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.
Yet another ridiculously crazy workweek, during which I had my work projects on my brain pretty much every waking moment… which meant that my ability to relax and focus on books was… let’s say, strained and unreliable. I did manage to squeeze in some reading, but always in stolen moments and with my attention pretty scattered. Ugh… but at least there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and I should get past this intense project within a few more weeks.
Other than that… it’s been quiet at the house, after our various holiday visitors headed back to their own homes. I’m trying to do a bit of cleaning and reorganizing… and yes, I’m even attempting teeny little bits of organizing when it comes to my bookshelves!
In terms of reading plans — I spent most of November and December reading randomly, according to my mood in the moment, but now that it’s January, I have (virtual) stacks of ARCs waiting to be read. Somehow, without intending to, I committed to lots of ARCs for January, February, and March, so I’m going to try my best to stay on track!
Oh, and here’s a kitty picture, just because:
I call this one “Astronaut Kitty”… but really, it’s just Benjy’s new backpack carrier, which he seems to enjoy a lot on his outings.
What did I read during the last week?
Ghost Talkers by Mary Robinette Kowal: A fascinating story about mediums channeling the dead to support the British army during WWI. My review is here.
The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler: The revival of the mammoth species is at the heart of this tightly written novella. My review is here.
Get Lucky by Katherine Center: A light, enjoyable audiobook listen. My review is here.
Pop culture & TV:
I’m still watching Crash Landing on You on Netflix! Most episodes are about an hour and a half, so I’m only managing one per night. I have four left — it’s so good!
All Creatures Great and Small is back for a new season! It’s so nice to spend time with James, Helen, and the gang again.
It was very rainy over the weekend, and I was annoyed at being stuck indoors… and then decided to take my self to a movie. I ended up seeing The Color Purple, and I’m so glad I did. It’s really a terrific movie, and I appreciated the musical numbers much more than I did when I saw the stage version several years ago (which was in a theater with terrible acoustics). Has anyone else seen it yet? Here’s the trailer:
Fresh Catch:
No new books this week.
What will I be reading during the coming week?
Currently in my hands:
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett: The follow-up to last year’s big hit, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. I’ve just passed the halfway point, and don’t want to put it down!
Now playing via audiobook:
Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman: This is my second audiobook by this author, and I’m loving it. I just wish I had more listening time — dying to see where the story goes!
Ongoing reads:
My current longer-term reads:
- Outlander Book Club is doing a group re-read of Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander, #2), reading and discussing two chapters per week. Coming up this week: Chapters 30 and 31 (of 49). Progress: 54%.
- Daniel Deronda by George Eliot: My book group’s current classic read! We’re reading and discussing two chapters per week. We’re back starting today, after a two-week break for the holidays. Progress: 34%.
What will you be reading this week?
So many books, so little time…
Bookshelf Fantasies 
The cat backpack is adorable! I haven’t seen The Color Purple yet but I’m interested. It’s hard to imagine that story as a musical though, I have to admit. Good luck with your work project, it sounds very stressful😬
Thank you! The Color Purple is worth seeing, and the musical numbers really work. Funny, I really didn’t like it when I saw it on stage and basically walked away thinking that it just didn’t work as a musical. It was only later, after listening to recordings of some of the songs (and especially now, after seeing the movie) that I realized that a big piece of the problem with the stage version was the terrible sound in the theater itself.
Good luck with the work project! I hope you finish it up soon and can get your focus back. I’m happy to hear you’re enjoying the new Emily Wilde book. I’ve been looking forward to it since I heard Fawcett was working on it. I’ll probably pick it up next week!
I ended up staying up way too late with Emily Wilde, so should finish soon. It’s good!! Hope you enjoy it too.
That’s great to hear, but get some sleep!
I’m slowly working my way through my heavy January ARC list. Good luck to you!
Thanks, and to you as well!
Look at Benjy!!! He is so cute!
❤ so adorable
Space kitty! 😁😍.
Yup! He’s ready for take-off.
😂👍
Woohoo! So glad you saw Color Purple and liked it. I like very few musicals and now it’s one of the few I like. I actually saw it for the second time recently because I had to take my mom. And I ended up crying again at certain moments throughout. I loved Fantasia and Taraji’s performance, but the actress who plays Sophie is my fav.
Oh, she was wonderful (the actress playing Sophie) — so glad to see she won the Golden Globe award, although I would have loved to see Fantasia win too. Really terrific cast and such a good production. Once it’s streaming, I’ll definitely watch it again!
Really? I’m happy to hear she won. I didn’t watch the award show, but I agree Fantasia deserved an award for her performance too.
Your kitty in his carrier is so cute! And when work is stressful and busy I find it impossible to settle down and read, too. Hope this month gets better soon.