five things Friday: May TBR edition

Already time for assembling another month's intended reading list?! This is making me realize how few of these left to create before it's baby month - just June and July! Probably in June I'll start hitting harder on some of the parenting memoirs on my stack (planning to revisit a couple that I absolutely loved, like Great with Child), but for May, I thought I'd get to some backlist picks and check those off my year's reading intentions, plus a couple of more recent ones to read down my stacks. 

I'm very excited for Firekeeper's Daughter, a Native American-written YA mystery that sounds excellent (and not just because I share a first name with the author!), which apparently has already been optioned by the Obamas' production company. This reminded me that a couple of years ago I picked up The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich when visiting her bookstore in Minneapolis, and I still haven't gotten around to reading it. I really like her fiction for adults; this one is a middle-grade book that sounds like it might capture some of the settings/era of the Little House on the Prairie books, without some of the problematic parts, and from a native perspective.

Also have loved Elizabeth Acevedo's works but haven't ever read her first book, so The Poet X is definitely on my desired backlist reads for 2021, and sticking with YA, I also want to pick up David Yoon's new one, Super Fake Love Song, which I got a Kindle deal on a while back (really enjoyed his first, Frankly in Love). Finally, speaking of Kindle deals from a while back - Big Magic has been sitting on there FOREVER and somehow I've not read it. Time to branch out and get some non-fiction and creative thinking going this month.

April's reading list was very sunny in exterior color - and also had some good finds in terms of the interiors! 

A quick recap:

• No Happy Endings: a memoir of grief and continuing on with life in the aftermath, after Nora's husband died from brain cancer in their 30s and she fell in love again and remarried after - but also essays about feminism and motherhood and family and love. Nora McInerny is very funny, and I liked how most were very short, bite-sized essays that pack a punch with both humor and emotional resonance. If you've heard her on podcasts like Terrible, Thanks for Asking (her own podcast) or Forever 35, some of the stories won't be new, but still appreciated the general insights about motherhood/womanhood (the letters to her children/stepchildren were some of my favorite parts - just lovely), and also the perspective on grief that as someone who has not dealt with it in the same way helps me understand and empathize. ★★★★
• Well Played: this romance has the "mistaken identity" trope that I don't love quite as much as the "enemies to lovers" one that featured in the first book in this universe, Well Met, plus I just tend to love the first book I read by an author the best (did love getting to see again the main characters from Well Met here!). Some definitely steamy scenes, but not too many. Decently fun romance to escape into, especially if you like this Renaissance Faire twist. ★★★
• The Field Guide to the North American Teenager: when a Black French-Canadian teen moves to Austin, Texas (against his wishes of course), he's in for a bit of culture shock, and he records these in his journal as he navigates being the new kid as an outsider - but also experiences all of the cliches and awkward moments of the high school experience himself, from making new friends to going to prom. It reminded me of books like Frankly in Love (an excellent one!) and Permanent Record, with a good dose of snark coming from the protagonist, and a character who is straddling some kind of cultural line, whether that be as an immigrant or having immigrant parents whose expectations differ from his own. The result is a smart take on navigating high school and family culture. Also, it's got some romantic interests and plenty of humor, but it's not a rom-com, so the predictable endings don't necessarily apply. ★★★.5
• Furia: Camila, nicknamed "Furia" by her teammates for her intense presence on the soccer field, is an Argentenian teen navigating a constricting home life, a first romantic love, and a secret dream of making it big as a soccer star - which she already is on the local level, though she must play in secret, because even though her brother is a professional player, her parents don't think it appropriate for her to play. This book reminded me of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter (also excellent) in the tone, and in the general story of a teen girl trying to navigate (and chafing at) her parents' and her culture's expectations of her that feel unfair compared to what's expected of others (especially of the brother, in the case of Furia). They want independence and choices in a way that their culture/family isn't necessarily open to, and the story shows their coming of age in light of this. Well written and resonant, and I appreciated reading an own-voices story about a teen in another country as well. ★★★★
• Cribsheet: I skimmed Emily Oster's first book, Expecting Better, to see some of her insights on various aspects of pregnancy, gleaned from looking at medical studies and data through her expertise as an economics researcher, and also as a new mother trying to navigate the landscape. It had some interesting bits (but some that were no longer applicable, like about conception, when I read it), so I was curious to see her take on the data around delivery and infancy, things like the supposed benefits of breastfeeding, or approaches to sleep training. I liked how Expecting Better gave data about different topics in a way that helps bring you to a decision of your own that might differ from hers (only sometimes are there hard and fast recommendations that she gives based on data, like about smoking during pregnancy), but she also incorporated some of her own worries/decisions as a new mom as she went through a first pregnancy; you get that with this book too. In some spots, I felt like there is less of the actual data/recommendations coming from it, just because I think there isn't that much in existence on certain topics, but still she at least gives at least a frank description of some of the things that might happen right after delivery, etc. I'm not a person who feels the need to be super data-driven in my decisions, but combined with some other parenting philosophies I've resonated with (such as Bringing Up Bebe), this was interesting to incorporate into my thinking. ★★★.5  
  

What was your best book of April? Anything great lined up for May? Admittedly in April I dropped everything to read my pre-ordered new arrival of Mother May I (so good!) when it arrived, but I flew through so fast it didn't affect my list at all. Thinking the same will happen with my pre-ordered copy of People We Meet on Vacation in May...

