Weekly Reads & More
What I've been reading, watching, listening to, & enjoying these past two weeks
Hello! This weekend has been a much needed mental reset from both the busyness of life in general and in my reading life in particular. I know I’m not alone in the fact that I need to be reading something (preferably that I’m enjoying) so that I have that book, that story, those characters, or that plot to look forward to getting back to, especially after a busy day. I need the anticipation of reading that a good story brings to my day to day rhythms. Long story short, I was between reads a few days ago and feeling very frustrated that, despite having unlimited book choices, I couldn’t find anything that pulled me in and made me want to keep reading. I sampled many audiobooks while out on walks, as well as read a chapter or two of several books on my Kindle. Nothing hit me.
Then this weekend I’ve had a change of scenery with a quick trip to the lake and a sunny day that was warm enough I could take a long walk in the local state park. On my walk I started We Need Your Art by Amie McNee (thanks to
for this recommendation) and I immediately connected with her message and voice! Often, when I can’t find a fiction audiobook to listen to, I’ll start one of the many nonfiction titles I have queued and if nothing else I'll learn something. I’m loving this creative pep talk of a book and while on my walk I decided to skip to the section where she talks about our creativity blocks—procrastination, perfectionism, comparison, and burnout. This is a section I will need to listen to again—and again.
After my walk, I took my Kindle and blanket and settled into a comfy chair to read by the water. I asked myself what book I’ve come across lately has me the most intrigued. I had a few titles I hadn’t yet sampled, including Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle and Among Friends by Hal Ebbott, both anticipated new releases I want to read, but it was one particular backlist title I had randomly come across recently that had me the most intrigued. And that is the one I spent the next hour getting immersed in and then stayed up late reading last night. Joy! I’m keeping that one a secret for now as I think I’m going to choose it as one of my April surprise reads (at the end of the month I share secret, “surprise” books I’ve read and enjoyed that month in an audio episode for paid subscribers). All this to say, sometimes the road to landing on just the right book can be long and require patience, but for me it’s always worth it. Now onto what I’ve been reading lately…
Reads
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (Apr 29) - Thank you Crown Publishing & PRH for this gifted copy. This debut is about Sybil, a woman approaching 80 who spends her mornings writing letters to a variety of people. The letters she writes and those she receives have been her preferred ways of communicating throughout her life- why?- she has her reasons which is part of the story. I'm not a reader who typically likes epistolary stories, but I was immediately pulled into this one by Sybil's voice. She was a very complicated lady which I loved and I also loved getting to know the people in her family, her neighbor, and others in her world. There were character driven plot twists along the way and life lessons intertwined in subtle ways. Loved that! Plus, there's books! Sybil is a reader and she writes to various authors about the books she reads and that's all I'll say about that.
This book made me laugh and it made me cry. It's a five star read!
Our Souls At Night by Kent Haruf - A bittersweet story about a man and a woman who decide to spend time together on their own terms in the twilight of their lives. I loved this story— almost all of it. The story was beautiful and I loved the themes explored—aging, loneliness, companionship, and more. I wanted the absolute best for the main characters Addie and Louis and I thoroughly enjoyed their conversations and takes on life in older age. I also enjoyed Haruf's writing, there were poignant sentences that I'm adding to my commonplace journal because they spoke so beautifully of the human experience, life, and love. But... I'm not at all happy with the direction the author took in last quarter of the book. At all. Despite this, I still loved it and I’m still thinking about these characters
Nemesis by Gregg Hurwitz - Book 10 in the Orphan X thriller series. Thank you Macmillan Books for the gifted audio and arc. Many of you know I LOVE this Orphan X series, but I hated this book and I've never said that about any of the books in this series. Hurwitz spent a ridiculous about of time, words and pages on fight scenes. I thought it was over written, I thought it was a lot of the same scenes and situations we've seen in previous books, and I thought the usual funny dialogue and snappy remarks and comebacks fell flat in this story. Not even Joey and dog the dog could save this for me. I also hated the sub plot of the "bad guys" and didn't buy into the conflict between Evan and the other person- if you know you know. Nemesis is book 10 so I guess I should be happy it's taken 10 books to get to one I actively disliked for the entire book. I couldn't dnf though because I'm devoted to this series. I’m in it for the long run, but really hoping the author can get back to the thrills, engaging plot, and interesting characters in book 11.
Current Read - nonfiction audio - We Need Your Art: Stop Messing Around and Make Something by Amie McNee. Thank you PRH audio for the gifted ALC. This is the creative pep talk I didn’t know I needed! The author narrates and her British narration feels like I’m having coffee with a friend who has decided to give me the ultimate pep talk about creativity, writing, and putting both into the world instead of letting blocks like perfectionism and comparison stop me. I’m listening in small sections and thoroughly enjoying. If you liked Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert or The Creative Act by Rick Rubin (both books I loved), I think you’ll like this too
On my Kindle I’m reading a 2015 debut for one of my April surprise reads…I’m loving it so far and it’s one I just stumbled across, I love when that happens!
