celebrating books & the literary lifestyle
You’re taking your kids to New Orleans???
That is a question I got when I announced our fall travel plans.
Yes, yes we did, and it was awesome. There’s a ton of stuff to do in New Orleans as a family while still having good time as adults.
Of course it is a different experience than when I went there 4 times in my college era, but at this point in my life that is OK!! I would not likely take them in the spring closer to Mardi Gras.
Twice a year I peruse the descriptions and publishers’ notes for new releases to find the books I’m most excited to read. If you have stumbled across my website, I hope we have some of the same tastes in books, and you will also find something in this list to read this winter.
While putting together this list, I realized I am becoming extremely particular about what I want to spend my time reading….when I finish a book I love, I want to pick up a book I’m going to love just as much; I don’t have time (who does??) to read bad books or books that are just not for me. So all of these books below offered me that hope.
Publishers notes are in block quotes. You can click on the titles or images to purchase from Amazon or just find out more before purchasing from your local bookseller or borrowing from your local library. (Even though I am obviously an Amazon affiliate I also support both these institutions).
I will update this post with new links as I read through this list like I did for my summer reading list. Or go straight to my favorite books of the summer.
Happy winter reading and please let me know which ones interest you and if you end up loving any of these books!
I enjoyed The Kennedy Debutante
This novel focuses on the life of “Kick,” the daughter of Joe Kennedy Sr, American Ambassador to the Great Britain, and sister to Joe Jr., Jack, Bobby, etc. She was charismatic and beautiful, and she captivated London society in the late 1930s when the family was stationed abroad. The book begins as she and her sister Rosemary are “presented” to the King and Queen as debutantes. Another fun work of historical fiction I read this year covers this annual spectacle.
I haven’t posted in a couple of weeks because I have been reading a book that required a slower pace of reading, Gilead: A Novel
The lyrical novel reads as a letter from a dying 67-year-old minister, John Ames, to his young son. He reflects on his love for his family; he confronts his own perceived shortcomings and jealousies and moves towards forgiveness and acceptance.
As I was finishing up Clock Dance: A Novel
This book starts by narrating the most defining moments in Willa’s life: As a young girl, her mother disappears; in college, she ponders a marriage proposal; and later she is a young widow. Fast forward some years, and she feels a bit lost while living in Phoenix with her new husband.
“Willa loved saguaros. She loved their dignity, their endurance. They were the only things in Arizona she felt a deep attachment to. The first time she saw one – a whole assemblage of them, actually, looming outside the airport last summer when she and Peter came to house hunt – it was like meeting some mythical race.”
I, too, loved the saguaros I saw in Phoenix area. I had never seen anything like them and couldn’t stop looking at them. Where the arm meets the base – this part looks so fragile and strong at the same time.
But as amazing as saguaros are, they don’t make up for personal connections. When she’s called across the country to a stranger’s aid, Willa begins to find a purpose as she becomes part of a slightly eccentric community.
I was oddly fascinated with Ohio
So I will tell you a bit about it, and you can decide for yourself whether it may be for you…
I did appreciate the narrative format, which I will also discuss in this post.
I previously posted on how much I loved reading Red Sparrow
Read my post on Red Sparrow here.
And after reading the next two books in this trilogy by Jason Matthews, I have to tell you more about this series; it has been one of my favorite reading experiences ever!! The final installment, The Kremlin’s Candidate: A Novel (The Red Sparrow Trilogy)
These Sparrow books are not my usual genre, and I hadn’t even planned to read them this summer, but they honestly have been my favorite books so far this year considering pure entertainment value.
Continue reading
I need to cover a few events in one post; this must mean I had a great summer!!
Though it may seem strange to lump concerts and book signings together, last year I realized they have many similarities for me and sometimes book signings are even better!
Both types of events support the artists we love and allow us to enjoy their work in a different experience – outside of our headphones and off of our couches!
As the summer winds down – and I consider it summer all the way through September!! – I am contemplating my favorite books from my summer reading list.
I am still finishing up a couple of these, but I am confident in which books I can whole heartedly recommend. I wrote a blog post on all of these (no spoilers!!), so if you want to know more about any of the books, click on the link that says “Read my post here.”
Occasionally I’ll be going about my day when I get the feeling I’m missing out on something. Then I realize the feeling is coming from being in the middle of a book/story that is “on pause” until I open it up again.
I distinctly had this feeling while reading The Great Believers
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