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Books I Read in October
Yes, it’s November 6 already and here I am putting out an October list. I have an excuse though – on October 31, Covid finally caught up with me. (So help me, I do not want to hear one more word of “Covid is still around?” because yes, dearies, it so is, and my doctor says this current strain is about as nasty as the old one. Believe me when I say I regret delaying getting the booster, because I would have loved for this to be an easier week.) While I’m STILL testing positive, I’m feeling much better except for the cough (and I already have a chronic cough,…
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The Memory Collectors by Kim Neville
Today’s featured book is Kim Neville’s literary debut, THE MEMORY COLLECTORS. It was an engrossing, unexpected read, so grab a cup of coffee and take a moment to learn more about this book. I received an advanced copy of the book from Atria Paperback; all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. SYNOPIS My Review I was drawn to this book first by its lovely cover, the comparisons to The Keeper of Lost Things, The Coincidence of Coconut Cake, and Practical Magic (ALL of which I loved) and by the synopsis. I love magical realism, and this was a…
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Love In the Afternoon by Karen Hawkins – A Dove Pond Novella
If you read The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins and enjoyed it, then you will love Love in the Afternoon. It’s a sweet, quick read. All opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. Synopsis My Thoughts on Love in the Afternoon Love in the Afternoon is a novella in Karen Hawkins Dove Pond series This story is short, fun, heartwarming, and a little quirky. (I really delighted over Doyle’s shenanigans.) The story deals with real-life struggles – like trusting yourself, finding yourself again after you’ve lost yourself in a relationship, parenting a neurodiverse child, venturing out…
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How Lulu Lost Her Mind by Rachel Gibson – Book Review
Today I’ve got a book that brings all the feels and deals with some tough topics while managing to be laugh-out-loud funny. Interested? Rachel Gibson’s novel How Lulu Lost Her Mind is the book for you! I think this book is making my list of top 10 favorite books of 2020. Read on to learn more about this wonderful book! I received an advanced copy of the book from the Gallery Books via NetGalley; all opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. About the Book My Thoughts On How Lulu Lost Her Mind I adored this…
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Anxious People by Fredrik Backman – Book Review
Fredrik Backman’s newest release titled Anxious People is a complete delight. Read on to see why I fell in love with it! I received an advanced digital copy of this book from Atria Books via NetGalley; all opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. This is one of those reviews where you want to shout out loud how wonderful a book is – but at the same time, you don’t want to give away too much, as I think part of the fun is going into a book a little blind. This is the story about…
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The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins – A Belated Book Review
What happens when someone asks you for a book recommendation, and you when youearch for your review on a particular book, you discover you only raved about it on social media? (Apparently, you only wrote the review in your head and on NetGalley…) You write a belated book review to make up for it! In this instance, the book in question is the very magical novel The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins. I received an advanced copy of the book from Gallery Books via NetGalley; all opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. My Thoughts The…
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My Life In The Fish Tank by Barbara Dee
The more books I read by Barbara Dee, the more of a treasure I think she is. She tackles difficult social topics in a way that is engaging and relatable! I am excited to share My Life In The Fish Tank, her wonderful new book. Read on to see why I love this story. I received an advanced copy of the book from the publisher via Media Masters Publicity; all opinions are my own. This post contains some affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them. The Book My Thoughts The more I read of Barbara Dee’s Middle Grade books, the bigger fan I become…
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On Ocean Boulevard by Mary Alice Monroe
Mary Alice Monroe returns to the shores of South Carolina, Primrose Cottage, and the Rutledge family in On Ocean Boulevard, the newest edition to her long-running The Beach House Series. I received an advance copy of the book from Gallery Books via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links. The Book My Take I have been a Mary Alice Monroe fan for a long time. Any new book in her Beach House series with the Rutledge family is like catching up with an old friend. (That said, you don’t need to have read the earlier books to jump into…
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Books to Help Understand Anti-Racism and Race
Wanting to be a better white ally means learning about systemic racism. To do that, we need to dig a little deeper into U.S. history, because we’re simply not taught it fully in school, at least in a way that we understand the nuances and all that shaped how we ended up where we all are today. As the fantastic graphic above by illustrator Jane Mount shows, there is no shortage of books that talk about race and racism. Non-fiction offers a direct (and often blunt) path to understanding. Fiction provides an excellent means to see and feel things from a different perspective. Putting both together marries the factual aspects…
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Must-Read MG Book: Maybe He Just Likes You by Barbara Dee
My daughter came home from school one day, slamming her backpack on the kitchen table in frustration. “They go ON AND ON about bullying at school, but they never tell people how to deal with it. They need to move past the “don’t bully” crap, because kids do it anyway, and teach us how to deal with it. And THEN they need to start talking about how to deal with sexual harassment, too.” Just what you want to hear on a sunny Thursday afternoon. So it was serendipitous that earlier in the day, an email landed in my inbox with a request for me to review Maybe He Just Likes…
