I had missed that Washington Post piece so thanks for sharing it. Glad to know I am not alone in skipping bookmarks and feeling best if I get to spend 3 or more hours reading every day!
Agree, this was a fun read. Thanks for including the gift link!
Transparent post-it notes have been a boon to my margin commenting in library books. I adore them.
A recent development in my reading is letting my domestic life go to seed on Friday nights. As long as people consume something with protein and at least glance at a vegetable, everyone does whatever they want at home and I read from 5pm until bedtime. I recently read Jessica Fein’s Breath Taking in one sitting like this, which may be a first from me. Just a year or two ago I would have thought it impossible to claim so much book time.
"...glance at a vegetable," love this. Reading for hours at a time was a dream of mine for many years, now realized since I retired, and it's been wonderful. Thanks for reading!
Gayla, thank you so much for the lovely words about our podcast. We're very excited to be here on Substack and to have our new season out in the world. HAPPY (official) SUMMER! Monday is a regular work day for us, but one of my favorite things about living abroad is that we can pick which holidays we celebrate. It's like a buffet of American and Czech options... soemtimes we do all of them, and sometimes we do none of them :-)
Love that WaPo piece on the rules of reading! —Mel
I agree, and if I were to become a groupie, it would be a Chili's groupie! The chips and salsa are the best and I love the cheese sticks; I just wish they'd re-design them to be a more normal size. Many other menu items lead me to Chili's more often than any other chain. :) Thanks for reading!
I added all the books in the Family Drama, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age and Mystery/Thriller categories and a few from the nonfiction category. I didn't add any love stories or magical/otherworldly. Now, just because I added them to my TBR doesn't mean I'll read them all. It's very likely I won't as shiny new covers/books will appear and take their places.
Out of all those categories, there are 10-15 that I really do want to read and will probably make sure that I read at some point this year. From your numbers above, it looks like we both added about the same number, which ones are you looking forward to reading?
Your comment about shiny new covers/books is *SO* relatable. I think I'm most excited to read the thrillers and the audiobooks. I've been on a kick for both and I'm just wondering when the binge will end.
I'm glad there are others that let shiny covers distract them. lol. I've also been on a thriller kick this year. I'm working on 3 (not SRG books) for book clubs next week and after that, I can start reading something from the guide.
That article about the chain restaurants was WILD! WOW - some people are really loyal! I also LOVED the Wordle video. It's funny - I never play it first thing...I always play it after work, right before I settle in for the night to watch TV...it's like my palate cleanser between work and relaxing time lol.
I don't love anything enough to wait in hours long lines or pay a fortune to see, do or eat it. lol I don't play Wordle first thing either--I have a bedtime routine I go through before I pick up my kindle and Wordle is part of that routine. I like to play Connections, but sometimes I get so frustrated with the "connections" they make with 4 words; some of them are a stretch that I don't know how people ever figure out.
Oh my God - I COMPLETELY agree about Connections!!! Some of them are so ridiculous and just impossible to figure out. And I feel like it's gotten harder lately...at this point, if I DO figure it out, I consider it a victory!
Some days I don't even try to do Connections. And then just a couple of days ago I did it and it was SO easy, go figure. Did you see the link I posted a few happy Friday links back for the Connections games since inception? I just started trying Connections a few months back and I wanted to go back to the beginning to see if they were easier, but I haven't had a chance to do it yet.
Ah, just looked at it. How cool! I know - I feel like sometimes they're super easy. I don't know if that's a strategy on their part? Ever since I watched the Wordle video you posted, I really try to make the second word a good guess because they said that's key. It's been so helpful!