Listens
Poured Over Podcast - interview with author Chloe Dalton who wrote the recent memoir I loved Raising Hare. It was a delight to hear her talk more about the book and the hares
The Oprah Podcast - interview with Jonathan Haidt (author of The Anxious Generation) on How Social Media Is Changing Childhood. Some very scary stats about kids and screen time. I think valid points were made
The Oprah Podcast - interview with Dr Sharon Malone Oprah on Everything We Need to Know About Menopause. This whole episode is great! So much valuable information and validation about this time of life I’m currently in. It’s been crazy to me that several of the dr’s I’ve seen have very limited knowledge about menopause
Modern Wisdom Podcast - Ep 924 - What Netflix’s “Adolescence” Got Wrong. I finally finished the show (more on that below) and jumped right into this episode which was a super interesting conversation especially because both the host and the guest are from the UK.
Watched
Adolescence (Netflix) - I finally watched the show everyone seems to be talking about—and for good reason. As a mom of two boys who are grown now, I still found this hard to watch. It’s terrifying, yet thought provoking and I do think it serves to further much needed conversation about smart phones, kids, and social media. That being said, I think there’s huge plot holes and as a viewer I wanted answers to things that were introduced, but never followed up on. I’ve had some great conversations about this show with friends. There’s a lot to discuss. Thanks to
for telling me to turn on the subtitles when I complained about not being able to hear/understand much of what was being said—that made a huge difference… I pass this tip onto you:)Mob Land (Paramount +) - This is about two warring crime families and really that’s all you need to know as far as the plot. It stars Pierce Bronson, Tom Hardy, and Helen Mirren (love her). This is very violent just fyi and it’s a bit hard to follow, so I’ve had to pay close attention. So far I feel ambivalent about it, it’s fine but it’s not amazing. It’ll suffice as our Sunday night show to take the place of The White Lotus.
Speaking of, the finale of The White Lotus was a bit slow, but ultimately I loved it because it was still unhinged in the best possible ways. It’s my least favorite of the three shows (I loved Italy followed by Hawaii then this), but was still great entertainment. Parker Posey as Victoria was worth every minute of watching this season!
Recipe I’m Loving
I’ve been spending time curating my Instagram feed to show me things outside of books (and skincare and clothes) and easy healthy recipes is something I’ve been loving discovering. I came across the account at healthy fitness meals and this recipe for 4 ingredient chocolate chip cookies. I made a batch last weekend and they were delicious! And so so easy. That’s the key for me, easy and healthy. I’ll share the recipe below for those not on instagram:)
Ingredients:
2 ripe bananas
1/4 cup almond butter or peanut butter. - I used almond butter
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
Bake in a preheated at 375F for 20-22 mins.
Links I Love
Where are you on the woo spectrum? - I’m woo convinced! (Ness Labs)
I love tinted lip balms, here’s 10 of the best (Allure)
Book tracking apps for ever type of reader (USA Today)
100 Obsessively curated kitchen items for cooking and eating every day (NY Mag) - I need that slim frother!
Must read books of spring (Town & Country)
The age of being 'very online' is over. Here's why. (Mashable)
Michael Crichton’s widow sues The Pitt creators over alleged ‘ER’ rip (Rolling Stone)
The Most Heart-Wrenching Book I’ve Ever Read: 20 Readers Share (Bookbub) - I spy my favorite book of the past decade (#2)!
Book I’m Anticipating
The River Is Waiting by Wally Lamb (June 10) Thank you Simon Element for my gifted book.
Corby Ledbetter is struggling. New fatherhood, the loss of his job, and a growing secret addiction have thrown his marriage to his beloved Emily into a tailspin. And that’s before he causes the tragedy that tears the family apart. Sentenced to prison, Corby struggles to survive life on the inside, where he bears witness to frightful acts of brutality but also experiences small acts of kindness and elemental kinship with a prison librarian who sees his light and some of his fellow offenders, including a tender-hearted cellmate and a troubled teen desperate for a role model. Buoyed by them and by his mother’s enduring faith in him, Corby begins to transcend the boundaries of his confinement, sustained by his hope that mercy and reconciliation might still be possible. Can his crimes ever be forgiven by those he loves?
I loved older Wally Lamb books like I Know This Much is True and She’s Come Undone and I can’t wait to read this new one
From the Archives
Any thoughts on today’s newsletter? Did you read, listen, or watch anything notable this week?
Have a great Sunday📚
- Renee
I need to check out the Oprah menopause podcast. There’s suddenly so much talk about the topic but I still feel *adrift*. As for subtitles, I had to turn them on for Mobland because I couldn’t understand half the dialogue.
I finished 2 more winning memoirs this weekend- The Tell, and a book by a woman I actually know called Life Minutes. It’s a memoir that tells the story of her family‘s life after her academically gifted and athletic seventh grade daughter began having uncontrollable seizures that left her disabled. And that was just the beginning of the trials ahead for the family. I was aware of most all of this peripherally because of various connections through my school system, but reading the details of what they went through was absolutely heartrending, and I could not put it down! I’m going to review it later when I can get my thoughts together, but I think even though it may not be the most well written book I’ve ever read, a lot of my fellow readers would really enjoy this book, and I was so impressed by her family’s bravery in allowing her to tell their story.
Other than that, I’m just super pumped that Top Chef is back!