Original image from pexels. I've written before about what makes a good travel read for me, especially when the going gets stressful. I love a short page count and light prose working together to deliver a story that isn't completely devoid of meaty ideas; The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry did the trick for me when I went to a work conference earlier this year...
Book covers from Goodreads. Top-to-bottom: 1, 2 Happy Monday, my bookish friends! Today is an extra happy Monday for me because I fly to Oregon this Friday to spend a week and a half visiting my boyfriend's family and friends. I'm feeling overdue for some rest and relaxation; I've already mentioned a few times how this month has been a doozy work-wise, and...
The Watchmaker of Filigree Street tells the story of Nathaniel (Thaniel) Steepleton, a telegraphist who finds himself in a personal rut in nineteenth century England. Excitement arrives for him just in time in the form of an exquisite gold watch, mysteriously left on his pillow; the watch's alarm saves him from dying in an explosion at Scotland Yard. The watch leads Thaniel to Keita...
"This is a communal story. This is the story of black bodies across this country. This is not just my story." - Claudia Rankine, June 20, 2015 Last Saturday, I had the privilege of attending a free talk by poet and playwright Claudia Rankine. She came as part of New Haven's International Arts and Ideas Festival to discuss how "art teaches a poet...
Before my post today, I wanted to take a moment to talk about the shooting in Charleston on Wednesday night. The victims and their families are in my thoughts, but I want to do more than think about it, even if what I do is small and can in no way erase the atrocity of their murders. In case any of you are interested in...
I forgot to mention in my (caffeine-laced ramble of a) Monday reading post that I'm taking part in the Summer of #BlumeAlong, hosted by Kerry over at Entomology of a Bookworm. After coming clean about never having read anything by Judy Blume to her Twitter followers, Kerry decided to host a read-along of two of Blume's most beloved novels. We're starting with the...
This week's reads: 1, 2, 3 Happy Monday, everyone! This morning's exclamation points and hyperbole is brought to you by an extra-large pot of coffee. Can I just come out and say that I've felt like a terrible book blogger lately? I know, I know—I'm ridiculous, but hear me out. I haven't written a proper review since the end of May, opting instead...
If you follow me on Twitter (and you definitely should), you know I'm taking part in a summer bingo challenge hosted by Books on the Nightstand. Their generator randomly picks 25 squares for you out of 140 possibilities and constructs a card designed to get you reading out of your comfort zone. In theory, you could keep generating cards until you get one...
I've taken the last couple of weeks to (slowly) read and mull over Considering Hate: Violence, Goodness and Justice in American Culture and Politics. The essay was co-authored by Kay Whitlock (writer and racial, gender, queer and economics rights activist) and Michael Bronski (political organizer, writer and professor at Harvard University), both of whom wanted to tackle the psychological and theological underpinnings of...
I've been sitting on my library copy of Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari for weeks, trying to figure out a way I could review it that will do justice to all the facts and ideas it gave me to chew over. Well, after three renewals and exactly zero words written, the book is...
All images from GR. L-R: 1, 2, 3, 4 It's Monday! is hosted by Sheila over at Book Journey. Welcome to a new week, friends. After pulling a 10-hour data collection shift on Saturday, today is day two of my weekend; as is appropriate for a makeshift Sunday, I'm writing this from my bed with a sleepy cat on my lap and a...
Last month, I shared a post about how the homeless often get short-changed when it comes to accessing resources (books, computers, etc.) at public libraries. I was inspired by a piece by Kelly Jensen over at Book Riot about how an initiative to get free e-books into children's hands is ignoring a significant segment of the population—namely, the poor and/or those without Internet access....
Another month, another wrap-up post! May has been pretty fantastic in reading, blogging and other life events. While April brought exhaustion and some bookish ambivalence, May brought rejuvenation (well, minus that stupid cold) and fantastic reads across the board. This was exactly the kind of month I needed before things get crazy at work. I'm planning and supervising a two-month summer internship program...
