Two Nonfiction Mini-Reviews and My Current Reads

Hello, friends. It's a refreshingly cool, breezy weekend here in southwest Florida - just perfect for a long walk (me) or a long bike ride (my husband). And naturally, my long walk involves an audiobook! It's been a good week, although not enough happened on the downstairs renovation. Thankfully, we won't need that space for Thanksgiving, but I'm starting to get nervous about Christmas...

Finished last week//

Taste: My Life though Food

by Stanley Tucci, narrated by the author

I get Stanley Tucci. We are both of the same vintage, grew up in rural NY state (his Westchester was pretty rural at that time and my central NY still is), we both had Italian immigrant grandparents, and food and family were what mattered most. Our grandfathers both made wine... the way he described that musty smell of his grandparents' cellar took me back to the 1960s. Several anecdotes he shared could have occurred in my own extended family, and that recognition had me laughing out loud. 

Beyond childhood, similarities begin to fade but the deep foundation of food and family endures. Tucci shares stories of his career and life over the years and, as you would expect, food looms large. I was completely entertained throughout and enjoyed comparing his recipes with those I've encountered over the years. There were several old favorites and others I'd love to try.

The best part of this book was the experience of hearing Stanley Tucci tell his own story. If you listen to audiobooks, this is definitely one you must  listen to. (David Sedaris also falls into this category.) It is one of my 2021 favorites!

 

Book Love by Debbie Tung

This little volume is 150 pages of graphic bookish goodness. These depictions of life as a bookworm had me chuckling and nodding my head in agreement. Thank you to the several bloggers who recently wrote about this book.  I found it on hoopla available for immediate download via my library. If you're reading this blog, I suspect this is a book you'd love too!

Current Reading//

The Last Castle by Denise Kiernan

This book has lingered on my shelf for a couple of years, but its time is finally here. The "last castle" is George Vanderbilt's Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC. I have visited The Biltmore a couple of times over the years, but would like to see it again while this book is fresh in my mind. Maybe this summer?  I'm just past the halfway mark now and enjoying it as a read/listen combination. 

Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout

I know it's Nonfiction November, but there are times when my brain just needs fiction... and my library hold of Elizabeth Strout's latest novel arrived. She has long been a favorite author and although I've just started this one, I'm already loving it. 

On the blog//   Nonfiction November Week #1: My Year in Nonfiction

The week ahead//

Nonfiction November moves into week two with Book Pairings hosted by Katie at Doing Dewey. I'm hoping to have that post for you on Tuesday.

We will be celebrating my husband's birthday this weekend. Daughter #1 and her boyfriend arrive Thursday evening for a long weekend of festivities. I can't wait!

I'm finally getting a haircut and highlights this week! After having my September appointment in NY cancelled due to a Covid outbreak at the salon, the situation is dire. 

How did your week go? What are you reading?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date.

Nonfiction November Week #1: My Year in Nonfiction

Nonfiction November is here! This annual event, an entire month of bookish topics devoted entirely to nonfiction, is always a favorite.

Our hosts this year are:

Rennie at What’s Nonfiction

Katie at Doing Dewey

Veronica at The Thousand Book Project

Christopher at Plucked from the Stacks

 Jaymi at The OC Book Girl

MY YEAR IN NONFICTION

So far, 2021 has been a pretty good reading year for me. While my overall numbers are up, my nonfiction percentage is down - only 30%. In recent years I have averaged between 35 and 40%. Still, I'm satisfied with that number... especially since I don't set specific nonfiction goals.

How I consume nonfiction//

I read nonfiction of course, but I also love listening to it. Having both  the audiobook and a print copy is ideal. That way, I never miss out on photographs, maps, charts, recipes, etc. With a read/listen combination, I listen on my morning walk, then read outside in the late afternoon or curl up in my favorite reading chair in the evening.

What I'm reading about this year//

I've read on a variety of subjects this year, most notably...

RACE and IMMIGRATION

• The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
• The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
• Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds,  Ibram X. Kendi
• A Thousand Miles to Freedom by Eunsun Kim (a memoir)
• Beautiful Country: A Memoir by Qian Julie Wang

MEMOIR, mostly food

• Everything Beautiful in Its Time: Seasons of Love and Loss by Jenna Bush Hager
• My Place at the Table by Alexander Lobrano
• Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci

WORLD WAR II

• Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II by Liza Mundy
• The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson

I've also read about current events, psychotherapy, and even a couple of how-to books.

Notably absent compared to previous years are nature, books about books, law, and the Supreme Court.

MY NONFICTION FAVORITES OF 2021

(listed in the order I read them)

My goal for Nonfiction November//

 It's simple, really. I want to hear about all great nonfiction you've been reading this year. And then, ideally, I'd like to read them all myself before next year's event. My best recommendations always come from book bloggers!

