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quick lit – next page, please {february 2021}

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I can’t believe that I read 13 books this month. As I said last month, I have been not watching television mindlessly and playing Rise of Kingdoms on my phone and have been reading instead.  I have taken this time mostly from my evenings and right before I go bed. The number of books I have read this year makes me wonder how much time was I wasting watching television and playing games? It’s alarming!

A couple of caveats to this month’s numbers: (1) I participated in the 24in48 Readathon during a weekend in February.  During this time I completed three books I was halfway through.  (2) One of these 13 is a short story but Goodreads counts it as a whole book and I’m going to do the same.

I continue to make a dent in my Unread Shelf this month; I read four books and DNF’d one book. I read very broadly across genres: a couple of sci-fi, which I have found to be very enjoyable right now; two memoirs; a short story; and a book that was written and illustrated by the same person.

Read

  • My Friend Fear: Finding Magic in the Unknown by Meera Lee Patel. I am fascinated by the intersection of words and pictures, writers and painters. This little volume about fear is beautifully written and illustrated by Meera Lee Patel. I had the pleasure of meeting her at Parnassus Book Store when this released. I love the artwork and the nuance you can find in each painting.
  • A Promised Land by Barack Obama. Very long but very informative. I loved how he took the time to tell us why and how he arrived at the decisions that he was making, even if I didn’t agree with his conclusions. I listened to this on audio.
  • Art and Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking by David Bayles. One of the writers that I follow (sorry, I can’t remember who) recommended this little book. I got it from my local library and immediately wanted to begin highlighting and taking notes, ergo, I bought my own copy. A great resource, I will refer to again and again.
  • Artemis: A Novel by Andy Weir. A fellow reader, hi Brigid, recommended this to me when I told her that I was feeling like reading more sci-fi. A heist on the moon! Say no more.
  • Who is Maud Dixon?: A Novel by Alexandra Andrews. Thanks to Snail on the Wall and Edelweiss for this very fun read. I didn’t read the ending like I normally do, so I didn’t see the plot-twist coming, which was surprising.
  • Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig. I loved Haig’s novel, How to Stop Time and how he explores time and depression in a lot of his work. Reasons to Stay Alive is his memoir about his depression and how he worked his way out of it. It was full of tips that he has found to help him with his mental health. A very meaningful read.
  • Mr. Death by Alix E. Harrow. This was a short story by an author who is fast becoming one of my favorites. I adored the ending. And Goodreads counted it as a book read, so I did also.
  • Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal. I read this because it was the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club February pick. Stradal told this story in a very unique way; the protagonist only had one chapter in her voice. The rest of the story was told in the perspective of everyone around her during the course of her life. I had not experienced this before and it was different. I don’t know if I would like all stories to be told this way, but it was very enjoyable. Plus, he was a sheer delight in his interview with Anne.
  • A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. This novella was WONDERFUL! A 5-star read and one of my favorite for the year. Engaging but comforting. I cried from relief at the end; it was the release I didn’t know I needed. I don’t typically read sci-fi but on a recommendation from Brenna, a fellow team member on the podcast What Should I Read Next, Episode 268, I read Chamber’s A Long Way to a Dark Angry Planet. With this title, I believe that I will read anything Becky Chambers’ writes. I wish that “Psalm” would release immediately; all of my friends need to read this because, as the dedication says, it’s “for everyone who needs a break”, and after the year we have had, we all need this break. A HUGE thank you to Snail on the Wall and Edelweiss for early access to this one. It releases July 13.
  • Save Me from Dangerous Men by S. A. Lelchuk. This is the first in the Nikki Griffin Series. The second releases April 13. It is on my TBR.
  • The Power of Writing It Down: A Simple Habit to Unlock Your Brain and Reimagine Your Life by Ally Fallon. This was one of those that was sitting on my Unread Shelf. Yay! This one is great if you are looking for a way to get out of your own way and change your life. Highly recommended to anyone curious about a way to do that without hefty therapy costs.
  • Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor by Jana Reiss. Another one that was sitting on my Unread Shelf.
  • Good Apple: Tales of a Southern Evangelical in New York by Elizabeth Passarella. This is laugh-out-loud funny and I love LOL memoirs. Entertaining but thought-provoking, a very good combination.

Currently Reading

What’s some books you have enjoyed recently? Did any of these pique your interest? No? No matter. The real point is that we…

…enjoy life.

what i’m into – keeping me sane {february 2021}

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My main wish is that 2021 is kinder to all of us than 2020 but if that is not possible, than that I, at the very least, will be kinder to myself. I have been focused on that. One of the things that keeps me sane is reflecting on the previous month (I talk about how I reflect on my year over here). What these What I’m Into – Keeping Me Sane posts do is allow me to reflect on the previous month.

