Hello, friends, and happy November! The photo above was taken Friday on a fall foliage cruise up the Connecticut River. There is still quite a bit of color near the mouth of the river where it empties into the Long Island Sound, but colors begin to fade as you travel upriver. It was a beautiful sunny day and, in addition to the vibrant colors, we saw quite a few bald eagles, a great blue heron, cormorants, and assorted gulls. I'm glad we had binoculars!
So what happened to October? It seems like we were just getting started and then all of a sudden it was over! We began the month in NYC, but returned to CT to meet our newborn granddaughter Lucy. There was a quick trip to central NY to see my folks, several more Lucy visits, a couple of dinners out with friends, and many lovely afternoon walks. Our planned interior painting project has been delayed again - this time until spring - after the contractor (and his assistant) developed Covid, then couldn't guarantee completing the job before Thanksgiving. So disappointing, it would have been nice to have a fresh look for the holidays.
Recent reading//
American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee
This book dominated my month! When I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about the characters, their lives, and the challenges they faced. It's a complex family story spanning decades, continents, and cultures with education at its core... specifically the emphasis (obsession?) Korean culture places on education as the path to success. The novel takes us from the early 1990s, to the 1997 Asian financial crisis and finally the US subprime mortgage crisis beginning in 2007. With sections in Seoul, Australia, and even Brazil, the bulk of the novel takes place in Orange County, California. There's a lot to unpack in terms of the pressures surrounding education, but Lee also seems to emphasize the value of strong family and community connections. I continue to think about this novel... easily a favorite of 2026.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
by Katie Clapham
This memoir turned out to be a perfect, lower-stakes follow-up to American Hagwon. It reads like a journal. Each month constitutes a chapter, which is full of dated entries and anecdotes. The reader is privy to the financial worries of owning a business, its daily challenges, interesting customer interactions, and (sometimes hilarious) overheard conversations. This book was entertaining, relatable to readers (and surely even more so for booksellers!) and just plain fun. I read it straight through, but think it might be even more enjoyable to read a few entries each evening or maybe even a month of entries in between other books.
⭐⭐⭐💫
Current reading//
Death of an Ordinary Man by Sarah Perry
I received this book through my monthly Shelf Subscription from The Bookshelf in Thomasville, GA. It's a memoir about the death of Perry's father-in-law and I doubt I would have picked this one up on my own. It's relative short and very well written. I'm approaching the 90% mark.
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Ten months in and two to go, the slow read with Footnotes & Tangents continues. 86%
Nonfiction November//
Nonfiction November starts today and all the details here. I haven't read much nonfiction this year, but plan to post at least a couple of times this month. With a little luck, I'll have a "My Year in Nonfiction" post up before our house fills up next weekend.
The week ahead//
Today we have tickets to see the musical, Annie, at the historic Goodspeed Opera House. It's been years since I last saw that show!
Tuesday is Election Day and I cannot wait for the political texts and ads to stop. We voted by mail and have been able to check the status of our ballots all along the way. They have been received, accepted, and counted. Vote-by-mail is one thing the state of Florida does well!
That's the news from here. How have you been? What was your favorite October read?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
JoAnn, I'm delighted to see a post from you. Lovely colors in the picture and I did enjoy the update about your new little ones (and the rest of you family and activities, of course - ha!). Holiday season is almost here. Are we ready? We'll see. We aren't hosting for Thanksgiving, but we will for Christmas. Lots to do either way. Enjoy your November reading and give those little cuties a smile from me!
ReplyDeleteKay - Last year we all went to our CT daughter's house for Thanksgiving, but with a newborn they are certainly not up to the task this year! Our place is much smaller, but that's okay because crowd will be, too.
DeleteThat is a gorgeous photo of the fall foilage. That is indeed good you had binoculars!
ReplyDeleteThe Receipts from the Bokshop is one I am eager to read. I am still on the holds list and hope to get it by December. As for the Min Jin Lee book, i still have not read Pachinko even though it's been languishing on my Kindle for a ages. Thanks for the suggestion for the Sarah Perry book. I will add that as well.
Lots goin on for you all withg Thanksgiving coming up and two babies to play with. We did early voting too and I agree, glad when the elction is over and we stop getting all these flyers and texts about candidates.
Tina - Receipts From the Bookshop was just the right book at the right time for me. I couldn't follow American Hagwon with another novel, it surely would have suffered in comparison. A lighter nonfiction was perfect!
DeleteYou're in for a treat when you do get to Pachinko. If you're like me, books can languish on my kindle for years! It's much easier when I can see them on the shelf.
It sure is great that you could spend so much time with family JoAnn. How disappointing about your renos though. I hope you have a great week ahead.
ReplyDeleteJodie - I'm glad one of our NYC daughters moved to CT last year. Keeping my fingers crossed the other NYC family will follow suit! Hope your week is off to a good start.
DeleteThe Min Jin Lee book sounds good. I'm also looking forward to Nonfiction November and posted a nonfiction book review this morning to celebrate.