Sharing on Show Us Your Books.

cooking lately: our family's favorite fish recipes

Sometimes when I finish making dinner I have to take a moment to marvel and praise myself for how far I've come... both with my palate and my cooking skills. Into my 20s I wouldn't have considered ordering or making fish, but now it's the thing I'm always interested in getting at a restaurant - real chefs are so much better at preparing it than I am! But somehow (well, mostly thanks to Blue Apron, actually) I've actually become pretty comfortable, and pretty decent if I may say so myself, with cooking fish. And even more self congratulations: my whole family loves these dinners!

Here are 4 recipes that are reasonably foolproof, are very tasty yet quick to assemble, have a variety of flavor profiles, and best of all, are things that my 7-year-old likes to eat. He wouldn't have dreamed of touching it himself in the picky toddler stage, until one night Peter suggested that he would be a bear if he ate his salmon, because that's what bears eat. That was enough to get Hendrik to take a bite, and then to realize he actually likes the stuff. Major parenting win. (Amazingly, he likes shrimp even more, and I have a couple of great go-to recipes, but this is my one pregnancy aversion after feeling icky one night early on after eating shrimp. Haven't made it since...)

Sheet pan pesto salmon: this was in a Blue Apron box a couple of months ago, and I've already repeated the recipe multiple times out of my own grocery orders, because it's delicious, very easy in terms of both prep and cleanup, and has ingredients that we'd use otherwise - broccoli and sweet potatoes are two of my go-to roasted veggies anyway, and adding the pesto dipping sauce? Yes and yes. Plus any leftover pesto gets to be a pasta dish the next night - score one for easily planning a second dinner! Roasting is one of the easiest ways to do fish, and the combo of the pesto mayo + breadcrumbs on top gives you the right kind of moisture with your fish but a crispy contrast on top. And if kids reallllyy hate pesto, you could just skip the topping on theirs.

Tilapia piccata with orzo: another Blue Apron recipe that's easy to recreate (sometimes I just skip the capers). Tilapia cooks so fast on the stovetop, and the light and bright flavors are so nice in this one. Pairing with orzo is also nice because again, orzo cooks fast, and also it's pasta, so a kid has to like something on this plate at least.

Fish taco bowls: a favorite that I make with some regularity. In fact, I think I'm going to need to make these this weekend, as it's been a little while. at this point I really don't follow any recipe for fish taco bowls, but the linked/pictured recipe is a good starting point. Now that I'm comfortable with the idea I just assemble from whatever we have on hand with rice as the base; cod or tilapia (or even shrimp) sprinkled with chili powder, garlic powder, bit of cumin, salt & pepper which I either roast or pan sear; generous amount of guacamole of course; sauteed onions, peppers, black beans, and/or corn, whatever is on hand; and cherry tomatoes or pickled red onions if we've got those. Hendrik eats his deconstructed, each component on its own (or I wrap his fish up in a tortilla with guacamole if that's how he wants it that day), and we eat ours all heaped in one bowl of goodness.

Salmon with sweet chili glaze: another Blue Apron recipe that's easy to re-create. The glaze is a nice flavor without being too spicy for kids, and what really makes it is the aromatic rice - cooking your rice with some garlic and ginger is a game-changer for making your at-home cooking taste way fancier, without much extra effort.

As mentioned, Blue Apron is really what got me more comfortable cooking fish, with the ingredients all at-hand and the instructions very detailed - not having to figure out how much or what cut of fish to buy was a big help for getting me to cook. (Not sponsored or anything - I just appreciate their recipes and do have a few free boxes for first-time users, if anyone is interested). Then I guess the whole quarentimes situation really solidified things, since we have not gone to a restaurant since February 2020 (fish as takeout just doesn't sound so good), and I did more Blue Apron boxes than usual. 

Any great recipes I should add to the rotation over here, now that I'm good at this?!

wearing lately: new to the collection

If asked whether there's anything I collect, I probably would have said no (well, aside from books, of course, but those seem more like necessities to me really) - but then after recent style posts showcasing 3 different spring jackets, and having another to share this week? I guess I have to own it: I collect jackets! 

We've seen the denim jacket, cargo jacket, and light quilted jacket (which admittedly aren't the only ones...I also have a field jacket in canvas and quilted), and now meet the newest addition to the collection: the chore jacket. So admittedly it's not that different - kind of echoes the style of a denim jacket, and the off-white-ish shade is pretty similar to . But a collector can always justify a new addition as having its valid reasons. 

