Movie Monday: Finch

Saturday night, after two weeks with COVID, I declared a fun night, and my husband and I ordered pizza and wings and watched a movie. We settled on Finch, an original movie on Apple TV starring Tom Hanks that looked appealing to both of us. We had a wonderful feast and thoroughly enjoyed this warm, funny and heartbreaking yet hopeful movie.

Hanks plays Finch, an engineer marooned in a post-apocalyptic world. A solar flare rendered Earth almost uninhabitable, with searing temperatures, soaring radiation levels, and nothing left growing. It's a stark, terrifying landscape, but Finch is holed up in the old tech company where he used to work and is fairly safe. Something of a tech genius, he has not only outfitted his bunker but also developed a protective suit for himself and some rudimentary robots to help him scavenge what he can (though there's not a lot left). Most important, for his mental health, he found a dog who lives with him in the bunker and to whom he is devoted. At the start of the movie, once we see what the outside world is like and what Finch is up against, he puts the finishing touches on his best robot yet: a human-like robot who has been programmed with a "prime directive," to protect the dog. Not a moment too soon because Finch spots a huge storm coming and decides that the three of them will be better off leaving town. They pile into a modified, tank-ified RV and head west out of St. Louis. Finch has always wanted to see the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. Their journey is an adventure, with plenty of challenges encountered but also some laughs and tender moments along the way.

This movie is filled with the kind of warmth and humor you expect from Tom Hanks (not to mention his smart, just-learning-about-the-world robot), though there are moments of peril and one very sad part, too. It takes you on an emotional journey along with the characters. Hanks has some experience with starring in a movie where he is practically the only character on-screen, though here, both the dog and the robot have their own fully-developed personalities, so it doesn't feel like he's alone. The challenges they face are often dark and frightening, so there is plenty of action and suspense, though the heart of this movie is ... its heart, and there is plenty of humor along the way. It's really about relationships and about hope. We both enjoyed it very much; it was a perfect Saturday night escape!

Finch is an Apple original, so it is available exclusively on Apple TV.

It's Monday 1/17! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

COVID Day 13, and I am slowly--very slowly--coming back to life. It hit me particularly hard because of my chronic immune disorder (I hardly made any antibodies from the vaccines), though it hit my healthy son pretty hard for a week, too, so it's definitely something to take seriously. And my father-in-law, at 96, is really struggling, still in the COVID wing at the nursing home, more than two weeks in. We're trying to encourage him to eat and build up his strength because he also needs to do PT and recover from a broken hip!

As for me, last week was a rough one. Some days, I just slept all day, with brief breaks for a sitcom (about all I could handle) or 10 minutes of reading. I was feeling pretty down by Friday because with my chronic illness, there is a good chance that COVID will cause a long-term worsening, and I still had zero energy. I began to see small signs of improvement this weekend, though. I was sitting up most of the day (other than my usual nap time in the afternoon), and I felt my brain begin to function again! It's a concept I call "mental energy" in the chronic illness world, and when it comes back, it feels glorious. So, I was able to feel a bit useful this weekend, paying some bills on my laptop, and even managing a couple of short blog posts. I'm still sleeping 10-11 hours at night (plus my nap) and had a terrible coughing fit at 7 am this morning, but those signs of improvement have lifted my spirits and given me some hope that I might be able to get back to my "normal" baseline.

I managed to help celebrate my son's 24th birthday last week. We just had a quiet evening at home with him and his girlfriend and takeout, gifts, and cake. I stayed on the other side of the room and wore my mask. He was thrilled to be fully recovered and able to enjoy a weekend at the beach with his girlfriend. 

Birthday Celebration!

