It's Monday 6/19! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

Life

Did you miss me? We are back home after a lovely 5 days camping in the Catskills. The weather wasn't great, but we saw the sun a few times and enjoyed a nice mix of relaxing in the outdoors (Mongaup Pond) and visiting the very cool nearby towns (Livingston Manor and Roscoe). I'll give you a brief photo tour here, but tomorrow, I will be posting a travel vlog on my YouTube channel, with lots of videos and photos from the trip.   

Sunset from our campsite

My husband and I at our campsite

Do Good Spirits Distillery in Roscoe, NY

So many ducks, including adorable lines of ducklings, on the pond!

Perfect camp morning - fire, tea, Big Book, & great view!

Fabulous kayaking - love the reflections

Hiking the Frick Pond Trail

Delicious BBQ Dinner from The Smoke Joint

Our trip ended in an emergency that could have been a disaster. A wheel came off our trailer on the New Jersey Turnpike! Luckily, my husband noticed something was wrong and carefully drove us into the nearest rest area. By the time we parked there, there was nothing holding the wheel on but the weight of the trailer. If it came off while we were driving 65 mph, it could have been really bad. So, we had our trailer towed to a nearby garage, and they are working to repair it.

The rest of our weekend was wonderful, though. Our older son came for a relaxed visit at home, and we had both of our sons with us all day yesterday, to celebrate Father's Day. We ate lots of good food, took a nice hike along a stream, made homemade ice cream, and laughed a lot! It's rare for just the four of us to be together, and we all enjoyed it.

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On the Blog

I managed a couple of posts before we left on our trip:

Movie Monday: Missing - we watched this modern twisty thriller with our son and his girlfriend, and we all enjoyed it.

 YA Non-Fiction Review: The 57 Bus - this real-life story is eye-opening, about two teens whose paths crossed for a moment on a city bus that forever changed both their lives. 

And, remember, there is still plenty of time to sign up for the Big Book Summer Reading Challenge! It runs until early September, and you only need to read one 400+ page book between now and then to participate. There's a whole community in our Goodreads group with fun Big Book chat all summer long.

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On Video

 May Reading Wrap-Up - a summary of all the books I finished last month

Friday Reads 6-9-23 - my thoughts on my first two Big Books, which are both excellent!

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 What We're Reading 

 

My first Big Book of the Summer was outstanding: Billy Summers by Stephen King. This unique novel is about a hitman who's agreed to one last job (with a huge payday) and is then planning to retire. As you might suspect, things go wrong! King's amazing talent for creating in-depth characters that feel real and compelling plots you can't look away from is on full display here. Like many of his best books, this is not horror. It's a thriller (particularly the last third), but it's mostly a fascinating character study. It's well-titled because Billy, the hitman, is at the heart of this novel; it's the story of his life, and by the first couple of chapters, you are already rooting for Billy and hoping things turn out well for him. I absolutely loved it and was completely absorbed from beginning to end.

 

On vacation, I started my biggest book of the summer, Voyager by Diana Gabaldon, book 3 of the Outlander series. At over 800 (large) pages, this is an intimidating Big Book, and it's been on my shelf for two years and was in my Big Book Summer stack last year! But as soon as I started reading it, I thought, "why did I wait so long?" She writes such fascinating, detailed historical fiction, with a touch of time travel and an epic love story at the center of it. The series about a British woman in 1945 who goes back in time to 1700's Scotland. This book is no exception and was completely engrossing from the very first pages. I had extra reading time on vacation, but I'll be reading this one for a while!

 

 

My first Big Book on audio this summer is The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara. This unique novel chronicles the lives of a group of gay and transgender young people in NYC in the 70's, 80's, and 90's. The novel begins with different chapters each focusing on a different child/teen who knows that he/she is different and is trying to find their place in the world. These initial characters gradually meet each other and form a household. The novel is ultimately about finding community--and family--for these isolated young people who feel like they don't fit in. The audio production is wonderful, and the narrative is immersive. It's filled with joy and sorrow, love and life and has made me laugh out loud and tear up.

 

 

My husband is tackling his next Big Book, Matterhorn, a novel by decorated Marine Karl Marlantes. It's about a company of Marines during the Vietnam War. He says it's excellent so far, though intense.

 

 

 Our son, 28, is still reading book eight, Court Wizard, of the Spellmonger series by Terry Mancour. He loves this series, and this is a hefty one at 1200 pages!

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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?

YA Nonfiction Review: The 57 Bus

A good friend of mine from high school who now teaches high school English recommended I read The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater when it was first released in 2017. Now I realize why she was so enthusiastic about this unique, eye-opening book. It details the true story of how the lives of two teens intersected for a few minutes on a city bus that changed both of their lives.

