The Sunday Post is hosted by the wonderful Kimberly, the Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news, recap the past week, take a look ahead, and showcase our new treasures—I mean books!
This week I’m also participating in The Sunday Salon hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz, and Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene at Reading Reality.
The Past Week
In real life: On Monday, I voted early, in person. It was very easy, though there was an extra step to verify my name and address on paper as well as verbally. I was done and out of there in no time… a proud blue dot in a very red county. (I understand the assignment!)
I have generally steered clear of discussing politics on this blog, but this year, the stakes are much too high for me to remain silent. I doubt any of you will be surprised by my views. I’m a woman in my early 60s: old enough to remember when Roe was decided and when women like my divorced, single mother couldn’t even get a credit card or car loan without the okay of their husband or father, let alone a mortgage. I can remember how polluted the air and water were before legislation and EPA rules forced corporations to clean up their mess. (Anyone remember when Ohio’s Cuyahoga River caught fire?) It hasn’t been that many years since my gay and lesbian friends and family couldn’t legally marry, and there are still states today in which my nonbinary (adult) child would not be able to get a driver’s license reflecting their name and identity. I am approaching the age when I’m eligible for Social Security and Medicare, and I paid into those programs throughout my working life in the full expectation that I would receive the benefits when I retired—not have them bankrupted by 2031. I have multiple pre-existing conditions, so a repeal of the ACA is a hard no for me. And finally, my parents are old enough to remember World War II and have talked about it (and several of my uncles fought in it.) Even if they hadn’t, I have certainly studied enough history to recognize (and be chilled by) authoritarianism and fascism when I see them.
So yes, this formerly independent voter (me) voted blue across the ticket.
In other news, I had a clear report after my annual mammogram this week. I continued working on unpacking the basement and putting things away upstairs. I managed to write a review and a Top Ten Tuesday post and compile a News & Notes post. And Mr. Bookwyrm and I celebrated my birthday by spending a day at the State Arboretum of Virginia, enjoying the fall foliage and trying to spot birds. They have a ginkgo grove that was just beautiful.
Recent Posts
- Sunday Post – 10/20/2024
- How My Reading Habits Have Changed Over Time – Top 10 Tuesday
- The Wedding Witch, by Erin Sterling – review
- News & Notes – 10/26/2024
- Sunday Post – 10/27/2024 – this post
Looking Ahead
- Top 10 Tuesday Halloween post – tentative
- Monthly Wrap-Up: October 2024
- other reviews TBD
- Sunday Post – 11/03/2024
What I’ve Been Reading/Watching (since 7/14/2024)
Reading: I finished rereading Only Enchanting, book #4 of Mary Balgoh’s Survivor’s Club historical romance series (reviewed in 2014; I loved it.) I read Dead Beside the Thames, a Stephanie Laurens historical mystery, which was merely OK. To be honest, I’m only keeping up with her books out of nostalgia at this point. I continued reading The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling—an ARC, and delightful fun; I reviewed it this week. And I reread Chalice (Robin McKinley); I had only read it once before when it first came out and had totally forgotten it. It’s lovely. I also read the first story (Mary Jo Putney’s) from A Wraith at Midnight (ARC), a collection of spooky historical romance short stories.
Listening to: I finally got back to Ivory Vikings: The Mystery of the Most Famous Chessmen in the World and the Woman Who Made Them, by Nancy Marie Brown, read by Tony Ward. I had to go back several chapters, because I had forgotten a lot of it. That’s often a problem when I listen to books; my retention isn’t as good as when I see the words on paper (or screen, though my retention for that is somewhere between paper and audiobook.) But I have more than caught up with where I was when I left off a while back.
Watching: We caught up on a few episodes of Late Night with Stephen Colbert, and watched a Nature documentary about migratory birds and their flyways. And I’m watching Have His Carcase, a four-part adaptation of the Lord Peter Wimsey mystery novel by Dorothy Sayers.
Playing: The usual games: Pokemon Go and several NYT games (Wordle, Connections, Strands, and the Spelling Bee.) I also played Wingspan on Steam.
Added to the Hoard
Purchased or Free (Kindle, print, or audio)
(Click title for Goodreads page or my review.)
Kindle: Do you believe I only bought one book this week?!!! Under the Rainbow is a novel for adults written by children’s author Noel Streatfeild under the pseudonym Susan Scarlett. I love some of Streatfeild’s children’s books, so I thought I would give this early 20th-century romance a try. If I decide I like it, she wrote 11 other books under the same pseudonym, which have all been rereleased by Dean Street Press.
Anne - Books of My Heart
I’m with you. I voted a straight blue ticket. For all those reasons and more. Happy birthday! A beautiful place to go – thanks for sharing the photos!
Anne – Books of My Heart This is my Sunday Post
Anne – Books of My Heart recently posted…Murder at Mallowan Hall by Colleen Cambridge @colleengleason @sophiarose1816 #KindleUnlimited