That took a lot out of me, which is probably why Friday was so rough. Feeling down, I told my husband I needed something to look forward to. It's an old adage I learned from a wonderful psychologist in the early years of my illness: What are you looking forward to? My days were running together, so I suggested we do something special and order pizza and wings for Saturday evening. I know - crazy, right? Since I'm dairy intolerant and don't usually eat grains, it was a little crazy! I added a diet root beer for me, and we totally enjoyed our junk food feast, along with a movie (Finch on Apple TV, which was very good). It was just what I needed to lift my spirits!

Our wild Saturday night

I did manage one brief video last week, on one of my better days:

Friday Reads 1-14-22 - where I talk about the top two books below

(anyone else still writing 2021 by mistake?)

COVID has slowed down my reading, but books still provided a lot of enjoyment and comfort last week. Here's what we've all been reading:

 

I finished reading Happiness by Aminatta Forma. I like this sort of story, where two very different people's lives intersect unexpectedly. In this case, it's Jean, an American wildlife biologist studying urban foxes in London, and Attila, a Ghanian psychiatrist who specializes in PTSD; their paths cross in London. It was a beautiful novel, thoughtful and warm and all about healing.

 

I also finished my audio book, The Sentence by Louise Erdrich, which I loved! Erdrich reads her own audios, making them even more special. In this one, a Native American woman named Tookie spent years in prison and is now working in a bookstore (the real-life bookstore owned by the author) where she sees the ghost of a former customer. It takes place in 2020 so covers all that happened then, too. It was warm and funny and, coincidentally, also very much about healing.

 

I just started reading Bottle of Lies by Katherine Eban. This is nonfiction and the choice for my neighborhood book group (on Zoom) this week. The author is an investigative journalist, and the book is about dangerous fraud and scandal in the generic drug business. To be honest, I didn't want to read it, since I rely on about 20 different generic medications every day! But it's quite interesting so far (and hasn't yet mentioned any of my meds).

 

For my next audio book, I chose Mercy Street by Jennifer Haigh, which will be released on February 1. I love Haigh's novels, and it's been years since she published a new one, so I was thrilled to spot her name in the list of upcoming releases! I only just started listening, but this one is about disparate people's lives that intersect at a women's clinic in Boston.

 

My husband, Ken, is still reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson, book one of The Malazan Book of the Fallen series, a fantasy novel recommended by our son. Once again, he didn't have much reading time this week, between sanitizing, hand-washing, and doing the cooking, but he says he's enjoying it.

 

Ken also mentioned to me that he read Animal Farm by George Orwell during some late-night sessions! He's been sleeping in the guest room since I got COVID, and we keep all of our classics on a shelf in there, so when he can't sleep at night, he grabs something from the shelf. This was his first time reading this satirical classic, and he enjoyed it. I'd like to reread it myself, as I think I read it (this copy even!) back in Junior High.

 

Our son, 27,finally took a break from his new Pokemon game for the Switch (a gift from his brother) and finished reading Spinning Silver by Naomi Novak, a follow-up to Uprooted, which he loved. He said it was "really good--not super actiony, but a great and unique fantasy tale."

 

Now, our son is reading a book that was a gift from his girlfriend, The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter, book one of The Burning series. Amazon says it's one of Time magazine's Top 100 Fantasy Books of all time!

A new blog post yesterday!

Fiction Review: Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce - funny, quirky but also warm and moving story of two women on an adventure in 1950.

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.   

What are you and your family reading this week?

Fiction Review: Miss Benson's Beetle

I was thrilled when my neighborhood book group chose Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce because I absolutely loved (as did the rest of the group) her earlier novels, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and  The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy.  This latest novel from Joyce is just as quirky and funny yet warm and thoughtful as those.

