Hello, friends. We've had a pretty good week in southwest Florida. The weather has been perfect, we took several sunset beach walks, went out to dinner with friends, and had contractors show up according to schedule! We're waiting on closet shelves and a shower door adjustment... and then our Hurricane Ian (9/22) repairs will be complete!! Fingers crossed both will be done by the end of the week.
Emotionally, it's been a tough week. I cannot even look at the news without getting knots in my stomach. Reading continues to be a balm.
Recent reading//
How the Light Gets In by Joyce Maynard
This book is a sequel to Count the Ways, which was both my favorite novel of 2021 and my introduction to Joyce Maynard. Some twenty years have passed since the ending of that tale... Eleanor and Cam are over 60, the kids have become adults with their own complicated lives, some characters have passed on, and new ones are introduced. I loved catching up with these people and seeing how their lives have evolved. While not quite as good as Count the Ways, this was exactly the reading experience I'd been craving.
My only complaint is that Maynard include too many 'hot' issues. Some reviewers found the book to be too heavy-handed politically, and I'll admit that it may have been. BUT in light of events of the past few weeks, I'm more than willing to forgive Maynard for coming down a little hard on the red-hatted crowd.
⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Current reading//
by Vera Brittain
I'm reading this nonfiction classic with Tina and it's a long one - nearly 700 pages. It's off to a strong start, but I didn't make as much progress as planned. This should be a better week as far as reading time goes.
I'll also be choosing a new fiction title to start this week.
On the blog//
The week ahead//
Our oldest daughter and son-in-law are flying in later today. They work remotely, so will probably stay for a couple of weeks. We'll celebrate her birthday midweek and have a few other activities planned. I'm looking forward to having them around!
How was your week? What have you been reading?
The Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz.
It's wonderful that people can now go on vacation while they work remotely. Enjoy your time with family.
ReplyDeleteI have not read Joyce Maynard. Perhaps I should try Count the Ways before I take on this one.
Deb - I would definitely recommend reading Count the Ways first. I'm planning to read Maynard's The Bird Hotel later this year... love her writing style!
DeleteI'm glad you mentioned Count the Ways, so I will start with that. Eventually. I've not read any of Joyce Maynard before. After this I am starting a nonfiction called The Story of a Heart which is bound to make me cry.
ReplyDeleteI'm enjoying Testament of Youth. She was quite articulate, what a writer.
Enjoy the time with family. So nice they can be therea month. My son works remotely too, it has advantages.
Tina - Glad to hear you're enjoying Testament of Youth. I'm still just over 50 pages in and like it well enough, but am not totally sold. I'll give it at least 100 pages though...
DeleteLove the picture! So peaceful looking. Hope you have a great time with your daughter and son-in-law. And, yay for the ending of the repairs. I know how fun that is! Ha! We will have a warm week here and that's OK with me. I know it's only the beginning of February, but the 'forecast' for the rest of the month is not what 'Phil' predicted today - 6 more weeks of winter. LOL
ReplyDeleteKay - I know you understand the relief of having repairs/remodels behind you! It seems like this has been going on forever! I think our two weeks of winter is over, too... warmer than average for the first half of the month. It hit 80 today. Phil may have been wrong - ha!
DeleteYour weather does sound blissful compared to what we have here in Michigan.
ReplyDeleteMae - No complaints here, lol!
DeleteI agree on the hot issues. So many authors use their platforms to share their political opinions. King does it a lot. Even though I am often in agreement with them, it pulls me out of the narrative.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - I'm not sure whether this was the most blatant sharing of political opinion, or just that after the last few weeks I'm just more sensitive to it all. I certainly don't disagree with her....
DeleteI haven't read anything by Maynard but I would like to try her books. They sound wonderful. I hope you have a lovely visit with your daughter and son-in-law! Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Katherine. I've been aware of Maynard for years, but never got around to reading her until Count the Ways. I enjoy her wriiting!
DeleteI can't believe your repairs are finally coming to an end! What a great feeling that must be!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your time with your daughter! Working remotely is the best!
Jinjer - Seems like all the repairs have been going on forever... such a relief to have it just about done! Great to have the 'kids' here, too!
DeleteCongrats on finishing the renos post-Ian, yay! What a relief, I'm sure. I hope you have a nice visit with your daughter and more good reading time this week. Looks like the Maynard went well. And the news is very disturbing and knot-inducing now, ugh. I'm trying to mostly stay off it -- but the northern country here is very upset and things are very uncertain. sigh
ReplyDeleteSusan - My goal this week is to read more fiction and less news - ha! It's great to have the 'kids' here :)
DeleteYay for your family coming in, enjoy the time with them. And, enjoy the nice weather. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Cindy. Hope you have a great week, too.
