
Book 5/50 #100DayProject2025
(July 8, 2025)

This was a tough read but so important. The author seems to have done her research and I appreciated how she incorporated the true stories she was told into this book. 4/5 ⭐️
#OhCanada #100DayProject2025 Book 4/50
(July 7, 2025)

I was hoping to post this yesterday to keep on track with my #100DayProject2025, but after I sprained my ankle🙄, my day kinda went off the rails. Anyway, this was a sweet story about a cat and a man, both in need of each other, and their early days together. I haven‘t read manga in a while and it took me a minute to get the hang of it again! But once I did, I really enjoyed this. Looking forward to the next in the series. 💜🐾 3/50
(July 7, 2025)

It was an eclectic reading day today! I started both of these very different books and I‘m quite enjoying them so far. 😉 #100DayProject2025
(July 5, 2025)

I very much enjoyed this magical novel about found family and belonging. Such a sweet story to read anytime of year, but would be particularly fun in the fall. 4/5⭐️
Book 2/50 #100DayProject2025
(July 4, 2025)

Oof this has been a tough read! But I‘m glad I‘m reading it thanks to @Jess861 and the #OhCanada buddy read. I‘m a tad behind but learning so much about an important part of Canadian history of which I was quite unaware.
#100DayProject2025
(July 3, 2025)

This book is such a lovely way to begin my summer reading. 5/5⭐️ It‘s also the start of a challenge I‘ve set for myself, my #100DayProject2025 to mark the beginning of my endless vacation, aka forever freedom, aka Renaissance years, aka retirement! My 3 rules: that I own the book, that I journal about it, & that I post daily (to keep me honest 😅). My goal is to read 50 books in 100 days, which is a lofty goal for me!🤞🏽
Book 1/50
(July 2, 2025)

June was an amazing reading month! Looking forward to more of the same in July. ☺️ #JuneMonthlyWrapup #Bookly
(June 30, 2025)

This author was May‘s #AuthorAMonth pick and I‘m very glad that I read this book. It was excellent and I highly recommend it! The audiobook was fantastic. The story was by turns hilarious, poignant, and disturbing. A brilliant satire. 5/5 ⭐️
(June 7, 2025)

I started reading this book a year ago for #LiteraryCrew but put it aside at some point as I couldn‘t seem to get through it at the time. Fast forward to now when I picked it up again and finished the last 1/3 in 3 days! I had no problem getting back into the story and loved the ending. 5/5⭐️
(June 5, 2025)

The weather was glorious today! I took advantage of it by having lunch al fresco while listening to my current read. I hope everyone had a beautiful Monday!
(June 2, 2025)

#MayMonthlyWrapup This has been my most successful reading month so far this year! I‘m hoping to build on this in June and really make a dent in my #Read75Books challenge for 2025. I think I‘m at 21 books read so far so I‘ve really got to speed up!😅 Still, I‘m happy with my progress. 👍🏽 #Bookly
(June 1, 2025)

I had a rocky start with this audiobook. The narrator was excellent, but I struggled to connect with the story & characters. I almost DNFed this but I ended up pushing through—while it wasn‘t a standout for me, I did end up liking it. It's a soft pick. 3/5⭐️
(May 31, 2025)

I started reading this back in September with my fellow Shardlakians and I just finished it today! Needless to say, I‘m woefully behind in the series but I‘m continuing on and hope to catch up eventually. 😅 This was a reread for me (I last read it in 2011) and it did not disappoint. Part history, part mystery, part fiction and completely entertaining! A great story told by a master storyteller. 4/5⭐️
#ShardlakeBR
(May 28, 2025)

I‘m a bit late with my April wrap-up due to a cold that sidelined me for the past week. Despite that, I had a decent reading month. All, except The Comfort of Crows, were for buddy reads, some of which I‘m catching up on (I‘m looking at you #NancyDrewBR). Looking forward to lots of reading in May!
(May 3, 2025)

