What are you up to this weekend? I’m very much hoping to finish both my 2000 piece puzzle and the 500-page novel I started last night. (I wish it was an audiobook, and then I could pair those two things together!)
I hope you have something to look forward to this weekend, and that this collection of interesting reads and favorite things helps ease you into that weekend frame of mind.
My favorite finds from around the web:
New Line, Hello Sunshine Land Curtis Sittenfeld ‘Romantic Comedy’ Novel. (Deadline) I’d watch that! (Read our take on 2023 Summer Reading Guide pick Romantic Comedy right here.)
Spanning Seven Centuries, ‘Judging a Book by its Cover’ Celebrates an Enduring Art. (Colossal) This exhibit sounds incredible! (Hat tip to Sarah Stewart Holland for sending me the link.)
I closed my book to be here. This tee is funny because it’s true.
The art of doing nothing: have the Dutch found the answer to burnout culture? (The Guardian) All about “the act of niksen, the Dutch term for doing absolutely nothing.”
The Information Environment: Toward a Deeper Enshittification Thesis. (An und für sich) I don’t usually use that word around here but I couldn’t work around the fact that that’s what Cory Doctorow calls his theory about how platforms die. (It’s worthwhile reading, if you haven’t encountered it yet.) “Print was a perfected technology, an unsurpassable way of sharing information and ideas and stories — and we are all in the process of throwing it away for something we know is worse, out of inertia and laziness and cheapness and convenience.”
39 of Our Favorite Stew Recipes for Cold-Weather Comfort Food. (Food52) This list can carry me until spring.
Why Americans Suddenly Stopped Hanging Out. (Atlantic gift link) “I don’t think hanging out more will solve every problem. But I do think every social crisis in the U.S. could be helped somewhat if people spent a little more time with other people and a little less time gazing into digital content that’s designed to make us anxious and despondent about the world.”
I don’t anticipate traveling to NYC in the near future, but this springtime on Park Avenue puzzle may be the next best thing. These springtime petals are also gorgeous.
Romance is my entire personality. (What Should I Read Next) Such a joyful and thoughtful conversation with Farrah Rochon about romance novels, travel, and the publishing industry these days.
5 Little Ways to Be a Better Friend When You’re So, So Tired. (SELF) Great advice.
Move over, senior center — these 5 books center seniors. (NPR) I would love to see this become a publishing trend. “[These books] all concern women, ages 60 to over 90, who fully intend to seize the day and enjoy life while they can. These are characters who refuse to go gentle into that good night. They’re still sharp and ready to surprise.”
The Best Online Spice Stores for Everything from Annatto Seed to Za’atar. (Bon Appétit) We’ve bought from Penzey’s Spices for years but they don’t have everything; I’m excited to explore these other options.
Don’t miss these posts:
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Let’s talk about highly sensitive people. Learn what this term means and how it can help you better understand yourself and others.
10 literary fiction audiobooks narrated by their authors. Novelists know how to tell a good story but that doesn’t mean they’re the best one to perform it. That’s why these audiobooks stand out!
Have a good weekend!
19 comments
Somebody out there is interested in more books staring women over 60- I recently read and can recommend Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher (which I think I discovered in a MMD/WSIRN reading list.) A UK setting, and published in 2000, in this wonderful window of time right before smart phones, social media, TSA and terrorism, and all that other stuff that changed our world. It’s a nice story about people who could be real and nothing wicked happens. Satisfying.
I adore that book! Thanks for mentioning it here.
I found it recommended here too, and then found it for $1 in like new condition while waiting for my library copy.
Such a wonderful book. 💛
Thanks Anne!
I have read Winter Solstice multiple times and will continue to read it every year. One of my all time favorites.
Cute, quick cozy mystery series’ by Hope Callaghan – The Garden Girls (western Michigan situated), and The Cruise Ship mystery series (Millie is a cruise assistant, then director). I’ve read most books in both these series, and the Samantha Rite series (3 books), and she does have others as well. Just fun, quick mysteries featuring 60+ sleuths.
In the article about protagonists between 60-90, I love the sound of Ladies Lunch! But I’m surprised that she didn’t mention The Thursday Murder Club as well!
I love Ladies Lunch and also enjoyed the humor in Thursday Murder Club.
I tried a few spices from The Spice House and am now a complete convert… I’m slowly replacing all my old jars of spices as I run out, and have had fun trying some of their mixes. After smelling and tasting the difference, I can never go back to grocery store spices. And as a bonus, the jars are pretty and I can refill them (and get free shipping) by ordering flat-packs.
Not sure how I found Spice House, but I am glad I did. The other thing about the flat-packs, besides the free shipping, is that they are small enough for the spices to stay fresh. When I am low on a spice, I just order another flat pack.
You talk about a book about an older woman, I just finished the Shell Seekers, oh my, what a good book. I don’t know why I didn’t read it years ago when everyone was talking about it, but with my being a woman over 60 now, this book just spoke to me.
This was one of my top three books I read last year.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I have been searching for seasoned female protagonists for years. The NPR list is spot on…I have read Fellowship Point, just received Leaving and am on the Libby waiting list for Mrs. Quinn. And am seriously thinking about the other 2 titles. I understand that publishing has heard about this desire for more seasoned female protagonists and is responding. It is my hope that it does not become a bandwagon to jump on as a way to market crap! Anyone remember all the ‘Girl’ books after Gone Girl? Most of them were absolute garbage.
So fingers crossed about seasoned female protagonists!
I’m surprised the article about books centering seniors didn’t mention Remarkably Bright Creatures. I loved Tova’s story!
And 100 years of Lenni and Margot along with all of the Backman books outside of the bear series.
I’m reading this now, love it!!
If you loved The Shell Seekers and Winter Solstice, you would probably adore September by Rosamund Pincher. Her books are timeless and truly capture the intricacies of family life — and especially, the changing roles of the older women in the stories she creates.
Little did I know tbat I may be secretly Dutch since I have no problems with doing nothing.
My teenagers have mastered that Dutch art 😂
I read that book on niksen a few years ago and was not particularly impressed. Then, I read the online reviews and all the Dutch people were like, um, that really isn’t a thing here. That’s the impression I get from the Guardian article too.