Happy Friday! Do you have plans for the long weekend? I plan to finish my copyedits and attend way more kids’ sporting events than I would have expected to be calendared for Labor Day weekend. I’m also setting up a new houseplant wall and organizing my office, because that’s my idea of fun these days. (Kidding/not kidding!)
My favorite finds from around the web:
- NBCUniversal International Studios To Adapt Emily St John Mandel’s Mystery Novel ‘The Glass Hotel’ For TV. Yes, please.
- Here’s an Idea: Replace Your Social Media With Real Estate Apps. “I have no need or desire to move, let alone buy a place elsewhere. I also spend more time on Zillow’s app than on Twitter and Instagram combined, browsing homes for sale across the country, because it’s reliably soothing, especially when those other sites are not.”
- We’ve been loving this card game (that Will and I first played in Scotland) at my house lately.
- Past WSIRN guests Rikki and Michaela (episode 98) shared their Anne of Green Gables Literary Dinner and it’s gorgeous. Read all the way through for the funny dog-related disaster.
- A legendary Ozark chestnut tree, thought extinct, is rediscovered. Anyone who’s read Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods will find this of special interest.
- Jane Austen’s Most Widely Mocked Character is Also Her Most Subversive. We discussed this in the MMD Book Club this week. Agree or disagree?
Favorite Instagram:
As a reader I LOVE a good dedication page, and I’m currently obsessing about exactly how to word my dedication for my third book. This photo shows the dedication page for my second book, I’d Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life. I did NOT obsess about this dedication; I knew what I wanted it to say pretty much from the very beginning. Am I the only nerd out there who lingers over authors’ dedications? Follow me on Instagram @annebogel.
On the blog:
One year ago: 10 campus novels that will take you back to your school days. These books won’t make you want to go back to school but they might make you nostalgic…or grateful those days are behind you.
Two years ago: Double up the dental floss. I still think about this all the time.
Three years ago: 7 things I learned in August. It’s always fun to take a look back!
Four years ago: A few of our weird and accessible family traditions. “That got me thinking about our other traditions—not the big ones, like turkey at Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve at Grandma’s—but the quirky but unremarkable things that make our family unique.”
Five years ago: When reading is rude. I’m curious if this phenomenon has become more prevalent in the intervening years.
On the podcast:
I KNEW this week’s episode with Annie F. Downs would be fun (and it WAS, in no small part due to the Dolly Parton fangirling) but it also held quite a few surprises. Today we’re chatting about the author who made Annie a better storyteller, the Imagination Library, her surprising love for what she calls “Dead Men’s writing,” and I recommend a few books I never would have considered at the beginning of our chat…
Have a great weekend!
12 comments
I was up late last night as I have a daughter flying home to SC from Africa today. I took that time to finish up The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, which I had only started yesterday morning. LOL!
This is one of my favorite recent “book” reads. Funny, great plot lines, and likable characters. Have you read it yet?
I read it on paper, but I’ve heard this one is better on audio. (Lucky you!)
I share your foggy brain today… rolled in at 2am after taking my three daughters to Jonas Brothers concert in NYC! Hope you enjoyed Weird Al 😄
I hope you and your daughters had fun! My husband did the Weird Al honors. (They had a blast.)
Plant wall? I’m intrigued??!!
It’s not THAT kind of plant wall. There’s a bench, and some plants. 🙂
Great article about Mrs. Bennett! I never considered it that way! Will have new respect for her next time I read.
I felt the same. It made me see her in a much different light.
I’m missing One Great Book, when does it return?
It’s almost time! September 13.
Not to put any added pressure, but I adore a well written dedication page! Often they’re sweet and simple, but finding a unique or witty dedication is an unexpected delight!
Oh, dedications are my FAVOURITE part of any book! I love the history of them (authors used to dedicate books to their patrons and creditors to keep the $ rolling in), and the creative ways in which so many authors find to show their appreciation and support. Plus, they’re often a great source of gossip for controversial figures 😉 Too many favourites to mention, I wrote a whole blog post about them! Best of luck with choosing yours Anne, I’m sure it will be wonderful!