Book travel to Australia, England and a nonfiction on deck #ClassicClub #Nonfiction #BuddyRead

Here we are Friday already and my week has flown past.  Trying to stay informed  with world events while minimizing the articles about the mentally deficient criminal in chief.  So that means more reading and I can't complain about that :-)

Currently reading /  I am engrossed with two chunksters right now.  Both are on my Classic Club list as well as being buddy reads. Sweet.

Earlier in the month I started The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, with Deb at Readerbuzz. The publication year is 1977, 692 pages.  I'm around the 70% mark now. Such tragedy in this family saga.

Wednesday I started reading Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain, an autobiographical historical account of Brittain's early life and encompassing the first world war.  Publication date of 1933, 688 pages.  I am buddy reading with JoAnn at Gulfside Musing. 

Upcoming / On deck after those two books is The Story of a Heart by Dr. Rachel Clarke. Just picked it up from the library.  It's about two families, two nine year old children and a transplant.  When Keira Ball is in a horrific car accident her body shut down, except her heart kept beating. Her parents allowed her to be an organ donor. 

Nine year old Max Johnson was fighting a virus causing his heart to fail.  When Max's family got the call they knew it came at a terrible cost to another family. He received Keira's heart.  I bet this book makes me cry.

📚 Also, if anyine is interested, Kate Quinn's book The Rose Code is on sale for Kindle for $1.99 today.  Not sure is that price is good outside the U.S. or if it's a today-only kind of deal but....if you like books about codebreakers during WW II this one is great. 📚

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Snow and books and comfort food

This week we saw unusual snowfall in northern Florida.  See post and more photos HERE.  Below is a photo of our field.  I grew up in Pennsylvania and Michigan so I experienced snowy winters but this is so very unusual for Florida.

Foodie stuff /   JoAnn posted about Chicken Tortellini soup HERE.  So I have made that, very hearty.

I also made a Curtis Stone recipe which is always satisfying. Chicken and Sausage Paella.

Reading

Upcoming for one of my classics is Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain, a buddy read with JoAnn for February.  Currently reading The Thorn Birds with Deb at Readerbuzz, also for my classic club list. 

For Mailbox Monday I picked up the following - Orbital by Samantha Harvey, Pastoral Song by James Rebanks and the final season of Madam Secretary.

James Rebanks has a farm in Cumbria England and may be found on IG at Herdyshepherd1.  The photos and videos are fantastic and I am looking forward to his book.

Finally, here is Loki soaking up some sun from his bedroom.  I think about moving the furniture around but the placement of this bed near the window allows him to get a good view of the field.  Spoiled...just a bit.

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Snow in north Florida

We had a record amount of snowfall here in north Florida.  Here are a few photos showing Doug walking across our buried driveway from the road toward the house.

This was last night. 👇 I carried Loki to the old RV port in hopes he would do his business because he was NOT going to put paws in the white stuff. I had to take his tiger and toss it in the chair on the porch.  Once I put him down in the covered port he bolted back, snow up to his belly, staring at his tiger in the chair.

Lots of tracks in the morning around the back yard area.  Looked like coyote.

 Wednesday morning - Trudging down the driveway past the shed to see what the road looks like.

The field in the sun.

That's it....I know folks across the U.S. have plenty more snow than us but for Florida this is very unusual. Staying home today because the roads are icy, there are multiple accidents / road closures and we have food and books so....no need to go out.

Hoping you all are safe and warm with a plethora of books!

Turkish Proverb

 

Reading and Watching

I know I have mentioned being appreciative for having access to such a good library in previous posts.  They keep me in entertainment and I don't spend any money.  If a book or movie isn't for me, I just return it.  This week's bounty has been good.

This week I finished Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors. Review HERE.  My husband wanted the latest Godzilla movie and we watched/read that.  It's all subtitled and the special effects were cool.

Into season 5 now of Madam Secretary and will finish that series before the end of January. Alas, I did not get to Moonflower Murders in time but have returned it and placed a new hold.

Today I watched The Quiet Girl, an Irish film based on the book Foster by Claire Keegan.  As I said in the review of the book, the themes of kindness, hopefulness and love bring this short story to life, both on film as well as the book.

The Irish country setting was beautiful and reminded me of places we'd visited many years ago. 

That's it for the week. Hope your week was good.

Loki‘s in there somewhere!

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Reading and Watching

 

Reading / I have been inside reading quite a bit and finished several books, all of which I enjoyed.  No DNF books so far 😀.

I've joined in for the Nonfiction Reading Challenge hosted by Shelleyrae at Book'd Out and read two memoirs so far.  This week I finished The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins which took us to a remote setting in Scotland.  It had quite an intriguing plot.

From Goodreads: Welcome to Eris: An island with only one house, one inhabitant, one way out. Unreachable from the Scottish mainland for twelve hours each day.

Once home to Vanessa: A famous artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared twenty years ago.

Now home to Grace: A solitary creature of the tides, content in her own isolation.

