Hello friends, Happy August! We ended July with a whirlwind of activities which included another birthday celebration and a weekend in NYC for our daughter's baby shower. We tried to get back to a normal routine this week, but spent a couple of days at home midweek due to all the rain. Friday it cleared up long enough for a drive to Stonington, CT where we toured The Captain Nathaniel B. Palmer House, ate lobster rolls by the water, and walked around Stonington Point. We got home just in time for another round of thunderstorms!
Recent reading//
Kin by Tayari Jones
Wow. This was my first Tayari Jones novel, but now I want to read her entire backlist. Initially I was reminded of The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett, but Jones quickly moved into a space all her own. Kin is a story about two motherless girls growing up together in rural Honeysuckle, Louisiana in the 1950s and 60s. By high school it's apparent that Vernice (Niecy) and Annie's life trajectories will be very different, yet their "cradle friend" bond remains unshakable. Jones tackles issues of family, race, class, civil rights, identity, sexuality, and more.
This was a read/listen combination for me. The story is told from Vernice and Annie's alternating points-of-view and the dual-narrator audio production was excellent. This is one of my favorite reads of the year so far!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster
This short, epistolary YA classic was originally published in 1912. Judy Abbot has lived in an orphanage for as long as she can remember and at the end of her senior year, she is selected by an anonymous trustee to receive a full college scholarship. The only stipulation is that she write him a monthly letter detailing her college life. Daddy Long-Legs is her nickname for this unknown benefactor and the novel consists of her four years of correspondence. Judy shares details of her classes, friends, travel, and aspirations, plus some deep feelings. The story is certainly dated and, when held up to modern sensibilities, possesses a certain "ick factor". Yet it is also charming, sweet, and so evocative of a by-gone era.
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Current reading//
The Annotated Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, David Shapard
Pride and Prejudice has long been one of my favorite novels and I'm happy to be reading this annotated edition with a small group from the Modern Mrs. Darcy book club for Austen in August.
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Are you getting tired of seeing this cover yet? I'm 65% in and the yearlong chapter-a-day slow read continues...
The week ahead//
I finally have an eye exam this week! Last spring (2025) I was getting a lot of headaches and an exam showed that my glasses were too strong. My eye had improved!? After dialing back the prescription a couple of notches, all was well. Now, just over a year later, I'm having trouble seeing and getting headaches again. We'll see what happens this time...
We're having dinner with a group of friends later in the week. And it looks like the NYC "kids" are planning to visit for one last long weekend before the baby arrives. My heart is full!
How was your week? What have you been reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
Hi JoAnn, you have a lot going on and all of i fun...except the eye exam kerfuffle. Hope that gets straighteened out. Have you had cataract surgery? Once Doug and I had that our prescxriptions never changes.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to Kin and it's on my holds but a long wait for it. Having trouble concentrating on reading lately but I was doing a comparision of two classics with teachers as the main subject. Liking To Sir, With Love more than Jean Brodie at this point.
Tina - No, I haven't had cataract surgery. It wasn't needed at the last eye exam, but we'll see what they say this week. The headaches are what is driving me crazy, especially with print books. At least with my kindle I can adjust the font size!
DeleteI was a big fan of Jean Brodie and am not sure I ever read To Sir, With Love... did see the movie years ago though. Hope your week is off to a good start.
It sounds like a wonderful week!
ReplyDeleteErin - It was, the baby shower especially!
DeleteI confess that I haven't read any of those titles. Great post. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWriting Sparkle - Hearing about titles I haven't read is one reason why I enjoy reading blogs.... I'll never get to all the books myself!
DeleteI totally get why your heart is full. So much family good news and good times.
ReplyDeleteKin sounds really good. I like books like this--will need to put it on the list.
Enjoy your P&P group read. Such a wonderful novel.
Good luck at the eye doctor. I'm fighting AMD and have started getting injections in my right eye. Hopefully, you will find that your sight is continuing to self-correct!
JaneGS - I'm a little nervous about the appointment this week. Hoping to find out that they just decreased the prescription too much last time and need to take it back up a notch. Fingers crossed!
DeleteI didn't expect to like Kin as much as I did. Silver Sparrow will probably be her next novel I pick up. We'll see when that happens though...
Austen in August sounds fun. I like your plan to watch The Other Bennet Sister right after reading Pride and Prejudice -- I'm sure I would have caught a few more interesting tidbits if I had done that.
ReplyDeleteJoy - That's what I'm hoping! With Pride and Prejudice fresh in my mind, it should help me catch more of the connections.
DeleteI’m sorry you’re having headaches again and hope that it is something easily rectified JoAnn. It sounds like you’ve had a great week otherwise and hope that the upcoming week will be just as nice.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jodie. I'm hoping just a simple prescription change will take care of things.
DeleteGood luck with your eye exam. I know the feeling when things don't seem right. Hope you have a good week!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Yvonne! Have a great week.
DeleteOh good for you for tackling War and Peace. I heard a funny line in the book I'm reading, The Astral Library, about ghosts hanging around the library trying to finish books they didn't quite finish before death. One ghost had been working on War and Peace for forty+ years. The librarian was urging him to give up already!
ReplyDeleteAnne - That's so funny! I'm reading War and Peace with a group from Footnotes and Tangents. There is a daily email recapping the chapter and adding commentary, then a group discussion thread. It's been surprisingly helpful and I'm really enjoying the slow pace.
