My Monday tradition, including a look back and a look ahead — what I read last week, what new books came my way, and what books are keeping me busy right now. Plus a smattering of other stuff too.

Life.

It’s been a really busy workweek, and I’ve fallen asleep exhausted every night — so much so that I ended up restarting a book that I’d tried reading for three days. I kept reading it before bed, being too sleepy to absorb anything, and then feeling frustrated that the story wasn’t grabbing me. Fortunately, I decided to restart it over the weekend, during daylight hours when I had time and energy, and it hooked me right away!

Note to self: Stop starting new books at bedtime!!

What did I read during the last week?

I only managed to finish one book this past week, although I’m *this close* to the end of another one.

Ms. Demeanor by Elinor Lipman: Silly entertainment, very easy to dash through. My review is here.

Pop culture & TV:

The Last of Us continues to be scary and pretty amazing. I just wish the whole season was available, instead of having to wait a week in between episodes. #tvbingeproblems

I finished season two of Hunters (Prime Video). It was… weird. Uneven. There’s one truly haunting episode, but so much is odd about the tone and overall plot. Now that it’s all done, I wish I had someone to talk about it with!

Puzzles of the week:

Another colorful puzzle from Eeboo! (This one is Copenhagen – 1,000 pieces)

Fresh Catch:

No new books!

What will I be reading during the coming week?

Currently in my hands:

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett: After reading a bunch of rave reviews, I just had to give this one a try. Really enjoying it so far!

Now playing via audiobook:

Spare by Prince Harry: I continue to be surprised by just how good this is! I’m about halfway through. It’s fascinating and very moving (and I haven’t even gotten to the Meghan parts yet…)

Ongoing reads:

My longer-term reading commitments:

• Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon: Over at Outlander Book Club, we’re doing a group read of BEES, reading and discussing two chapters per week. Coming up this week: Chapters 96 and 97 (of 155).
• Shakespeare for Every Day of the Year by Allie Esiri: Just what the title promises! Shakespeare selections for each day of the calendar. As of this week, I’m even further behind. I may just give up on trying to read one passage every day and pick it up at random from here on out. I’m giving myself one more week to decide!
• A Passage to India by E. M. Forster: My book group’s new classic read. We’re reading and discussing two chapters per week.

So many books, so little time…