In 1950, amidst post-war rationing and rebuilding in London, spinster Margery Benson suddenly rebels from her staid life as a Home Ec teacher. For reasons she can't even explain to herself, she reaches her breaking point, abruptly leaves her job, and decides to follow her lifelong dream. Margery loves insects, especially beetles. When she was a child, her father had a book that talked about the possibly-mythical golden beetle of New Caledonia, a remote island in the Pacific. Ever since then, through devastating losses, Margery has dreamed of going to the island and finding the golden beetle and making a name for herself as an explorer entomologist. Margery launches a search for a research assistant and begins planning her expedition. Through a variety of misunderstandings and mistakes, petite Enid Pretty joins Margery on her trip, dressed in tiny high heels and a bright pink suit. The two of them make quite the odd couple, as they cross oceans and embark on the journey of a lifetime that will change them both in unforeseen ways.

As with those earlier two novels, I absolutely loved this unique story! It's just pure fun to read, filled with humor and quirkiness that made me often laugh out loud. What I most love about Joyce's novels, though, is the tenderness and warmth she shows toward her flawed but human characters. Both Margery and Enid have their own demons in their past lives that they are running from, both figuratively and in reality. Through it all, though, they pursue Margery's dream and hunt for the mysterious beetle, amid one challenge after another and a whole lot of surprise twists! The other thing I love about Joyce's novels is her thoughtful writing that makes you think in the midst of laughing. Here, toward the end of the novel, Margery muses on the true meaning of friendship:

"Being a friend meant accepting those unknowable things. It meant saying, "Look! Look how big my leg is! And look how small yours is! Look how marvelously different we are, you and I, and yet here we are, together in this strange world!" It was by placing herself side by side with Enid that Margery had finally begun to see the true outline of herself. And she knew it now: Enid was her friend."

I enjoyed every moment of Margery's and Enid's adventures together, I laughed and I cried, and when I finished the book, I hugged it to my chest. I can't wait to see what Rachel Joyce writes next!

352 pages, Doubleday

Random House Audio

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

 

Visit my YouTube Channel for more bookish fun!

 

Listen to a sample of the audiobook here, narrated by Juliet Stevenson, and/or download it from Audible.

 

You can buy the book through Bookshop.org, where your purchase will support the indie bookstore of your choice (or all indie bookstores)--the convenience of shopping online while still buying local!  
  

Or you can order Miss Benson's Beetle from Book Depository, with free shipping worldwide.

It's Monday 1/10! What Are You Reading?

I can sum up our week in one word: COVID. That overshadowed everything and took over our lives.

I explained last Monday that my 96-year-old father-in-law caught COVID in the nursing home where he is staying to rehab after breaking his hip before Christmas. We were all visiting him every day (he has dementia), and they had a sizable outbreak there. My son started getting symptoms Monday and tested positive Tuesday. I thought I might escape, but my symptoms began Wednesday, and I finally tested positive Friday. By some miracle, my husband has managed to stay healthy in the house with the two of us and visiting his dad every day! Lots of hand-washing, sanitizer, and antiseptic wipes being used, plus masking.

We are all fully vaccinated (though I didn't make many antibodies due to my chronic immune disorder), but my son and I got pretty sick. He went back to work today (masked, of course) and was so excited to leave the house! We knew he was starting to feel better this weekend when he began getting restless and cleaning his room. My cough and chest congestion are improving, but I am still really wiped out. I literally could not stay awake yesterday and slept through most of the day. I am awake today but still exhausted. My biggest concern at this point is the potential long-term effects. I'm sure by now you've heard of "long COVID." Well, most cases of long COVID are ME/CFS, the immune disorder I've had for 20 years (which is usually triggered to start by some sort of infection), so there is a high chance getting COVID will trigger a severe worsening of my underlying condition, perhaps long-term. Nothing to do now but wait and see (and rest).

I hope you'll excuse the detail, but consider it something of a PSA. I know the news is saying Omicron causes milder illness, but it is HIGHLY contagious and we have been quite sick with it. Multiple tests may be needed to get a positive result (they are now saying five days after exposure is ideal testing time) and, of course, tests are in short supply. The most effective treatments (monoclonal antibodies and the new COVID antiviral) are mostly unavailable. Thank goodness for the vaccines, which are probably keeping us out of the hospitals (which are over-full). My father-in-law and I are both still struggling, after a week, so be as careful as you can be!

