It's Mother's Day and as we wrap up another beautiful week in southwest Florida, it's starting to feel more like summer. Daytime highs are flirting with 90 degrees and we had two nights with an overnight low of 80! On the mainland temperatures did creep into the 90s with lows in the 70s, but it's more temperate on the islands... and there's almost always a nice breeze!
Recent reading//
This is a book I finished at the end of April, but never talked about here. Two things to know- it really packs a punch and it's difficult to read at times. [Trigger warning for sexual abuse] Infinite Country is a short, impactful read about one family's immigration experience... their struggles and hardships in both the U.S. and Colombia, and the separations that result.
This slim novel does much more than simply tell a good story. It caused me to think more deeply about the issue of immigration and to look at it from a different perspective. And to me, that's the difference between a good book and great book.
I don't read much historical fiction these days, but really enjoyed this story. It's about three very different women who form an unlikely friendship while working at Bletchley Park during WWII. I did a read/listen combination and was always eager to return to their story. I still can't believe it was over 600 pages long! The Rose Code was a perfect follow-up to my recent nonfiction reading of The Splendid and the Vile and Code Girls.
Today I learned about a television show on Amazon Prime called The Bletchley Circle.... hope to watch the first episode this evening.
Current reading//
Fifty Words for Rain by Asha Lemmie
My current read is a book I picked up on Independent Bookstore Day. Goodreads describes this debut novel as "a sweeping, heartrending coming-of-age novel about a young woman's quest for acceptance in post–World War II Japan." It's another long-ish book (450 pages), but the pages turn quickly. I started it Friday evening and am halfway through already... enjoying it very much!
In the kitchen//
It was all about simplicity this week.... I wasn't particularly motivated or inspired. For Cinco de Mayo we had a Chicken Taco Casserole from Easy Family Recipes. I used a rotisserie chicken and it took literally 10 minutes to prepare. Publix had Rancho de Gloria Margarita Wine Cocktail on BOGO sale (who knew there was such a thing?) so it really was a celebration!
Last night we had an old favorite, Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Orange Marmalade Glaze, for the first time in ages. I used a low-sugar orange marmalade and marinated it for just under two hours.
The kitchen is closed today for Mother's Day. We're taking dinner over to my FIL a little later and he has requested pizza... hooray!
A technical question//
Last week I removed the "subscribe by email" gadget from my blog. Blogger will end this option next month and I'm not quite sure how to handle it. Blogger friends, what will you do with email subscribers?
From my camera//
Walking back from the beach last night, just a few minutes past sunset, a couple of birds swooped down close to our heads then quickly retreated to a branch above. I was surprised to discover two Eastern Screech Owls... you have to look closely for the second one. It's on the same branch, lower right. Very cool!
How was your week? What are you reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
It's Monday... What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date.
Happy Mother's Day, JoAnn! I've also been trying to figure out what to do with email subscribers!
ReplyDeleteAngela - I'm going to experiment with the link Deb and Care mention below. Fingers crossed!
DeleteI removed the subscribe-by-email link and then I added another link, which I subscribed to myself, just to see if it was working. It's not. And I really don't know what to do with people who already subscribed.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to see how much you enjoyed Infinite Country. I agree completely...that's exactly what moves a good book up to being a great book.
No one should cook unless she wants to on Mother's Day, I think. Enjoy the day!
I just signed up to follow you with your link to follow.it. Worked great. AND I signed up THIS blog, too. Looks clean and organized.
DeleteHappy Mom Week :D
Deb - I think I just subscribed to your blog via that link... will let you know if I get your next post by email. I already subscribe by blogluvin, but will test your link for you. How did you get the gadget to add to your blog? (I'm horrible with these things.
DeleteCare - THANK YOU! I'm technologically challenged... now if I can figure out how find a gadget for that site.
Having just finished The Code Girls and wanting more, I was happy to see you recommending The Rose Code. Such a fascinating topic.
ReplyDeleteLove, love, love the screech owl photo--saw them both. Very cool, indeed.
I didn't know Blogger was suspending the subscribe feature. Why?!?!? I'll check back to see what, if anything, can be done with subscribers.
Happy reading and Happy Mother's Day!
