Starting this one today. I dislike pseudo-words like “actionable” but I‘m trying to overlook it because I find the premise appealing.

Ramona is a terror and Beezus is kind of annoying, but it‘s all believable. My mom read the series to us as kids, and she read this with my kid via Skype in summer 2020, but I think this is my first time reading it myself. A lot of family sayings came from this (“is the witch done yet?” was a big one), and now I know that!

Not my favorite book or character, but Eve grew on me (though surprisingly, Kristoff is my favorite here). The story felt too long, with at least one too many steps. It‘s a solid installment but not a great one. This is my May #doublespin and one for #seriesread2022
@TheAromaofBooks @TheSpineView

This paragraph really hits the nail on the head, doesn‘t it? #DeadPhilosophersSociety #ThisLife @GingerAntics @kspenmoll @TheBookHippie

I had to go clothes shopping, which is absolute torture. But Old Navy is next door to Barnes and Noble, so…I feel a tiny bit better now. Also, there seems to be a theme here.

My stack for #MarvellousMay with @Andrew65 and co. I also have Jane Austen at Home, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, This Life, The Purpose of Power, and HP 7 on the go. Overall goal is 1000 pages and finish two books. 🤞🏻 Tomorrow is a HP day with kiddo, so I don‘t know how much reading time I‘ll get, but the rest of the week should be fair.

Meh. I‘ve read one other Michaels and felt the same - I thought this was supposed to be spooky and thrilling and chilling, but it was all pretty bland. Minor romantic elements, small amount of academia, but meh. And a very early-90s focus on feminism (in academia and otherwise) that was actually really obnoxious. Not terrible but disappointing. This was my #roll100 #96 @PuddleJumper

Trying to catch up with #PemberLittens and I‘m confused - how did a monthly magazine that ran from Jan 1789-Mar 1790 tally sixty issues?

Oh yeah - that was the other library book I requested! In my defense, I thought about requesting about 8-9 books over the course of a day or two, so trying to remember what I had ACTUALLY requested was confusing.

Kiddo is studying present participles in Spanish, and we noticed that “participles” could sound like an ancient Greek hero if pronounced “Par-TISS-i-plees.” So kiddo‘s cheetah stuffy and kiddo collaborated on this comic. You‘re welcome.
#cheetahsofLitsy

Working my way through the tagged book, wondering when it‘s going to get spooky and/or interesting (1/3 through and the answer is “not yet”). But I got this awesome package from my friend‘s tea shop today and am so excited to try these amazing teas!
https://www.thesouthernkitchenwitchery.com/

Today‘s library #bookhaul - though there should be another in a couple of days. Which I can‘t remember the title of, at the moment…oops.

Ugh. Book Outlet sent me one with a super-sticky sticker and one with a torn jacket. But at least I got my #bookmail in less than a month this time. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I‘m wrecked. This was an amazing story about love and family and adventure and finding yourself and your purpose. April befriends a lonely and injured polar bear where bears shouldn‘t be. Her distracted, grieving father doesn‘t believe her, leading her to take a dangerous and disastrous step.

Better late than never - in April I read 13 books and got two #BookSpinBingo lines. I still feel like I‘m barely reading, but it was a better month than the previous two.

“Friluftsliv,” April repeated softly. It was a word that sounded like mermaids, enchanted forests, or something ethereal and magic.

In a democracy: “We cannot invoke religious dogma as the final word in a debate or as the founding authority of a law.” Somebody, PLEASE explain this to the Republicans. 🙄😡

I couldn‘t resist finishing this a few days ago (also I forgot my other book for kiddo‘s Lego club, which is held in a library but I was trying to resist temptation). It‘s like kettle corn - salty, sweet, addictive, and then mysteriously all gone. It‘s not like the novels, not quite as good, but what is?
#DannyBoy is sulking because he‘s feisty and I won‘t let him wrestle with my bare hand. #catsofLitsy #PemberLittens

I‘ve been working on all (most of, anyway) my current reads since I got home from playing at a graduation this morning. Well, except when I got tired and apparently took a nap for 45 minutes or so (I blame the cat). Hopefully by this time tomorrow I‘ll be caught up on buddy reads.