Given all that, I was unable to record any videos last week. In fact, I lost my voice for a couple of days! Even my reading has been curtailed because I've been so sick that I could only read for 10-15 minutes; then my eyes would start to burn and get sore and I'd need another nap. But at least I could still read a little bit, which is better than a friend of mine in the UK who's had COVID at the same time.

So, here's what we've all been reading this past week:

I finished reading Janesville: An American Story by Amy Goldstein, a nonfiction book about a town in WI after a devastating GM plant closure. We had a great discussion on Zoom with my book group. It's a fascinating and sobering book.

 

Now, I am reading a novel I got for my birthday last summer, Happiness by Aminatta Forma. I like this sort of story, where two very different people's lives intersect unexpectedly. In this case, it's Jean, an American wildlife biologist studying urban foxes in London, and Attila, a Ghanian psychiatrist who specializes in PTSD. It's excellent so far.

 

On audio, I am still loving The Sentence by Louise Erdrich (not much listening time with the whole family home together!). I love her novels, especially on audio since she reads them herself. In this one, a Native American woman named Tookie spent years in prison and is now working in a bookstore (the real-life bookstore owned by the author) where she sees the ghost of a former customer.

 

My husband, Ken, is still reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson, book one of The Malazan Book of the Fallen series, a fantasy novel recommended by our son. Once again, he didn't have much reading time this week, between sanitizing, hand-washing, and doing the cooking!

 

Our son, 27, is still reading Spinning Silver by Naomi Novak, a follow-up to Uprooted, which he loved. He explained that his reading took a hit when he became a bit obsessed with the new Pokemon game for the Switch his brother gave him for Christmas!

Blog posts from last week:

Favorite Movies Watched in 2021 - my annual round-up!

Teen/YA Review: Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan - excellent YA novel I enjoyed on audio

Favorite TV Shows Watched in 2021 - so many great shows!

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.   

What are you and your family reading this week?

 

Favorite TV Shows Watched in 2021

With bad weather this time of year and COVID running rampant everywhere, you may be staying home more (or entirely right now, like me) and looking for a great TV show to watch! I've got you covered, with my favorites from 2021. These are not necessarily new shows--some are older--but they are shows that we watched and enjoyed this year, enough that I took the time to write a review. They run the gamut, covering all kinds of genres, so there's something for everyone here! And these are available on all kinds of platforms, too, including cable, network TV, and streaming.

Listed down at the bottom of this post are all of the shows that I reviewed here on my blog in 2021. I have also added all of these to my TV Reviews tab on the blog, so you can come back anytime to see ALL of the shows I have ever reviewed here (note that where to find shows may have changed over the years but all should still be available). And check out my Summer Shows 2021 post for lots of other shows we enjoyed this year, mostly carried over from past years.

I only review shows I enjoy, so anything listed here or on the TV Reviews tab is worth trying!

Best of TV   

First a few superlatives - my favorite shows reviewed last year in each category/genre - always tough choices to make because TV shows are just getting better and better (and more and more!). Remember that we enjoyed all of the shows reviewed - see the full list at the bottom of the post. Links are to my reviews, including trailers and details on where to find each show (subject to change).

Best Drama

For All Mankind (Ap)  

(close call with Maid but this one is such an outstanding epic drama, covering decades) 

Best Dramedy

Only Murders in the Building (H) - also mystery!

 

Best Crime/Mystery/Thriller/Legal/Action

Veronica Mars (H, Ap, A)

(all in this category were favorites but we were obsessed by Veronica!)

Best Sci Fi

Resident Alien (SyFy, C, H, P, A)

Sci fi, yes, but also comedy and drama - so excited for season two!

Best Reality Show

Lakefront Bargain Hunt (C, HGTV)

We rarely watch any reality TV, but this has become our go-to comfort TV!

