Hi there, friend! I hope everything on your end is good and that this week has been treating you well.
The other day, in the Monday Poll, Tisha asked the following question in the comments:
Btw, what are you reading? I’ve been dying to get my hands on a good book, sounds like fun!
I read lots of great fiction last month. My favorite out of the bunch was “Klara and the Sun,” by Kazuo Ishiguro. It’s science fiction, but not the kind that involves aliens destroying the earth or superheroes saving the universe from killer snakes from outer space.
It’s a quiet story of a robot companion and her teenage charge, and it contemplates what it means to love and be human. Days after I finished the last page, I kept thinking about the story, and my heart would feel both heavy and hopeful at the same time.
Sigh… I’m not ready for the rise of the machines, man.
Still, I loved it. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in years.
I’ve recently discovered that Reese Witherspoon (yup, the actress) has a book club, kinda like Oprah’s Book Club. Every book that she’s recommended so far, I’ve enjoyed. In January I finished…
“The Giver of Stars,” by Jojo Moyes
I started this a while back but stopped reading when it got scary for the main characters, librarians who travel by horseback into the far reaches of the Kentucky mountains during the Depression. I just couldn’t take it and needed a break. I’m so glad I finished this book, though. It’s about friendship and resilience, and the relationships between the women are beautiful.
“The Last Story of Mina Lee,” by Nancy Jooyoun Kim
This mystery is about a Korean woman who immigrates to Los Angeles in the ’80s and her daughter, and it flips back and forth between the past and the present as the story unfolds. I had to force myself to put the book down before bed! It’s one of those books you could easily read cover to cover.
“The Henna Artist,” by Alka Joshi
Another page turner! It’s set in 1950’s India, and it’s about a woman trying to make it on her own in a world where there aren’t a lot of opportunities. Again, I couldn’t put it down.
That Reese Witherspoon knows how to pick some good books.
I also read a couple non-fiction books, too. “Painless Grammar,” by Rebecca Elliott, is written for kids, but it’s a fun refresher on basics of the English Language. I also enjoyed “The Easy Filipino Cookbook,” by Roline Casper, and I can’t wait to try some of her recipes.
What’ve you been reading lately?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Ok, I have to be honest. As soon as I saw the Filipino cookbook, it made me crave Pancit. Don’t know if I spelled that correctly…sorry. My Filipino friend used to make it for birthday parties. She moved from PA to the Las Vegas area, so I don’t get to have Pancit anymore. Sniff Sniff!! Anyway, one of these days, I’m going to get the courage to make it myself. It would make my husband happy too, because he loves it. He was stationed for a few years in the Philipines, when he was in the Air Force.
You spelled it correctly! I love pancit, and I usually only eat it on special occasions (birthdays, Christmas, parties), but you can make it any time of year. I think you’d like this particular book because the author offers substitute ingredients for any items that might be hard to find. Her style is pretty straightforward, too!
Sherry, I’ll have to give you my recipe for chicken adobo. Your husband probably had it often when he was in the Philippines. Mine is easy and tasty!
You should post it on the blog! I’d love to have it too!
Truth be told, I’m not much of a fiction person. I’m usually reading non-fiction or how-to books or cookbooks. Always been that way, even since I was Connor’s age.
However, I do have the Vine Witch next to my bed but I’m only one chapter in and I’ve had it a few months now.
Despite my reticence about reading fiction, I highly recommend the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness, which has been turned into a series on BBC or Amazon or something, I forget.
I bought the first one not realizing the author intended a trilogy and I was really irritated. But that said, I couldn’t put it down and gobbled up the other two as soon as they were released. And my husband, who is not a reader at all, frankly I wonder if he has an undiagnosed learning disorder, read them all and loved them as well.
Yes, on Amazon. They have the first season for free, and it’s called “A Discovery of Witches.”
OMG those are such great books! Deb Harkness is as good as Diana Gabaldon for sure. Both academics, too!
Thank you Karen!! I would love your recipe for Chicken Adobo. I can’t wait to tell my husband about it!!
My New Year’s resolution last year was to try to get back into reading and I was able to hit my goal of 5 books and it has kickstarted my goal for this year of 10. I love Reese’s book club and have read a couple of books but I also get lots of recommendations from Booktube and Booktok. From Reese’s book club I read outlaw, LA Weather, Lucky, We Were Never Here, and the Last Thing He Told Me. I really liked Lucky and The Last Thing He Told Me. The last book I finished was Verity which I enjoyed but scared me. A book that I just ordered is from a Filipino author called Arsenic and Adobo.
Thank you for listing your books, Leah! I’m going to look into a few of them.
After writing 6 books in 6 years (4 on my own, 2 anthologies with other authors) I was SO ready to just read. I am currently reading Virgin Wander by Leif Enger. Great book! I do have to relate a funny story. When my first book was published and went #1 here and in the UK my husband was at Waterstones (UK Barnes and Noble type store) and called and said “they have a display of your book!”. I was so excited, then he said “there’s also a sign up that says “also by his author” and started to laugh. As I had only published one book at the time I was puzzled. He said the other book on the display was by an author (and he’s still laughing) with the same name. .. it was on erectile dysfunction. Quick! Call the bookstore.
It’s always interesting to see what other people enjoy reading. I’m definitely checking out a couple of these books. I recently read The Remains of The Day by Kasuo Ishiguro and I was absolutely devastated by it. What a book. 100% recommend it.
I’m on a nonfiction kick lately. Currently I’m working on Ilise S. Carter’s The Red Menace, a history of America’s love/hate relationship with lipstick. I also want to start James Andrew Miller’s Tinderbox, an oral history of HBO where Miller compiles insider accounts from various HBO cast/crew/executives, but that one’s so big it’s practically a doorstop!
Thanks for the book recommendations! 😀
I could use some Painless Grammar… These days I’ve been reading Merriam-Webster’s Elementary Dictionary to help my daughter with her vocabulary homework. 😄 It’s quite interesting, actually. It has like pictures, origins of word meanings, meanings based on their root… I LIVE for all that.
Last year during Covid lockdown my daughter and I read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for the first time. (I had her read it to me.) Have you read it? Omg the humor in it is EVERYTHING. Definitely one of my all-time favorites for kids, despite the controversy..
I’ve been re-reading books by the author Lorna Byrne, the lady who sees angels. They’ve been comforting, especially with all the changes going on. Angels In My Hair is a good one.
Once again, thanks for the shout out 😇 🙃 tc
I haven’t read a single fiction book all year and haven’t finished my non-fiction book either. But I added a few of your recommendations to my list, which seems to be all I do these days.
I did read two books from Jojo Moyes last year though that I didn’t particularly enjoy.
Just ordered “Painless Grammar.” I figure being a child at heart counts and I could definitely use a refresher. I secretly worry that all the bad grammar I ingest on the internet is unraveling everything I’ve learned over the years lol. Thanks for the rec!
You’re welcome. It’s a fun book! I hope you enjoy it.
Thanks so much for the book recs! I have added them to my TBR (To be Read) list!