It took me a while to get into this, but once I did it was immersive. I didn‘t want to put it down; I just wanted to read it all as quickly as possible. This isn‘t a romance, or at least that‘s not the most important part. Both characters have issues to work through but they‘re so good for each other, and the friend crew is awesome. I even loved the side stories. TW below, pretty significant.

Starting this one next. A couple chapters in and I‘m ambivalent, but we‘ll see how it goes.

#DannyBoy inspecting today‘s library #BookHaul - for myself, for a change! Very different books but they both look interesting. Naturally, I put these on hold AFTER I made up my #BookSpin list…

Nostalgia points; this was a favorite of my sister‘s and I remember begging to read it, and maybe finally just stealing it. Now I have my own copy 😆 and I think it still works, if some parts are a little dated (30 cents to ride a bus?). Katie can move things with her mind, and her silver eyes make people uncomfortable. When someone starts asking too many questions she starts to wonder if there might be more kids like her.

AND she‘s reading my favorite book from childhood. I don‘t remember noticing any of this when I read this as a kid.

When your book character shares your birthday - September 10. I think this is a first for me.

Other reviews saying there isn‘t much “library” in this Mercenary Librarians story are accurate. The epilogue on that storyline felt like an afterthought. I wanted to like this so much more, but it felt like Trail of Lightning in a lot of ways. The focus of the book was more on Knox than Nina, and the “villain” reveal/turnaround was a let-down. And the big moment at the end? Completely predictable. Sad to say I was disappointed. #Roll100 #85

My final count for #20in4 is…62 chapters! I set my goal as 20, so I‘m ecstatic, especially because we got our raised garden bed set up this weekend as well and have been stocking it with lots of goodies. Thanks @Andrew65 for another awesome readathon!

My #BookSpinBingo board for May. Lady Susan is my #BookSpin and it‘s already underway with #PemberLittens, #DoubleSpin is Haunted (also a #SeriesRead2022 pick), and I‘m working on Deal with the Devil for #Roll100. I‘m on the fence so far. Other #Roll100 picks are Houses of Stone and Sal & Gabi Fix the Universe.

First day and I‘m already behind, but here‘s my copy @BarkingMadRun ! An unexpectedly busy day left me with no reading time yet, but I hope to get a start this evening. #PemberLittens

Surprisingly good. I wasn‘t sure about the ghost part of the story, and tbh that wasn‘t my favorite storyline. But the friendship is awesome (they even have a fight and have to compromise!), the hotel people are great, and Elizabeth is a good MC. I ordered the third book already but Book Outlet didn‘t have the second in hardcover so now I have to find it. Gotta have them match, ya know. Also, 38/20 chapters for #20in4 done!

The first 2.5 books in the series (not trilogy like I thought) were okay, but it got better in this one. While there‘s still some annoying repetition, characters are settling in and some of the long-game action is playing out. Now I need to find the remaining four books - and, of course, the first four are mass markets and the last three are trade paper.
#seriesread2022 #doublespin for April

Anybody else just happily going along and then realize it‘s Saturday and you forgot you have a bazillion book discussions on Sunday and you haven‘t touched those books? Oops. In my defense, this week was completely upended with kiddo‘s schedule so I lost track of the days, I was sick early in the week, and it‘s just been a tough time for me mentally.

Here‘s a cat picture for your trouble. #catsofLitsy #DannyBoy

Here we go for #20in4 - I‘m going for 20 chapters because the family never lets me read 20 hours!
@Andrew65

#BookwormProblems - I‘ve been reading these books off and on for years now. While I‘m reading I enjoy them (despite annoying cut-and-paste repetition) but don‘t feel the urge to come back to the series. I bought all three years ago, so when I got to this one I thought I could be done with it all. Except yesterday I found out the series continues, and now I have to fight conflicting urges of series completion and general meh-ness.

May #BookSpin list

1 Notes from a Small Island
2 The Arthurian Legends
3 The Girl with the Silver Eyes
4 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
5 Lady Susan
6 Wicked and the Wallflower
7 Gods & Men
8 Why I‘m No Longer…
9 Sal & Gabi Fix the Universe
10 Dear Martin
11 Houses of Stone
12 The Flatshare
13 Confronting the Classics
14 Folklore & Literature: Rival Siblings
15 The Ship Thieves
16 Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
17 Beezus and Ramona
👇🏻

Low pick. Honestly, it suffers from the Westing Game comparisons - because it isn‘t that brilliant. I think Johnson stuffed too much into this story: it‘s a mystery, a family drama, a friend story, a racial history and critique, and a love story…all at the same time. And there was kind of a cop-out on one of the mysteries (bracelet) at the end, which was frustrating. A good story, but not a great one.