All TV Shows Reviewed in 2021

So much good TV last year!

KEY: Available on:

A = Amazon Prime

C = Cable and/or Cable On Demand

Ap = Apple TV

CBS = CBS All Access (now Paramount+)

H = Hulu

IMdB

N = Netflix

P = Peacock
S = Showtime

(Offerings from subscription services change all the time, so double-check. Also, some shows are available for an additional fee on Amazon Prime whether you subscribe or not. Most networks offer some episodes of every show for free at their own websites. Click the links below for my review and details on where it is available.)

Drama

The Big Leap (Fox, C, H) - with music and dance

For All Mankind (Ap)

Halt and Catch Fire (N, A, AMC)

Maid (N)

 

Dramedy (both drama and comedy combined)

Dickinson (Ap) 

Only Murders in the Building (H) - also mystery!

The United States of Tara (S, H)

 

Crime/Mystery/Thriller/Legal/Action

Big Sky (C, ABC, H)

Home Before Dark (Ap)

Veronica Mars (H, Ap, A)

 

Sci Fi  

Debris (P, H)

Resident Alien (SyFy, C, H, P, A) - also comedy & drama!

Reality 

Lakefront Bargain Hunt (C, HGTV) 

Teen/YA Review: Zara Hossain Is Here

For my last audiobook of 2021, I chose Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan, a YA novel set in Texas that combines immigration and prejudice issues with typical teen themes of friendship, family, and new love.

Seventeen-year-old Zara Hossain is like any other teen girl in her Corpus Christi high school: studying and applying to colleges, hanging out with friends at the local frozen yogurt place, and maybe falling in love with her new friend, Chloe. But Zara was born in Pakistan and her family is Muslim, which makes her the target of bullying and prejudice at school. She only knows life in America, since her family moved to the United States when she was just three years old. Her dad is a doctor who finished med school and did his residency in Texas, and they decided to stay when he was offered a job as a pediatric doctor. He, her mother, and Zara have now been waiting patiently for over eight years for their green card applications to be approved, but the process is bogged down in bureaucracy. Tyler, the school's football star and all-time most popular guy, is the worst culprit when it comes to racist bullying of Zara, and his group of friends follow his example. She puts up with it, but then things escalate to serious hate crimes and even violence. Now, faced with the fact that their family is not safe, her parents are considering returning to Pakistan, but this is the only life Zara has ever known. Besides, as a bisexual, she is rightfully worried that she will face just as much hatred and bullying in Pakistan and won't be safe there, either. It's an impossible choice, and her family agonizes over what to do.

I enjoyed listening to this book, which combines the light, fun life of a teen with the very real dangers of living as an immigrant in the U.S., among racial and religious intolerance. That dichotomy makes the terrible choices faced by Zara's family feel all the more real. Zara and her parents have some wonderful friends who are supportive, but Tyler and his family are powerful, both in the school and in the town. The audio was very well-done, with narrator Richa Moorjani bringing Zara to life. There is so much emotional depth to this novel, which even shows Tyler's perspective and where his racist views come from. The author shows the complexities of trying to maintain hope in the face of hate, all while just wanting to live a normal American life.

256 pages, Scholastic Press

Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in return for an honest review. My review is my own opinion and is not influenced by my relationship with the publisher or author.

 

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

Visit my YouTube Channel for more bookish fun!

 

Listen to a sample of the audiobook here, from a section with Zara and her parents just after a hate crime has occurred, and/or download it from Audible at the link.

 

You can buy the book through Bookshop.org, where your purchase will support the indie bookstore of your choice (or all indie bookstores)--the convenience of shopping online while still buying local!

  

 

Or you can order Zara Hossain Is Here from Book Depository, with free shipping worldwide.

Favorite Movies Watched in 2021

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It's time again for my end-of-year wrap-ups. First up: movies! 