Thanks as always for all these, and I love reading about your plans and travels. About what we're reading now, my husband and I (and our cat Daisy) read to each other after dinner. We sometimes have 2-3 books going at once. We're both musicians (I'm an opera singer and he plays several brass instruments and string bass) and have been enjoying a biography of J.S. Bach, by musician and Bach scholar Christoph Wolff. We're reading another biography, a fascinating one about Cary Grant ("Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise"), by Scott Eyman. On our own we read different genres. He love science fiction, and I love a good but not too heavy novel (so hard to find though I know they're out there!) I often end up re-reading the good ones I've found. I also love good essays--many by Nora Ephron, and have just started one by an English writer, Geoff Dyer, called "Otherwise Known as the Human Condition--Selected Essays and Reviews."
Wow! I don't know what is more fun, reading to each other after dinner or having someone that wants to read to you after dinner. I've never had someone in my life that has really ever understood my love of reading and how it is something that I must do everyday. It sounds like you both share many loves, how nice. I don't read a lot of non-fiction, so I haven't heard of any of the books that you mentioned. Thank for reading!
Thank you so much for sharing about my summer reading program, Gayla! We love a lot of the same sources for book recommendations ~ I had most of yours on my radar as well :-) I love all the Libby tips you shared here!
Happy to share! There are so many bookish newsletters on Substack now and I think readers need to know about all of them and I do my small part to put newsletters on reader's radar. :)
So many great links, Gayla. Thank you for sharing. It’s been awhile since I’ve been to the American History museum - going to have to go back and see Jeannie’s bottle and that excellent sounding culture exhibit during my summer DC visit.
I had missed that Washington Post piece so thanks for sharing it. Glad to know I am not alone in skipping bookmarks and feeling best if I get to spend 3 or more hours reading every day!
My day isn't complete until I read, so I understand completely. Thanks for reading!
Agree, this was a fun read. Thanks for including the gift link!
Transparent post-it notes have been a boon to my margin commenting in library books. I adore them.
A recent development in my reading is letting my domestic life go to seed on Friday nights. As long as people consume something with protein and at least glance at a vegetable, everyone does whatever they want at home and I read from 5pm until bedtime. I recently read Jessica Fein’s Breath Taking in one sitting like this, which may be a first from me. Just a year or two ago I would have thought it impossible to claim so much book time.
"...glance at a vegetable," love this. Reading for hours at a time was a dream of mine for many years, now realized since I retired, and it's been wonderful. Thanks for reading!
Yes! I love this for you Kelly!
So many clicks; so little time! But I'll check out some of these! Thanks!
Thanks for reading, Judy! Take your time, the gift links will work for a while.
What a delightful round up. I genuinely miss TV Land. I grew up watching I Dream of Jeannie and now I want nothing more but to go see the exhibit!
I agree about the exhibit. That show was so fun!
Gayla, thank you so much for the lovely words about our podcast. We're very excited to be here on Substack and to have our new season out in the world. HAPPY (official) SUMMER! Monday is a regular work day for us, but one of my favorite things about living abroad is that we can pick which holidays we celebrate. It's like a buffet of American and Czech options... soemtimes we do all of them, and sometimes we do none of them :-)
Love that WaPo piece on the rules of reading! —Mel
Welcome, and the bookish community is happy you are here! I like "picking which holidays you celebrate." The more of them, the merrier.
The fact that the Eater article didn't cover Chili's is wild! I feel like Chili's has the most die hard fans!
I agree, and if I were to become a groupie, it would be a Chili's groupie! The chips and salsa are the best and I love the cheese sticks; I just wish they'd re-design them to be a more normal size. Many other menu items lead me to Chili's more often than any other chain. :) Thanks for reading!
Yay!! How wonderful that your family is moving closer! Have a great weekend 🧡
Moving isn't fun, but getting through it to becoming settled is great. :)
Would love to know what you added to your TBR from the MMD SRG! I added ~27 books of the 41... egad.
I added all the books in the Family Drama, Historical Fiction, Coming of Age and Mystery/Thriller categories and a few from the nonfiction category. I didn't add any love stories or magical/otherworldly. Now, just because I added them to my TBR doesn't mean I'll read them all. It's very likely I won't as shiny new covers/books will appear and take their places.