Princess Amaya is a spoiled kid who abuses her magic and leads her brother into trouble, so her parents send her to Earth for a week‘s punishment. Something goes wrong, and three years later Amaya and her guardian don‘t remember Gemworld at all. But Gemworld is in danger, and Amaya is the key to saving it. This MG fantasy GN was really fun. Kiddo told me I HAD to read it, and I recommend you do, too.

Fascinating look into proximate and ultimate causes in world history, specifically who conquered whom rather than vice versa. Looks at environmental resources (domesticable plants/animals, minerals), climate, continental axes - and how they all affect the peoples who live in these regions.
March #Roll100 and April #BookSpin

#DannyBoy insists on snuggling my feet…which is kind of ticklish. Kiddo and hubby are playing chess while we all wait for our loaded baked potato pizza to bake. Friday nights are wild around here! #catsofLitsy

#catsofLitsy #DannyBoy says this magazine is his and kiddo must find other reading material.

#Bookmail! Tagged is for #PemberLittens next month, the top two are for the kiddo (both frequent library borrows she asked to own), S&T gives me all three, the Bardugo matches my King of Scars so maybe now I can actually read it (probably need to reread the first three, and read the other duology…), and the others just looked good. Book Outlet is dangerous…

Low pick. I loved the Wynchesters (not enough to seek out the rest of the series though) and the bluestocking reading circle. Philippa‘s parents were vile. I felt like Tommy‘s insecurities were overdone but the conflict made sense. I‘m not rushing out to find more by Ridley but I enjoyed this well enough.

I still love these books, despite Rowling‘s ickiness and the books themselves being problematic in so many ways. I‘m so happy to share this world with my kiddo. We finished this morning and hope to watch the movie later this week, then it‘s on to the end. There will be tears.

My library does Sunday Punday.

The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood in this collection of Perrault‘s tales was different than I remember. The Prince‘s mother is an ogress? That‘s new! And the Prince keeping his little family a secret in the enchanted (formerly enchanted?) castle in the woods for two years was new, too. I liked it, just different.
#childrensclassicread2022 @TheBookHippie

The Mercyverse will always be my favorite, but this was really good. It‘s a standalone high fantasy, comparable to Briggs‘ Raven and Dragon duologies. Aren‘s husband and family are massacred by raiders. After her metaphorical world is upended the literal world follows, and she and her village must adapt to the reawakening magic. What will Aren do to save those who won‘t accept her?

(Danny, again, won‘t let me up for a book photo #catsofLitsy)

Today‘s #bookmail is very welcome! I missed my favorite used book sale because I was working and then mostly struck out at my fave used book store, so I did some online shopping instead. (Book Outlet order still to arrive)

Last night a probable tornado hit our neighborhood, and while we had no damage we haven‘t had electricity for the past 15 hours, and no estimate on restoration. So I‘ll be back on tomorrow or so!

1 - ummm, yes. Sometimes for good reason (I held off Hunt the Stars until I could really dive in, rather than nibbling at it), sometimes just because
2 - 2 years ago I read The Old Man and the Sea, which my fourth grade teacher gave me in 1991. I also have a boxed set of Narnia that I got a year or so earlier and I‘ve only read half of them. 😬
#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView
Tagging @GingerAntics @Chrissyreadit

An excellent look at male archetypes and how they influence both men and women. I recommend reading this after Goddesses in Everywoman, though it can stand alone. There is some excellent analysis of patriarchy and its costs, though the concluding chapters about “the sons of Metis” and how we can change our society felt a bit off/outdated. (Beware, Trump is used as an example early on 🤢)
#roll100 #48 @PuddleJumper

This was a fun MG mystery starring a young Agatha-Christie-like writer/sleuth-in-training. I guessed the culprit early, but there were still some twists I enjoyed. I don‘t know yet if I will continue the series.