Loving this slightly more current/updated style (which I have been seeing many places lately - see the roundup below) for something a little different. And just look how fun and fresh this makes a simple outfit. Plus, as previously mentioned, it fits in any month of pregnancy and beyond, so I'm a happy lady.

five things Friday: buzzy books edition

I've been coming up with and posting a monthly "to be read" list for myself for a little over a year now, which has been great to keep myself on track with books that I want to make sure to get around to - whether that be for book club, for keeping up with some backlist titles, for making sure I get to library holds on time, etc. - and this keeping on track is necessary when one also stays up on what new releases are coming...and tends to get very excited and sidetracked by them. Case-in-point, here are five upcoming books that are getting a lot of buzz and that I would drop everything else to read if I got a copy of (and further case-in-point, I got an advance copy from Netgalley for two of them and have already read!):

Malibu Rising: Taylor Jenkins Reid is an auto-read author for many, including me. I love how her style has and how the books are "brain candy" (compulsively readable and fun) but still have depth, so I was very excited to get an advance e-copy from Netgalley of her new one, releasing June 1. It's a great summer read, taking place at a beach house in Malibu, and tells the story of four siblings and how their strong bonds formed from a childhood of abandonment by their star musician father, and how their present early adulthood is still held together by the organization and sacrifices of their now-famous swimsuit model oldest sister, Nina. I loved the 1980s setting, the family dynamics, and how even though it's not got a ton of plot (it's basically the history of a family interspersed with one day in the siblings' lives; an entire half of the book is devoted to like 3-4 hours at one party) it still makes you want to keep on turning the pages to keep digging further into these siblings' relationships with each other, with their past, and with what their ongoing adult relationships are going to grow into. They are a magnetic crew, fascinating not just to the other characters in the book who are drawn to their golden charms and their fame, but also to the reader. Maybe not my very fave TJR pick (which is probably Daisy Jones), but still a 4-star read especially as I liked how it had elements of her previous books all brought together: the musicians of Daisy Jones trying to make it big and keep their lives together once they do; the (fictional) biographical approach to storytelling/the Hollywood-adjacent setting of Evelyn Hugo; the exploration of sibling bonds of After I Do. 

Olympus Texas: I keep hearing about this one on podcasts/bookstagram, and it sounds great - a richly characterized modern-day family drama with secrets and rivalries, based on stories from mythology, and a fabulous cover? Sign me up when it publishes May 4 - excited to see how this debut novel turns out.

People We Meet on Vacation: Emily Henry's Beach Read was one of my favorite romance reads of 2020, and when you have a favorite in a category all you want is more from that author, am I right? Thankfully she already has another coming already, which I have been seeing all over bookstagram and as a BOTM early release. My copy is on pre-order from The Bookshelf, and I'm excited for its arrival in May; this one is about college best friends who are so different, but they just suit each other. Until something broke their relationship a couple of years ago on their annual week-long vacation together. Now they're going to try for one more trip, and see if it can repair their friendship... and maybe more?! It is rom-com after all. If the banter is as good as Beach Read, then I know I'll love it.

One Last Stop: Casey McQuiston's Red, White, & Royal Blue is part of what really got me on board the contemporary romance train, and I'm sure I'm not alone in hardly being able to wait to read her new one, publishing June 1, as well! Looks like it's another queer rom-com romp but this time has a "time-slip" element, so a little magical realism angle that will be interesting to see how it turns out.

If the Shoe Fits: I love Julie Murphy's Dumplin' series (which actually has a new book coming out soon, Pumpkin, and I can't wait to read that as well!), and I also love classics turned into contemporary rom-coms, so I started this modern-day Cinderella retelling as soon as I got a copy from Netgalley. In the same vein as Dumplin', she takes a fat, generally comfortable protagonist and makes her star in the story in an unexpected way that brings a little discomfort to her life: here, as Cindy, a recent Parsons design school grad who is struggling with an artistic block and thus ends up as a contestant on the new season of her high-powered TV producer stepmom's Bachelor-like show. And truly falls for the "Prince Charming"... with the rom-com swoons (though not steamy) and emotional swings that ensue. Found it quite refreshing actually that the step-family is not horrible to Cindy (but there's still plenty of chance for mean-girl action with the show contestants, of course), but instead, while they love her, they're just so different from her (Hollywood types, with the stepsisters being skinny model-type influencers) that she has trouble finding her place in their world, especially as she grieves her father's death. The shoe-loving Cindy works perfectly as a modern-day, fresh Cinderella, and I loved the parallels to last year's One to Watch, with the plus-sized protagonist who is very into fashion trailblazing on a Bachelor-like show; I will say that while they both take on some critique of this type of show and of how the fashion world and society in general, especially on social media, treat fat people, One to Watch goes a bit deeper into it, partly because the protagonist is a bit more mature, and partly because you get to see more of the response with Bea in One to Watch being the star of the show, whereas in this one Cindy is cloistered away from social media as just one contestant vying to "win" the show. I believe this is Murphy's first adult (rather than YA) book, but it's not too far off from YA with the main character being just out of college, so the transition worked well for me. If you like rom-com reads, modern-day retellings, and/or Julie Murphy's work in general, check this out when it publishes August 3.

Whew, a lot of good stuff to look forward to that I'm really going to be glad to also have my monthly TBRs to keep me on track. Especially as I already had a drop-everything new release arrive earlier this month (Joshilyn Jackson's Mother May I - so good! best kind of "domestic thriller" where there are juicy twists and turns but you really are rooting for the protagonist, and the book makes you think about motherhood and family and past deeds in a new way). Oh, and one more that recently published that I have to put in a plug for again, because I reviewed an advance copy so long ago that you may have missed it - Paula McClain's When the Stars Go Dark. Such a good character-driven mystery; I've especially been loving detective books in which the protagonist is balancing motherhood with her job (plus the mental strain of seeing the hard things she does on a daily basis, and trying to remain present in her own life at the same time). Highly recommend, and it's even better when you read the author note with the personal connection that McClain had to writing this character and the research on the "stranger danger" era of the 90s.