Sasha is an agender white teen living in Oakland, CA. They attend a small, private school that is very supportive of teens like them who don't fit it into the neat boxes society tends to place people in. Sasha's parents are also very supportive of their choices, having watched their development from a child to an older teen and seen how thoughtfully those choices were made, based on deep feelings. Sasha has plenty of friends who are self-described nerds, and their school fosters creativity, like the silly card game they've invented together. Sasha has a unique sense of style, often wearing a vest and bow tie with a ballerina skirt to school. She rides the 57 bus home.

Richard also rides the 57 bus home from his large public school in Oakland. Richard is Black with a single mother. He and his mom are close, and Richard is generally a good kid, with the kind of humor and goofiness present in many teen boys. Given where he lives and goes to school, though, he's been exposed to a lot more violence and drug use and other societal issues than Sasha, though he generally stays out of trouble. One day on the bus, spurred on by other acquaintances nearby, Richard flicks a lighter someone handed him to Sasha's skirt. To his surprise, it quickly goes up in flames, and Sasha is severely injured. Sasha spends months in the hospital recovering, while Richard heads to juvie and begins his journey through the judicial system. Because the police who interview him for hours without an adult present pressure him to say he's homophobic, he's charged with two hate crimes and faces life in prison.

In an instant, these two teens' lives were changed, and it is easy to simply identify one as the victim and the other as the bad guy. But author Slater helps the reader understand the intricate nuances of this tragic story, taking us deep inside both teens' lives and relationships with friends and family. This book also takes a close look at the failings of our judicial system. One thoughtless moment of goofing around became a life-changing moment for both teens, and this award-winning book that delves into issues of race, class, and gender makes us think deeply about the incident and its aftermath. It's a book that should be required reading for adults as well as teens, and it was excellent on audio.

320 pages, Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Recorded Books

I got this book from Sync several years ago, which offers two free audio books each week during the summer.

This book fits in the following 2023 Reading Challenges:

 

Nonfiction Reader Challenge - Crime and Punishment

Diversity Challenge

 

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 and/or download it from Audible.

 

Or get this audiobook from Libro.fm and support local bookstores.

 

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!

 

Movie Monday: Missing

My son and his girlfriend were visiting Memorial Day weekend, and we were looking for a movie that all four of us would enjoy. We settled on Missing, an exciting thriller where a teen girl is searching for her missing mother.

Teen June, played by Storm Reid, lives alone with her mother ever since her father, James, died. Her mom, Grace, played by Nia Long, can be a bit over-protective, but it's clear the mother and daughter have a close relationship. Now, Grace is headed off to Columbia on vacation with her boyfriend, Kevin (played by Ken Leung), leaving June home alone. Grace's best friend, Heather, played by Amy Landecker, has promised to check in on June while Grace is away. Predictably, as soon as Grace and Kevin leave, June kicks off a wild week of parties with her friends, including her best friend Veena, played by Megan Suri. When the week is over, June heads to LAX to pick up her mom and Kevin ... but they don't show up. June begins to investigate from her phone and laptop in LA and gets more and more upset. It seems that no one has seen the couple since they walked out of their hotel room the day before, leaving all their stuff behind. June contacts the FBI, but they explain they don't have jurisdiction in Columbia. She's becoming more panicked and scared the more she discovers. Looking at social media posts, hacking Kevin's e-mail, and tapping into public video feeds from Columbia, a terrifying story begins to emerge, and the FBI and LA police do finally get involved. But no one cares as much as June, and she hires a local Columbian named Javier, played by Joaquim de Almedia, through Taskrabbit to follow-up on the ground for her. June races against time to find her mother.

The tension in this excellent movie builds quickly and never lets up. Much of the movie takes place online, as seen on June's laptop and phone, which might sound awkward but is very well done, creating a compelling story that feels like it is happening now, as you watch it unfold. The suspense is sustained throughout the film, with lots and lot of unexpected twists. I think we suspected every character except June at one point or another. The ending truly surprised us, which is quite a feat because my husband and son are both great at guessing endings and spoiling movies! The actors and writing here are also top-notch. While searching for a movie to watch that night, we thought that Searching sounded like a similar plot and approach as Missing, and it turns out that was intentional. In Searching, a father uses the digital world to search for a missing daughter, and the shared co-writers and producers of both films bill Missing as a "spiritual sequel" to Searching. I guess we'll have to watch that one next because all four of us enjoyed Missing very much.

Missing is currently showing on Netflix and is available to rent on other streaming services.

It's Monday 6/5! What Are You Reading?

Hosted by The Book Date

Life

After a nonstop, chaotic May filled with travel, family, and friends, last week we did ... nothing! I had literally nothing on my calendar, and I think I only left my house twice: for a short hike with my husband and a quick trip to our local natural food store. I was pretty worn out all week. Not badly "crashed" as we say in the chronic illness world, but just really run-down. I'm still sleeping late and low in energy, so it's been rest and recover time. Here are the highlights from last week:

Extra reading time on our screened porch

Mmmm ... enjoying the brief season for local strawberries!