How was your year in nonfiction? Which books were your favorites?

For links to other "My Year in Nonfiction" posts, visit Rennie at What's Nonfiction.

The Sunday Salon: Halloween Edition

A rainbow over Fort Myers Beach 

Hello, friends. It's been a wild week in southwest Florida with strong storms, covid boosters, real estate happenings, and our continuing lower-level renovation project. We had two brief storms last week that packed a lot of lightning, high winds, and rain. The second one managed to knock out the cable box and take down a dying gumbo limbo tree in our backyard. Thankfully it fell away from the house and the landscaper can remove it this week. The cable company will come tomorrow to see about the box.

In good news, I was able to get a covid booster early in the week - a Pfizer, following my two Moderna doses. I had a reaction similar to my second Moderna (fever, chills, etc.) but was fine within 24 hours. We also listed out condo last week and have had quite a few showings already. Fingers crossed...

On the reading front, I finished a book earlier in the week and am loving my current audiobook. I'll choose a new print book today.

Recent reading//

Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang

I've read several immigrant stories, both fiction and nonfiction, this year. It's such a timely topic. This memoir was a read/listen combination, with the audio version read by author. Qian Julie Wang, along with her mother, left China for NYC in the early 1990s when she was seven years old. They were joining her father, who had arrived a few years earlier. 

It is a sad story about an undocumented child coming of age in a big city, while facing hunger, poverty, and racism. However, compared to other books about immigrants I've read in 2021, this is on the gentler side... especially when compared to Infinite Country.  

Books, reading, and libraries played an important role in Wang's life. Her love of the written word added an uplifting aspect to an otherwise bleak existence and certainly increased my enjoyment of this memoir. Wang, now in her 30s, went on to attend Swarthmore College and Yale Law School. She had considered writing a memoir for years and finally tackled the project during the pandemic.

Current Listening//

Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci

narrated by the author

I am loving this audiobook and will likely finish later today. For now,  just let me say this is pretty much perfection!

On the blog//        The RIP Wrap-Up

The week ahead//

Are you ready? Nonfiction November kicks off tomorrow! I probably won't have a post up until midweek, but am already into my nonfiction reading. Find all the details here.

For the rest of this week, we'll be dealing with the issues from last week - storm damage, real estate, and renovations. We'll have a break from all that today as we bring a Halloween pizza party to my FIL. Do you have special Halloween plans?

How was your week? What are you reading today?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date.

The RIP Wrap-Up

 

As Readers Imbibing in Peril winds down for the sixteenth(!) time and my attention turns toward Nonfiction November, it's time for an RIP  reading wrap-up. This year I read three books for the event, instead of the usual one or two. Surprisingly, they are the same three books listed in my introductory post. I've been blogging since 2008 and am pretty sure this is the first time I've composed a reading list for anything  and then proceeded to read everything on it! Here's what I read:

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

An Elderly Lady Must Not Be Crossed by Helene Tursten

As you can see, all three books turned out to be winners. How was your RIP reading this year?

Sanibel Sunday: October 24, 2021

 

Hello, friends. It's a rainy Sunday morning here in SW Florida, and I'm kind of hoping it continues all day - a perfect excuse to lounge on the couch and read! I'd love to finish my current book this afternoon. We spent a lot of time working on the condo last week... several projects, both indoors and out, to get it ready to put on the market.

Some good news to share - my husband got his Covid booster yesterday and he didn't experience any side effects at all. The pharmacist encouraged him to have me sign up for one, too, even though I'm not 65. Seems like there's more than enough to go around down here...

Recent reading//

Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen

This was a great read - classic Franzen! The first installment of a planned trilogy, it's set in the Chicago suburbs of the early 1970s and dives deep into the psyche of each member of the Hildebrandt family. The ending isn't exactly a cliff-hanger, but I was definitely left wanting more. Fingers crossed I don't have to wait ten years.

Franzen's writing is as sharp as ever, but perhaps a little less pointed and more compassionate toward his characters. Could he be mellowing? From a literary perspective, this is easily the best novel I've read all year and will surely end up on my list of favorites in December.

Finally, this is a long book - nearly 600 pages - so I made it a read/listen combination. The 25-hour audio version narrated by David Pittu, is excellent. 

Current reading//

Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang 

This recent Read with Jenna pick is a touching memoir about growing up undocumented in Brooklyn in the 1990s. Another read/listen combination, the author narrates the audio herself. I'm planning to finish it this afternoon.