Stay tuned for my May lineup of reads next week - I'm thinking a good mix of backlist to balance this all out...

wearing lately: spring jackets

Time for a couple more spring favorites: our best backyard tree is now in bloom, and also it's the season for light jackets! Of which I have quite a collection, because I love them so much. Already have shown recent outfits with the olive cargo jacket and the denim jacket that have been staples of my closet for years, and this week I pulled out a more recent favorite, a little quilted number with season-appropriate floral print.

 

This jacket didn't get enough love when I bought it a little over a year ago, because suddenly all of my spring travels and outings were crossed off the calendar. So I was very excited to bring it back out this spring (even if we are still mostly living in quarentimes...) - but sadly it's not available any more (except I did spot a few on Poshmark). Some similar ideas are linked below - what I like about this style is how the soft cotton (and light color) gives a nice springy look, but the quilted part means that it provides a little more warmth than the denim jacket or cargo jacket, which one can definitely need around here in April, anyway. And what I love about light jackets in general is because they provide such a great "completer" feel to an outfit - instant polish, even if you're going pretty casual.

Another thing to appreciate about spring jackets right now, of course, is that they all still fit! Sized out of pretty much the rest of my wardrobe at 23 weeks (even regular tees are getting too short, so this is a maternity one), but all of my spring jackets are still in play, which is great because (a) I have something to wear, and (b) just as important, I have something to wear that feels like me. Stay tuned for another in the series next week...

mini me Monday: little brother nursery moodboard

When we got the prenatal genetic testing done at the end of my first trimester, it was of course mostly to make sure all was well with the growing little one - but honestly just as exciting for me was getting to find out the sex of the baby well in advance of the 20-week ultrasound. I'm a planner, and also it makes it so much more real to know this little bit about who we're going to be meeting in August. Also in full disclosure I have 100% always wanted to have a girl, so it took me a minute to adjust to the big and small implications of that - no daughter to go wedding dress shopping with someday (assuming she would even want one or get married, but whatever!), and no girly nursery to design at present. Now that I am very used to the idea and already love this very wiggly little 23-week-baked guy a lot, I'm excited to build on Hendrik's nursery, which I just adored, and make a few updates. 

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14

We actually still have the crib set up (in toddler bed form), and the dresser and chair in place, since we moved Hendrik out into his big kid room. Never mind that there's now a mini Peloton studio in there next to the dresser that I'm going to have to find some other home for - but we basically have the bones of a nursery ready to go, which is great, so I can focus on picking out a few fun new linens and other little decor touches, and then put the real $$ into replacing expired car seats instead. Womp, womp. 

Planning to keep pretty much all the same layout and loose safari/world travel theme as before, including same furniture, rug, vintage world map, and raffia animal head decor - you can see a bit of how that all looked below when we first moved in to this house (more here). The bookshelf got moved to the playroom during Covid, when Hendrik's Harry Potter Lego collection exploded and needed some storage, so I will replace that, and also the pouf, which met a stomach flu demise some time ago (enough said there). 

Then for the fun new stuff! I have my eye on some super cute sheets and blanket, a new changing pad cover, a bit of storage options, and some additional art - a fun mobile and some prints to hang above the bookshelf. Also looking at this Hatch lamp as it looks like really nice soft lighting for night-time feeds but also can serve as a monitor and an ok-to-wake clock in toddlerhood. I couldn't help myself and ordered the sheet + blanket already and put them on the bed. I can see them from my Peloton every time I'm in there for a ride, and they just make me so happy already!

Can't wait to share the new version when it's ready - though I will be continuing to enjoy my personal Peloton room setup for as long as I can in the meantime.

five things Friday: Amazon activity edition

While I have been making an effort this year to not order from the behemoth who doesn't need my money while more local businesses do, aka Amazon - and especially aiming to get all of my books from Bookshop.org, my local shop, or Bookshelf Thomasville in order to support indie booksellers - there's no denying that some things you need to get your hands on are just so conveniently gotten... so here are a few things I have Amazon-ed lately, admittedly mostly influenced by blog or podcast as impulse items I just couldn't pass up.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

I've been on the lookout for a few tops that are long enough to cover a bump now but aren't specifically maternity, so I can keep wearing them later, and so when I saw how cute this striped cotton sweater is, plus how great the price was, on some blog or another (sorry, can't remember which!), I had to order. Perfect weight and palette for spring. Looks lovely as well with the new masks that I also impulse ordered and am very glad I did, for Hendrik and for myself. I think I first saw these in an Instagram ad, and that was a well-targeted one - I really wanted something with a good shape to make sure it stayed up on Hendrik's nose, especially given the terrible Covid state of things in Michigan right now, and the full chin/nose wrapping shape on these is comfy and also really stays in place. Highly recommend the Baggu masks. (Plus they're so cute, I get all kinds of compliments!)

