The Sunday Salon: November 1. 2026

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. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Receipts from the Bookshop: A Bookseller's Year in an English Seaside Town 

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!

Our grandson, and his parents, are coming to visit next weekend. Our daughter is still on maternity leave, so she and Aaron will stay through the following weekend, but our son-in-law needs to be back in NYC during the week. The little guy just turned two months old and I cannot wait to see him again! Hopefully he and his cousin Lucy can meet for the first time. She just turned one month old on Friday!

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.

 

An Early October Sunday Salon

Hello friends, and happy fall! We're back from our 5-week stay in NYC and resettled at home in CT. I love this time of year. The leaves are changing, the nights are a little chilly, and the days have been gorgeous. Plus we now have a new granddaughter, Lucy!

The photo above was taken in NYC, obviously. The evening before the recent Nor'easter hit, the sky turned an otherworldly pink ahead of an exceptionally stunning sunset. I think nearly everyone in the city posted a photo. It was truly exceptional.

Recent reading//

Summerland Cove by Ellen Baker

My last summer book, I finished it just before fall officially arrived. This novel features three generations, multiple perspectives, and is set in a coastal Maine summer colony over the course of two weeks (with flashbacks)... all catnip for me! There were so many secrets, some outright lies, and a mystery that fueled momentum. I read the second half in a single sitting! Remember this one when you make your 2027 summer reading list.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Frog: And Other Essays by Anne Fadiman

Anne Fadiman is a favorite essayist. Her writing, of course, is excellent but her intelligence, and humor make these essays a pleasure to read. From the titular essay about a 16-year-old pet frog named Bunky who spent years in a zip lock bag in her freezer awaiting a proper burial, to a hilarious essay about Fadiman's archaic printer, and one about Ernest Shackleton's founding and editing The South Polar Times, I savored these essays. They weren't all standouts, of course, but I loved enough of them to purchase a copy for my shelves... and add her older collections to my rereading list. Nonfiction November is coming up!

The audio, narrated by the author, is outstanding. I found it available for immediate download from my library via hoopla.

⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

One I set aside//

The Last September by Elizabeth Bowen

This was disappointing. After loving The Death of the Heart earlier in the summer (my review), I ended up abandoning this one... bored at 20%. I read The House in Paris sometime around 2010 and, generously, rated it 3.5 stars. I was also surprised to discover that I read Bowen's The Hotel  in 2014 and liked it even less (my review). It's now safe to say that Elizabeth Bowen is hit or miss for me.

Current reading//

American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee

 I'm just over 20% in and loving this book!

 War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

The great slow read continues - 82%! Footnotes & Tangents recently announced their 2027 slow read schedule. A new War and Peace slow read group will be forming... just in case anyone is interested.

On the blog//

Introducing Lucy!

The week ahead//

We're planning to visit Lucy (and her parents) tomorrow. I'm making soup in the crockpot today so we can bring them lunch... soup weather is here! On Tuesday we head up to central NY to spend a few days with my parents. We also need to get started on our list of "winterizing" chores. It's that time of year again...

I hope your fall is off to a good start. What have you been reading lately?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

 

A Sunday Salon from NYC

Hello, friends and happy Sunday from NYC! We've been here for a couple of weeks and have settled into a comfortable city routine. Baby Aaron is thriving, his parents are adjusting to their new lives, and we help out most days. I've also enjoyed exploring the neighborhood, spending some free time on our rooftop, and discovering new restaurants. This is the view from our apartment looking west to the Hudson River.

I've finished a couple of books and am still keeping up with the War and Peace reading schedule. This afternoon I'll walk to the massive Upper West Side Barnes and Noble... as soon as the rain lets up!

Recent reading//

Troika: Three Generations, Three Days, and a Very American Road Trip by Irena Smith

On the surface Troika is the story of a three-day road trip along the California coast, but it's actually much more. Irena Smith uses that trip with her mother and daughter as a vehicle (😉) to tell a larger story. She delves into her family history in Soviet Russia, their immigration to the US in the 1970s, plus her own life story. Along the way, she weaves in parallels with The Odyssey and discusses The White Lotus television series. I have not watched the show, but imagine these references contain spoilers. The memoir is well-written, creatively constructed, and I enjoyed listening to the author narrate her own story.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Finding Grace by Loretta Rothschild

I'd decided to skip this debut novel when it was published last year for two reasons. I don't like the cover - shallow, I know - and I wasn't up for a domestic page-turner centered around a tragedy and reproductive technology. Then MMD book club announced its October selection.

 Since it was immediately available on Libby, I decide to dive right in. It was indeed a page-turner and I enjoyed it more than expected. I won't say anything more about the plot, but there is certainly plenty to discuss with book club!

⭐⭐⭐⭐  (3.5 stars, rounded up)

Current reading//

The Last September by Elizabeth Bowen

I've been craving another Elizabeth Bowen novel since I finished The Death of the Heart a few month ago. Just started this coming-of-age story set in Ireland yesterday.

