Throwback Thursday

“He was like a song I'd heard once in fragments but had been singing in my mind ever since.” 

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who listen to Christmas music before Thanksgiving and those who refuse to Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. Rachel and I echo the joyous strains pre-Turkey day—sometimes in secret for fear of being ridiculed. This year, I don’t much mind being scorned.  Loud and proud, I’ve been playing Christmassy melodies…no trace of any shame. With festive music in my ears and Starbuck’s peppermint specials in my belly, I’ve been shopping online.  The mood’s right.  Today I jumped on Amazon, added stuff to my cart; 82 save-for-later items were already there. 82.  Other than the Masterpieces NFL Map Puzzle, a tri-magic boomerang, some kicks, a Steph Curry Adidas golden youth player shirt, and some Cadbury Wunderbars, it was all books.  

Glorious books. Since it’s Jeudi, it’s time to give a shout out for an oldie but goodie.  Back when I only had one employer, fewer stretch marks, and breezier hours, I read Arthur Golden’s Memoirs of a Geisha.  Little did I know about geisha and Japanese culture.  Nitta Sayuri, a celebrated geisha and the narrator of this runaway best seller, enlightened me.  My ignorance made Sayuri’s story even more compelling.  In the words of one professional reviewer, “Golden, with degrees in Japanese art and history, has brilliantly revealed the culture and traditions of an exotic world, closed to most Westerners.” One shiny penny and one click later, you can buy a window into another world...save for later at the very least!

Posted by Tracy

A Brave New Read

Some of Genie’s Questions: 

What exactly are grits?

Does the flea market actually sell fleas?

The rooter to the tooter is stupid.  Why not, the yapper to the crapper? Or the thinker to the stinker?

Where is Sam Hill? 

What does it mean to be brave?

Here’s a Key Alert: We’ve finished As Brave As You. The polls show that Jason Reynold’s book about two Brooklyn brothers who visit their grandparents in rural Virginia for an eye-opening summer month is a legitimate winner.  Luke put this read in his top three for the year.  Jonah debated the tippy-top nomination, but cast his vote for the story about guilt and forgiveness and consequently, fear and bravery in his top five. In other words, reading this rich middle-grade novel was a grand old party.  

Reynolds creates an unforgettable, quirky character in 11-year-old Genie Harris.  He’s filled to the brim with pressing questions—they bubble up out of him. Google is his go-to, but in the back-internetless-woods, he feels comfortable consulting his blind grandpop. Their tender relationship is the beautiful force behind this story—as the blind man ultimately helps his grandson see what real bravery looks like and what real empathy feels like.  I love a young adult book with wonderful substance.  The not-so-silent majority will definitely lobby for this read. 

Posted by Tracy

Weekly Wrap-Up

“When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.” —Maya Angelou

WHAT WE LOVE THIS WEEK

Not skipping Thanksgiving. There wasn't even a dent in the Halloween candy stash before jingle bells were ringing everywhere. We're big fans of Christmas around here...as in we may go a tad overboard big...but let's give Turkey Day its due. Cheers to a month full of gratitude and hoping it rubs off on the other eleven.

This post over at The Small Seed is the perfect read to start off the season.

What better way to spread thankfulness than with these darling Jane Austen notecards?

This is hands down our favorite way to celebrate all month with the kiddos and grow grateful hearts.

Nothing says thank you like freshly baked cookies, especially when they're tied up with string and this happy tag.

Pretty sure no one does thank you as beautifully as Rifle Paper Company. We'll take one of each. 

Speaking of Rifle, their new address book makes keeping in touch with those you love a whole lot lovelier.

Can a person have too many gratitude journals? We think not. Oh, and this one. Wait, this one too. We are positively brimming with thankfulness. 

COMING NEXT WEEK

True confession: I've fallen in love with a Russian.

