Hello, friends and Happy St. Patrick's Day! We are at home and alone this weekend... our first solo weekend in about six weeks. That's not at all a complaint, but I sure am enjoying the peace and quiet!
Work inside our house has come to a halt again... it's probably time to start nagging. The paver order came in though and work on the driveway is supposed to begin this week. In the meantime, I've finished several books since I checked in a couple of weeks ago.
Recent reading//
We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange
This is the March selection at Modern Mrs. Darcy book club and was an enjoyable summer read for me back in 2021. I wasn't initially planning a reread, but there are quite a few characters and the details had become too fuzzy for me to enjoy the discussion and author chat. As it turned out, this book was even better the second time around! It's your typical messy family drama with lots of secrets and complicated relationships. In addition, the Brennan family owns a neighborhood Irish pub near Westchester county, NY which makes things even more interesting. The audio, narrated by Barrie Kreinik, is excellent.
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Recitatif by Toni Morrison
This is probably the most thought-provoking short story I've ever read! It's about two eight-year-old girls who spend several months as roommates at a shelter - one because her mother is sick and the other because her mother "dances all night." They randomly meet again several times over the years and the meetings cause both girls to question their memories and perceptions. One girl is black, the other is white, and Morrison chooses not to let the reader know which is which.
Morrison herself described this story as "an experiment in the removal of all racial codes from a narrative about two characters of different races for whom racial identity is crucial."
First published in 1983, it was reissued in 2022 with a discussion/introduction by Zadie Smith. I'm glad I heeded the advice to read the story BEFORE Smith's commentary. After reading both the story and then commentary, I went back and listened to the story again.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Mountains Sing by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
Loosely based on experiences of the author's relatives, this is a multigenerational story that follows one North Vietnamese family through the turbulence of the 20th century, including the Communist Land Reform, Great Hunger, and the Vietnam War. It was an absorbing, sobering read which caused me to think about Vietnam from a perspective I had not previously considered.
I chose a read/listen combination and the audio, narrated by Quyen Ngo, enhanced my overall reading experience. I appreciated hearing correct pronunciations of names and places, and enjoyed the reader's melodious delivery of Vietnamese proverbs and poems. (The audiobook is available through hoopla.)
Highly recommended. Four and a half stars for now, but may increase as I continue to think about it.
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
House Love by Patric Richardson
Richardson's previous book, Laundry Love, was a hit for me in 2022 and he has developed quite a following since its publication. This book is an attempt to expand on that successful format by offering both decorating ideas and cleaning plans for every space in your house.
Where Laundry Love was both entertaining and taught me a few things, this one was entertaining enough, but felt a little lighter on information. I should note that I listened to Laundry Love, narrated by the author, and am certain his delivery added to my enjoyment. It probably would have been a better choice to listen to this one, too.
⭐⭐⭐
Current reading//
Also A Poet by Ada Calhoun
I just started this memoir earlier today. It's the April selection at MMD and is pretty interesting so far.
The week ahead//
This week will be more about socializing than appointments - hooray! We have some old friends arriving in their small RV tomorrow for a quick overnight, friends from Wisconsin coming for dinner on Tuesday, and a neighborhood party on Friday. Should be a fun week!
How was your week? What have you been reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
I really enjoyed The Mountains Sing and have the author's next book, Dust Child, on my TBR shelf. I have added the Toni Morrison to my TBR list as it sounds really good.
ReplyDeleteHelen - I've added Dust Child to my list, too, and hope to read it sometime this year.
DeleteHappy St. Patrick’s Day to you. The Toni Morrison story is very intriguing, and the Vietnam family saga sounds good. Have a great week.
ReplyDeletebest, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Mae - I've been on a roll with some good reads lately. The Morrison story is pretty short, but so thought-provoking. Zadie Smith's commentary is even longer than the story!
DeleteIt sounds like you have a fun week ahead!! Soak it up and enjoy :)
ReplyDeleteCindy - Yes, lots of fun activities this week. This is our high season in FL!
