Monday Musings

Alohi's birthday hike!

My week: Alohi turned 1 on Saturday! To celebrate we took her on a hike. She got a little bored and bratty in the middle (in her defense, it was nearly 5 miles), but I think she had a great time! And my mantra is a tired puppy is a happy puppy, and she was definitely contentedly tuckered out.

My husband's and my Christmas roles seem to be reversed this year. Normally I'm the super-festive one and he's the Grinch, but I just haven't been feeling it this year. He actually had to convince me to go cut down our tree (I was all, "Ugh, it's soooooo much effort just to take it down in a couple weeks"), when usually I'm the one saying, "Let's go, let's go!" We had some lighted garland around our front door and I finally gave into the trend and bought a blow-up Rudolph this year, and honestly I felt like that was enough; it's ok to take a break once in a while! But no, Jarrod has been bitten by the Christmas bug and after this week our house looks like the Griswold's and our electical sockets look like the ones in "Christmas Story" that keep blowing the fuse. And, happily, I'm finally feeling a bit more festive -- I'm actually listening to Christmas music as I type this.

Reading: I stayed home from work last Monday with a cold and I spent hours and hours reading -- and blazed through "Magpie Murders." It was really two mystery novels in one -- one set in the '50s, one in present day, both in England -- and I loved it!

Then I read "Big Mushy Happy Lump," the second Sarah Scribbles book. I didn't find the comics in this edition to be quite so "OH MY GOD, that is SO me!" as the first one, but it was cute and fun nonetheless.

Next up was "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng, one of the most hyped books of the year. It was deserving of all the hullaballoo, though not perfect -- I gave it 4 stars. I will say, though, that it was one of those books that sucks you into a situation that's obviously spiraling out of control, and you just can't look away -- or put the book down! It was the first book in a while that got me to stay up way past my bedtime reading.

And now I'm reading "Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery" by Jenny Colgan. It's cute, and I love that it features a PET PUFFIN(!!!!!), but I'm 2/3 of the way done and it doesn't feel quite as Christmas-y as I'd hoped. It's actually the third book in a series (though the other two aren't necessary to enjoy this one -- there's enough background) and I do think I might go back and read the first two. I want more of this charming island off Cornwall!

I've now read 95 books this year -- fingers crossed that I make it to my new goal of 100!

Watching: We watched the movie "Get Out" this week. It didn't seem like something I'd like and I had no intention of watching it until I saw Allison Williams talking about it on The Tonight Show and then a co-worker recommended it. It was... definitely a unique plot. I didn't hate it, but it certainly wasn't my favorite. Have you seen it? What did you think?

Also: a couple Hallmark Christmas movies. One, "A Gift to Remember," was pretty much made for me in all its cheesy glory -- it involved a bookstore-working bibliophile who likes to make crafty displays in the shop, and a cute dog.

Knitting: A Christmas-y bird ornament for my work Secret Santa. I finished it yesterday but it was too dark to get a good picture, so here he is partially completed.

Eating: I discovered this reeeally yummy peppermint-white chocolate caramel corn at Target. Peppermint is pretty much my favorite flavor, and I am now addicted.

Dreading: Going to the post office after work today! Ughhhhh! I'm usually the early bird as far as Christmas shopping and mailing, but this year I was waiting and waiting and waiting for the books I ordered from Book Depository for my Broke and Bookish Secret Santa to arrive. A month later, they are still not here, and I'm now going to be the crazy lady braving the post office a week before Christmas. And I have a ton of stuff to mail, too (the joys of living far, far away from family and friends!).

Blogging:
Monday Musings
The Book Series I Started in 2017 -- And Which Ones I'll Continue
I Judge Books By Their Covers: Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery
Christmas Song Book Tag

Looking forward to: Taking Alohi down to the Honolulu City Lights to see Shaka Santa and Mrs. Claus. And finally doing some Christmas baking this week!

*I'm linking up with Kathryn of Book Date for It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Kimberly of Caffeinated Reviewer for Sunday Post.

Christmas Song Book Tag

I saw this on Adventures of a Bibliophile, though I couldn't track it back to its original source. Feel free to play along!

1. “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch” Name a villainous character you couldn’t help but love.

The Dragon from Uprooted seemed like a villain until we got to know him better.

