I hope you have a lovely weekend ahead of you. Around here we’re celebrating a birthday and finishing that holiday decorating we just barely got started last weekend.
Exciting news: we launched annual Patreon memberships! Our patrons get bonus episodes, exclusive Ask Anne Anything quarterly livestreams, peeks behind the scenes, and commentary about the show. We also invite our members to influence future episodes with their suggestions and poll and survey responses. An annual membership will save you 16% (that’s two months free) compared to a monthly subscription.
This makes it possible to gift a membership, although Patreon doesn’t have a direct way to do it. The workaround is to enter your giftee’s email address but your own credit card info and then you’ll need to disable auto-renewal. You may want to give your giftee a heads up because they’ll get the signup email right away. We’re so happy to be able to make this option available!
My favorite finds from around the web:
- How Memphis Created the Nation’s Most Innovative Public Library. It sounds amazing.
- We always joke about buying these Pemberley sweatshirts for our whole team. (But maybe we should stop joking and actually do it?)
- How a Missing Sock Changed My Life. “Nearly five years ago, I found a stray sock in my building’s lobby with a note affixed to it that read: ‘This guy got separated from his family and I found him wandering scared and lost in my own laundry.’” (This is a gift link.)
- I Moved to a Remote Cabin to Write, and I Hate It. “Plenty of people have believed that nature would save them; fewer have the guts to admit when it doesn’t. And now you’re stuck with the same problems you had before but you don’t even have a toilet.”
- This Cookie Is Timeless, Any Way You Spice It. We make molasses cookies with jelly centers every winter.
- How to Make Small Talk in the 19th Century. People have always had opinions about small talk and always will.
- Mary Shelley’s Former London Apartment For Sale. And it’s beautiful.
- The 2021 holiday movie guide: 100+ new films to get you in the spirit. How many will you be watching?
- Related: Before Bingeing on Hallmark Holiday Movies, Please Agree to These Terms. You can count on McSweeney’s for a hilarious take.
- How adorable is this Magnolia bookshop storefront jigsaw puzzle? (Puzzlers: we have TONS of recommendations for you.)
- Redemption For Doctor Watson. “It must not be forgotten that Watson is the writer of the Holmes stories, and, as such, is their architect. He’s responsible for representing their relationship, and even Holmes’s entire persona. Watson might, actually, be the greater mastermind between the two of them.”
Don’t miss these posts:
- A beginner’s guide to happy, healthy houseplants. Some of the things I learned on my way to becoming a Plant Lady.
- Addictive spiced nuts. We devour this stuff.
Upcoming Events:
- December 16: Live chat with author Ingrid Fetell Lee: Time for our Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club discussion of Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness with author Ingrid Fetell Lee! (Events are available as replays for members who cannot attend live.)
You can find more upcoming events here.
Have a great weekend!
17 comments
What a wonderful surprise to see an article about my local library! It truly is an amazing library with a lot to offer to the community.
How fun that it’s your own!
Do you have a list of gift list of children’s books with age listings?
We don’t, because so much depends on the individual reader, for better or worse. We DO have lots of posts about kids’ lit!
I made my first of what will be many batches of your spiced nuts last night and almost immediately had to set forth the ground rules for my husband — “the nuts in the decorative jar are for a gift and you cannot touch them. You can eat the ones in this (holding it up for visual aid) ziplock that are extra. I will make more.” We love those dang nuts!
I’m glad they were a hit!
This may be the BEST ‘Links I Love’ EVER! I had such a good time reading through it and there is something here for everyone.
I’m so glad!
The article about moving to a cabin to write a book reminded me of the hilarious and underrated movie Funny Farm starring Chevy Chase as a sportswriter who moves to the country to write the great American novel. The last part of the movie takes place during the Christmas season so this would be a great movie to watch this month.
I haven’t seen that since I was a kid (and WAY too young to appreciate it)!
Thank you for the gift link! I just loved the story – I am a Modern Love fan (and Season 1 of the TV series – Season 2, not so much) and I missed this one! What a nice holiday surprise!
I treated myself to an early Christmas present. The NANCY DREW book jacket blanket. I absolutely love it!
Dear Anne,
I have been collecting bookmarks from all over the world. Can you recommend a site for Christmas bookmarks? Thanks
Omg! Thank you for the gift link! I just loved it.
That take on Dr. Watson was just brilliant. I think I read my first Sherlock Holmes story at age 9 or 10, and have been a fan lo, these many years. I thought Jeremy Brett was the definitive Holmes (apparently he lost a lot of weight for that role) but then Mssrs. Cumberbatch and Freeman came along. I knew the show was put together by serious fans even before I read about it.
So many new books but I just might have to go back and re-read everything. This darn working for a living sure gets in the way!
I forgot a hat tip to David Burke (how could I!), who was Jeremy Brett’s Watson. It’s been a long time, but I’m a kid again in India, watching the show.
I was looking forward to having more graphics or infographics would be fine.
Keep writing.