I reviewed 13 movies in 2021 (same as 2020). To clarify, as with last year, I reviewed 13 movies but watched more (see below). Blogging time was at a premium last year! However, if I did take the time to review a movie, it was because I really enjoyed it, so any movies on my 2021 list are worth watching, not just my top picks.

The TV icon in the image above is still mostly accurate, as we watched just one movie in a theater last year. We had about two weeks last summer--after I was fully vaccinated and before the COVID numbers started going up again--when we felt safe going to the theater. We were in a recliner theater for an early matinee with only one other couple across the room, and it was quite a thrill to eat movie popcorn and watch something on the big screen again!

As in years past, you can see my full list of movies reviewed this year further down (plus those I watched but didn't review), and my top picks in each genre just below. To see all of the movies I have reviewed on my blog (a considerable list), check out the Movies tab, where they are listed by genre. Note that where each movie is available might have changed over the years, since I first reviewed it, so double-check to see where you can watch it now.

So (drum roll, please): My Top Picks for 2021:

 

 Best Action/Suspense/Thriller

A Quiet Place, Part II 

Original, genre-busting movie as good as the original!

 

Best Drama

The Peanut Butter Falcon

Such a hard choice! So many good dramas last year, but this one hit all the buttons. We both loved it. 

 

Best Comedy

Moxie

  Fun, uplifting coming-of-age mother-daughter movie.

 

Sci Fi 

Chaos Walking

Action/thriller on a different world, based on a YA novel - we both loved the book, and this was a faithful adaptation.

All Movies Reviewed in 2021

My favorites are marked with a *, but I only review movies that I enjoyed, so these are all worth a watch:

Action/Suspense/Thriller

The Nice Guys - entertaining action/thriller with humor, set in the 1970's

 * A Quiet Place, Part II - original, genre-busting movie as good as the original

Drama

* Find Me - warm, poignant movie with gorgeous settings (end of review includes recommendations for five other movies with beautiful outdoor settings)

* Leave No Trace - quiet, powerful movie about father-daughter relationship, set outdoors

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things - teen time-loop movie with lots of fun & plenty of heart

* Nomadland - beautiful, gentle film about real-life modern nomads - won 6 Oscars

* Palmer - poignant, uplifting movie about ex-con bonding with boy

* The Peanut Butter Falcon - wonderful! Original, heartwarming & funny

Comedy

Blow the Man Down - dark comedy in a Maine fishing village

* Grandma - warm, funny, heartbreaking movie about eccentric grandma & her granddaughter

* Moxie - fun, uplifting coming-of-age mother-daughter movie

On the Rocks - warm, funny movie about marriage and a father-daughter relationship

Sci Fi

Chaos Walking - action/thriller on a different world, based on a YA novel

 

In 2021, I did not review any Musical Dramas, Family, or Documentary movies.

 

Movies I watched but did not review:

I’m Your Woman - action

Honest Thief (Liam Neeson) - action

Devil in a Blue Dress - excellent suspense/thriller

Hamilton - musical

Save Yourselves! - sci fi comedy - entertaining but weird

The Woman in the Window- suspense/thriller - OK but not as good as the novel

Vertigo - classic Hitchcock suspense/thriller

News of the World - historical drama with Tom Hanks, adapted from the novel

Free Guy - fun comedy/drama with a unique premise

Don’t Look Up - uneven satire/dark comedy

 

It's Monday 1/3! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

 HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

It's 2022! Doesn't that sound like something from science fiction? We flew right past 1984 and 2001: A Space Odyssey and partied like it was 1989, and now here we are in the future! Crazy.

So after our crisis-filled Christmas (96-year-old father-in-law breaking a hip and a COVID scare the day after Christmas that cleared our house of guests in minutes), we had a relatively quiet holiday week. Our annual Cookie/Grinch party with our oldest friends had to go virtual, but we still enjoyed decorating cookies and watching the Grinch (the original, of course) "together" over Zoom. 

Our cookie creations!

