• 2022

    My top 10 favs of 2022: A year spent reading, watching and listening to stories

    Over the past year, I consumed 61 books, 73 TV shows, 64 movies and many podcasts. These were my favorites.

    (Note: Not all were released during the past 365 days.)

     

    MY FAVORITE BOOKS – FICTION
     

    Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker1. “The Hidden Palace” by Helene Wecker

    2. “Child Zero” by Chris Holm

    3. “The Kaiju Preservation Society” by John Scalzi

    4. “Upgrade” by Blake Crouch

    5. “Shadow Deal” by M.L. McKnight

    6. “Death Moon” by Michael La Ronn

    7. “Mortal Terms” by Michael La Ronn

    8. “Snake Eyes” by Hillary Monahan

    9. “Three Parts Dead” by Max Gladstone

    10. “Oddball” by Sarah Andersen

    (Honorable mentions: “Running Blind” by Lee Child, “Fairy Tale” by Stephen King, “Cold Hard Magic” by M.L. McKnight, “Spirit Chaser” by M.L. McKnight and “Suicide Kings” by Stephen Blackmoore)

     

    MY FAVORITE BOOKS – NONFICTION
     

    in love by Amy Bloom1. “In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss” by Amy Bloom

    2. “On Animals” by Susan Orlean

    3. “The Premonition: A Pandemic Story” by Michael Lewis

    4. “A Walk Around the Block: Stoplight Secrets, Mischievous Squirrels, Manhole Mysteries & Other Stuff You See Every Day (And Know Nothing About)” by Spike Carlsen

    5. “Lily and the Octopus” by Steven Rowley

    6. “If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t)” by Betty White

    7. “Finding My Voice” by Nadiya Hussain

    8. “The Beauty of Dusk” by Frank Bruni

    9. “The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration Into the Wonder of Consciousness” by Sy Montgomery

    10. “My Life From Scratch” by Gesine Bullock-Prado

    (Honorable mentions: “100 Things We’ve Lost to the Internet” by Pamela Paul, “Funny Farm: My Unexpected Life with 600 Rescue Animals” by Laurie Zaleski, “Ten Tomatoes That Changed the World” by William Alexander, “The Nineties” by Chuck Klosterman and “About Time: A History of Civilization in Twelve Clocks” by David Rooney)

    Overall reading ratio: I read 17,927 pages. Books were split 65% fiction to 35% nonfiction and 55% female authors to 45% male authors.

     

     

    MY FAVORITE TV SHOWS
    GBBO1. The Great British Baking Show

    2. Sandman

    3. Stranger Things

    4. Escape to the Country

    5. Gardeners’ World

    6. Love Your Garden

    7. Julia

    8. Ted Lasso

    9. The Repair Shop

    10. Men In Kilts

    (Honorable mentions: Evil, The Great British Baking Show: Celebrity Edition, Nadiya Bakes, The Great American Baking Show, For All Mankind, America’s Test Kitchen — At Home, The Morning Show, The Gilded Age, Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Penelope Keith’s Hidden Villages, The Confession, Mike and Molly, Ghosts, Ghosts (UK), Kim’s Convenience, Jack Reacher, Junior Baking Show and Welcome to Wrexham.)

     

    MY FAVORITE MOVIES
     

    Last bus1. The Last Bus

    2. Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris

    3. The Loneliest Whale: The Search for 52

    4. Becoming Cousteau

    5. George Carlin’s American Dream

    6. Luck

    7. Sea Beast

    8. Hello, Bookstore

    9. Mr. Harrigan’s Phone

    10. The Dig

    (Honorable mentions: Jerry & Marge Go Large, The Last Movie Stars, Introducing Selma Blair, Free Guy, CODA, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Thor: Love and Thunder, The Adam Project, How to Survive a Pandemic, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, No Time to Die and Being the Ricardos)

     

    MY FAVORITE PODCASTS
     

    Vinyl Cafe1. The Vinyl Cafe

    2. GrimmCast

    3. Small Town Dicks

    4. Naked Lunch

    5. Against the Rules

    6. BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Podcast

    7. Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!

    8. Christmas Past

    9. Sue Perkins: An Hour Or So With….

    10. David Tennant Does a Podcast With…

    (Honorable mentions: Clear + Vivid With Alan Alda, The Christmas Stocking, Nocturne, The Book Case, Criminal, Death, Sex & Money, Backstory, Awards Chatter, Sidedoor and The Anthropocene Reviewed)

  • Tales from my book club

    The Manchester, NH chapter of the Silent Book Club used to meet in person, twice a month, at a local bookstore/cafe. Since the coronavirus pandemic began, our members have continued to gather via Zoom. Just like before, we chat about books and then read in silence for a whole hour. There are no assigned titles — we read what we want — and recommendations are freely shared.

    It is, quite simply, the perfect club for bibliophiles, introverts and people who just want to meet with others without having the pressure of required reading.

    Here is our chapter’s favorite books of the year:

     

    Silent Book Club Manchester Chapter's favorite books of 2022

     

    There’s probably a local chapter of the Silent Book Club near you. If you’re interested in joining, click here.

  • Books

    Bookish adventures and novel treats

    John Green, author/podcaster/vlogger/nerdfighter, recently shared a fabulous story about one book’s unlikely survival. Check it out:

     

     

    Has a book ever crossed your path in an unlikely fashion? Let me know in the comments. And watch this space to learn about the most prized book in my collection.

  • Christmas tree at night

    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… just a bit early

    Our neighbors across the street have this lovely house that looks a bit like a log cabin. The front features several big windows and a porch the length of the building where the owners stack the fuel for their fireplace. During the winter months, I love stepping outside at night to feel the cold air on my face, spy the smoke coming out of their chimney and smell that wonderful burning wood scent.

    Last week, the neighbors decided to ignore the calendar entirely and put up their artificial Christmas tree. My first thought was, “Surely, it’s too soon. It’s not even Thanksgiving yet!” Then, I reprimanded myself. So what if it’s early? Perhaps they need a little holiday cheer in their lives right now.

    The best part is… I get to enjoy their tree, too. When I’m sitting at my desk and working, I can peer out the window and see the colored lights of that tree shining brightly into the quiet of the night.

  • Quote of the day

    “Books hold most of the secrets of the world, most of the thoughts that men and women have had. And when you are reading a book, you and the author are alone together — just the two of you. A library is a good place to go when you feel unhappy, for there, in a book, you may find encouragement and comfort. A library is a good place to go when you feel bewildered or undecided, for there, in a book, you may have your question answered. Books are good company, in sad times and happy times, for books are people — people who have managed to stay alive by hiding between the covers of a book.” –E.B. White