 

 

November Book Club Selection

Let us be thankful to the people who bring us happiness; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. —Marcel Proust, Pleasures and Days

We don't know about you, but this election season has us craving some positivity. Not to mention a little (or a lotta) civility and human decency. It's enough to leave us all a bit jaded, pessimistic, and downright exhausted. So it should come as no surprise to anyone that we've been searching for a good book to help snap us out of this sorry state. Enter The Gratitude Diaries and looking on the bright side of life. When one reviewer wrote "it's like The Happiness Project meets Thanksgiving" we couldn't add it to our Amazon cart fast enough. Here's hoping it'll work some magic on all of us. 

Posted by Rachel

Feelin Groovy

“Children are made readers on the laps of their parents [and in barbers' chairs].
—Emily Buchwald [and me]

http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/10/12/496553810/choose-a-book-and-read-to-your-barber-hell-take-a-little-money-off-the-top

I’m still at the office.  Late-night grant writing is hardly a substitute for my Boden pj bottoms, and engaging pages.  Like Jerry in search of a marble rye, Rae is hunting down the last good avocado in Henderson. (Taco salads are naked without ‘em.) Looks like we’re both striking out tonight.  But there’s something to be said for striking out together. After one full year as side-by-side bloggers, I must say I’m feelin rather lucky.  Lucky in spite of an exhausting, hectic (sometimes wretched) pace, because I’ve had to slow down, you move too fast—to write.  Lucky because I’ve spent more minutes talking to Rachel when time has proven stingy.  And lucky in love with the idea that even if only a handful of people have read more good books, we’ve made a difference.  

We want to grow up to be like the barbers at the Fuller Cut shop in Ypsilanti, Michigan.  Small-town kids plant themselves in swivel chairs for the latest do.  Parents are in it to win it for the price, cut, and cultivation.  You see, any child who reads a book out loud to their barber gets a two-dollar discount. How awesome is that?  Fades and tapers appear with the sounds of We’re Going on a Lion Hunt, Rosa, and I am Jackie Robinson…to save a Thomas Jefferson, not to mention a child’s future.  We bibliophiles can get behind this. In fact, I know two girls at twenty-seven (pretend that’s our age) that may well send ardent applause in the form of picture books to 307 Ecorse Road this weekend.

Thanks for the inspiration Fuller Cut!  You too Rae. (Happy Anniversary dear friend.) Now that it’s nearing midnight, I’m dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep.

Posted by Tracy

The Power Of A Good Book

Why can't people just sit and read books and be nice to each other? —David Baldacci

Move over Superman and Spidey, turns out books are the real super heroes. While this election season zeros in on all that divides us (honestly, it's enough to make even a silver linings kinda girl give up hope), books help us find our way back to what unites us. Apparently there's one thing liberals and conservatives can agree on: good literature. So much so that civilized, kind, and thoughtful discussions have been shown to take place—devoid of insults and vitriol. It's a literary miracle. You can read all about it here.

The top read gracing the shelves of both democrats and republicans? That beaut of a book above. No surprise there. Here's a list of the other 100 super books bridging the political divide one page at a time. I spy a silver lining and a thread of hope.

Posted by Rachel

Rebound Reads

30 pages. That's all that stands between me and the end of A Gentleman in Moscow. I feel a serious case of the book-ending blues coming on, folks. I've loved every sentence and am dreading the turning of that last page. So much so that I put it down in the middle of a seriously suspenseful scene to research my next read knowing it's gonna take something great to soften the blow. Looks like the book stars have aligned to serve up three new novels from authors I love:

Camron Wright's The Rent Collector made my top five last year, so I've got high hopes for his newest, The Orphan Keeper. Something tells me he won't disappoint. 

I may have squealed with delight when I saw Alan Bradley's served up a new Flavia tale. Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd is sure to cheer the book-bereft soul. I'm not usually a big fan of series, but this one's got me hooked. Never heard of Flavia? Allow me to introduce you.

I know, I know. You've all tired of me talking about Ove. Obviously, I'm thrilled to see Backman is back with And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer. This sentence alone makes me think I'm gonna love it:  "Isn't that the best of all life's ages, an old man thinks as he looks at his grandchild, when a boy is just big enough to know how the world works but still young enough to refuse to accept it."

Posted by Rachel