Out of all those categories, there are 10-15 that I really do want to read and will probably make sure that I read at some point this year. From your numbers above, it looks like we both added about the same number, which ones are you looking forward to reading?
Your comment about shiny new covers/books is *SO* relatable. I think I'm most excited to read the thrillers and the audiobooks. I've been on a kick for both and I'm just wondering when the binge will end.
I'm glad there are others that let shiny covers distract them. lol. I've also been on a thriller kick this year. I'm working on 3 (not SRG books) for book clubs next week and after that, I can start reading something from the guide.
That article about the chain restaurants was WILD! WOW - some people are really loyal! I also LOVED the Wordle video. It's funny - I never play it first thing...I always play it after work, right before I settle in for the night to watch TV...it's like my palate cleanser between work and relaxing time lol.
I don't love anything enough to wait in hours long lines or pay a fortune to see, do or eat it. lol I don't play Wordle first thing either--I have a bedtime routine I go through before I pick up my kindle and Wordle is part of that routine. I like to play Connections, but sometimes I get so frustrated with the "connections" they make with 4 words; some of them are a stretch that I don't know how people ever figure out.
Oh my God - I COMPLETELY agree about Connections!!! Some of them are so ridiculous and just impossible to figure out. And I feel like it's gotten harder lately...at this point, if I DO figure it out, I consider it a victory!
Some days I don't even try to do Connections. And then just a couple of days ago I did it and it was SO easy, go figure. Did you see the link I posted a few happy Friday links back for the Connections games since inception? I just started trying Connections a few months back and I wanted to go back to the beginning to see if they were easier, but I haven't had a chance to do it yet.
Ah, just looked at it. How cool! I know - I feel like sometimes they're super easy. I don't know if that's a strategy on their part? Ever since I watched the Wordle video you posted, I really try to make the second word a good guess because they said that's key. It's been so helpful!
Thanks as always for all these, and I love reading about your plans and travels. About what we're reading now, my husband and I (and our cat Daisy) read to each other after dinner. We sometimes have 2-3 books going at once. We're both musicians (I'm an opera singer and he plays several brass instruments and string bass) and have been enjoying a biography of J.S. Bach, by musician and Bach scholar Christoph Wolff. We're reading another biography, a fascinating one about Cary Grant ("Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise"), by Scott Eyman. On our own we read different genres. He love science fiction, and I love a good but not too heavy novel (so hard to find though I know they're out there!) I often end up re-reading the good ones I've found. I also love good essays--many by Nora Ephron, and have just started one by an English writer, Geoff Dyer, called "Otherwise Known as the Human Condition--Selected Essays and Reviews."
Wow! I don't know what is more fun, reading to each other after dinner or having someone that wants to read to you after dinner. I've never had someone in my life that has really ever understood my love of reading and how it is something that I must do everyday. It sounds like you both share many loves, how nice. I don't read a lot of non-fiction, so I haven't heard of any of the books that you mentioned. Thank for reading!
Thank you so much for sharing about my summer reading program, Gayla! We love a lot of the same sources for book recommendations ~ I had most of yours on my radar as well :-) I love all the Libby tips you shared here!
Happy to share! There are so many bookish newsletters on Substack now and I think readers need to know about all of them and I do my small part to put newsletters on reader's radar. :)
So many great links, Gayla. Thank you for sharing. It’s been awhile since I’ve been to the American History museum - going to have to go back and see Jeannie’s bottle and that excellent sounding culture exhibit during my summer DC visit.
I have never been to the American History Museum, but I'm planning a trip to DC and the east coast next spring; I can't wait to go.
Thanks for letting the Jeannie out of the bottle with the Smithsonian article, Gayla. She and Samantha Stevens were my role models as a kid 😂
I loved both of those shows as a kid. I'm a sucker for nostalgia. :)
I love Reese, I loved I Dream of Jeannie, and I live through my Libby app. Thanks for sharing all the good stuff always!
Thanks for reading, Jennifer!