2020

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

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.

Back to the grind! It was hard to get back into the rhythm of working every day after a few days off the previous week. Since I stayed home for those days off, I’m still dying for a real getaway, someplace hot and sunny… where we can social distance and avoid contact with non-family members. I have no idea where yet, but I’m going to work on it!

What did I read during the last week?

Time After Time by Lisa Grunwald: Beautiful. My review is here.

The Blue Salt Road by Joanne M. Harris: A gorgeous selkie story. My review is here.

The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher: This was my audiobook listen for the past week — a really clever and engaging fairy tale. Definitely recommended!

Pop culture & TV:

Lots more Schitt’s Creek! I’m on season 4 now. Loving it!

Puzzle of the week:

Ah, an image of my dream location!

Fresh Catch:

I bought one Kindle book this week that my husband requested, but that’s it!

I’ll probably start this one during the coming week, once I finish my current read.

What will I be reading during the coming week?

Currently in my hands:

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl by Theodora Goss: The 3rd and final book in the Athena Club trilogy. So much fun! I’m almost done, and will share thoughts on this book and the trilogy as a whole in the next few days.

Now playing via audiobook:

News of the World by Paulette Jiles: This has been on my to-read shelf for a few years now. I’ve only just started, but so far I’m liking this Western.

Ongoing reads:

Outlander Book Club’s re-read of Outlander is underway. We’re reading and discussing one chapter per week. This week: Chapter 7, “Davie Beaton’s Closet”. Anyone who’s interested is welcome to participate, so just ask me how.

Onward with Don Quixote! Plugging away, two chapters per week. I can’t say that I’m deeply enthralled or anything, but I’m glad to be keeping up with the group read.

So many books, so little time…

22Jul2020

Shelf Control #226: Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.

Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.

Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!

Title: Remarkable Creatures
Author: Tracy Chevalier
Published: 2009
Length: 352 pages

What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):

In 1810, a sister and brother uncover the fossilized skull of an unknown animal in the cliffs on the south coast of England. With its long snout and prominent teeth, it might be a crocodile – except that it has a huge, bulbous eye.
Remarkable Creatures is the story of Mary Anning, who has a talent for finding fossils, and whose discovery of ancient marine reptiles such as that ichthyosaur shakes the scientific community and leads to new ways of thinking about the creation of the world.
Working in an arena dominated by middle-class men, however, Mary finds herself out of step with her working-class background. In danger of being an outcast in her community, she takes solace in an unlikely friendship with Elizabeth Philpot, a prickly London spinster with her own passion for fossils.
The strong bond between Mary and Elizabeth sees them through struggles with poverty, rivalry and ostracism, as well as the physical dangers of their chosen obsession. It reminds us that friendship can outlast storms and landslides, anger and jealousy.

How and when I got it:

I had my eye on this book as soon as it was released, and bought myself a used copy in 2010.

Why I want to read it:

It just sounds so interesting! I love reading about women going outside the norm for their time periods. What could be more unusual than female fossil hunters in the early 1800s? Mary Anning is a historical figure, and I’m so interested in learning more about her experiences.

I do need to admit that I’ve been especially interested in this book ever since reading Pride and Prometheus by John Kessel — a hidden gem of a book that’s a mash-up of Frankenstein and Pride and Prejudice, and is wonderful in so many ways. In this book, Mary Bennet encounters Mary Anning and becomes involved in fossil hunting as well (and it’s amazing!).

I’ve only read one book by Tracy Chevalier (The Girl With the Pearl Earring), but so many of her titles look fascinating.

What do you think? Would you read this book? Are there other books by this author that you’d recommend?

Please share your thoughts!

The Book Connection
Bookmarked
Literary Potpourri

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Want to participate in Shelf Control? Here’s how:

Write a blog post about a book that you own that you haven’t read yet.
Add your link in the comments or link back from your own post, so I can add you to the participant list.
Check out other posts, and…

Have fun!

20Jul2020

The Monday Check-In ~ 7/20/2020

Posted in The Monday Check-In by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Life.

I took a few days off work — my first days off since March! Not that we went anywhere, but it was good to have days to relax and not be on video calls all day long! My husband and I went for a walk in the redwoods at Muir Woods, and then my son and I spent a few hours at the (newly reopened) zoo. It was a little weird to be out and about, although crowd control and social distancing seemed mostly effective. Except for the few groups of people we passed who weren’t wearing masks. Grrrrrr.

My son got his learner’s permit this week, so we’ve been going out for practice drives A LOT. He’s doing pretty well! I guess all those years of non-stop video games have really paid off in terms of hand-eye coordination!

What did I read during the last week?

The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune: Just wonderful. My review is here.

What You Wish For by Katherine Center: It was okay, but I didn’t love it as much as her previous book. My review is here.

Agent 355 by Marie Benedict: A free selection from Audible that ended up being a terrific choice. My review is here.

10 Things I Hate About Pinky by Sandhya Menon: Read but didn’t end up reviewing. Enjoyable YA with fake dating as the central plot element. It was fun, but didn’t rock my world. (Of course, maybe I just wasn’t in the right mood.)

Pop culture & TV:

A friend convinced me to give Schitt’s Creek a try… and I should know by now that she doesn’t steer me wrong! I’ve watched one season (of five) so far, and I’m loving it. Super funny, and I also love the fact that each episode is only about 25 minutes. Should be able to zip right through!

Aaaaand… I decided to finally give Supernatural another chance! I remember I watched the very first episode when the show premiered in 2005, and then never went back for more. I’m taking a slow but steady approach, watching one episode every few days. Considering there are 14 (?) seasons, this could take a while!

Puzzle of the week:

This one was hard, but so much fun!

Fresh Catch:

Hurray for the new Lady Astronaut book!

What will I be reading during the coming week?