2. “All I Want for Christmas is You” Which book do you most hope to see under your Christmas tree?

Maybe if it's actually right in front of me, I'll finally read it!

3. “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” Name a character who overcomes major obstacles and learns to believe in themselves. 

Neville Longbottom from Harry Potter.

4. “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” a) Which character do you think would be on the top of the naughty list? b) Which character do you think would be at the top of the nice list? 

a) Isabelle from Little Fires Everywhere. She did burn the house down, after all.

b) Eleanor Oliphant. She's not quite there yet, but she's trying -- and she's had a crazy enough time of it that she deserves something good from Santa! Maybe a large supply of hard cider?

5. “Frosty the Snowman” Which book just melts your heart.

Ummmm... anything -- literally anything -- with dogs!

6. “Feliz Navidad” Choose a book that takes place in a country other than your own. 

The Heart's Invisible Furies is set in Ireland, and the country is very much a part of the story.

7. “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” Which holiday themed book do you use to spread the Christmas joy?

The Dogs of Christmas is festive, adorable and has puppies. It's the best Christmas novel I've read.

8. “Sleigh Ride” Which fictional character would you choose to spend the holidays with (doesn’t have to be a love interest!)?

The Weasleys at the Burrow, of course. I want one of Mrs. Weasley's handknit initial sweaters!

9. “Baby it’s Cold Outside” Which book that you didn’t like would you sacrifice to a fire to warm yourself up in the cold?

While I didn't hate it, Artemis was such a disappointment that I wouldn't mind using it as kindling.

10. “Do You Hear What I Hear” Which book do you think everyone should read?

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi! It was my favorite book in 2016 and I've recommended it all year long. It's a fabulous work of fiction, but it's also timely and important.

I Judge Books By Their Covers: Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery

Hi, my name is Lindsay, and I judge books by their covers.

I'm reading the charming and festive "Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery" right now (which, by the way, is making me crave bread and pastries like nobody's business), and it seemed an appropriate time for a cover battle!

 U.K. // U.S.

Oh my gosh, this is quite possibly the toughest cover comparison yet! If you look at these posts often, you'll know I almost always prefer illustrated covers over realistic ones -- and I really like the cheerful, Christmas-y U.K. cover, as well as the fact that it shows the village from the book -- so it should be a no-brainer. But the U.S. cover is really well-done. It's so delightfully festive, the colors work, the fonts are perfect, and I just want to climb right into that shop!

It's a difficult choice, and I'm a bit surprised at myself, but I think I like the U.S. cover just a liiiiitle bit better. It draws the eye right where it needs to be -- the title -- and then encourages you to take in the shop scene, and even hold the book close to your face to see all the details. And, while I love it, the U.K. cover is just a tiny bit busy.

My winner: U.S. cover

Do tell: Which cover do you prefer?

The Book Series I Started In 2017 -- And Which Ones I'll Continue

The topic for this week's Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by The Broke and the Bookish) is the best books we read this year. Well, I'm not quite ready to commit to that list yet -- there are still nearly three perfectly good reading weeks left in 2017, and I've read more good books in the last two months than the rest of the year put together and I'm hoping the trend continues. Thus, I'll be waiting til the end of December to post my favorite books of the year.

So I'm putting a twist on the topic this week and talking about the book series I started this year: which ones I loved, which ones I'll keep reading, and which ones didn't captivate me enough to read beyond book one.

1. The Ancestor trilogy by Mark Lawrence: I loved "Red Sister," a fantasy novel set in a futuristic society in which the livable planet is confined to a small unfrozen strip of land. It's a cruel world in which magically gifted nuns also train as assassins, and the school reminded me a little bit of Hogwarts. I can't wait for book two, which comes out next spring. (5 stars -- my review)

2. Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers: This was an absolutely fabulous, fun, wonderful sci-fi novel! It totally made me want to hop on board the spaceship Wayfarer and hang out with the charming, fabulous multi-species crew! The second book, which I plan to read soon, is more of an accompaniment than a series continuation so I'm a little sad not to be rejoining the Wayfarer, but I'm looking forward to diving back into the world! (5 stars -- my review)