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

The epic year-long group read continues...

How was your week? What have you been reading?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

 

The Sunday Salon: August 23, 2026

August is winding down... I'm not even sure how that's possible. We had a nice long weekend visit with my parents last weekend, got to see our new grandniece again (she's two months old and changing so fast!) and spend some time with our kids. We went out to dinner with friends last week and I was even able to spend an afternoon reading in the sunroom on my zero-gravity lounger!

Recent reading//

The Annotated Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, David Shapard

Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite novels. I'm not sure how many times I've read it, but it's always a delight. This year for Austen in August, I read an annotated edition slowly over three weeks with a group from Modern Mrs. Darcy. Shapard includes many historical facts and illustrations, plus he explains references Austen makes which she would have expected readers of that era to get. Naturally it takes longer to read these annotated editions (this one was 780 pages!) but I settled into a comfortable pattern of reading the notes after every chapter or two. This was my third Shapard-annotated Austen novel and I'm already planning to tackle another next summer.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Current reading//

Jane Austen at Home by Lucy Worsley

I'm wrapping up Austen in August with a biography.

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

The great read-along continues... 900 pages/70% in and counting!

In the kitchen//

My sister sent me this Baked Pineapple Salmon recipe a couple of years ago, and maybe I've even shared it here before. Since it's easy, delicious, and looks really special on a serving platter (perfect for guests) it's become a favorite.  I made it again a couple of nights ago... increasing the oven temperature to 425 degrees and baking just a little longer.  It's always a winner!

Coming up soon//

We will head to NYC next Sunday to await the birth of our grandson. The current plan calls for our daughter to be induced on Monday 8/31. We were fortunate to find a short-term furnished rental just a block from their apartment and have made arrangements to stay for a month. We can help out as much as needed, plus my husband has always wanted to spend an extended period of time in the City. I've renewed my Met membership and look forward to frequent walks in Central Park! 

Today I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this relentless rain stops soon. One of our favorite local bands is playing in the final outdoor concert of the summer. 🤞🤞🤞

How was your week? What have you been reading?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

 

The Sunday Salon : August 2, 2026

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.

The Sunday Salon: July 19, 2026

Hello, friends. We're well into the back half of July and summer seems to be flying. We had a good week, despite a few days of very warm temperatures and a few more of smoke-filled air. Early in the week we enjoyed an evening concert on the town green, but were mostly indoors after that. Last night's storms ushered in cooler, cleaner air today along with a nice breeze - perfect for a walk and then maybe sunset at the beach!

Recent reading//

Departure(s) by Julian Barnes

I'm glad I gave this quiet, introspective novel (which reads more like a memoir) a second chance. Barnes, now 80 and with health concerns, says this is his final novel. He opens with a discussion of memory that's sprinkled with Proustian references, but initially I just wasn't feeling it. A month or so later I tried the audio, which Barnes narrates himself, and was enchanted! 

Barnes goes on to talk about his illness, and grief following the loss of his wife and later his dog Jimmie, but there's also a parallel story about a rekindled romance between two old friends. He continues to weave in aspects of the initial memory essay throughout the book, and I loved his self-deprecating sense of humor. 

I've been a fan of Barnes for years, but have only read a couple of his novels and essay collections. My favorite is The Sense of an Ending, which won the Booker Prize in 2011, and I also enjoyed his essay collection, The Pedant in the Kitchen. The Only Story is waiting on my shelf.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

Current reading//

Kin by Tayari Jones

Read/listen combination - so good! 70%

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

The yearlong chapter-a-day slow read continues...

On the blog//

Mid-Year Reading Questionnaire

The week ahead//

Wednesday is my birthday! I'm planning to browse the bookstore in the afternoon, have dinner at a favorite restaurant and then, if the rain holds off, go to a concert on the town green. Thursday I'm looking forward to a mani/pedi, then we're off to NYC for the weekend. Fingers crossed it isn't oppressively hot!

How was your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

The Sunday Salon: An Update At Last!

Hello, friends. Has it really been nearly a month? Life has gotten a bit crazy lately. We've either been away or had guests for the past five weekends, but now we have two weeks at home before we're on the road again.

The big news is that we are going to be grandparents - twice! Two of our daughters are expecting their first babies. Our NYC daughter is due September 5 and our CT daughter is due October 12. In addition, the NYC couple has decided to move to CT and have been spending more time with us as they begin their search for a house. 

We've also spent a good amount of time in central NY lately. My father had a mild heart attack at the end of June. He is fine now and back home, but we were happy to provide a little extra support when it was needed.