DeleteI had a time in my mid-40s where my distance eyesight improved a bunch. I hope your doctor figures out what's going on.
ReplyDeleteHelen - I was shocked last year when they weakened my prescription so much. That had never happened before. We'll see what this week brings...
DeleteThanks, I'm going to give Kin a try. Though a long wait list at the library! And give Pride and Prejudice a re-read. It's about time.
ReplyDeleteClaudia - Kin was such a great read, and Pride and Prejudice is a book I keep coming back to. It's definitely a lifetime favorite!
DeleteI'd seen Daddy-Long-Legs around but not realised it was epistolary! I might have to check that out.
ReplyDeleteHope you have a good week!
Nicky - I just learned Daddy Long Legs was epistolary earlier this year. That's one of the reasons I decided to read it now!
DeleteOh, eyes. So important and so annoying. :) I'm reading an advance copy of Under Story by Chloe Benjamin, about half through, and so far am enjoying it a lot. It feels like it could be a companion to Richard Powers' The Overstory (not just because of the similar titles).
ReplyDeleteAmy - I didn't know Chloe Benjamin had a new novel coming out. The comparison to The Overstory has me intrigued!!
DeleteKeep going with War and Peace!!!
ReplyDeleteMarg - I'm reading W&P a chapter a day with Footnotes and Tangents. Really enjoying the slow read experience!
DeleteGreat update. We'd love some of that rain out West. It's as dry as dust. And I'm so pleased you liked Kin a lot. I did too! Great writing by Tayari Jones, yay. I reread Daddy-Long Legs too just a couple years ago and agree with your sentiments : my thoughts are here: https://www.thecuecard.com/books/fall-pickings/ Did you know there was a sequel to it? I never knew that. I will get to it sometime. It's exciting about your upcoming grandbaby ..... cant wait!
ReplyDeleteSusan - I wish we could send you some of our rain! We've had over 3" again this morning, with some flash flooding along the immediate shoreline.. it's getting ridiculous!
DeleteI just discovered the sequel to Daddy Long Legs yesterday, but am not sure when/if I'll read it. Thanks for your link.
Sounds like a great ending to July. Not tired of seeing War and Peace I give you kudos for tackling it! Have a great week.
ReplyDeleteOlivia - War and Peace is one of those books I;ve been thinking about reading for decades! Really enjoying this slow read and am not sure I'd get through it any other way.
DeleteFirst of all, I'm so excited about your new grandbabies coming. Fun, fun! Also, you are reading some nice books. Enjoy! Daddy-Long-Legs - hadn't thought about that book or movie in a long, long time. Take care and hope your eye exam goes well.
ReplyDeleteKay - I didn't know Daddy Long Legs was a movie! Will have to see if I can find it, thanks. Fingers crossed for the eye exam...
DeleteThe CT trip looks wonderful. One of these days I'll have to read War and Peace. The size alone terrifies me. Both Daddy Long Legs and Kin are new to me so I'll have to look into them. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteKatherine - The size of W&P is very intimidating! Luckily I don't really notice it when I'm reading bite-sized daily chapters on the kindle each day. It's gotten to be part of the daily routine!
DeleteI'll be going to my eye appointment in two weeks. I'm looking forward to it. I need stronger glasses. You are moving along nicely through War and Peace. I wonder how many people in the world have actually read it. I am glad to see how much you liked Kin.
ReplyDeleteDeb - Yes, I'm looking forward to my appointment and think stronger glasses may be the answer. Good luck with your eye exam, too. W&P has become part of my daily routine now... starting to think I'll miss it when it's over!
DeleteGood luck at your eye appointment and have a wonderful visit with your family
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jen. Tomorrow is the big day..
DeleteGorgeous photo, JoAnn! I've been away from the blogging world for a few days and it's nice to sit down and visit my friends.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you've been busy, too. I'm very jealous of your rain. Gosh, we sure need it here in Oregon. We're getting a lot of smoke from the fires, and we're keeping our fingers crossed that we don't experience any nearby. Such scary times with climate change. It feels like the entire planet is burning up.
I'm eager to read Kin, but don't have the print edition so I'll go with the audio. Glad the narration is good!
I'm sorry you're having trouble with your vision & headaches. I hope it's nothing serious.
Currently reading The Winds of War, and have about 100 pages remaining (out of 1000!). I wish I could say I'm loving it, but I am glad to have finally given it a go. I have War and Remembrance on my shelf, but I may until next January to pick it up.
Les - I'm sorry you're dealing with the smoke now. It was very bad here a couple of weeks ago, but thankfully hasn't reached that level again.
DeleteTayari Jones has been on my 'authors to try' list for years and I'm so glad to finally try one of her books. Pretty sure it's one you will enjoy, too.
Had my eye exam last week and apparently my vision has changed again! They're dialing the prescription down another couple of notches, plus making the reading portion stronger... no wonder I couldn't see anything! Counting the days until the new lenses arrive!
You're almost done with Winds of War - hooray!! I doubt I'll ever pick up the book, but I remember loving that television miniseries back in the day. You deserve a little break before starting War and Remembrance.
Glad that you liked Daddy-Long Legs overall. It helps to accept the story "as is" rather than thinking too deeply about it, LOL!
ReplyDeleteCindy - Daddy Long Legs was such a lovely read, but I do think it's important not to view it through too modern a lens. It's a product of it's time and a delightful way to revisit that era!
Delete