3. Lady Julia Grey mysteries by Deanna Raybourn: I love the Veronica Speedwell books so I decided to check out Deanna Raybourn's previous series, which features another likable female amateur sleuth in historical England. I loved the first book and already treated myself to the second. Unlike the two other series I adored this year, all the books in this one are published so I'm going to temper myself so I don't run out too quickly! (4.5 stars -- my review)

1. The Queens of Renthia series by Sarah Beth Durst: I enjoyed this fantasy novel about... well, this is why it's not in the favorites category -- I can hardly remember off the top of my head just what it was about! Let's see... it involves an epic battle between human magic and natural spirits. Hopefully book two starts off with a recap! (4 stars -- my review)

2. The Aaron Falk mysteries by Jane Harper: I'm always up for a good detective story (and these days it's kind of hard to sniff those out among all the psychological thrillers, which are not my preferred genre), and I was thrilled to see that this series is set in Australia! The mystery kept me interested and I liked the protagonist, Aaron Falk, enough that I'll definitely check out the next installment, which comes out in the U.S. in February. (4 stars -- my review)

3. Carve the Mark duology by Veronica Roth: I don't read much YA but I really enjoyed the Divergent series and I was anxious to check out Roth's new series, even more so when I learned it was a mix of sci-fi and fantasy. It definitely had some of the things I don't like about YA but the plot is interesting and I want to see where it heads next; book two is due out this spring. Plus I'm totally craving sci-fi and fantasy these days, so it fits right in with my mood. (4 stars -- my review)

1. Maisie Dobbs mysteries by Jacqueline Winspear: I'm a little reluctant to put this in the "meh" category because I do remember enjoying it as I was reading, but as time wore on I lost interest in pursuing the series. It should be right up my alley -- it's historical mysteries set in post-WWII England, but at the moment I'm not planning to continue. Perhaps that'll change -- one of my good friends really enjoys the books and we have very similar tastes, so I may need to give Maisie another try. (4 stars -- maybe I need to lower my rating a smidge! -- my review)

2. Monsters of Verity duology by Victoria Schwab: As mentioned above, I typically try to avoid YA because, more often than not, the books don't live up to my expectations. But I looooove Schwab's adult Shades of Magic fantasy series and I was a little bummed that it came to an end this year, so I decided to try one of her YA series; I guess I naively hoped it would read more like an adult book. Nope. I did fly through it and intended to read the second book even though I wasn't in love, but I never got around to it and no longer have any intention to. (3 stars)

3. Dark Gifts series by Vic James: Another YA fantasy series bites the dust! I should have known I wouldn't like it, but the synopsis -- involving magic and Britain -- sounded so good I couldn't resist giving it a shot. Sadly, I wasn't impressed enough to continue the series. (3 stars -- my review)

4. Charley Davidson series by Darynda Jones: This urban fantasy series had been haunting me every time I looked at my Goodreads to-read list -- it was right near the very top, added way back in 2012! I figured it was finally time to give it a try, and while I didn't think there was anything exactly wrong with it, it just didn't enthrall me. And it was different than I expected. Perhaps it gets better and for a time I did think I might try the second book, but I've got too many other things to read! Bye, Charley. (3.5 stars -- my review)

Monday Musings

Our Norfolk pine Christmas tree!

My week: It was a pretty good week here, other than the cold I've come down with. I had been busy at work the past couple weeks getting stuff together for a bookish ornament-making program at the library and we had it on Wednesday. It went well and I think the kids really enjoyed the ornaments I came up with! Plus we gave second life to some books that were victims of the big book-weeding we're doing in advance of getting new carpet.

Saturday we cut down our Christmas tree. We got a Norfolk pine again this year -- the only kind you can get in Hawaii if you want to chop down a fresh one -- and we took Alohi with us to pick out her first Christmas tree.

Reading: I finished "Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI" by David Grann, and it's a book I would highly recommend. It was definitely not a happy book, but it taught me about some disturbing and sad events in our country's history that I'd never even heard of before, and in Grann's typical style it was fast-paced and readable.

I also read "Escape From Mr. Lemoncellos' Library" by Chris Grabenstein for the kids' book club at work. It's about a super-cool library and a game to find a secret route out by using literary and library clues. My co-worker and I actually came up with a similar (much abbreviated) game for our book club kids to play at our meeting this week.

