Life in a Small Town

Now that I'm back to reading, this link-up is just what I need. Look at the bottom of the post for the hosts, see what others are reading, and for inspiration for new books to read. Here are my books this month:

This book was just okay. I've had it in my Kindle for a long time, and I hope to empty it out so I can fill it back up. There were a lot of storylines in this book, all of them coming together as the characters came to live in the boarding house. After her grandparents, who raised her, passed away, Mary Kate moved to Dublin and had to work menial jobs and live in horrible boarding houses. Just as she is about to throw herself in the Liffey, the postman comes running toward her with a letter. Mary Kate finds out her mother died and left her a lot of money. Everyone loves Mary Kate, and she uses the money for good. In my opinion, the characters weren't able to be fully developed; they were really shallow. Perhaps if there weren't so many characters, it might have been better.

This is another book I have in my Kindle Unlimited that I'm trying to clear out to make room for more. The setting is Gdansk, Poland. Kasia (Katarina) has been in Warsaw and involved in the Resistance. She moves back to Gdansk after her father, the owner of a chocolate factory, suddenly passes away. Sebastian, her father's partner, takes over the factory since the Gestapo will not allow a woman, especially one who is half-German, half-Poland take over. Kasia's father had plans for Sebastian and Kasia to wed, but she had other ideas. Once Sebastian takes over the factory, Kasia has to act as if she's interested in him in order to keep her Polish mother and her brother safe. She didn't plan on falling in love with a Resistance fighter, but she did.

Kasia continued to work for the Resistance, using her new position at the factory to their advantage by delivering coded messages in the chocolate boxes. This period of time is fascinating to me; there were so many little pieces of the puzzle that had to come together for the Resistance. If you're looking for a quick, interesting read that is about WWII, this would be a good one to put on your "To Read" shelf.

This is a "coming of age" story set in Cornwall, England. When Judith's mother and little sister leave to meet her father in Colombo, Ceylon, she finds herself in a boarding school. She meets and becomes friends with Loveday, and instantly becomes one of the family. Judith is only 14 when she begins boarding school; her parents are thousands of miles away and moving farther away. She won't see them for 4 years! I can't imagine being left alone without my mother for that long, especially at that stage of life. Obviously, Judith is a much more confident, stronger teen than I was.

This book took me a long while to read. I thought it was a good book, but it was easy to put down, do something else, and then pick it back up later. It definitely wasn't a "page turner", in my opinion.

Last month, I shared a Matthew Kelly book that I read during Advent. This short book is all about "The Saint James Master Plan", based on James 3:2b-18. In a nutshell, it's all about being careful what you say, when you say it, how you say it, and why you say it. As in most of Matthew Kelly's books, he repeats things that I've read before. There were some "nuggets" in there, especially the chapter on "Talking to the Devil". Spiritual warfare is real, y'all. As he says, "one immutable truth when it comes to temptation: Don't dialogue with the devil-you cannot win that conversation", and, "Don't surrender the peace in your soul. Keep yourself busy. Pray. The temptation will pass. Learn to prize the peace in your soul above all else." It's not anything I didn't already know, but it was an excellent reminder.

This is a quick read, with, as I said, some real nuggets in there worth highlighting and reviewing.

For Catholics, this book is a must-read classic. This month, it was my "cheat book". There is a podcast called "Catholic Classics", and this was the book that was read and reviewed a couple of series ago. Before the reading of the section of the book, there is a preview of what is going to be read. After the reading, there is some discussion about what was read. So, a lot of chances for retaining! Saint Therese of Lisieux is one of the four female Doctors of the Catholic Church. She is also called "the little flower," and many miracles are attributed to her intercession. She was a Cloistered Carmelite Nun (meaning that she stayed in the monastery and had no contact with the outside world) who died at the age of 24. I've read this book before on my own, but reading it with the podcast brought more meaning to it. It was interesting to read about her younger self (she was a bit of a brat and a definite "daddy's girl"), as well as her life in the monastery.

Hop Shelf Book Club

The brewery book club that I belong to read 2 books this month. After the last 2, we all decided we needed something light to read.

Two authors who knew each other in college reunite over the summer. Her editor is anxiously awaiting the new book (which she can't seem to get started). She is a romance writer who is questioning whether love can truly exist; he writes literary fiction and has no belief in "happily ever after". They make a deal: she will write literary fiction, and he will write a romance book. They agree to write during the week and take the weekend to educate each other on their research techniques.