In the kitchen//

Nothing really new in the kitchen... I stuck with recipes in the regular rotation. My FIL requested Katie Workman's Chocolate Banana Cake, so that was this week's treat. The recipe calls for three large ripe bananas but the ones I had were on the small side, so I used five. It turned out even better than usual!

Last night I made Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil from Damn Delicious. This has made regular appearances on our dinner table for a few years and is one of my husband's favorites. Most andouille sausage is too spicy for me, so I substitute turkey kielbasa.

I also made Taste of Home's Quick Buttermilk Cornbread to go with the shrimp boil. I chose the recipe because I needed to use up the buttermilk. It turned out to be much sweeter than my normal recipe... delicious, but I'll stick with the old standby.

The week ahead//

We'll continue getting the condo ready to list, hope the contractor shows up to work on the downstairs here at the house... and maybe I'll start reading Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci.

How was your week? What have you been reading?

Seen on my walk - two pileated woodpeckers!

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date.

Sanibel Sunday: October 17, 2021

It's a sunny Sunday morning in Florida... I'm back from my walk, sipping my second cup of coffee, and anticipating a low-key day. We've spent a lot of time with my BIL and his family over the past week. It had been almost two years since we'd seen the nephews, so we've enjoyed catching up with their lives and careers. Tonight we'll have one more dinner together before they head home tomorrow.

Current reading//

Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen

I'm nearing the end of this nearly 600-page novel and loving it! Franzen is such a talented writer and his latest novel is the first of a planned trilogy. I'm definitely down for the next two... and already hoping the wait won't be too long.

On the blog//

Nonfiction November is Almost Here!

In the kitchen//

The winner in the kitchen last week was Abruzzo Summer Minestrone from the Food Network. It calls for a variety of summer veggies, but I'm sure you could use whatever you have on hand. The only substitution I made was baby spinach for the Swiss chard, and I added it at the end as the soup was removed from the heat. The recipe calls for 16 oz. tomato and sausage pasta sauce. I used the entire jar of Classico with sausage - delicious!

There were some beautiful Honeycrisp apples at the store last week, so I made our favorite Cinnamon Sugar Apple Cake. I've shared this recipe before, but it's worth mentioning again... a fall classic around here!

Viewing//

I don't remember who mentioned The Chair recently, but we watched the six-episode first season on Netflix and enjoyed it quite a bit. Sandra Oh stars as the newly-appointed (and first female) chair of the English Department at Pembroke University. I'm hoping for a second season.

Later today//

After finishing this post, I'll peruse the newspapers, catch up on blog reading, and spend some more time with Jonathan Franzen. Later this afternoon we'll have my BIL and SIL over for dinner. If I get ambitious, I may even bake something for dessert.

How was your week? What have you been reading lately?

The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date.

Nonfiction November is Almost Here!

Good news, fellow readers... Nonfiction November starts in just a couple of weeks! This year there are five hosts and five weeks of blog prompts:

Week 1: (November 1-5) – Your Year in Nonfiction with Rennie at What’s Nonfiction: Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions – What was your favorite nonfiction read of the year? Do you have a particular topic you’ve been attracted to more this year? What nonfiction book have you recommended the most? What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?

Week 2: (November 8-12) – Book Pairing  with Katie at Doing Dewey: This week, pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title. It can be a “If you loved this book, read this!” or just two titles that you think would go well together. Maybe it’s a historical novel and you’d like to get the real history by reading a nonfiction version of the story. 

Week 3: (November 15-19) – Be/Ask/Become the Expert with Veronica at The Thousand Book Project: Three ways to join in this week! You can either share 3 or more books on a single topic that you have read and can recommend (be the expert), you can put the call out for good nonfiction on a specific topic that you have been dying to read (ask the expert), or you can create your own list of books on a topic that you’d like to read (become the expert). 

Week 4: (November 22-26) – Stranger Than Fiction with Christopher at Plucked from the Stacks: This week we’re focusing on all the great nonfiction books that *almost* don’t seem real. A sports biography involving overcoming massive obstacles, a profile on a bizarre scam, a look into the natural wonders in our world—basically, if it makes your jaw drop, you can highlight it for this week’s topic.

Week 5: (November 29-December 3) — New to My TBR with Jaymi at The OC Book Girl: It’s been a month full of amazing nonfiction books! Which ones have made it onto your TBR? Be sure to link back to the original blogger who posted about that book! 

I love this event and have participated for years. This week I'm starting to get my book list together... and have already found that there are way too many choices! One thing I've always appreciated about Nonfiction November is that you can participate at whatever level your schedule allows, one week or all five. Nonfiction reviews can be posted at any time and linked with current week's host. 

Do you ever read nonfiction? Will you be participating in Nonfiction November?