JaneGS - The Rose Code is a great fictional follow-up to Code Girls... different country, of course, but same basic subject. Just finishing The Splendid and the Vile added to the experience, too. I may check out other Kate Quinn novels, but want to continue reading more about WWII and Bletchley Park, too.
DeleteWe saw one of the owls again last night, but didn't get a photo. Wonder if there is a nest somewhere along the beach path...
Can't imagine why Blogger is suspending their follow by mail option. Deb and Care have mentioned an option above... if I can figure out how to add that as a gadget in the sidebar, I'll try it.
Happy Mother's Day!
Wow owls!!! That's so neat. That must be good luck ... as they seem so elusive most of the time. Have you ever seen them before? You sound like you are on a reading roll these days. Thanks for mentioning The Bletchley Circle show ... I hadn't heard of it ... but I'm going to watch it. I hope you are having a lovely Mother's Day there. (I didn't want to say but we had a bit of snow today.... ugh). Enjoy your sunsets.
ReplyDeleteSusan - Hope those owls are good luck. That was the first time we'd seen them, but I spotted one of them again last night. Wonder if there is a nest somewhere along the path.
DeleteThe first episode of The Bletchley Circle was good enough watch more, hopefully later this evening. Hope Stella is improving!
I do see the second screech owl! How exciting to see them while out on a walk!
ReplyDeleteI, myself just saw what I THINK is an indigo bunting! I need to Google it to be sure.
Adding that chicken taco casserole to my list. I love tacos and I love casseroles.
Jinjer - Ooh, an indigo bunting?! I've never seen one, but know they are beautiful. That casserole is a keeper for the quick, easy dinner list!
DeletePS I occasionally subscribe to get new comments when I comment on a blogspot blog post because otherwise I would never know if I got a response or not, SO, my recommendation would be to send an email to all your subscribers and let them know what's going to happen and suggest that they follow you via Feedly or another blogreader of their choice. I already follow your blog via Feedly.
ReplyDeleteGood idea, Jinjer. I use blogluvin' to follow blogs, but know some people prefer to get email notification. Hate that Blogger makes this all so complicated...
DeleteI don't know what to do about Blogger ending the email subscription option either! I just finished Rose Code today and really really enjoyed it. It's my kind of book!
ReplyDeleteHelen - Have you read any of Quinn's earlier novels? The Rose Code was so good, I'd like to try one of her other books.
DeleteI enjoyed the Bletchley Circle when it was on PBS. I think you will too!
ReplyDeleteAudrey - Not sure how I completely missed The Bletchley Circle, but the first episode was good! I'll watch another tonight.
DeleteOh how amazing to see an owl like that! I've seen them in shadow when it's dark but never like that. The pork with the orange marmalade glaze sounds amazing! And the kitchen is definitely closed for Mother's Day here too. I hope you have a great week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - That is the closest I've ever been to an owl... so, so cool! We love that pork marinade/glaze. Hope you do, too.
DeleteHappy Mothers Day (one day later though). I've seen the Kate Quin book being reviewed on several blogs. All very positive reviews.
ReplyDeleteMystica - Readers seem to love all of Quinn's books. I'll probably try another!
DeleteHappy Mother's Day! Just added Infinite Country to my list :)
ReplyDeleteHappy Mother's Day to you, too, Stacy! Hope you enjoyed the day. Have a feeling you'll appreciate Infinite Country.
DeleteBeautiful photos, both the sunset and the owl!
ReplyDeleteYour books all look very tempting. and the Chicken Taco Casserole looks so yummy!
Enjoy your week, and here are my WEEKLY UPDATES
Laurel-Rain Snow - We saw one of the owls again last night! I'm convinced there must be a nest somewhere along the beach path. They are so cute!
DeleteI don't read much straight historical fiction but seem to be reading a lot of historical mysteries lately. We haven't been very creative in our cooking either lately. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteKathy - I read a lot of historical fiction years ago. Think I got burned out on all the WWII stories, so it's good to be able to enjoy them again. Happy reading this week.
DeleteVicki - I hope you like the taco casserole. It's a great quick dinner option!
ReplyDeleteHappy Belated Mother's Day! It looks like it was a gorgeous day with that stunning sunset. Wow. It is warming up there, isn't it? We are still in the 50s with lows in the 40s. And yet, I wore shorts today while working in the yard (watering) and didn't feel at all cold. Believe it or not, we need rain!