Dinner with our son on Friday evening

Our favorite Sunday morning treat

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On the Blog

Big Book Summer Challenge 2023 is in full swing! This annual reading challenge is super simple and easy-going for summer (or winter, if you're in the southern hemisphere). You set your own goals, whether that's reading one big book or two or however many you want. You have from now until September 4 (Labor Day in the U.S.), and a big book is any book with 400 or more pages. Everything counts: e-books, audios, YA, middle-grade, graphic novels, fiction, nonfiction. If you don't have a blog or YouTube channel, no problem--just sign up in the Goodreads group or even by leaving a comment on the challenge page. We have some great book discussions in the Goodreads group all summer long!

All of the details are on the Big Book Summer Challenge page, including a links list for bloggers and YouTubers. 

Hope you'll join the fun, too!

 I'm still behind on visiting all of the blogs that have signed up (and other blogs, too), as I try to balance limited energy with a huge backlog of things to do, but I'm working on it!

Here on my blog last week:

TV Tuesday: The Company You Keep - this heist show combines suspenseful crime with forbidden romance and is a lot of fun!

Fiction Review: The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate - I absolutely loved this fascinating historical fiction that takes place in 1875 and 1987 Louisiana

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On Video

Just one book-related video last week:

Friday Reads 6-2-23 - my weekly update on what I'm reading - Big Books this time!

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 What We're Reading 

I like to kick off Big Book Summer with a fast-paced read, and Billy Summer by Stephen King has been the perfect book to start my summer. I think I'm already about halfway through this unique novel about a hitman who's agreed to one last job (with a huge payday) and is then planning to retire. King's amazing talent for creating in-depth characters that feel real and compelling plots you can't look away from is on full display here! Like many of his best books, this is not horror. I've been calling it a thriller, but it's not even very action-packed (yet anyway). It's well-titled because Billy, the hitman, is at the heart of this novel; it's the story of his life, and by the first couple of chapters, you are already rooting for Billy and hoping things turn out well for him. I am loving it and staying up much too late every night reading it!

 

My first Big Book on audio this summer is The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara. This unique novel chronicles the lives of a group of gay and transgender teens in NYC in the late 70's and 80's. The novel begins with different chapters each focusing on a different child/teen who knows that he/she is different and is trying to find their place in the world. I'm just getting to where some of these initial characters are beginning to meet each other, so I think the novel is ultimately about finding community--and family--for these isolated young people who feel like they don't fit in. The audio production is wonderful, and the narrative is engrossing so far.

My husband, Ken, just finished reading one of my all-time favorite books, Hum If You Don't Know the Words by Bianca Marais, a past two-time Booktopia author. Robin, a nine-year-old white girl in Johannesburg, South Africa, is orphaned and goes to live with her single aunt, who works as a flight attendant. Since she's often not at home, the aunt hires Beauty, a 50-ish Black Xhosa woman who has come to the city to search for her missing teen daughter. The two isolated, damaged people slowly bond, as Robin begins to heal with Beauty's help. This beautifully written novel has it all: suspense, drama, and a wonderful sense of humor. I loved hearing my husband laughing out loud as he read it and reading the funny parts aloud to me. This book has heart. And it's a Big Book! (My husband participates in the challenge, too.)  

 

 Our son, 28, has gone back to the Spellmonger series by Terry Mancour, which he loves! He's currently reading book eight, Court Wizard.

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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: The Book of Lost Friends

My book group's selection for May was The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate. We all enjoyed her previous novel, Before We Were Yours, and I think this one was an even bigger hit (we rated it 8.2 out of 10)! Like that earlier novel, this was also historical fiction, featuring two separate narratives in different time periods, anchored by a fascinating little-known bit of history.

In 1863, six-year-old Hannie is frightened as her master's son, whose father asked him to see them all moved safely to Texas, instead sells off Hannie's family along the way. In stop after stop, she sees each of her siblings, her aunt, her little cousin, and finally her mother sold off and taken away. After the war is over, Hannie is the only one from her family who is returned to the Gossett plantation in Augustine, Louisiana, and transformed from slave into sharecropper, along with a handful of others still left there. In 1875, they are approaching their 10th sharecropping year, when they will finally own their own land. Hannie overhears a conversation between Lavinia, the Little Missy of the plantation, and her Creole half-sister, Juneau Jane. It seems that Mr. Gossett had a mistress in New Orleans and another daughter Lavinia's age. Now, when the two girls set off on a mutual journey to find their father's lawyer and protect their inheritance, Hannie secretly accompanies them, hoping to find the sharecropping contract to prove their right to the land. The three teen girls are on a dangerous mission that takes them into Texas, among outlaws and vigilantes. It also reignites Hannie's longing to find her family, when she discovers the Lost Friends column in a church newspaper distributed throughout the south.