This was a good choice for the book club. I missed the discussion meeting because I was under the weather, but I can't imagine that there was anyone who didn't like it. I did get a little tired of the whole "I've got wounds", but other than that, it was a good read.

This is a book that I wouldn't normally read, mainly because of the title. I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. Nell considers herself to be (as the title would suggest) something less than she thinks she should be at this stage of her life. She just broke up with her fiancé and moved back to London from California. She's trying to get her life back together: she finally lands a part-time job, finds a room to rent, and meets Cricket, an 80-something new widow. While friends her age are in her life, the friendship between Nell and Cricket is what makes the book. The ending wasn't a surprise at all, but getting there was fun. And the quotes (mostly by Cricket)!!!

Don't worry about getting older, worry about becoming dull.
And yet how can the world keep on turning, business as usual, without them in it? As time moves on, the further away you become from the last moment you saw them. They retreat into your past as you travel into the future. The distance between you growing as their voice fades and the memories blur.
Embrace your sense of humor, don't ever take yourself too seriously, every day is another chance to laugh instead of cry, and when nothing is certain, everything is a hell of a lot less scary when you make fun of it. Amen.
The way I see it, you can grieve for someone and the past, but you've also got to live.
It's true what they say: life does go on and joy does return, and often it's in the most unexpected of places, but you never get over losing someone; you just get better at coping with it.
Don't worry too much about people liking you; liking yourself is far more important.
The best anti-aging secret is to stop looking in mirrors.
You never own a book; you just get to look after it until you pass it on to the next person.
There is no age limit on adventure. You're not too old, it's not too late, and yes you can.

This is next month's first book; we have another 2-book month in February. Phoebe is an adjunct professor of Victorian Literature and is married to a Philosophy Professor. After he has an affair and leaves her, she tries to go on, but decides to visit a hotel she always wanted to visit and end her life. But...it just so happens that the hotel is having a wedding that weekend and the bride has booked the hotel. They meet in the elevator, and Phoebe tells Lila (the bride) of her plan. Lila is a Bridezilla of the worst kind, but somehow, they form a friendship. Phoebe meets the groom while sitting in the hot tub, and, not knowing he is the groom, strikes up a conversation and finds herself attracted to him. The rest of the book explores the bride & groom's relationship, and Phoebe (being the wise professor) becomes the counselor for everyone. She's a bit of a goody-two-shoes (in my opinion); not very realistic, but it works for the story plot.

This book was okay; it's not one that I would tell people they must read, but it was okay.

If you need ideas for what to read next, check out the host's blogs:

Slices of Life

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. The Winter Olympics kick off on Friday, February 6th...on a scale of 1-10 how excited are you? (1= eh and 10=watching every event all day every day). What's your favorite Winter Olympic sporting event?

I'd give it about a 3. I don't think the Olympics are what they used to be; maybe because it's changed from being amateur athletes to allowing professionals in. I like watching the speed skaters and the ski jump. Figure skating is also one I enjoy.

2. In other sporting news, the Superbowl (American football's championship game) will be played on Sunday, February 8th. So tell us...what's your superpower?

Surely I have one, but I can't think of any!

3. Are you a romantic?

I used to be but now I think I'm more of a realist. I do like to watch the Hallmark Channel from time to time (until it starts getting monotonous!)

4. Blue cheese-yay or nay? How about feta? If you said yes to one or both, what's a dish you like that calls for one of these?

Blue cheese: not so much. Feta: it depends on what it's on. Like a good Greek Salad. Don't put it on my pizza, though!

5. What's more important-doing what you love or loving what you do?

I think there's something to be said for both. When I worked, I would say both of those applied. It didn't feel like a job; I loved it and it defined me for most of the 39 years of my life that I worked. If you do what you love, aren't you also loving what you do?

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Whew! What a weekend! I like the snow, but I could do without the frigid temperatures. And this whole business of being a homeowner and having to take care of things (or see that things get done) is for the birds. I feel very fortunate that the 1 problem I had (which was actually very minor) was fixable, and one of my sons helped me with that. The problem: I have a gas furnace, and the tube that carries the water out of the condenser is (obviously) outside. So the water in the tube freezes, which causes it to back up and leak onto the basement floor. Now that the basement is complete (for the most part), there is a little bit of worry about the sheetrock getting wet. OS helped me fix the problem, so hopefully it won't happen again. Or will be minimal, at least.

So, not a huge problem but just a bit of a pain. I didn't lose power (like the Nashville area did the week before) and I have heat, so I'm definitely counting my blessings.