ReplyDeleteI hope to get to Infinite Country later this year, but I don't own a copy and I've already put together my summer reading stacks for the 20 Books of Summer reading challenge. I'll be happy if I read half of them by September, since my reading usually drops off this time of year. Too busy with visitors (yes, we're getting some!) and camping/road trips. I'm glad to know it was such a good book in spite of some of the content.
I think my mom would enjoy The Rose Code, as would I. I've also added The Bletchley Circle to our TBW (To Be Watched) list, which is now FOUR pages long!
We've been getting take-out pizza far more often than we used to, but it's so nice to get a break from cooking! Your Chicken Taco casserole sounds yummy. I'm ready to make my enchilada casserole again, which is also super easy (and is great for leftovers and camping meals).
I'll be interested to hear what you decide to do about your email subscribers. So annoying... thanks, Blogger. :(
Yes, very cool to see those owls! I think I've only seen an owl in person (in a tree in our yard right after the 4th of July) once in my life. Exciting!
It was a busy week here since we had my brother and his wife visiting right after we got home from our week-long camping trip. It was great to spend a few days with them and we are looking forward to seeing them again next month when we head to San Diego for their daughter's wedding. So, not much reading going on. I feel like I've been reading the same two books for weeks, which is probably true.
Have a good week, JoAnn!
Les - I just saw your Books of Summer... such a great collection! My reading often slows down in the summer, too, but who knows what this year will bring. We'll be in CT for a couple of months, though it looks like we may be able to take some side trips as things are opening up. It would also be wonderful to visit our daughters in NYC... shocked by how much I miss it.
DeleteI'm planning to bring some books to my mother and sisters when head north - The Rose Code will be one of them. So will Fifty Names for Rain, which I finished a couple of days ago... your mother might like that one, too.
We've seen the owls a few more times. There must be a nest somewhere along the beach path... they are so cute!
Glad you were able to visit with more of your family. Can't wait to see the rest of mine. You must be getting so excited for the trip to San Diego! It will be nice to attend a wedding, too. There hasn't been one in our family for almost three years - ha!
Hope it's starting to warm up in Oregon... you're due for some nice weather! Enjoy the rest of the week.
I love that photo you shared at the top. I really need to live by a body of water in the next decade.
ReplyDeleteI use WP now but for your subscribers, I would post a post before that subscribe by email option is dead. Explain that they will not get an email when a post is published. They can also add your blog link to a feed reader like Feedly and read your blog that way.
Or, come on over to the dark side and join Wordpress. I did so years ago and it was a pretty clean conversion just by clicking a button, as long as you choose a theme that has the same number of columns that you have now.
Ti - That's a good idea to write a post about the upcoming changes. Blogger is so frustrating, but WP just scares me. I set up a test blog years ago and never got it to work the way I wanted it to. Suppose I could try again...
DeleteOh my goodness - little screech owls! How cool!!!
ReplyDeleteThat chicken taco casserole sounds really good! I will have to bookmark it.
Erin - We seen the owls a few more times... and they are just adorable! There must be a nest somewhere along that path!
DeleteI'm so not sure what to do with all my email subscribers. Grr, Google drives me insane - they keep killing their products, Google Reader, now Follow by Email. I saw Deb's note above so I'll give that a shot but not sure how to migrate my existing subscribers. I guess sending an email to them as Ti suggested above is a good first step.
ReplyDeleteI hope to read Infinite Country - there is so much buzz about it. Assuming I can get through the trigger items.
Athira - I know what you mean about Google... grr! I hate change. Deb's suggestion sounds like a good one, but I'm not sure how to add the link to my blog - maybe there's a gadget? Also have no idea how to migrate existing subscribers, if that can even be done. This is all so frustrating.
DeleteI'm so behind but I hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day! I had to tell you that I finished Infinite Country this past week and really thought it was a great book too. Love the picture of the owl!
ReplyDeleteIliana - So glad you though Infinite Country was a great read, too! I'm still thinking about it. We did have a wonderful Mother's Day. We've been seeing the owls almost daily for the past week!
Delete