This prompt is not the easiest, but it’s also a great one. Because the relationships between characters in our books both tell us a tremendous amount about that character’s sense of self, place in the world and generosity of spirit, and help us feel emotionally connected to the story as it unfolds. They also READ MORE
LINK-UP | IT’S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?
Another decent reading week! I finished four books this week, and they were all good – but two were even better. Now I’m just trying to figure out what to read next to keep the enjoyable experience going! Just Shelved I’ve had How to Keep READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | PEOPLE I WANT TO PUNCH IN THE THROAT – JEN MANN
Yet another book that has been languishing on my shelve for literal years – this seems to be a theme lately! This one came to my attention when I was unpacking my books after a recent move. I was looking for something on the light side, that would make me feel any kind of READ MORE
WEDNESDAY BLOGGING CHALLENGE | SONG LYRICS I’VE MISHEARD
It’s been years since we didn’t have the internet to look song lyrics up on, so I don’t really remember. I know there were lots. I think I mis-heard Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and thought it was “his story” instead of “history” – let’s just say I was a precocious feminist and was afronted READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | BOOKS THAT DEFIED MY EXPECTATIONS
This is an interesting topic. It manages to sum up both the best and worst parts of being a reader. Worst, because when you’re super excited to read a book, particularly if it’s one that has come highly recommended to you, and then it’s a let-down, the disappointment can be a physical sensation. On READ MORE
LINK-UP | IT’S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?
When I looked back in my Goodreads at what I read this week I was surprised to see I finished more books than I remembered! I thought I’d finished two, but instead…. Just Shelved . . I read People I Want to Punch in the Throat earlier in the summer, READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | THAT WAS WHEN PEOPLE STARTED TO WORRY – NANCY TUCKER
I’ve had this on my shelf for years. I’ve started it a few times. After finishing Joanna Cannon’s brilliant book about mental illness, Will You Read This, Please? I wanted more. So I picked this up again. It was time to give it a proper go. Similar to Cannon’s book, this is a compilation READ MORE
WEDNESDAY BLOGGING CHALLENGE | THE WEIRDEST THING I LOVED AS A CHILD
Seriously, where do they get some of these prompts from?? The inner depths of my repressed psyche? Cos that’s how it’s starting to feel. Weird things I liked as a child? I mean, I’m neurodivergent. So mostly it was weird things I didn’t like as a child. Can I do that instead? Yes because READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | WATER
This week’s prompt is books with water. It’s open to interpretation, so as per usual, I’ve created unnecessary work for myself by interpreting it in two ways and doing both. Because of course I did. Books with water in the title: READ MORE
LINK-UP | IT’S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?
I had a decent reading week this week – but I can’t tell you anything more about it. So you’ll have to just take my word for it. Here’s what I read, and what I’m reading, and a few books I might (but probably won’t) read next. Just Shelved READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | LONDON’S NUMBER ONE DOG-WALKING AGENCY – KATE MACDOUGALL
If you could start your own business, do anything you wanted to earn a living, what would it be? That’s the question that lingered as I read this book. Kate MacDougall did this, in a way. She left her job at Sotheby’s and decided to start a dog walking agency. She’d grown up with READ MORE
WEDNESDAY BLOGGING CHALLENGE | THREE FUN FACTS ABOUT ME
This is the kind of prompt that makes me want to hide under the covers for a week. Fun stories? About me? I mean. Like what? I don’t have a fascinating job or a bunch of travel tales. I don’t have any special skills. So this is not an easy one for me. Let’s READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | GENRE FREEBIE – BOOKS ABOUT MENTAL ILLNESS/NEURODIVERGENCE
This is a topic I’ve been reading a lot about over the last few years – longer, even. It’s one that’s close to my own experiences and the experiences of people in my life, and one I find very fascinating. I started reading about depression, then anxiety, and various other issues like bipolar disorder READ MORE
LINK-UP | IT’S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?
This one is a two-week edition because I didn’t have time to write it last week. Not that it matters much! I’m making good progress despite being busy in the garden and with my kid, who I’m loving having extra summer time with. We had a wonderful time yesterday repotting three varieties of mint READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | WILL YOU READ THIS, PLEASE? – JOANNA CANNON
It’s difficult, sometimes, to find good first person accounts of what it is like to experience a mental illness. Some of those who have been there don’t want to talk about it; some can’t. Others simply can’t find the right words. Joanna Cannon (author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep) came up with READ MORE
WEDNESDAY BLOGGING CHALLENGE | A DOCUMENTARY I LIKED
This is a tough one because there have been several. I go through phases of niche interests and I try to go on a deep dive for each one. So over the years I’ve had several favourites on different topics. But when I look back there have been a couple that have stuck with READ MORE
TOP TEN TUESDAY | CHARACTERS FROM DIFFERENT BOOKS I’D LIKE TO INTRODUCE
This, potentially, is a fun one. If I can get my memory to work properly, which is always a bit of a crapshoot if I’m being honest. But here we go, let’s see what I come up with *cracks knuckles.* Hermione Granger (The Harry Potter series) and Matilda Wormwood (Matilda) Anne Shirley (Anne READ MORE
THE SUNDAY REVIEW | GARDEN VARIETY – CHRISTY WILHELMI
I’m very into gardening at the moment, thanks to having just moved to a house that has a garden – the first time I’ve had proper earth space to plant in nearly two decades, and the first time I’ve had any sun to grow in. I’ve been looking for good books that centre gardening, READ MORE