  • Playing in the freshly fallen snow.  I talked about it here.
  • Participating in the 24in48 Readathon. I only managed to read about 12 hours out of the 48 but I was so tired and needing to prioritize some self-care.  I took a few afternoon naps between my reading hours and it was wonderful.
  • Reading, instead of playing video games. I continued this from January and read 11 books this month and will have that round-up in this month’s Quick Lit – Next Page, Please post. All of this reading has me about halfway to my numerical reading goal of 41 books in 2021 and it’s just now March.
  • Reading children’s classics to the Buddy Man. This month we read Where the Wild Things Are, Stuart Little and A Book With No Pictures. I think Stuart Little went over his head and he didn’t get the point of Wild Things. He loved A Book With No Pictures, however. I’m getting joy in the fact that he seems to be enjoying the habit we’re forming.
  • Purging my To-Be-Read Shelf. The Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club has been participating in a series of classes about reading intentionally.  I have had so much fun whittling my TBR from over 300 books down to around 225.  It’s so freeing.  I tend to organize when I get stressed. And on that note…
  • Organizing my work files, paper and digital.  I don’t know if you have picked up on this but I am a bit OCD when it comes to organization.  But 2020 somehow – OK, not somehow, I know exactly what happened – got me off my rhythm.  I took a day or two and just organized everything.  I feel so much better about my work and I find myself being way more productive.

What’s keeping you sane, right now? Share in the comments below. If you have a blog post about, link it below also. We will do this again on Friday, April 2. See you then.

…enjoy life.

quick lit – next page, please {january 2021}

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One of the things that I would like to do in 2021 is not waste time “doom-scrolling” and then numbing out to Netflix and Rise of Kingdoms (a game on my iPhone), so this January I was intentional about picking up a book and reading it instead of defaulting to my 2020 preferences.  

Thanks to the classes currently underway in the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club, I set two main reading intentions this year.  

  1. To continue experiencing new things via reading, discovering a good mix of genres for me.  Last year, I delved into audio books.  This month, I read sci-fi.
  2. To read some of the books on my Unread Shelf – these are books that I own (physical or digital) that I haven’t read.  I have too many for my preference.

Let’s see how I did in the first month of the year.

Read

  • The Late Bloomer’s Club by Louise Miller. This was January’s pick for the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club.  It was cute and cozy and I liked the ending.
  • Our Lady of Perpetual Hunger by Lisa Donovan. I named this one of my Best Books of 2020. You can listen to me gush about this on a recent episode of What Should I Read Next, Episode 268 (I start up around the 9:17).  At the time of that recording, I had not finished this and to be honest, I was scared to, afraid that it wouldn’t end on the high that I had been riding the whole time.  It did.  I’m so glad. 
  • Transcendent Kingdom Ya Gyasi. I started this one last year but found myself struggling. It’s not my typical read.  Then Chelsey, a fellow team member and cohost of The Novel Pairings podcast, remarked in the same aforementioned What Should I Read Next episode that she read this like it was a memoir and not a novel.  I read a lot of memoir so I decided to give that mindset a go. It worked. I finished.  Yay!
  • The New Corner Office by Laura Vanderkam. One of my goals is to work through my half-finished reads this year and get them off my Unread Shelf.  This was one of those. I listen to Laura’s podcast, The Corner Office, that has similar content but I wanted to finish this quick read.  I did.  This is a Kindle exclusive. You can check it out here.
  • Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes. This was the flight pick for the MMD Book Club in January. And it did go nicely with The Late Bloomer’s Club.  Cute and  cozy; it was also a pleasant read. 
  • The Confident Woman by Joyce Meyers. I am working on my confidence this year and saw this on my shelf.  Pulled it out and read it in the mornings. Another off of my Unread Shelf. 
  • The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. My team member, Brenna, recommended this during the same podcast, mentioned above. Her description sent me scurrying for my library website to place a hold.  I don’t read sci-fi/fantasy normally so it was hard to get into. It took a while to become acclimated to the unfamiliar world. But, since I was doing it as a #buddyread with my other team member, Donna of I am Your Rabbit fame, I persevered and by 48% in, I was hooked.  This is the first in a four book series.  Book 2 is currently sitting on my nightstand.
  • Bookshop Memories by George Orwell. This is actually an essay that was published in 1936 but Goodreads counts it as a book and so will I. You can read the essay here.
  • The Kindest Lie by Nancy Johnson. Thanks to William Morrow for the advanced reader’s copy of this one.  This is not my usual jam but if you like a novel that explores class, racism, and a complicated family history, this will be your jam and is worthy of your attention. 
  • The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict. This is the current pick for the Rocket City Mom Virtual Book Club. 

So, in total, I read 10 books. To be fair, I had started 4 of them in 2020 but Goodreads counts the dates that they are finished and so I will too.  I also read 4 books from my Unread Shelf and if I wasn’t intentionally making an effort, those 4 books would still be sitting on my Unread shelf so I am very pleased with this progress.  

As usual, I am linking up to Anne Bogel’s Quick Lit post and if you are here because of her, thank you.  

Also, quick question, do you guys like to know what I am currently reading in this post or is the round-up of what I read last month sufficient?

Thanks for being here and as Anne would say, “happy reading”.

…enjoy life