DeleteAnother gorgeous photo of the sun over the water. Simply lovely. I need to start walking out to our bluff to get some sunset shots...
ReplyDeleteI'll bet you're enjoying a slower, quieter weekend. ;) Our weather has been super nice, so I've been busy working in the yard, cleaning up all sorts of forest/tree debris that came down in the winter storms. Filled 8 yard waste bags yesterday and still have more piles to get rid of! I also need to cut back our sword ferns before they start their new growth. Good thing I have an engaging audiobook to keep me entertained.
Your construction work reminds me of the nonfiction book I'm currently reading. I'm sure you've read Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. If not, you might enjoy it. You know, misery loves company. :)
I have We Are the Brennans on my tbr list, but I'll make a note to listen to the audio. My mom just finished Recitatif and passed it along to me, so it's on my nightstand. I have several "slim" books in my stacks and may take all of them with me on our upcoming road trip. I do know to skip Zadie Smith's intro until after reading Morrison's book.
My week was busy with pickleball, yoga, dinner out with friends, and a gathering with my mah jong pals to make lumpia. Another busy week ahead, but I'm hoping to get outside and enjoy the weather before the rain returns. Enjoy your week, JoAnn!
Les - Your comment reminds me of all the spring clean-up we'll have when we get back to CT. Luckily our HOA takes care of most of it, but we'll have our shrubs, flower beds, etc. Time to start planning for some planters, too!
DeleteI remember loving Under the Tuscan Sun so many years ago! I've enjoyed some of her other books, too... I think most recently Women in Sunlight.
I'm glad I reread We Are the Brennans... it was a pretty quick read and I enjoy stories told from muliple viewpoints. She has a newer novel, The Connellys of County Down, that I've added to my tbr. Recitatif is such an unusual story... never read anything like it.
Your week sounds like a lot of fun and I'm glad you're taking advantage of the great weather. Fingers crossed it lasts a little longer!
It definitely sounds like you will be having a fun week with all the get-togethers. Excellent.
ReplyDeleteWe Are the Brennans looks like it's a perfect read for this month. I'm glad you enjoyed it just as much or more this time around.
Deb - I started to reread more last year and really enjoyed it. We are the Brennan's wasn't necessarily a book I thought I'd reread at the time, but it still worked out well. A quick, enjoyable read!
DeleteCool that you managed a book set in Ireland ahead of St. Patrick's Day. Good luck on the house stuff. I hope it starts coming together.
ReplyDeleteJoy - Whoops, the Irish pub is actually in Westchester county, NY. I've corrected the post. Thanks!
DeleteThese all look like great reads. I hope you have a nice visit with your friends and a wonderful week ahead.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jodie. Our friends, plus their dog, left this afternoon and we had a great time!
DeleteSome familiar names here, but I haven't read these books. Have a great reading week!
ReplyDeleteEmma - I've had a pretty good streak of reading lately. Hope it continues for another week.
DeleteYay for a week of friends rather than appointments! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Erin. Even the weather seems to be cooperating!
DeleteWhat is with contractors? I know they have other jobs too but ..yeah....time to pester them on a finish date. Doug says I have a black belt in badgering and the companies do go on my calender for weekly calls. haha
ReplyDeleteI bought some kindle books on the daily deals and will need to look for We're Are the Brennens. Haven't read Toni Morrison since university days.....long time ago. I saw Les is interested in the Franbces Mays book, I want to read that again.
My current book is a page turner, the Women - I'm glad I tried it as I had two previous DNFs from Kristan Hannah. This one is amazing. Your week sounds like a fun one with visiting and parties!
Tina - Made my contractor calls and sent emails. Fingers crossed for some results, but at least the pavers are going in. I'm glad to hear you're enjoying The Women. I'd like to read more books about Vietnam, but Hannah has been a mixed bag for me. Might pick up Absolution, too. Under the Tuscan was such a good read... still remember how much I enjoyed that one years ago. Hope you have a great week!