DeleteHooray! I'm glad your repairs are almost finished. With regard to the news, yes, it's very stressful. I'm extremely worried about Musk's hands in the Treasury Dept... I'm eager to read How the Light Gets In. I know some voiced strong opinions about Stephen King's inclusion of anti-vaxers and other Covid issues in his book, Holly, but I didn't mind. I really don't mind authors who speak out against the injustice and hate in the world. Enjoy your visit with your daughter and SIL. That's so great that they can spend a couple of weeks with you. Hope the weather continues to be nice. We're getting much needed rain (and possibly snow!) this week, so I plan to spend a lot of time curled up with a book. Definitely time to stop doomscrolling! Take care, JoAnn.
ReplyDeleteLes - I don't mind authors voicing opinions either... think I was more sensitive to it because of the events of the past few weeks. Glad you're getting some much needed rain and hope it translates into more reading time, too! I'm definitely limiting my news intake this week!
DeleteHow fun that your daughter and S-I-L are visiting for. a couple weeks and that your repairs will soon be done. It's amazing how long it takes and I keep thinking about that for all the LA folks who have lost their homes. They have a very long slog ahead of them.
ReplyDeleteHelen - I cannot even imagine how long and difficult the road to rebuilding and recovery will be for the people of LA! The flood of scammers and unlicensed contractors here was truly awful...plus all the looting despite the National Guard, etc. So thankful to be nearly done!
DeleteI feel the same way about the news coming out of the U.S. I’m so happy your renos are almost complete and I hope you have a wonderful visit with your family.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jodie. Hope you have a great wee, too.
DeleteYour sunset photo is gorgeous. Looking at the photo is healing. I'm sure that it helps in person!
ReplyDeleteThat's been a long haul on the repairs. It's so great that the end is in sight.
Joy - Thank you. I love that sunset photo and yet it doesn't really capture just how calming and restorative it feels. Very thankful to have the end of repairs so very close!
DeleteGood luck with your repairs! I hope it will all finally be finished. Yes, the weather in Florida has been great. I've been sick about the news too. I'm trying to escape into my books, but it's not easy. I hope you have a great week!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Yvonne. It will be more books and less news for me this week!
DeleteSounds like you're enjoying that nice weather! Yes, the news is unsettling to say the least. I try and stay away from the news but I'm only partially successful. What a relief to have almost all the repairs done from Ian! I hope you enjoy your time with family!
ReplyDeleteRachel - The 'kids' got in safely yesterday and it's great to have them around! Glad they'll be here for a while.
DeleteGlad that after so long your repairs will be done! I hope you, your husband,
ReplyDeletedaughter and son in law have a great time.
Vicki - It will be such a relief to have the repairs done. Plus, there's nothing like time with family - love it!
DeleteSuch a beautiful photo! I have the windows open today and am enjoying fresh air coming in. I hope to take an evening walk before the sunsets. My views are not as nice as yours are though. :-) I just read over on Tina's blog that you two are buddy reading Testament of Youth. I hope you both like it. It sounds really interesting. I hope your daughter and son-in-law have a nice visit! Have a good week, JoAnn.
ReplyDeleteWendy - I just love the time of year when we can leave windows open... it's the best! I'm off to a slow start with Testament of Youth, mostly because I just haven't had much reading time in the last week or so. Hope that changes soon!
DeleteA tough week indeed, and I probably didn't help my case by reading Lily Tuck's The Rest Is Memory. It's excellent, but I can't bring myself to recommend it, especially during these times. I'm reading Hampton Sides' The Wide Wide Sea, which is my jam (early ocean exploration), and he's a great storyteller, so it's helping. Glad your daughter and SIL are there to keep your spirits up!
ReplyDeleteAmy - Oh, my... Tuck's book must be a tough read. Hampton Sides to the rescue!
DeleteAdding Joyce Maynard to my TBR list. And yes, a tough week indeed.
ReplyDeleteOlivia - Maynard can really tell a story, and her writing is so good!
DeleteI've had Testament of Youth on my bookshelf for years. I can never quite summon the courage to read it--I've heard it is beyond sad, but the history is good. Maybe your reading will inspire me to finally read it.
ReplyDeleteJaneGS - Testament of Youth has been on my shelf for years, too. It's taken me forever to read the first 100 pages... can't seem to read it in very big chunks. I'm finally interested in her story, but am wondering if my time may be better spent watching the movie. I'll push on a little longer before deciding.
Delete