I’ve had another successful reading week! Again – not so much with the quanity but with quality.
Finished:
Reading:
I’m still reading Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali but I’m almost done. It’s about Janna, an Arab Indian American Muslim teen navigating high school, divorced parents, a new interest in boys (one in particular – who is not Muslim) and the very serious topic of sexual assault by someone highly respected in the Muslim community and within Janna's friend group. I’m enjoying it but probably won’t write a full review but I will say that it’s a wonderful coming of age story that juggles both lighthearted and tough topics with humor, care and love.
And a dud:
HAPPY SPRING!!!
I'm ridiculously happy that spring has sprung and there are more sunny days. We spent the weekend exploring the Portland area. We ate at Sugarpine Drive-in, a place I've been wanting to try. It was rainy & kind of cold but still nice enough to eat at the outdoor picnic tables and have a waffled grilled cheese and tomato soup with a sundae for dessert. Then we discovered several plant nurseries in the area and planted all our new trees and flowers while we're still getting some rain to get them established before the dry season.
We moved to a new house last year and it is basically a clean slate with no plants and just a lawn. I can't wait to lure the butterflies and birds to the yard. That's the one thing I miss the most from FL - I had a HUGE butterfly garden and all kinds of nature.
After spending almost a decade trying to fix our sandy FL soil - I now have to fix our muddy clay soil and I would take sandy over clay any day. Trying to dig in clay/mud is hard work and I end up covered in it no matter how careful I am. We've also needed to buy several different tools just to break through the damn ground. lol
Once it's done though it will be so much fun to sit and relax in the yard on those cool breezy evenings.
How is everyone doing? What are you reading/watching? (I've been watching tv a lot! so I think I'll have to do a post about that soon)
I'll always take quality over quantity - every time. Playing the Palace... yikes. I plan on starting than one soon. I sure hope it works better for me. Hooray for your spring weather! Spring has definitely sprung here, too... along with all the pollen. lol
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy it more. It really just wasn't to my taste. If I had read a review saying how over-the-top it was in advance I wouldn't have bothered.
DeleteYay books! GO YOu ;D
ReplyDelete'
Also spring! Jealous. Ok so I have loved a fun long winter, but I want to go in the woods! And there 1 m snow there
It's so pretty where you are! We mostly have rain in the winter so I'm happy to see spring.
DeleteGet A Life sounds fun. :) And yay for spring! Portland sounds awesome. I'd love a town like that. I think a butterfly garden would be nice. I've read about them before and think it'd be cool to have them around in the yard. I could sit out there and bask in the sun lol and watch them flutter around...
ReplyDeleteI watched the first Falcon/ Winter Soldier and liked it. I need some new shows.
Butterfly gardens are so easy! Even just a pot of flowers. Mine was more involved because I also wanted specific species and all the stages.
DeleteWe watched the first Winter Soldier and liked it. I LOVED WandaVision. Did you watch that one?
Ooh that's cool. See I don't know the different species but if I did I can totally see wanting to attract different ones. I could try a pot of flowers here and there and see what I get lol.
DeleteWandaVision was AWESOME. Love their dynamic and Agnes was fun. :)
Dang, I've got Playing the Palace on my to-watch list. I guess, I'm going to see if the library will have it.
ReplyDeleteSpring is not my favourite season because my allergies worsens every year, it seems like. Sigh. But, yay for warm weather for sure.
I really think it was a *me* thing. I just don't enjoy wacky chaos. But otherwise it was funny and had nice characters.
DeleteI'm really curious about Playing the Palace - it's on my wish list. I think the author is kind of known for over-the-top comedy, etc. so it's good going in to know that it's a bit exaggerated and quick. Sometimes those are still enjoyable reads!
ReplyDeleteIn general though, quality over quantity when it comes to reading is great so that's awesome you've found some that you really loved.
Yay for getting some things planted, and being able to get out and do a bit more. I'm soo ready for this Spring weather to stay. I really like being able to sit outside and read. :)
Definitely share a post on what you've been watching! I'm always curious.
-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
I seem to have a limit on over-the-top lol I love humor but not wacky - if that makes sense. Also, with this the whole story moved at lightspeed.
DeleteHaving said that - the characters were all very nice - especially the butler and Queen.
I've had a few days off reading to catch up on SAS Who Dares Wins. Need to get back to reading a bit tonight as a few new books arrived to add to my tbr!
ReplyDeleteI've been sneaking my audiobook here and there. My reading isn't consistent at all but at least I'm reading again.
DeleteWasn't Float Plan wonderful! My heart! Good luck with the garden. I think I would have been sad to leave a fabulous butterfly garden too.
ReplyDeleteI put so much work into it and literally hundreds of butterflies and I miss them :-(
DeleteHappy spring, Karen! Spring has sprung here and suddenly we are super busy with the garden and freshening up the house. I've seen good reviews for Float Plan, a it's on my radar. Looking forward to your post about what you've been watching ❤
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to write it soon. Which means anywhere from 1 week to 6 months lol
DeleteThe soil here is full of rocks. You can't dig at all without some heavy equipment. My brother tried to make a garden but ended up buying flower beds and planting vegetables in those instead. It's getting warmer here too.
ReplyDeleteWe're rocks and mud. It's a lot of work! We have to plant a row of shrubs and we're paying someone lol
DeleteI absolutely adored Eve Brown! I'm very excited for her next series, which kicks off with Mont's book!
ReplyDeleteIt's SO adorable and sweet!!
DeleteIt takes someone who really loves gardening then...not to mention, attracting the attention of different kinds of bugs LOL. Best of luck with your work!
ReplyDeleteThere are very few insects out here. Or snakes. So that's been nice. I'm not particularly afraid of them, in general, but some were poisonous in FL. Lots of slugs though ugh....
DeleteI agree that Ione Butler was a wonderful pick! And yay spring! We had a week of nice weather and now it's cold and windy, boo. I hope you get lots of fun friends in your yard now, wild to believe it's been a year!
ReplyDeleteI've been in WA over 2 years now and it feels so strange. Sometimes it feels like longer and sometimes shorter lol
DeleteYay for reading! 📚✨
ReplyDeleteI would love to see photos of your plantings. Have you posted any to Intasgram? 📷
I have not. It's mostly been diffing holes and planting bareroot trees so there's really nothing to see yet lol I will though!
Delete...Eve Brown is getting a lot of love at the moment! I've added it to my list even though I still haven't read the first two. I just love Talia Hibbert on Twitter but I have a fear (although totally irrational) that her books won't be as awesome as she is and make me sad, lol.
ReplyDeleteGood luck sorting your garden. You'll get there. I have no idea what kind of soil we have but underneath a very thin top layer is riddled with rubble and stones as the builders were lazy af when the built the houses on my estate... We're still sorting that everytime we have to do anything. *le sigh* At least the soil in the professor's veggie garden is 100% sorted now! (Keeps him happy and out of trouble for more than half the year, lol.)
We have very heavy clay soil with rocks. It's a beast to deal with!
DeleteI totally get that but Hibbert's books are very much her *voice* although I prefer her earlier series more - with the exception of Eve. I'm really loving it.
Glad you're finding some great books! I think I'd be annoyed by that last one too. I usually don't like when things are just way OTT, it has to be written really well or have some other redeeming quality so I can look past it. A butterfly garden would be wonderful!
ReplyDelete