Recent reading//

Sisters of a Halved Heart by Nayantara Roy

This new release is the July selection at Modern Mrs. Darcy book club and I was lucky to get a library copy right away. It's a messy, complicated family drama which features a love triangle involving two sisters at its core. Set primarily in Brooklyn and Manhattan, none of the characters were particularly likable, but I kept turning the pages anyway. The novel was more interesting than enjoyable and I cringed as several characters repeatedly made bad decisions. And what an ending - I literally gasped at the final page! The discussion forums are already buzzing and I'm looking forward to the live author chat later in the month.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Current reading//

Departures by Julian Barnes

I've been a fan of Julian Barnes for years. Now, at 80, he is calling this his final novel. I'm over halfway through, but it sure feels more like a memoir to me.... and it's so good!

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

The year-long slow read continues. Now wonder people still read this novel... it's got everything!

On the blog//

Three Overdue Reviews:

  - The Death of the Heart by Elizabeth Bowen

  - Whistler by Ann Patchett

  - Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan

In the kitchen//

Despite not being at home much lately, I have tried a few recipes worth mentioning. First is a Blueberry Cottage Cheese Breakfast Bake from Taste of Home. I am NOT a fan of cottage cheese, but have made this at least three times and it's delicious! The 8x8 size is a plus when it's just the three of us.

Another recent discovery is this Asian Chicken Chopped Salad from Skinnytaste. It's been hot lately and I've been craving lighter dinners. My husband generally isn't a fan of dinner salads, but even he really liked this one. You could also serve it in lettuce wraps or over rice.

And finally, we've been grilling a lot of veggies. This easy marinade from Gimme Some Oven has added a tasty new twist ... I think it's the smoked paprika!

That's about it from here. At long last, I am anticipating a quiet week at home. Hopefully it will be cool enough to get back to my morning walks.

How have you been? What have you been reading lately?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

Three Overdue Reviews

The Death of the Heart by Elizabeth Bowen

This was an "Ann Patchett made me read it" selection.  In a recent Friday instagram video, she somehow convinced me to pick up a 1938 novel by the celebrated Irish author Elizabeth Bowen. Bowen primarily wrote 'novels of manners' and is often compared to Henry James. How could I resist? I purchased  the ebook with kindle credits and found the audio edition, narrated by Pearl Hewitt, available on hoopla. 

The Death of the Heart is primarily a coming-of-age story. Following the death of her mother, 16-year-old Portia travels to London to live with her much older half-brother Thomas and his wife. Portia's long-dead father left Thomas's mother years ago and Portia was the child of his second marriage.

Initially the language felt stilted and dated, so it took some time to settle in. (The audio helped!) Once acclimated, I found the writing to be stunning - beautiful and insightful. Bowen writes about people, how they relate to one another, what is communicated and what's left unsaid - reminiscent of Elizabeth Strout's most recent novel. Her descriptive passages are wonderful, especially those of the sea.

"She felt it must be very late, past midnight: that point where the river of night flows underneath time, that point at which occurs the mysterious birth of tomorrow." 

"Some people are moulded by their admirations, others by their hostilities." 

"The heart may think it knows better: the senses know that absence blots people out."

"We desert those who desert us; we cannot afford to suffer; we must live how we can." 

"The sun, slanting moltenly in at the south windows, laid a dust nimbus over furs, and printed cheeks with the colours of stained glass." 

I read Bowen's The House in Paris about a decade ago. It didn't leave much of an impression, but I suspect The Death of the Heart will stick with me for some time. This novel probably won't appeal to most readers, but I'm glad to have rediscovered Elizabeth Bowen.

⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

Whistler by Ann Patchett

Whistler is exactly the kind of novel you'd expect from Ann Patchett and I loved every page! It opens when 50-something Daphne Fuller and her husband discover that an older gentleman is following them around the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He turns out to be Eddie Triplett, who was briefly Daphne's stepfather when she was nine, but was abruptly divorced by her mother following a car accident. Daphne hadn't seen him since.

There's a reunion and a new relationship is forged. They share memories and reminiscences as Daphne pieces together part of her childhood. And all of it is overflowing with love and kindness. The cast of supporting characters is particularly memorable, too. The NYC setting delighted me - including the mention of several familiar locales, plus restaurants I've dined at multiple times. There was even a line about the impossibility of finding a parking place in Westport, CT that made me laugh out loud!

I rated this 4.5 stars at the time, but I'm upping it to 5 as a continue to think about it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan

I don't read much romance, but this new release was the June selection at Modern Mrs. Darcy book club... and I loved it! The main character, Dolly Brick, is a teacher and single mom to a 13-year-old boy. She returns to her coastal RI hometown (which bears a striking resemblance to Newport) for the summer to help her father at the family business, Brick's Fish House, as he struggles to keep family home. The novel features a "fake dating" trope involving Dolly and the handsome son of the town's ultra-rich 'first family.'

Dolly and Stewart were both such believable characters and I couldn't get enough of them! I flew through this book two days and will seek out Monaghan's earlier novels the next time the romance mood strikes. This was a read/listen combination for me. Julia Whelan's narration was perfection.

⭐⭐⭐⭐💫