I hope you are enjoying a slow Sunday filled with good books and spending time with family or friends. If you are in the US, it’s a long weekend, which means more reading time, right? I need it because over the last few weeks we have been busy wrapping up baseball and basketball seasons. And this week my husband and I hosted family and celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary! Now we are in the final countdown to summer!
Here are a few bookish (and life) things I’ve been up to lately.
MMD Summer Reading Guide
For the past few summers, I’ve been getting almost all of my summer reading recommendations from Anne Bogel via the Modern Mrs. Darcy Summer Reading Guide. There are 35 book recommendations, and she has read every word of every book she recommends. I trust her completely with my reading life, you could say we are book twins 90% of the time. For a preview of the guide, check out the Minimalist Summer Reading Guide for free.
The Midnight at Fox Theater
A few weeks ago, my husband and I went to see The Midnight at Fox Theater in Oakland…on a weeknight! It was our second time going to an event there. We rushed from my son’s baseball game to the BART station and got to the venue right before the band came on. Perfect timing. My favorite song is “Heartbeat.”
Book Club Personalities
I’m a member of several book clubs and this week was busy with several which has me reflecting on the different personalities of each one. In one of my book clubs, you don’t even have to read the book because the conversation is mostly based on vibes and themes. In another, you need to read the book to appreciate and contribute to the discussion. In a different one, we don’t discuss a specific book, but we do discuss different prompts about what we’ve been reading lately or what we are excited to read. I love them all for different reasons and it’s always good to remember you can scale up and scale down your reading life to fit the season you are in.
On the Screen
So many of the movies I’ve watched lately have been based on books! I loved the Remarkably Bright Creatures movie on Netflix based on the book by Shelby Van Pelt. Check out the author event I attended last year!
Project Hail Mary was not on my radar until all the movie buzz recently. My husband and I watched the movie and loved it, but I haven’t read the book yet – it is on my list for a book club in June! (I’m not a sci-fi reader usually, so I think in this case watching the movie before reading the book was a good choice!)
I watched The Devil Wears Prada 2 at the movie theater this week and it was more than I could have ever hoped for. I was 17 when the original movie came out. Did you know it’s based on the book The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger?
Shelf Reflection
- Recently Read: I’ve read 14 books this year and, according to Goodreads, I’m 5 books ahead of my goal for the year! I recently read The House on Biscayne Bay by Chanel Cleeton (historical fiction) and Happy Wife by Meredith Lavender & Kendall Shores (mystery).
- Currently Reading: I’m making my way through All that Life Can Afford by Emily Everett (contemporary) and This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum (mystery).
- To Be Read: I’ve had so many recommendations come my way but here are a few I’ve added recently that I’m most excited for: The Parisian Heist by Jo Piazza (art world mystery), Time Travel for Beginners by Jaclyn Moriarty (fantasy), and Big Little Truths by Liane Moriarty (sequel to Big Little Lies…yes, that one!).
I’m finishing up this post at my dining room table. On one side, my son is setting up Monopoly and asking what piece I want to be. On the other side, he is putting together this LEGO set, inspired by my husband’s love for The Lord of the Rings. We are a hobby family through and through, what more can I say?
Questions for your weekend:
- What’s on your TBR for summer?
- What do you love most about your book club?
- What has been your favorite book-to-screen adaptation?
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