Weekly Reads & More

A new release memoir, what I've noticed, watched, and listened to. Plus LINKS!

This Week

I’ve spent the last 10 days or so focusing on getting back into a reading rhythm, while spending significantly less time consuming content and significantly more time recharging my creative batteries. I plan on writing more about this push-pull of consuming vs creating in the future, but for now if you also struggle with this tell me your thoughts in the comments.

One way I recharge is walking in nature and spending time noticing. Turns out, when I take the time to pay close attention and notice what’s around me and what catches my eye, I can discover some interesting and delightful things. Noticing for me means I walk in nature without airpods and without an agenda. I’m not there for a cardio walk, I’m there to recenter and destress. Without fail, every time I walk in nature like this (usually a 30-45 min walk), I feel calmer and more centered when I’m done. Over the last two weeks, I took the time to take pictures of the things I was noticing. I don’t always do this because I like to ignore my phone during these walks, but I knew I wanted to share what I noticed with you.

Two of the biggest delights I noticed (pics below) were an ingenious bird’s nest (and the babies!) built inside one of the compartments of the pooper scooper bag container at the park and an amazing sunset.

the bird babies waiting on food, me walking at the lake, two swallows hanging out (also the cover of The Correspondent come to life!), flowers that made me think of a firework display, this no filter sunset, ducks, Sunday afternoon reading by the water, my dog Vinny looking so regal, geese parents & their babies out for a swim

Reads

My Next Breath by Jeremy Renner

A riveting memoir that details Renner’s near-fatal incident¹ and Near Death Experience (NDE) when he was run over by his 14,000 pound snowcat in January 2023. I bought this in print and the book includes many pictures which, when I saw his actual snowcat machine, I was all the more amazed at his survival. I ended up listening to most of it though, Renner narrates and his emotion, strength, humor, and determination came through loud and clear. To hear him tell his story in his own words was quite powerful. It’s a story (and facts) I had never read in such detail before and it was quite harrowing to listen to him describe moment by moment what happened to him. The actual 911 calls are included in the audio and I found myself holding my breath listening to them. I can imagine that had to be hard for him to relive those very long moments waiting for help to arrive. I found his story to be very well written (he doesn’t have a ghostwriter) and compelling from start to finish. His details on his NDE and the impact that’s had on him had me riveted. The fact that he’s alive and able to tell his story, able to walk, able to, as he says, take a literal breath is truly amazing. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this memoir. I feel like his story, how he thinks about it, how he shares it, what he now brings to the world has impacted me in unexpected ways. I highly recommend this!

Current Read

The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong

This was one of my most anticipated May releases. Oprah’s interview with the author on her podcast this week not only made me cry, but after hearing them discuss his intentions, who inspired the characters, etc I knew I had to start it immediately. It’s billed as “a bighearted novel about chosen family, unexpected friendship, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive” and I would agree with all of that. I’m about a third of the way through and I’m noticing that I’m very much enjoying the found family aspects of this story. I will say, I’m finding that there’s an underlying sadness to this story which after listening to his interview with Oprah, I understand why. I’ve never read this author before and so far, I think his writing is beautiful. There’s much to highlight, including the very first sentence of the book—"The hardest thing in the world is to live only once."

Watches & Listens

Movies - The Accountant 2 - I rewatched The Accountant before seeing this new one and I’m so glad I did because I had forgotten so much. I loved the new one even more than the first! So did my husband and two sons. Ben Affleck, love him or hate him, he’s really good in this movie

Tv - The Four Seasons (Netflix). I’ve seen some mixed reviews of this. But we binged this over two nights and both my husband and I loved it. Stars Steve Carrell and Tina Fay.

Podcast Episodes I Enjoyed

• The Book Review from The NYT - The Summer Books We’re Looking Forward To

• Oprah talks with Ocean Vuong about his book

• Jeremy Renner on the Modern Wisdom Podcast - How to Overcome the Worst Pain of Your Life #937

Links I Loved

18 Must Watch Summer Blockbusters Coming Our Way (Vogue)

The Atlantic’s Summer Reading Guide (The Atlantic)

42 New and Upcoming Debuts (Goodreads)

Tips On Getting the Most From Deep Reading (NPR)

10 New Crime Books (Crimereads)

Healthy Dinner Recipes (The Good Trade)

Charmaine Wilkerson’s “Shelf Life” Book Recommendations (Elle)

33 Absorbing New Books To Read By the Pool (BookBub)

Surprise Books & More: Italy Edition

New Podcast Series!🎙️ Books & Beyond With Sara Hildreth of Fiction Matters

Are We Reading Twins?

Any thoughts on today’s newsletter? Did you notice, read, listen, or watch anything notable this week?

Have a great Sunday📚

- Renee

1. In the book he calls the accident an incident and says this is how he thinks of it