Then there's the leggings influenced by reviews I've seen multiple places, such as the Everygirl. They're $25 and so unbelievably butter soft and stretchy. Decided to try a pair in a size up to accommodate pregnancy as I didn't want to spend a ton on stuff for just now - but I'm loving them so much that I'll be going back for more, and have tried the shorts version too, which I love for Peloton rides!

The headphones headband I heard about on The Girl Next Door podcast and immediately ordered when I came home from walking the dog. Just what I need for my pregnancy insomnia - comfy enough to lay in bed while wearing, and I pull them out in the middle of the night when I need a sleep story or meditation to (attempt) to get back to sleep.

And the last one is a little weird, but there are a couple of bulk food items that are just too good of a deal to pass up on Amazon. This is our favorite peanut butter, and in the semi-hoarding mode at the beginning of the pandemic I ordered this pack of 8 huge jars. We finally ran out a couple of months ago, and I reordered because they are SUCH a good price this way. 

So definitely fewer Amazon orders this year, but these are some of the goodies that have made their way to my doorstep anyway - how about you?

reading lately: bookshop books

This is not the first review post I've written dedicated to books about bookstores/librarians, and I'm sure it won't be the last... because of course I'm a total sucker for this sub-genre. Here's a roundup of 5 that I've read recently, spanning romance to YA to epistolary memoir:

Much Ado about You

The description of this rom-com caught my eye immediately for two major reasons: (1) the main character is named Evangeline, called Evie, which is exactly the name/nickname I would have picked if I were having a girl (my grandma's name is Evangeline!), and (2) the premise has Evie taking a vacation to a quaint English village where she is staying at a rental above a bookshop and gets to run it during her stay. Book nerd dream vacation, of course! You get what you expect in terms of a rom-com plot with this premise: Evie's life is falling apart a bit at home, her professional and romantic confidence shot; this impromptu escape to England is supposed to help her find herself and her dreams, not by any means love...which is why the hot farmer who she meets on her first day in town can ONLY be her friend. Right?! True to genre form, we have a friends-to-lovers trope with some great side characters in this little village, along with some comical bits and some character growth in confidence and ability to love/be loved. The steam factor is pretty high at times, and the pace maybe dipped a bit for me in a couple of spots, so it's not my favorite romance of the last year, but all in all still quite a satisfying one if you enjoy the genre, and especially if you enjoy a side of cute bookshop, some Shakespeare references and puns, and a lovely little village community with it.

3.5/5 stars, picked up for the bookshop setting, stayed for the rom-com of it all

The Bookshop of Second Chances

Thea is feeling completely lost and unmoored after having just lost both her job and her husband of 20 years, who has left her for her best friend, when she finds out that a distant uncle in Scotland has died and left her his house and his huge antique book collection. She heads there with the intent of cleaning out and selling, gaining the means to have the fresh start she so desperately needs - not at all expecting to fall in love with the quaint little house, the village, and the quirky, inviting people in it. She eventually starts to form relationships with the people in town, who are mostly warm, except for the gruff secondhand bookshop owner, Edward, she is negotiating the sale of her uncle's collection with. His attitude and his longstanding feud with his brother drive her crazy, but as she decides she might take a leap and stay in Scotland she ends up getting a job in his shop and forming a bit of a love-to-hate relationship with him that makes her realize that the new life she's gotten into might just be as complicated as her old one - but might just be worth it... This one is billed for fans of Evvie Drake Starts Over, which I adored, and I can definitely see some resemblances, though I think this one is slightly slower paced (not in a bad way - just be prepared for that) and perhaps a bit less of the romance/banter at the forefront. With this book, I liked having protagonists who were a bit older, just a bit of a different perspective from a typical book of this variety, and I liked how while there is a romance at the background, it's a lot more about Thea creating the life she wants for herself. It's a fairly quiet read with some heartwarming feels - that doesn't mean it's totally tame or doesn't move along, but I think it lands in a sweet spot that's just as much about the Thea growing into a new life, and about the lives/relationships of the villagers around her, as it is about the romance, in the way that How to Find Love in a Bookshop charmed me so much (review here).

3.5/5 stars, received an advance copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review (releases May 4)

84, Charing Cross Road

I first encountered this memoir-in-letters in my big-time Anglophile days of early high school, and I remember loving it because of the idea of making friends with any British bookseller - but revisiting it now, and having many more years of experience, perspective literary references, etc. under my belt, I was even more charmed than ever. Helene Hanff was a script writer living in 1940s New York City who couldn't find the (admittedly obscure-sounding at times!) used books she wanted nearby, so she started writing to a rare books shop in London - and thus started a correspondence with the staff of the shop over several decades, and especially with bookseller Frank, who was very proper and British compared to her boisterous and joking American tone - but who clearly became a great personal friend over time. This is most definitely a book for book lovers. Even if Helene is reading a lot of heavy non-fiction that I wouldn't dream of (and she even declares her dislike of fiction at one point [!] though she grows a bit in that area), her love for the physicality of books and for the written word is so universal to book people, and it comes through in every letter. Beyond the love of books, one thing that struck me with a bit of perspective was how kick-ass Helene Hanff was, as a single woman just doing her thing in this era - she's independent and self-assured. I might have thought of her as "plucky" once, but it's more than that - she's got some sarcasm to her humor, and scrappiness to her dogged approach to work/making ends meet that extends to procuring books, even if she barely has the budget at the time. I also appreciated even more how the letters over the span of many years give you glimpses of huge things happening in history (rationing after WWII, Beatlemania, the assassination of Kennedy), which really sets it in context, but all of that is a backdrop to such personal concerns of the letter writers. Their lives might seem "small" or just super normal, but they come alive and have so much meaning here, especially in the relationships that develop between these people who have never met. Makes for a very poignant and bittersweet feel that I just adored. Also love how there is a story arc to the letters, but how there are actually gaps in between that you sort of fill in as the reader - it feels very real-life to see how correspondence might wax and wane depending on what's going on in these people's lives. Sentimental and charming in the best of ways.

