What are you up to this weekend? I’m finishing a good book, visiting friends, and enjoying another day at the beach! I hope your weekend is full of the energy or relaxation you need—maybe a little of both?—and that this collection of interesting reads and favorite things helps ease you into that weekend frame of mind.
My Reading Adventures is here—and today is the last day for bonuses!
Thank you for celebrating the release of my new kids’ journal My Reading Adventures with me! Today is the last day to claim the preorder bonuses so make sure you fill out the form and claim your stickers.
My favorite finds from around the web:
- Hulu Gives Series Order To ‘The Other Black Girl’ From Onyx Collective. Exciting development!
- Travel ‘Works to Shake Things Up,’ Says the Novelist Emily Henry. Great interview. (Gift link.)
- My family adores this sunscreen face stick.
- It’s always a joy to visit independent bookstores when I’m on the road!
- The First Slice Of Pie Will Never Fall Apart Again Thanks To This Trick. Have you tried this?
- I had a blast talking to Craig and Andrew from Overdue on their podcast. Listen to our discussion of Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene. (In case you missed it, Craig and Andrew were on What Should I Read Next Ep 338: This episode is Overdue. It’s a good one!)
- My beloved cinnamon almond butter has been out of stock and I was absurdly happy to stumble upon some in a Florida grocery store!
- 10 Most Magical Book Towns Around the World. Future vacation ideas.
- This Friend Group Started Their Own Wine Brand. What a cool story!
- Who gets to be the face of the WNBA? Jonquel Jones is ready for her close-up. I love a good sports profile. “Jones has the game; she has the personality. She even has a compelling origin story. Yet few people outside of the WNBA faithful even know who Jonquel Jones is.”
- Now this is a tshirt dress you could live in all summer. (And the women of my family are trying.)
- Very Online. “I don’t think people are really meant to engage with the whole world. It is exhausting.”
The Modern Mrs Darcy Time Machine:
- 12 books to read for Women in Translation Month. August is Women in Translation Month! Reading translated books is a great way to experience the vast and varied types of storytelling from around the world.
- More favorite things to buy at Trader Joe’s. The possibilities at Trader Joe’s are endless!
Upcoming Events:
- August 11: Kickstart Your Reading Life with Mystery: Crowd-Pleasing Picks from Popular Genres: Mystery. This is a Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club event.
- August 18: Austen in August Tea Party: It’s Austen in August! We’re reading Sense & Sensibility and having tea with cooking expert and self-professed Anglophile, Caitlyn from Geraldine + Virginia. We’ll learn Regency-era history and modern tea etiquette to enhance our Austen reading experience. This is a Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club event.
- August 25: Live discussion with Peng Shepherd: Time for our Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club discussion of The Cartographers with author Peng Shepherd!
- August 27: Sense & Sensibility Watch Party: Stream, buy, borrow, or rent the film, then join us as we all press play on the 1995 version of the film Sense & Sensibility, all together at the same time. We’ll use the Zoom chat feature to share our thoughts as we watch! This is a Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club event.
You can find more upcoming events here.
Have a great weekend!
15 comments
I just finished an amazing book in translation. Belle Greene by Alexandra LaPierre. Historical fiction about Belle daCosta Greene, who was the librarian responsible for the Morgan Library. (This was like Passing and an Edith Wharton novel rolled into one). It’s a chunkster so I read it over several weeks and broke it up into 3 parts.
Belle daCosta Greene is also the focus of Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray’s recent novel, “The Personal Librarian” — I haven’t read it yet but it’s on my TBR list!
Loved The Personal Librarian—listened to the audio version, which was great.
Yes to the Personal Librarian!
How is Shawshank Redemption not on the list of short stories that became movies????
My thoughts exactly! Maybe because it comes from the same collection of short stories as “Stand by Me”? but not even mentioning it feels like a serious oversight.
I did not know about Momento, which was a great movie. I will check that out!
The link won’t open up on my phone here in Canada, the one about the T-shirt dress. Can someone post a photo of it, I’m curious. I’ve been living in my Costco t-shirt dresses this summer 🙂
Hi. I was going to post a picture for you but there’s no way to upload it. It’s a dress from the gap. White cotton tiered dress.
Thank you for sharing the profile of Jonquel Jones. She is talented, and l am a fan!
Me tooo! Loving watching the WNBA this summer!
My reading has seriously been suffering this summer due to WNBA season and Jonquel Jones is really fun to watch. Thanks for including this profile. There are so many amazing players!
I love Sun Bum products – the stick you mention, Anne, is great because it’s small enough to take anywhere. I used to use EltaMD Face Sunscreen but didn’t care for the smell and the chalky look. I switched to MDSolarSciences Mineral Creme SPF 50. It’s odorless, not chalky, and my sensitive skin prefers the mineral creme formulation. It’s safe for use on face and body. On my face, it leaves my skin feeling smooth – almost like a makeup primer. They have a stick product, but it’s not as portable as the Sun Bum stick. Sun Bum also makes a mineral-based sunblock that is good.
I was introduced to Trader Joe’s by a co-worker about 45 years ago. My friend, Connie, grew up in Pasadena where TJ’s was started. At that time, it was mostly a wine store, popular for its Two-Buck Chuck. Not being a wine drinker, I had to wait a few years until TJ’s started selling more food that would make my trip worthwhile. Now, living within 15 minutes of five Trader Joe’s, shopping there is a regular occurence for me. I have some definite favorites. I love most all of the cheeses, but particular favorites are the Israeli feta cheese, the Unexpected Cheddar Cheese (mix of cheddar and parmesan), and St. Andre Triple Cream Brie. You cannot go wrong with any of the crackers, but beware that the jalapeno one is s-p-i-c-y! I love the orange segments in the dried fruit and the apple cider from the refrigerated section. From frozen foods, nobody makes a better pie crust (and it used to be sold only during the holidays . . . I would buy enough for a year and keep it in my freezer). Above the frozen food, I like several of the sweets, but the miniature peanut butter cups are a real source of temptation for me. My absolute favorite item is seasonal, but it’s there every year . . . the cranberry orange relish. My mouth is beginning to salivate just thinking of it. My husband’s favorites are TJ’s refrigerated clam chowder, frozen gyoza/potstickers/dumplings and the jarred dipped sauce for the dumplings. I try to avoid buying produce there that I won’t use within a couple of days (no sprinklers and fan-cooled cases) and the bread is usually not the freshest. But, I do love my time spent in Trader Joe’s . . . it’s on tomorrow’s list of errands! And . . . my friendship with Connie continues to this day. She just left Pasadena a little over a year ago.
I also love visiting indie bookstores while travelling. I make it a point and I will always purchase something.
Hello Mrs. Bogel! I’m in 8th grade and I love your podcast and your blog. I recommend two very interesting and I read both of them very quickly. These books are The Midnight Library and The Map of Salt and Stars. I hope you enjoy them!