DeleteJoAnn, funny you mentioned that about Hannah as I tried Firefly Girls and The Big Alone and they were DNF for me. As she is popular and usually gets outstanding reviews I thought I'd try her. The Women was in my library holds and I'd forgotten to delete the hold as I figured she wasn't an author for me.....this one is good but still, one out of three isn't a good record for me!
DeleteI will get the Tuscan Sun book today and whne I finish two others, starting on it. Hope your contractors come though for you!
Tina - I liked Hannah's Four Winds, but the misery seemed relentless! I imagine The Women will be that way, too. The Great Alone was a DNF, as was another I can't remember. I read The Nightingale, too. It took me forever to get through the first half and then flew through the second half in a day - little too uneven for me. So I get it, not a great record!
DeleteI'll add my two cents about Kristin Hannah's books, if that's alright. :) I loved The Nightingale and The Four Winds, but thought The Great Alone was overrated. I've tried a few of her others over the years (Summer Island, Angel Falls...) and thought they were good, but nothing great. Her holiday book, Comfort & Joy, was a big disappointment. I've decided that I enjoy her historical fiction much better than her other novels, so I'm excited about The Women. I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying it so well, Tina!
DeleteLes - Thanks for chiming in!! I agree Hannah's historical fiction is better than her other books. They can be so emotional... which should be a good thing, but for me it sometimes feels almost manipulative. I'm still not sure about The Women, so I'm waiting to hear what you and Tina think. In the meantime I do want to read more books about Vietnam.
DeleteI haven't read anything about Vietnam other than The Things They Carried (Tim O'Brien). A Prayer for Owen Meany has a section about the war, but it's not a Vietnam novel. I'll be interested to see what you wind up reading!
DeleteStay tuned! :)
DeleteGlad your week will have some fun times. I feel your pain with the remodeling woes. Happily, past all that and then sold that house - ha! Hope you enjoy both your reading, your walking and your fun events. :-)
ReplyDeleteKay - I will be so glad when this is all behind us and we don't have contractors in our lives anymore! At least the reading has been good lately. Hope spring is coming to your part of the world.
DeleteI remember having those remodeling woes. It can be so frustrating. I hope everything works out for you. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Yvonne... we'll get there eventually.
DeleteWhat a magical sunset & sky photo. I have liked Barrie Kreinik as a narrator before, so good! I'm wondering if following the Mountains Sing on audio is hard with the foreign words & names? Or is it easy to follow? I might go that route of audio. I have listened to Recitatif in 2022 and it was interesting to try to guess which character was which race.... thought-provoking. Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteSusan - The Mountains Sing is not hard to follow on audio. The English translation is included after the Vietnamese, but I loved hearing the rhythm and flow of the words in the native language. The story switches back and forth in time between the grandmother and granddaughter. I was glad to have a print copy to keep track of the jumps and I liked seeing the character names in print, too. Now I want to read more books set in Vietnam.
DeleteI'm excited to read We Are the Brennans--I like the premise and definitely the setting. Recitatif also sounds really intriguing. I've not heard of either Laundry Love or House Love, but I may need to check out the first one. Hope you have a great week.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - We Are the Brennans is exactly the kind of family drama I love... very heavy on the secrets though, lol. I'm sure I'll reread Recitatif again in the not-too--distant future. Laundry Love is definitely worth a listen!
DeleteBTW, that was my comment--not sure why I ended up as Anonymous!
DeleteJane GS - Thanks, I've been trying to figure out who this was! Blogger does some strange things...
DeleteRecitatif sounds really good. I haven't heard of that one from Morrison.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your remodeling and I hope you have a great week!
Heather - I read somewhere that Recitatif was Morrison's only short story, and it is well worth reading... or listening to!
DeleteVery interesting, diverse choice of books.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Harvee. I've been on a good reading streak!
DeleteQuiet weekends are nice - especially with how busy you've been. Fingers crossed that the driveway work started. It seems like 3/4 of the work of building or renovations is nagging. I hope you're having a great week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - The driveway project is almost finished. Yesterday was a complete rainout so nothing happened, but it should only take a couple more days. Very pleased with the work so far!
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