5/5 stars, for every book lover to read (you can do it in one sitting!), and I will be revisiting the sequel ASAP as well!

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Shoshana adores her after-school job at Once Upon, an independent bookstore in her local shopping mall, and prides herself in being able to recommend the best book selections. So while she is dealing with a car that needs repairs that she has to fund and moms who are bickering a worrying amount, this shop is even more beloved as her home-away-from home, and the holiday season contest to sell the most books of all the employees and earn a $200 bonus couldn't come at a better time. Except that there's an annoyingly cute new employee, Jake, who is giving her a run for her money - all the more frustrating for Shoshana because Jake is a self-proclaimed non-reader. As the competition intensifies, Shoshana is also trying to solve lots of problems that aren't her own: her friends', her mom's, and even the maybe-going-out-of-business bookstore owner's. Rival Jake turns out to be a big help in some of these, help that Shoshana begrudgingly accepts - until she realizes that they just might be more on the same page than she had been willing to admit or give him credit for... I'd say this is YA in the realm of the To All the Boys series (it's actually blurbed as "To All the Boys meets You've Got Mail") - the protagonist is sweet and a bit naive (the kind of into crafts and baking kind of dork I was in high school, let's be honest), and while there are certainly some serious issues, like worrying about her parents' rough relationship patch, and dealing with some rocky moments in her friendships, it's pretty lighthearted, and the romance element is quite chaste. Maybe feels a bit light/silly at times, and Shoshana can be a bit self-centered in the way that 16-year-old naive girls just are, but overall it's a fun escape, particularly if you feel like vicariously browsing a bookstore or visiting a bustling shopping mall through the characters - very pre-quarentimes setting!

3.5/5 stars, might be fun to save for the holiday season (the characters celebrate Hanukkah, but there's also lots of Christmas shopping seasonal vibes)

Words in Deep Blue

Rachel always had a crush on her very best friend, Henry Jones, but he had eyes only for the pretty but temperamental Amy. Before moving away to the coast, Rachel left a note for Henry in his family's bookshop to confess her feelings, but Henry never responded - and she really hasn't been in touch with him in the couple of years since. Now, in the wake of her brother's death and her ensuing depression that has made her lose interest in all of her favorite things and start to do very poorly in school, her mom is sending her back to the city to live with her aunt and get things back on track - part of which is having to take a job in the Jones family bookshop. She's not ready to see Henry again and subject herself to her old romantic feelings, or to acknowledge her brother's loss, so she ignores everyone else in the shop and buries herself in her own work, cataloguing the store's special section where people can leave letters for others tucked into meaningful pages of books, or record notes or memories on personal favorite passages (I loved this concept - very unique independent bookstore type thing). But as she becomes more enmeshed in the community of bookstore patrons, she starts to unthaw a bit. Meanwhile, Henry and Amy are on the rocks yet again, and he's ready to fall back on his friendship with Rachel, not understanding why she is being so prickly. The grief and hope and love tucked in the pages of the books Rachel is cataloguing eventually help them find their second chances. The YA category for this one is more along the lines of Nicola Yoon, Jennifer Niven, or Jandy Nelson - not necessarily super heavy, but dealing with real issues of grief, etc. in a more emotional and poignant way, rather than having a very lighthearted tone. It just didn't quite reach me in the way those comp books did - maybe a bit less fully-fleshed out characters here, but I did love all of the bookshop scenes and feels.

3/5 stars, learned about from a MMD Summer Reading guide a while back and finally read my Kindle version

Some other very favorite bookstore books, in case you're in the mood for more, again across a variety of genres: The Storied Life of AJ Fikry (contemporary fiction, a 5-star read), How to Find Love in a Bookshop (cozy British romance), Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (fun and quirky adventure mystery with a touch of fantasy), Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore (a touch of mystery with past family drama), The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap (memoir of owning a bookstore), and Parnassus on Wheels (short classic about a traveling bookstore - delightful!).

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wearing lately: spring classics

My favorite front yard tree had its spring awakening last week, and these white blooms always feel so lovely and fresh - which often inspires me to pull out some spring classics from my wardrobe that have the same vibe: here, a simple button-down with jeans and cognac shoes/bag, the perfect simple backdrop for my collection of minimalist accessories and a great outfit for feeling fresh and springy.

I've been doing the balancing act of trying to feel like myself in clothes but also find clothes that accommodate a 22-week belly - which also comes with the balancing act of trying to decide how much maternity-specific clothing to buy versus regular clothing that's perhaps sized up/roomy but could actually still be used after baby brother is born. 