Watching the Grinch together in the virtual living room

We got my father-in-law discharged from the hospital and set up in a rehab/nursing home facility that is just a mile from our house. My husband, son, and I have each been visiting him every day. He's been quite confused due to his dementia by the sudden change in surroundings and circumstances, but he was doing better, starting PT and enjoying our visits and getting his appetite back. Then, last night, we got the news that he tested positive for COVID. 

I don't know what it's like where you are, but it's been crazy in our region, with most families having a COVID scare like ours over Christmas, lines a mile long in the rain for temporary testing sites, and it being almost impossible to find at-home test kits anywhere (I ordered a bunch before the holidays, thank goodness). So, this is not a surprise but still a huge concern, for him and for us. We think it's not just him, but a good-sized breakout in the facility; they are meeting this morning to make a plan.

I spent 90 minutes with him yesterday and actually fed him his lunch, which I brought from home (now I understand why he seemed so lethargic and had no appetite). Of course, we've all been wearing masks there, but we are worried about him--and about me because recent tests showed that I didn't make many antibodies from the vaccines due to my immune disorder. We're in wait-and-see mode now, waiting to hear from the facility (we're hoping my husband can still visit because with the dementia, his dad really needs to see family to stay connected and lucid) and waiting until 3 days have passed to do our at-home tests. Not a great start to the new year, but I know many people are in similar situations.

So, let's get to the good stuff--books! I posted two short videos last week:

• A Very Bookish Christmas - hear about the books we gave and received
• Friday Reads and Happy New Year! - the books I just finished and just started

And here's what we've each been reading this past week (more about the first four in my Friday Reads video, above): 

 

I finished A Children's Bible by Lydia Millet, and wow, what a unique and engaging novel! It's about twelve kids and teens left on their own after an apocalyptic storm hits, and it's funny, suspenseful, and thought-provoking. It's hard to describe, so take a look at my review at the link!

 

I suddenly realized I have book group January 4! Luckily, I was able to borrow a library copy from a friend and am enjoying Janesville: An American Story by Amy Goldstein, a nonfiction book about a town in WI that came back to life after a devastating GM plant closure.

 

I finished my last audio of the year, Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan, a YA novel about racial prejudice, immigration, and a teen girl just trying to live like any other American teen. It was excellent, and I enjoyed it very much.

 

My first audiobook of 2021 is one I have been eagerly anticipating: The Sentence by Louise Erdrich. I love her novels, especially on audio since she reads them herself. In this one, a Native American woman named Tookie spent years in prison and is now working in a bookstore where she sees the ghost of a former customer.

 

My husband, Ken, is still reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson, book one of The Malazan Book of the Fallen series, a fantasy novel recommended by our son. Once again, he didn't have much reading time this week!

 

Our son, 27, is almost finished reading Spinning Silver by Naomi Novak, a follow-up to Uprooted, which he loved. He said he'll probably finish it today.

I hate starting the new year already behind, so I wrote a lot of book reviews last week to catch up! As another simplification for 2021, I decided not to post monthly summaries anymore, so there won't be one for December, but I should be able to get my 2021 Year End Summary up later this week. Here are my posts from last week:

My Summary of Books Read in November - a great reading month for Nonfiction November!

Fiction Review: All Clear by Connie Willis - outstanding! One of my best books of the year and of all-time.

Fiction Review: Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune - funny, poignant, unique novel.

Middle-Grade/Teen Review: Friends Forever by Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham - graphic memoir that finishes the trilogy - excellent!

Fiction Review: A Children's Bible by Lydia Millet - original, engrossing, funny, suspenseful, and thought-provoking. More in my Friday Reads video.

What Are You Reading Monday is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date, so head over and check out her blog and join the Monday fun! You can also participate in a kid/teen/YA version hosted by Unleashing Readers.

You can follow me on Twitter at @SueBookByBook or on Facebook on my blog's page.   

What are you and your family reading this week?