In alternating chapters, first-year teacher Benedetta Silva, aka Benny, moves to Augustine in 1987. She's been assigned to teach English at the local high school, and her only previous experience was student teaching at a well-off suburban high school in the East. When she discovers there are no books for the English classes and a student almost faints from hunger on her first day, Benny realizes this is going to be far more difficult than she first thought. Benny begins to get to know the people in town, including the well-respected Granny T, who runs the Cluck and Oink BBQ joint, and Nathan Gossett, the reluctant heir to all that is left of the Gossett plantation, including its beautiful library filled with books. Benny gets the idea to engage her students in reading and writing by researching their own families' histories, though the town doesn't like new ideas ... or stirring up old wounds.

Often in a book with two separate narratives like this, you find yourself preferring one over the other, but I was equally engrossed in both the 1875 and 1987 stories and rooting for both Hannie and Benny to succeed in their quests. Each set of chapters begins with a copy of a Lost Friends column, and some of them are echoed in the narrative, with familiar names popping up. Hannie's story is filled with action, adventure, and loss, while Benny's story is one of isolation, a desire to help, and becoming part of a community. The two narratives come together beautifully at the end, just as I'd hoped they would. I both read the book in print and listened to it on audio, which worked out wonderfully; I got to see the Lost Friends' columns reprinted and also listen to the multiple excellent audio narrators. It's a compelling, engaging novel, filled with fascinating historical detail and memorable characters that I never wanted to leave.

375 pages, Ballantine Books

Random House Audio

This book fits in the following 2023 Reading Challenges:

 

Monthly Motif - In It to Win It (character takes on a personal challenge)

Diversity Challenge

Literary Escapes - Louisiana

 

Visit my YouTube Channel for more bookish fun!

 

Listen to a sample of the audiobook here, from Hannie's first part of the narrative, and/or download it from Audible.

 

Or get this audiobook from Libro.fm and support local bookstores.

 

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!

  

TV Tuesday: The Company You Keep

One of the new shows that my husband and I enjoyed this winter/spring was The Company You Keep. With its combination of unique crime show and forbidden love story, it is welcomingly original.

Milo Ventimiglia (This Is Us) stars as Charlie Nicoletti, the son and heir apparent of a unique family business. His mother, father, sister, and he all work together as criminals and con-men, with their working-class Baltimore bar as cover. His father, played by William Fichtner, and his mother, played by Polly Draper (of thirtysomething fame), own the bar, and Charlie and his sister Birdie, played by Sarah Wayne Callies, work there, while the whole family plans their next job in their off-hours in the basement. Birdie also has a deaf daughter named Ollie, played by Shaylee Mansfield, who is not in on the family secrets. They're a close-knit family, and they are very, very good at what they do. After a huge, $10 million score, they consider retiring from the life of crime, but the big-time drug-dealing, arms-buying crime family they scammed isn't ready to let them; they want to use the Nicolettis' unique talents to earn back the money they stole from them. One night, a beautiful woman named Emma Hill, played by Catherine Haena Kim, comes into the bar, and she and Charlie hit it off. There is instant chemistry between them and plenty of witty banter, though it is clear to both of them that the other has secrets. It turns out that Emma is a CIA agent, so Charlie must keep his criminal life even more secret than usual, as the two get closer and their physical attraction turns into a deeper love. Emma is not only in law enforcement but comes from a well-known D.C. power family, and her brother is running for the Senate (to take his father's role). What kind of future is there for a federal agent and a career criminal who come from such different worlds?

The beginning of this show is a playful secrets-and-lies love affair between Charlie and Emma, but their respective secrets are revealed to each other fairly soon in the first season. Things get even more complicated when Emma is investigating the very crime family that is blackmailing Charlie's family. The acting in this show is top-notch, with great writing featuring lots of witty banter between Charlie and Emma. Its fast-paced, fun heist plots rival any crime show but with the added fun of Charlie and Emma's opposite positions. We really enjoyed this show with its perfect mix of suspense, action, family drama, and romance.

Unfortunately, I just read that ABC decided not to renew The Company You Keep for a second season, though the final episode of season one certainly sets up plenty of threads for a continuation. I decided to still review it because this first season is a lot of fun and worth watching on its own ... and we can always hope that one of the streaming channels picks it up to continue it (as Netflix did with Manifest which comes back for a final season starting June 2).

The Company You Keep is an ABC show, so it can be viewed on cable On Demand, on Hulu, or a variety of other streaming services. It is also available free on ABC's website.