Hello, friends. It's been a beautiful Easter Sunday in Sanibel... probably the best beach day we've had all year! Traditionally Easter marks the end of our 'high season', but since it's so early this year, that may not be the case. The beaches and restaurants are the busiest I've seen them since before Hurricane Ian. And speaking of Ian, this past week marked the 18 month anniversary of the storm that devastated our island. Though there is still a long road to recovery, it's really amazing to see how far we have come.
Repairs continue on our home, too. The driveway project was completed last week, and now we're looking ahead to landscaping. The painters were here most of last week. I think they'll need another day or two, but then our upstairs (main) living area be back to the way it was before the storm! With any luck the downstairs will be finished before we head north, too.
Recent Reading//
Also A Poet by Ada Calhoun
This is the May selection for the MMD book club. I can say with certainty that I never would have picked this book up on my own, but ended up really enjoying it! ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Don't Overthink It by Anne Bogel
As a life-long overthinker, this has been on my list since it was released several years ago. I found it on my library's shelf last week and was pleased to find several very useful strategies to break the cycle. ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Quiet American by Graham Greene
My Vietnam reading continues. I plan to start Absolution by Alice McDermott next month and understand that it has a "narrative impact that recalls Graham Greene’s The Quiet American" so I decided to read this first. There is much I don't understand about America's role in Southeast Asia and it was interesting to read this take by a British author. I can see why it is considered a classic.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Current reading//
by Ada Calhoun, narrated by the author
I enjoyed Calhoun's voice so much in Also A Poet, I turned to this audiobook inspired by her "wildly popular" New York Times essay "The Wedding Toast I'll Never Give"... really good so far.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
I plan to read James by Percival Everett soon and thought it might be a good idea to refresh my memory of Huck Finn.
It's hard to believe tomorrow is April.... I'll try to post a monthly reading wrap-up later this week.
How was your week? hat have you been reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
I’ve always felt that anything worth thinking is worth over-thinking. So that book isn’t for me. So good to hear that you are finally able to enjoy your beautiful island again.
ReplyDeletebest, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Mae - The change from last winter is striking and I'm sure things will be even better by the end of the year.
DeleteGlad to hear of the repairs to your house and the recovery around Sanibel. You have made great strides and it's impressive to hear. Great that you will be reading Absolution & listening to Huck Finn ... both I visited too recently. I hope you had a lovely Easter today.
ReplyDeleteSusan - I should be ready to start Absolution within the next week or two. So far I like the audio version of Huck Finn... put it on my kindle, too.
DeleteI'm glad your repairs are continuing to move along. What a beautiful photo of the beach! It's a paradise there, I think.
ReplyDeleteYou've read lots of books I'd like to read, especially Also a Poet and Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give. Ada Calhoun sounds like an amazing writer.
Deb - The beach was just glorious yesterday... definitely the best beach day of the year. I really like Ada Calhoun's voice and plan to seek out more of her work.
DeleteThat's wonderful you had a good beach day and temperatures cooperated. I hadn't realized it has been 18 months since Ian. Glad your repairs are moving along.
ReplyDeleteI must thank you for suggesting The Road to Dalton. Just finished it and I will certainly look for more by the author. Loved it. Absolution is also on the list but I just picked up a load of library loot! I will get going on Tana French's latest book but I sure miss her Dublin Murder Squad.
Tina - Depending on the day, it feels like Ian could have been either 5 weeks ago or 5 years ago. So many people feel like we're on a roller coaster ride!
DeleteI'm so happy you loved The Road to Dalton! That was the author's first novel, but I'll keep an eye out for her next. It was published by Europa Editions, the company that brought us Valerie Perrin and The Postcard by Anne Berest. I've enjoyed so many of their offerings that I pay attention to their new releases now. Enjoy the new Tana French!
Good to hear about your repairs and renovations. Hope all is done to the extent you want before it's time to head north. I've read the 'overthinking' book a while back and liked it. Not sure everyone understands about that behavior, but I definitely fit in the category. I also really like Anne Bogel. Have a good week!