The jeans are 100% maternity here, but the shirt is a good example of where I can still enjoy shopping from the new arrivals section from my favorite, Madewell... It's a style I'd be into either way, and the oversized fit means it works right now (plus the cute side buttons could actually be functional if I need to make more room!) and will still be a classic in my wardrlbe in the future (not to mention accommodates potential nursing needs well, which is also a consideration as I remember wishing that immediately post-partum I had more items with easy access, and also more items that were a bit flowy/forgiving). I like it so much I got the gingham version too!

Not bad for an easy yet classic outfit that could easily translate to regular wear, and that utilizes some of my long-standing spring faves in the shoes + bag.

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five things Friday: minimalist accessories edition

Over the past few years part of my personal style evolution has been simplifying outfits to fit my goal of "elevated basics" - timeless (hopefully, anyway... will we ever not cringe when we look back at our own outfits of 10 years earlier?) and understated pieces that have something (texture, sheen, etc.) to subtly take them up a notch. And the same goes for my accessories. All of my go-tos right now are what I would call minimalist accessories: simple but quality pieces with a little bit of luxe, like chic gold stud earrings or streamlined leather bags in a rich cognac.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

For jewelry, my minimal approach is to invest in items that go with nearly everything, can be worn every day, and are high-quality materials made to last. The meaning of minimalist when it comes to rings (I wear only my wedding ring, which admittedly isn't all that minimal now that I got a bit more sparkle for our 15th anniversary...but it's my only hand/wrist jewelry, so I call that minimal) and earrings also equals the simplicity of never having to take them off - so for wearing day-in and day-out, I love these simple bar stud earrings. They're real gold (but decently affordable thanks to AUrate's fair pricing strategy), so they don't tarnish like some of the cheaper earrings with non-stop wear/don't irritate my earlobes, and they're small enough to be unobtrusive yet sophisticated. For necklaces, I'm also gravitating really simple, like this one that Peter picked out for me at Christmas (check out this or this for less expensive options). I like that it's adjustable so the Y-shape can look different depending on your mood or neckline.

My other go-to accessories are: a good pair of sunglasses in a classic, not-too-large shape. I like black and tortoise best for a chic and timeless look; a simple and small belt bag or crossbody bag, especially in a really rich cognac color; and a new hair accessory that I'm trying out, French pins for securing buns. I think a simple, low bun is super classy, so I was excited to find these - though admittedly I still have some practicing to do to actually get them to work in my hair... Luckily there are some good videos out there for help. Will be a great option for hot-weather hair styling though!

Post created in partnership with Responsival, but all opinions are my own.

currently

arranging: various appointments. Now that my 2nd Covid vaccine dose is on the schedule for later in April, I feel much more comfortable arranging some other things after the requisite 2-week waiting period: scheduled myself an overdue haircut and a prenatal massage. Yay! Also the dentist. 

craving: pregnancy hasn't really given me any strong particular food cravings either time around (ice cream doesn't count because I always want it), but what I really am craving is being able to sleep on my stomach... only 19 weeks to go. 

discussing: baby boy names (not getting very far yet) and what produce size equivalent we're at for the week (currently a 21-week banana). Hendrik's favorite thing about Mondays is checking my app for the new weekly comparison and it is a very sweet big brother thing to see.

enjoying: the new shaken espresso selections from Starbucks. The chocolate almond milk one is just the right amount of little bit foamy + a little bit sweet (I reduce the malt powder amount so that it's not overpowering) mixed with an iced espresso. My new mid-week treat myself moment, even better enjoyed by a sunny window with a book in hand.

preparing: my feet for their reemergence from wool socks after the long winter. Got my foot file and some heel balm from Olive & June (I'm loving their stuff - if you've never tried, you can use this link to enter your email for $10 off a first order!), and once I get them looking nice, I'm planning to try out this snazzy wild orchid color on my toes.

What are you currently up to, now that we're almost a full week into April already? Share a post below, and then mark your calendars for the next round, which will be May 5th: consuming, exploring, getting, hoping, and seeing.

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wearing lately: dress season

I pine for the return of dress-wearing season every year, but this year I've been dying for it... pregnancy is just so much more comfy without waistbands involved.

When I was pregnant with Hendrik, it was slightly later in the year, and I also lived in a slightly warmer climate, so I wore tons of dresses. So far this time around it's been mostly tights weather still, and that is a no-go with this belly - the one time I tried it, I got so many kicks in response... I think he felt a little restricted in there (as did I). But on Easter we hit 70 degrees, and even without in-person church/family gatherings, I was determined to pull out a spring dress! 

This one is a great compromise for earlier spring, with the maxi length and the long sleeves. Nearly any dress is cute with a denim jacket, and layering up is helpful this time of year too when you're attempting to wear dresses while dress season is barely beginning.

Fun to try out the tie dye style that is clearly still popular (see all the options below!) in a shift style - the roomy fit means I can wear a regular dress in my regular size and still have room to grow. I recommend this one, which looks cuter in person than in these photos actually, but there are options in shorter styles and shorter sleeves for the warmer months too.