Then I blew through "Young Jane Young" by Gabrielle Zevin. I read it in just over a day -- it was a very fast and easy read -- but it was pretty disappointing. It was absolutely nothing like Zevin's previous book (which I LOVED), "The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry." Pretty much every single thing I enjoyed about that book was missing here.

I finally finished "Astrophysics for People in a Hurry" by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. I had intended to read a chapter a day during Non-Fiction November, but it got pushed to the wayside. Overall it was a good book and I learned a lot, though I'll readily admit some of it was over my head!

Now I'm reading "Magpie Murders" by Anthony Horowitz, which is a mystery story within a mystery story. The second story reminds me a bit of one of my favorite PBS shows, "Grantchester," which is involves solving crimes in an English town in the '50s. So far I'm really enjoying it!

I'm up to 92 books read, and I think I'll be able to meet my new goal of 100 books in 2017!

Watching: We watched "Spider-Man: Homecoming" and I really liked it! A lot of people like the Toby McGuire Spiderman best, but I've actually enjoyed each iteration more than the last, and this is my favorite so far. I liked that Spiderman acts like an actual teenager, and he's just learning -- not always flawlessly -- how to use his special abilities.

Knitting: I finished the hat for my Broke and Bookish Secret Santa!

From the Field of Wildflowers pattern by Joji Locatelli.

Receiving: The package from my TBTB Secret Santa! Once again, I was totally spoiled. My wonderful Santa sent two books ("The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" ultimate edition, and "Vicious" by Victoria Schwab), socks to go with my "Hitchhiker" book, personalized notepaper with a knitting theme, the adorable "This is How We Roll" library-print pouch from Out of Print, some bookish postcards, and a canister of Starbucks peppermint cocoa. I love everything!

Blogging:
Monday Musings
10 Book Settings I'd Love to Visit
Turning the Page on November 2017

Looking forward to: Kicking this cold! And then baking Christmas cookies!

I'm linking up with Kathryn of Book Date for It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Turning the Page on November 2017

November positively flew by. We spent Thanksgiving week in Colorado with my family and it was so nice to get off the island for a few days (though I definitely could've done with a few more). We got lucky with the weather -- it was in the 50s and 60s, so we got a good taste of fall but it didn't test my extreme loss of cold tolerance (when every day is 80, anything below 70 starts to feel pretty chilly). Jarrod and I spent two afternoons in the mountains (and got to see some snow) and we went to a bunch of stores and restaurants that we don't have in here in Hawaii and I desperately miss (craft stores! Red Robin! Kohl's!). We also got to see two movies in the theater while we were in Colorado, "Wonder" (fabulous!) and "Murder on the Orient Express" (pretty good).

Our (rather enormous) DVR was perilously closet to being full, so I got a lot of shows and movies watched last month. We finished up this season of "Polark,"  "Broadchurch" and "Sherlock" (apparently we were in a British mood!), and watched almost all the episodes of the new season of "Stranger Things" (we have two left and I want to savor them!). I kept up with "This Is Us" and "Grey's Anatomy," and I finished season 1 of "My Mother and Other Strangers" (a new Masterpiece show this year), plus I watched some of the final season of "Switched at Birth." On the plane home form Colorado I watched the first four episodes of the Netflix show "Anne With An E" and really enjoyed it.

So basically, in November I worked, shopped for Christmas presents, took a fabulous trip, and watched a lot of TV!

P.S. If you follow the blog much, you'll know I'm in charge of a big 9-by-13-foot bulletin board in the kids' section at work, and the turkey above is what I did for November. The "feathers" are made out of kids' handprints.

Books read: 11

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas // 4 stars

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt // 3 stars (for kids' book club at work)

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman // 4.5 stars

The Blinds by Adam Sternbergh // 4 stars

Talking As Fast As I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between by Lauren Graham // 4 stars (for Non-Fiction November)

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid // 4 stars

The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon (Bone Season #3) // 4 stars

Hardcore Twenty-Four by Janet Evanovich (Stephanie Plum #24) // 2 stars

The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne // 4.5-5 stars (not sure yet)

Adulthood is a Myth by Sarah Andersen (Sarah's Scribbles #1) // 4 stars

Artemis by Andy Weir // 3 stars

Favorite book: The Heart's Invisible Furies was such a gripping, hard-hitting read! I loved following Cyril Avery through his life, which was both ordinary and extraordinary.