ReplyDeleteKay - We went literally 3 weeks with nothing getting done and then the last 2 have been crazy. I'm hoping this pace continues for the home stretch! Last spring I joined Anne Bogel's Modern Mrs. Darcy book club and just love it. You can read the books or not, but there are discussion forums every month plus a live author chat. There are other special events plus general book discussion forums, too. It's improved my reading life a lot.
DeleteI'm so glad you're progress and I know you'll be so relieved when the construction is done at your home. I read Huck Finn a few years ago and realized I had never read it! It was a fun story though it's hard to get past the language. Have a wonderful week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - I think most Americans know the story of Huck Finn whether we've actually read it or not. I'm looking forward to reading James by Percival Everett sometime i the next few months.. it's the same story told from Jim's point of view.
DeleteI read A Quiet American while I traveled in Vietnam and Cambodia, which was a great setting and helped me really visualize it all. I'm just starting Dust Child, which is about children of Vietnam soldiers and Vietnamese women.
ReplyDeleteHelen - I plan to read Dust Child within the next few months, so will look forward to your thoughts.
DeleteThat's great that you're seeing so much progress on your house and in the area.
ReplyDeleteI took the first ever class at my university that taught the Vietnam War as history, in the early 1980s. I was shocked by how much I didn't know and felt like people around me didn't know, even if they were old enough to have lived through all of it. The Quiet American was one of our texts.
I'm also looking forward to James and considering a re-read of Huck Finn. I grew up 30 miles south of Hannibal on the Mississippi River, so that story has always been huge in my life. Huck and Jim rafted right by my town when it was establishing itself in timber.
Joy - Wow, that's great that a class on the Vietnam War was even offered in the 80s! I was in high school in the mid70s and feel like I knew almost nothing about it. It took some time for me to get into The Quiet American, but I ended up really liking it - so many interesting issues there.
DeleteAfter reading a little more of Huck Finn, I don't think I ever read it in school. I certainly read Tom Sawyer, but this doesn't seem familiar at all. Growing up in that area, I'm sure it would have always been a part of your life. I've never been to that part of the country, but hope to see the Mississippi River one day.
Oh, my. That beach photo looks so inviting! I'm glad it was such a great day on Easter. It was pretty here, too, which was nice since my brother was visiting from San Diego. Glad your repairs are coming along. We've been getting small things done around our house, but certainly nothing like what you've had to do!
ReplyDeleteI remember when Anne Bogel's book was published and I wondered if it was worthwhile. Glad you enjoyed it.
I haven't read The Quiet American, but it seems like I might have watched the movie. Don't remember much about it, though!
I'm reading Demon Copperhead and am really enjoying the writing. The story is bleak, but Kingsolver does such a great job with the story and Demon's "voice." I'm listening to Fairy Tale by Stephen King and if I had been reading the print edition, I would have given up long ago. It's not your typical SK novel and it's easy to let my mind wander as I'm walking. I'm going to download Middlemarch for my next listen. That will probably last me until Labor Day! ;)
Les - Demon Copperhead was so good, but a tough, bleak read. It was a read/listen combo for me and the narrator was excellent. I haven't heard of Fairy Tale. SK has written SO many books!! I read Middlemarch a few years ago and thought Juliet Stevenson's did a great job narrating. Wondering if you have set off on your road trip yet... Safe travels and have fun!!
ReplyDeleteI'll be interested to hear how you like James. I may have to see if I can get the audio of Also a Poet--might be a nice break from the Civil War audios that have been consuming me.
ReplyDeleteJaneGS - I hope to read James sometime this month. Glad I'm reading Huck Finn now... it doesn't see as familiar I'd expected. Starting to wonder whether I read it in school or never got beyond Tom Sawyer. Also A Poet took longer to get into than I would have liked, but I'm glad I stuck with it. Ended up enjoying Calhoun's voice very much.
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