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five things Friday: April TBR edition

April's TBR is designed to give me a variety of genres - and also maybe to subliminally hint to the universe that it should give us a sunny month?

 

We've got 5 different genres represented here: No Happy Endings is a memoir; Well Played is a rom-com on my radar because I enjoyed the first book in this renaissance faire universe (Well Met); Furia is a recent YA release; The Field Guide to the North American Teenager is also YA, but it fits into my backlist category, as I've had a Kindle version sitting around for some time; and finally, Cribsheet is a parenting book - feeling like it might be time to dive back in to some baby-rearing reading!

Looks like it will be a good reading month. As for March - eh, not super successful on my TBR list, but I did really like a couple of them, and I also read a few other particularly enjoyable books in the month (Finlay Donovan Is Killing It and This Will Be Funny Someday especially).

 

 

A recap of my March TBR from best to worst:

• The Song of Achilles: Madeline Miller is clearly excellent at bringing mythology to life. It does take a little bit to get into, to keep track of all of the gods/characters, but well worth it. The story boils down to a love story for the ages and an epic war story, so there's plenty of emotion and action as we follow the hero Achilles and his companion/true love Patroclus (who is telling the story) through adolescence and years of battling in the Trojan War. Super well done, really interesting to see the growth and evolution of the characters - it just didn't get the 5 stars from me that Circe did because I'm a bit less interested in the war aspect and really really loved the female protagonist/feminist slant of Circe. Still recommend anything by Madeline Miller - both are great! ★★★★.5
• The Scent Keeper: Emmeline grows up on a remote island with just her father, in what feels like a fairy tale life: he teaches her how to forage and live off the land, he tells her magical stories at night, and a couple of times a year, he captures scent memories with a special contraption and adds the little vials to the wall of drawers that lines their cabin. Emmeline learns from him how to identify and catalogue scents and the memories/feelings they evoke - but bit by bit she (and the readers right along with her) realizes that there's a lot more out in the world that her father hasn't told her about. When she ends up vaulted into the real world on her own, she has to figure out who she is, who her father really is, and how to make sense of her past and her father's seeming betrayal of the truth, now that she knows so much more about the world. It was fairly light reading overall, pretty propulsive if slightly predictable, but I still ended up really enjoying the story and the way we as readers are just as much in the dark about where/when Emmeline is situated in time and place as she is, and slowly figure this out alongside her, the way the author weaves in the idea of fairy tales, and the concept of how scent can make people feel/remember - even how you might be able to compel people to feel a certain way by manipulating scents. My book club found quite a bit of interesting things to discuss, even just our own relationships with scent/senses and the memories they can evoke. We picked this because we loved the author's memoir, House Lessons, and it was fun to read this after having learned about her writing process, and even seeing some of her own personal relationship with scent as part of that book. ★★★★
• Beyond the Point: this is billed as a story of female friendship, of 3 women who meet as college students at West Point, where they bond in shared experiences of the physical and emotional challenges of being a West Point student in general, and one of the minority females there in specific. Then it follows them into early adulthood and their subsequent careers within the army and also the civilian field. I liked the general idea and was intrigued by their time at West Point since I didn't know much about what it's like to apply/attend there. But the reading experience didn't give me as much of female friendship as I was expecting; it seemed much more individual stories of the three that sometimes interacted with the others. It was a long book and felt it a bit... ★★★
• The Masterpiece: this is my first by this author, and I get the impression that what Kate Morton does with historical fiction of alternating timelines that uncovers some kind of family history/secret, Fiona Davis does with particular places of historical significance. In this one it is New York City's Grand Central Terminal, where in the 1920s timeline we follow one of the first women to teach at the art school that is located in the station, and in the 1970s timeline we follow a divorcee who has been forced to find a job to support herself, which ends up being in the terminal's information booth, where she discovers some mysterious artwork in the abandoned art school . I thought the parellels between the two women, both trying to make it on their own in New York City in a society that was frightfully similar in not really being set up for women to make it on their own was quite interesting, and I was a double major in English and art history, so I also typically enjoy any type of art history mystery. This one turned out to be just fine for me - nothing so riveting that made me dying to pick the book back up, but still an easy and relatively quick read. If you're really into historical fiction, especially in a New York setting, I can see it being more of a hit. ★★★
• The Kindest Lie: Buoyed by the excitement of Barack Obama's historical presidential win and what that means for them as part of the Black community, Ruth's husband thinks the time is now to start a family - but she has never quite gotten over the child that she had back in her small town in high school and gave up for adoption...and has never told her husband about. She goes home to her estranged family to try to sort through her feelings and figure out what to do. And the high expectations I had from that setup of an interesting family story that unravels the past didn't exactly come through from there... The big secret that she was trying to keep from her husband, and her family's reasons for keeping the secret in the first place, just didn't feel compelling enough to me somehow, so instead of feeling interest in how it would turn out or sympathy for the character, I felt like she instead came off as selfish and condescending in how she handled the situation with her family. Plot holes and inconsistencies, and what seemed like a great premise fell flat for me, especially as the initial scenes celebrating Obama's inauguration and what that meant personally to a black couple in Chicago didn't seem to end up connecting much to the rest of the story. ★★.5

What was your favorite book of last month? And what are you looking forward to for April?

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