But when a shocking discovery is made in an art gallery far away in London, a visitor comes calling.

So Eris Island is not a true island but it is very isolated. With a dangerously thin road connecting Eris to the mainland only a mile in length. It's possible to go walk or drive from the small village during a six hour window.  Once the tide comes in you are stuck.

The story weaves back-and-forth between present day and the past.  There are three main points of view involving current day perspectives and flashbacks to events in the past.  

Vanessa Chapman was a brillant artist who died of cancer, leaving her entire collection of art to The Fairburn Foundation.  This was a surprise as she'd had a huge falling out with Douglas Fairburn, pulling her show out at the last minute and thus, starting a lengthy legal battle. Besides being famous for her artwork she is also associated with the mysterious disappearance of her ex husband Julian Chapman.  He visited her island one day and afterwards, vanished without a trace.

Grace is a pivital character in the novel.  Grace is a doctor and met Vanessa when she struggled into the practice with a broken wrist.  You could say they became friends or you could also see Grace positioning herself into Vanessa's life as friend/caretaker/medical professional.

As more of the character development is revealed you will come to realize Grace had a very lonely life. In one flashback to her college life I felt very sorry for her when she was put in the hospital and no one came to visit.  Her roommates disappeared. Abandonment. But there is more to Grace than meets the eye.

Becker is the third narrator.  He is a curator for the Fairburn Foundation and obessesed with Vanessa's work. He is in an awkward position at the foundation, a down to earth type who wants to do the right thing.  Then he discovers some sordid secrets.

Without spoilers I will say this is a slow burn and the revelations sometimes contradict each other, depending on perspective of the character narrating. Toward the end you see all the pieces fit together.   I was never tempted to bail but I didn't like how it ended. 3.5 stars

Watching / A series new to us is Madam Secretary and we are enjoying it.  Just finished season four and looking forward to the last two seasons.  Please don't give me spoilers!  We tend to lose interest in series after a while but this one has kept our attention.

No books in the mail but a Kindle purchase at good sale price and of course my wonderful public library providing me with loads of book, magazines and DVDs.

I hope your week was a good one. Thoughts out to all those in California who are experiencing devastating fire damage.  Horrible what is on the news.  I am very worried about Jinjer.

Sharing with:

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy for British Isles Friday

Vicki for Mailbox Monday

Olive, Mabel and me by Andrew Cotter & be Ready When Luck Happens by Ina Garten

My first book of the year was Olive, Mabel and Me by Andrew Cotter.  Reading wise this was the perfect start of the year as I like books about dogs.  The adventures Mr. Cotter described with his two labradors, especially the mountain climbing, was so well written.  

During the pandemic when everyone was on lockdown Mr. Cotter, a sports broadcaster, found himself out of work as all events were cancelled.  So he posted a YouTube video of Olive and Mabel.   The first video had many hits but the second one called Game of Bones was an overwhelming success.  I think I read it is still getting views and is over the 2 million mark on hits now.  

 There are so many observations about his time with Olive and Mabel and the quirks which any dog owner/pet parent can relate.  He delivers with humor and an excellent writing. Very down to earth, relatable narrative.

Mr. Cotter lives in Scotland and often takes the dogs on long hikes much to their mutual enjoyment.  There is quite a bit about the mountain climbing and hiking relayed here which I also found interesting.  It was explained in a way anyone could understand.  

There are loads of photos in the book and I sure hope he writes another one. 4.5 stars

 📚📚📚

Be Ready When Luck Happens by Ina Garten

I had been hearing good things about Ina Gartens's memoir and was pleased when the library had my copy available.  

If I'd had that childhood and such awful parents I don't think I would have succeeded  in much of anything.  They were demeaning, cruel and honestly should never have had children.  That said, she rose above the negativity despite the lack of support from her parents, obviously succeeding with most ventures she tackled.

The more negative reviews point out what a privileged upbringing she had with well-to-do parents in a Connecticut suburb. Money never being an issue doesn't mean you have a happy childhood nor does it mean you glide through life without strife.

There were many things I never knew about the famous cookbook author and the narrative moves smoothly through childhood to present day.  The fateful day she impulsively made an offer on the food shop Barefoot Contessa was interesting. 

Ina was in a fairly impressive position working on nuclear energy policy at the White House yet walked away to pursue something which made her happy - cooking.  Who would think someone with that gig would abandon it to work long exhausting hours preparing large quantities of baked goods and casseroles in a little shop?  That isn't saying she didn't burn the candle at both ends working for the government.  High stress there and all nighters for sure.

Ina is a type A personality and had the drive to make all of her endeavours succeed.  Cooking, gardening, business ventures.....I got tired just reading about all the work she put in.  Overall I found this to be an interesting memoir.  The parts about her husband were quite interesting to me as well. 4 stars

These book is shared with:

Shelleyrae at Book'd Out for the 2025 Nonfiction Reader Challenge. Category: Memoirs

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday