What’s in store for your weekend? It’s been a hard week for so many of us, and the conflict in the Middle East is very much on my mind. No words of mine are sufficient here but: I am heartbroken over the events that have unfolded this week. No one deserves the pain and suffering being experienced right now. I hope you’re all finding ways to care for yourself and your loved ones, and hope everyone stays safe today.
May your weekend be filled with grace, peace, rest, and good books.
Ask Us Anything on Patreon
Mark your calendars for October 26 at 8:30 pm EDT! We’re prepping for Ask Us Anything with our What Should I Read Next Patreon community. These are fun, casual, and sometimes delightfully unpredictable conversations focused on the one thing we all have in common: books! Join Patreon today so you don’t miss out on this bookish good time. (As always, a replay will be available for those who can’t attend live.)
My favorite finds from around the web:
Seeking Humanity Over Hot Takes. (Leah Koenig’s The Jewish Table substack) This essay is sandwiched between a recipe for gorgeous baked apples and resources for further reading. “Let us remember, in this moment that Jewish lives are sacred and Jewish trauma is real. It is historically rooted and especially raw right now. But let us not forget that everyday Palestinians do not deserve the pain and suffering they are experiencing at the hands of Hamas’s reign of terror. Nor do they deserve the pain and suffering from Netanyahu’s scorched earth response to the attacks.”
V.E. Schwab Is Rewriting the Rules of Fantasy (And Maybe Life Itself). (ELLE Magazine) Great interview.
It’s time for sweater weather. (MMD) 25 great sweaters to get you ready for the fall and winter season.
Related: How to Recreate Every Good Outfit in When Harry Met Sally (Derek Guy on Twitter) I would love the Meg Ryan version of this!
Your Sweaters Are Garbage. (The Atlantic gift link) I’ve definitely noticed this over the years. “As the sheer quantity of clothing available to the average American has grown over the past few decades, everything feels at least a little bit flimsier than it used to. Seams unravel after a couple of washes, garments lose their shape more quickly, shoes have to be replaced more frequently. The situation might be the worst in knitwear.”
How to talk to children about the violence in Israel and Gaza. Good advice, with links to pieces that provide context and history for the current conflict.
28 years ago, a book club began reading one novel. It’s finally reached the end. (Orange County Register) Talk about dedication!
Taylor Swift Likes to Work. (Culture Study substack) “I mean, let’s be clear. Taylor’s not making an album, but she is making gossip art.”
How Horror Helps Us Confront and Understand Grief and Loss. (LitHub) “It’s common, horror literature reminds us, for the bereaved to traverse the worlds of both the living and the dead. That’s why we grievers are haunted the most.”
The 2023 Liberty Beauty Advent Calendar is here—as in, mine arrived this week—and it is fabulous. This decidedly luxurious product is known for providing an excellent combination of value (for high-end beauty and skincare) and discovery.
How to Pick the Perfect Wordle Starting Word. (Word Genius) Always looking for tips.
I’m happy to report we finally tried this pumpkin bread recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction, which Baylee on our team is an evangelist for. Will it unseat our current go-to pumpkin bread recipe from Smitten Kitchen? I’m open but the kids say “no way!”
21 spine-tingling but not TOO scary audiobooks for fall. (MMD) A plethora of seasonal recommendations from a self-professed scaredy cat.
The Food Expiration Dates You Should Actually Follow. (The New York Times gift link) The more you know.
Scrolling Through Poetry: A Conversation with @poetryisnotaluxury. (Los Angeles Review of Books) “It’s the thesis for life—a simple way of saying that we need art to survive.”
From our archives:
10 absorbing classics for your Autumn audiobook queue. Autumn is for audiobooks!
31 spooky (but not too scary) books for your fall reading list. Tis the season!
What are your chilly weather go-to meals? The comments are a goldmine of meal inspiration!
16 memorable memoirs told in essays, stories, and snapshots. A great option for anyone dealing with a short attention span.
Have a great weekend!
8 comments
Thanks Anne for the gift links! I’m almost at the point where I refuse to buy polyester containing garments. My all time favorite Eddie Bauer t-shirts now contain polyester and after just a few wearing start to pill on the sleeves and front. I’ve learned to knit, it’s a slow process, but I now have a gorgeous cardigan made from merino wool that fits me!
OH my gosh, I just made the Smitten Kitchen pumpkin bread recipe this weekend! SO GOOD! My teacher friends and I devoured it all week at lunch.
I am so amused that you’ve already dug into your Liberty calendar. I may need to order one for myself as it sounds fabulous. Thanks for doing the deep “research” for us.
This is my favorite blog post every week! Thanks for always finding unique and interesting reads. I can’t wait to try the pumpkin bread recipes. I have a pumpkin Nordic Ware pan that comes out every fall and it would be perfect for those recipes.
I’ve tried many pumpkin bread recipes, but I’ve found the one I’ve been looking for! Pumpkin Maple Muffins from New York Times. Perfect.
Thank you for the link to the V.E. Schwab interview! The Darker Shade of Magic series is one of my favorites, but I didn’t know much about the author.
The LitHub article was also great. Horror and suspense definitely provide a cathartic release. I think the lure of horror writing is vicariously experiencing the worst thing that could happen and figuring out what you would do in that situation.
SK’s Pumpkin Bread is my all time fave. ALL of my family and friends love it but it is possible they just really love the craggy sugary top. I’ll have to try the other with no chocolate chips in it. I’m a pumpkin purist!
Thank you so much for sharing a link to assist parents as we navigate emotional discussions with kids about the horrific events in Israel and Gaza. My children are asking a lot of questions, and I’m shocked by my inability to answer so many of them. I plan to do my homework this weekend so we can more thoughtfully engage with these tragedies, and this resource you’ve shared will help. I’ll use this moment to add my overdue thank you for the important work you do every day. I love that in between a blurb about sweaters or a tasty recipe, your platform invites readers to think about the hard things too. Without being preachy or partisan, you empower your readers to stretch and grow their thinking. You are like a good book, Anne! Thanks for that and thanks for the recipe ideas too!