1. I keep a spreadsheet with all of our books and recently realized that we have over 2,000 books in our collection! That doesn‘t include audiobooks. We do have a dedicated library but it can‘t hold everything. 😳
2. The tagged novel was so good! I really enjoyed the audiobook and I‘m definitely going to read more by this author. 😉
#Two4Tuesday
(April 29, 2025)

It‘s official! After 33 years at my workplace, I took the leap into retirement. Officially, I‘m on vacation until the end of June, but as I no longer have to wake up at 5:30am, I‘m calling it. Looking forward to my “Renaissance Years” full of reading, gardening, Litsy, knitting, and so much more! #retired
(April 28, 2025)

Did I ever need this book right now! This was a quiet, contemplative read, almost meditative at times. I lost myself in the stories many times, especially when driving. I really enjoyed the audiobook, particularly so as the author read her own words. A good read at any time of year, but right now, as spring is emerging, it seemed very on point. 5/5⭐️
(April 14, 2025)

Here‘s my March roundup. Indian Horse was a clear favourite, read with the #OhCanada Book Club.
(April 3, 2025)

@MemoirsForMe Thank you so very much for this lovely birthday gift! I‘m loving the theme and currently basking in the glow of my own little moon. 🌕 Thanks also for your sweet card and your letter! So great to read some snail mail. I‘ll send you a letter soon!💌

I have a feeling that I‘ll do better in March, but February wasn‘t too bad of a reading month. My biggest success was finishing Anna Karenina for the #KareninaWinter buddy read. Better late than never! #chunkster 😅
(March 2, 2025)

Happy Sunday, Littens! 🎉 I wanted to share some exciting news—our book-loving family just got a little bigger! 📚 A wonderful friend and colleague, @TreenaReads has joined the Litsy crew! Let‘s give her the warmest welcome and show her all the literary love we‘ve got! 💖📖

This has been on my virtual TBR for forever. And whatever I thought this was going to be, well, this wasn‘t it. But wow, was this ever good! A total surprise from beginning to end and it sucked me in from the get-go. It‘s a bummer that my library hasn‘t subscribed to any more volumes in the series. I just might have to purchase the physical copies! 4/5⭐️
(December 13, 2024)

And just like that, it‘s December! How are we in the last month of 2024 already?!? November blew past and I realized today that I didn‘t post at all last month. 😅 Despite my lack of activity on Litsy, it was a decent reading month for me. I was able to check off a couple of Litsy book club reads and I even got started on my holiday reading! Wishing everyone a fabulous reading month to close out the year. 📚🎄💜

I see that I‘m not the only one that recently finished this instalment for the #NancyDrewBR. 😅 And from the reviews of others, I‘m also not the only one that gives this a weak thumbs up. Of all the books so far, this one seems the most far fetched. The story kept my interest, but some things seemed just strange and pointless. Like the jealousy subplot, what was that about? Still, I give this 3/5⭐️ for nostalgia‘s sake.
(October 28, 2024)

Day 16 #paint #SchoolSpirit
I thought this mural for the book cover was great. 👌🏽

Day 15 #Pencil #SchoolSpirit
This was an excellent book!

I‘ve missed a bunch of prompts for #SchoolSpirit because, well, life. And I‘m not sure what the rest of the month will bring, but I‘m going to jump in when I can! Starting here… Claudia planned a #FieldTrip of sorts to the Met for her and her brother. A fun read!

Day 5 #Apple #SchoolSpirit

Day 4 #College #SchoolSpirit

August didn‘t end up being a great reading month for me. At least I finished 2 books but I was hoping for more. Here‘s to reading more in September!🤞🏽
#MonthlyWrapup #Bookly

Day 3 #Professor #SchoolSpirit
I read this novel last year and really enjoyed it. Definitely on my list of rereads.

Day 2 #Bell #SchoolSpirit
#MyNeverendingTBR

Day 1 #Teacher #SchoolSpirit
#MyNeverendingTBR