ReplyDeleteHave fun at Annie and with your grandkids!
Joy - I'm putting together some titles for Nonfiction November today and am already looking forward to reading all the posts. Annie was so much fun! It's been years since I last saw that show.
DeleteIt sounds like you had a busy, but lovely month! I had some great reading in October (feels like finally!!), my monthly reading post went up today. I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite. I can't believe it is already November 1st, my guess is that this month will be gone again before we know it. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteCindy - Hooray for a great reading month! Hope November turns out to be just as good:)
DeleteSounds like you've been having a great time in CT and NY. I hope you enjoyed Annie. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteYvonne - It's been such a nice fall this year. I love musicals and it was a lot of fun to see Annie.
DeleteI'm so glad you also liked American Hagwon, Lee is such a good story teller!
ReplyDeleteHow fun that you are getting to see the grandchildren so much; what a joy! Is it ok that I find it ironic that Florida does vote-by-mail well?! I also voted by mail and my vote is good to go. Fingers crossed for good results nation-wide.
Helen - Lee really is a great storyteller! She says there will be one more novel about the Korean diaspora, to make a total of four, and then she'll write a memoir. It's usually ten years between novels, but I hope we don't have to wait that long.
DeleteAnd it's okay to find it ironic that FL does vote-by-mail so well. I've been a resident since 2016 and still think the same thing!
Ooh, a fall foliage cruise sounds wonderful. Those are pretty colors in your photo. What fun! It sounds like you saw similar birds as we did while camping in Port Townsend. Eagles, blue herons, cormorants, and gulls. I heard an owl one night, but that was when we were camping near Mount St. Helen.
ReplyDeleteI didn't love Pachinko, so I'm on the fence with American Hagwon. Maybe I'll enjoy it on audio? I'm familiar with Orange County, so maybe that will help pull me in.
Receipts from the Bookshop sounds like a nice light read. I'll keep it mind, maybe borrowed from the library since you didn't give it a high rating.
I agree wholeheartedly about Election Day. I'm nervous, but holding out hope that the blue wave is really going to happen. We voted early, as well.
Enjoy your time with those grandbabies. Have you read Nanaville? Did I already ask you this? Lol! I think you'd enjoy it now that you have grandchildren. Here's my review.
Les - Hmm, if you didn't love Pachinko then I wonder about American Hagwon. The audio was very good and I enjoyed the slight Australian accent. I'm sure there was some nuance in the various Orange County towns that went right over my head. I even thought of you as I was reading thinking you would get it. Maybe Susan could weigh in on it, too.
DeleteYou did not ask me about Nanaville before. I just responded to your email a little while ago... thank you!
I think the Sister Bell trilogy by Lars Mytting was my most enjoyable read of the fall (so far). I went into it not knowing much, and ended up loving it. Now I've got Kate Atkinson's latest from the library and hope my high hopes aren't too high. :) Enjoy the grandbabies!!
ReplyDeleteAmy - I just looked up the Sister Bell trilogy and am intrigued... also tempted!
DeleteWow what a nice view of the tree colors, how pretty! Is it warm enough for a bike ride? That scene in the photo just calls for it, lol. How wonderful you have one of each: grandbaby Aaron and grandbaby Lucy -- what a fall for you! And I agree: October was gone in a flash and November is usually not as good, gets too cold. You liked the telling of Hagwon much more than I did but that's okay ... I did find it revealing about education as a means and Korean family sacrifices etc. It's no Pachinko to me. But I'm glad you enjoyed it. Sorry that the painting didn't get done ... it is a bummer. We are installing a gas fireplace and should be fully done by Friday ... just in time for winter, lol.
ReplyDeleteSusan - Yes, perfect weather for a bike ride, too! I always forget to mention is because I don't have a bike here.
DeleteI was just mentioning to Les (above) that there might have been some nuance to the Orange County towns mentioned in American Hagwon that went right over my head. When they opened the second hagwon location, it must have been in a wealthier area... but maybe more than that?
You're going to love the gas fireplace. We put one in last year and it's so nice to turn it on in the morning while I drink my coffee! You're getting it just in time.
(Deb Nance at Readerbuzz) Sometimes I can log in, and sometimes I can't. Sigh. Enjoy your time with your lovely grandbabies. I had not heard much about American Hagwon; I appreciate your thoughts. Receipts from the Bookshop: A Bookseller's Year in an English Seaside Town may arrive for me in time to read it during Nonfiction November.
ReplyDeleteDeb - Sorry you are having trouble commenting. Blogger can be so frustrating. I've loved all of Min Jin Lee's books and American Hagwon is no different. Hope you had a wonderful day yesterday!
DeleteOh no about the contractor but that's wonderful on all the family time! I need to try American Hagwon and that author in general. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - I'm half relieved and half discouraged about the painting contractor. Right now I'm trying to focus on the relief of not having to deal with it as we head into the holidays. Hope your week is off to a good start!
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