Happy Friday, readers! I’m wrapping up a whirlwind trip down south to talk books and promote literacy—and visit four bookstores in three days! This weekend I’m planning on getting cozy (now that the temperature’s dropped 45 degrees overnight) and meeting up with old friends. I hope your weekend is full of good things.
My favorite finds from around the web:
• Book printers are reporting a surprising end-of-year crunch. “On the way to the funeral of the book, it actually didn’t die.” My book I’d Rather Be Reading was briefly out of stock just after release, and until I read this piece I had no idea how that related to broader industry happenings.
• A suspense novelists trail of deceptions. This one’s a doozy.
• Meet the Lazy Genius: she wants to help you slay dinnertime (and shame). I was so excited to see my friend Kendra profiled on the Kitchn—and what a profile it is!
• Last week the temperature was so cold my kids were out of school. Four days later, I got to break out my favorite sandals. They’re back in the closet, but hopefully not for too much longer.
• Meet the historically accurate Mr. Darcy. “If he had been a real person in the 1790s, his pale face most likely had a long nose and pointed chin, and a pair of sloped shoulders. Instead of dark, wavy locks, he would have had powdered white hair.”
Blind date with a book—the reveal!
Did you fall in love with this book? You’ve chosen Kimmery Martin’s gorgeous novel The Queen of Hearts, set alternately in present-day Charlotte and 1990s Louisville.
Based on the clues, readers thought this book might be Cutting for Stone. (Words I avoided: the two cities are rare enough in fiction I avoided mentioning Charlotte or Louisville; I also avoided the words medical school, heart, and Dr. X.)
Did this book catch your eye? You’ve chosen Joshua Becker’s new release The Minimalist Home, a step-by-step guide to bringing more peace, calm, and joy into your life by getting your rid of your excess stuff.
Readers who picked this one thought they might be in the minority, but your votes were actually pretty even between the three books. Based on the clues, readers thought this might be Cozy Minimalist Home—a great guess! (Words I avoided, even though it was hard: minimalist, blogger.)
If this book caught your eye, you fell for Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal. Some of you guessed it immediately because of the “Pakistan” clue, but others said that same line had them stumped!
(Words I avoided: pride, prejudice, Elizabeth, Darcy, Jane Austen.)
Favorite Instagram:
Reorganizing can be a mess, but at least sometimes it’s a pretty mess. (Follow me on Instagram @annebogel.)
On the blog:
One year ago: Filling the gaps in my capsule wardrobe (for less). “I’m great at culling clothes that don’t work for me, but as someone who doesn’t love to shop, I’m not always great at replacing them.”
Two years ago: Unputdownable: 17 books I read in 24 hours or less (because they were just that good). “I polished off each of these 17 books in 24 hours or less, because I couldn’t put them down.”
Three years ago: 20 life-changing nonfiction books that you can finish in a day. “Most readers can knock one of these off in an afternoon, but will think about what they read between the covers for weeks, months, even years after they finish.”
Four years ago: Back to the beginning. “Being dissatisfied with where I am doesn’t make anything better. But when I admitted that I needed to go back to the beginning, I began to learn all kinds of things that are making my life much easier.”
Five years ago: The bits and chunks of joy list. “The idea is to have a go-to list of activities so that you can fill up the available moments of your life with bits of joy, instead of checking email, again.”
On the podcast:
One year ago: Episode 119: A book snob breakthrough.
Two years ago: Episode 65: The joy of buying books on someone else’s dime.
Three years ago: Episode 6: Books for book nerds, author backstories, and simple stories told well.
Have a great weekend!
13 comments
I nailed the first one, guessed it right away as I read it this summer! Adding the others to my TBR. Thanks Anne!
Ugh, I guessed the first one wrong. Oh well, I guess I would never make a good Ms. Marple. 😉
I work for a publisher and we ran into terrible printing delays at the end of the year. In addition to the items mentioned, a paper mill that made a very popular paper stock for books stopped making that stock so there was a scramble to get comparable stocks. Also, one of the major book printers in the US went out of business virtually overnight so other companies were forced to absorb their work. So demand for both paper and printing capacity exceeded supply. We do some printing in China and it was incredibly difficult to get shipments out of China in the fall because so many companies (not just publishers) were trying to get products out before the January 1 tariffs (now delayed). It was a crazy fall and it seems to be continuing!
Thanks for the link to the article, “The Unreliable Narrator.” That was an interesting and disturbing read. As a young woman, I had a friend in my life that was very similar to how Dan Mallory is described in the article, and it required a complete break from this person as she was not trustworthy, and it was too draining to participate in the farce. On a side note, I actually took a class at Oxford several years ago with the professor referenced in the story, John Kelly.
Small world!
I was right about book 1 – it is on my wishlist 😉
I have read your blog for years, and have never commented until today. But I just can’t get over how in the dead of winter your toes were sandals ready.
“On the way to the funeral of the book, it actually didn’t die.”
I love that quote and what an interesting little article. I’m so glad to know that the hold in your hand, smells amazing, weighty, fills your shelves, battery never dies, PHYSICAL BOOK has made a resurgence!
Ooh I was right on the first one! Such a great read! I also have #2 on my bookshelf, I’ve started but not finished it. #3 was the one I said I wanted to read and I had no idea what it was and would still love to read it! This book blind date is such a fun thing!
I got numbers 1 and 3 right. I just finished Unmarriageable and loved it. Due to the serendipity of the library holds list, I followed that up with Pride. It was a happy accident and I enjoyed both modern reimagining of the classic.
I always look forward so much to this post, I think Links I love has to be my favourite post of the week as it gives me so much to think about, learn from, and simply joy. x
But who won the books?? I don’t see it here, and I don’t see it on Instagram! Did I miss it? Still to be announced? No one has notified me I won….. I chose Book 3 because I did guess correctly what it was, and I want it!
The article about Dan Mallory was really interesting (yes, a doozy!). I just read Sophie Hannah’s book, Closed Casket. There was a major character that was handsome, charming and a compulsive liar. Coincidence?
Thanks for sharing that one and the one about the Lazy Genius. I respect any Mom that will ignore her child to finish a book. That’s my kind of woman!
I was right about book 1,such a great read!