Biggest let-down: Artemis by Andy Weir. I had so been looking forward to it, but it fell pretty flat for me -- and for a lot of other readers, I'm gathering. I felt no connection to the main character and the locker room humor was pretty over-the-top.

December release I'm most looking forward to: Saga volume 8.

Book I'm most excited to read in December: Probably Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan. I'm ready for some festive holiday reading!

Current library checkouts: The Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowtiz, Big Mushy Happy Lump by Sarah Andersen, Rat Queens volume 1 by Kurtis J. Wiebe, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan, Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin, and Escape From Mr. Lemoncellos' Library by Chris Grabenstein (for kids' book club at work).

Books added to to-read list: 7 (not bad!)

Most intriguing TBR addition: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah. I hadn't been at all interested in the book because I don't watch his show, but I saw it on so many Non-Fiction November lists that I had to take a look, and it sounds fascinating -- and totally different from what I thought it was.

From Goodreads: The compelling, inspiring, and comically sublime story of one man's coming-of-age, set during the twilight of apartheid and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed.

Favorite bookstagram: The book was a disappointment, but I love the picture because it features fall colors, boots and crunchy leaves -- things I miss so much being in Hawaii! Find me on Instagram @knittinglindsay!

I've finally been knitting again! I got tons of progress done on the (ripped out and re-started) Newt Scamander scarf a friend asked me to knit ages and ages ago, and I also cast on for a hat for my Broke and Bookish Secret Santa.

Favorite post: 10 Books I'd Want My (Hypothetical) Kids To Read

Non-Fiction November posts:
Week 1: My Non-Fiction Reading Year So Far + About Me
Week 2: Five Non-Fiction / Fiction Pairings
Week 3: Be the Expert, Ask the Expert, Become the Expert
Week 5: New to My TBR

Book reviews (all in one mini review post):
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (5 stars)
The Alice Network by Kate Quinn (4.5 stars)
Origin by Dan Brown (4 stars)
Setting Free the Kites by Alex George (3.5 stars)
Red Sister by Mark Lawrence (5 stars)

10 Book Settings I'd Love To Visit

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is a bit of a toughie in that it was difficult to narrow it down to just 10: fictional settings I'd like to hop right into and stay a while. Which books make you want to climb through the pages into the setting?

1. Hogwarts/Diagon Alley/Hogsmeade // Harry Potter: I mean, who wouldn't want to go to those places?! Luckily, there's an entire theme park where I can pretend I'm there!

2. The Wayfarer // The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet: I would love to spend some time aboard this space ship -- with the fabulous multispecies crew, of course -- and visit all the different planets they go to.

3. Early 1800s England + dragons // Temeraire series: If you know me at all, you'd know I'd love to travel back in time for a bit to see 19th century England, but obviously I especially want to meet these sentient dragons!

4. Red London // Shades of Magic series: A version of London where magic is not only real but held in perfect balance (unlike the other three Londons in the series) -- yes, please! Plus I'd love to meet Lila and Kell!

5. 1700s Scotland // Outlander series: The books made me pine for 18th century Scotland (minus the war with England) and the show did even more. Bonus if Jamie is there.

6. Lakeside Courtyard // The Others series: There's just something special and cozy-feeling about this place -- it's what endeared me so much to series in the first place. And, preferably, I'd be visiting the Courtyard as one of the Others (aka a supernatural being, maybe a member of the Wolfgard or an Elemental).

7. OASIS // Ready Player One: I totally want to check out this amazing virtual reality world -- plus all the '80s-themed stuff that Wade encounters in the book.

8. English country cottages // anything by Kate Morton: I'd love to visit any half-crumbling cottage in the English countryside, but the one in "The Forgotten Garden" comes complete with a hedge maze, so I'd choose that one if pressed.

9. Late 1800s England // Lady Emily series: I could do without the amateur sleuthing on my visit, but Lady Emily would be the perfect person to introduce me to the time period. She's a member of the aristocracy, but she's also super intelligent and as modern as she can get away with. I can totally see us sipping port and discussing literature. Plus she has a vacation villa on the Greek island of Santorini, where I'd loooove to go.

10. Europe // All Souls trilogy: From the Bodleian Library at Oxford to a castle in France, there's really nowhere in these books that I don't care to go!