It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday - Oct 26

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and are about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

Welcome to the last Monday of October. Can you believe how fast we got here? Christmas is less than 60 days away! I will never be ready this year, but spending time with family counts the most. 

Hope you had a fabulous week. Mine flew by. It was filled with appointments, another visit from the Lil' Princess, training, and tossing around some business plan ideas for 2027. Here are photos of the other fun things: 

Our evening walk behind the house

Fall looks good from my driveway

Tweaked the Autumn Spiced Jam recipe I found on Insta

ChatGPT fun of asking the AI to put me in a TV show it thinks I should be in

Lazy Sunday morning for Theo and Travis

ProWritingAid is hosting Novel November (NovNov) again this year. I might do some writing, but I won't participate. Our local writers guild is also holding a November event. I will cheer from the sidelines. 

Have you decided on your books for the Ho-Ho-Ho Readathon? I will create a post for my list in November. Who knows how many I will get to, but it will be fun anyway.

This week's reading world looked like this:

Poor The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles didn't get any attention this week. 

I still haven't started Harboring the Enemy: The Civil War Heroine History Forgot by R. C. Duffy yet. 

I read more of  The TV MBA: Business Lessons from Popular Culture by Rhymer Rigby. Such fascinating material. 

Look for my review of  Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower in December.

Finished Building A StoryBrand 2.0: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen by Donald Miller. Check out my review here. I also finished The Knot: Problems Can Be Solved by Seth Godin. You will find that review at the same link. 

Read more from Starry-Eyed Christmas by Sheila Roberts. This is for a December review.

 

I plan to read Shifta by Miles Joyner for a First Chapter Review coming November 2.

I am also looking forward to reading Soledad and the Curse of the Phoenix by Mindy Baker. 

Upcoming Events

• Shifta by Miles Joyner - Nov 2 (First Chapter Review)
• Yuletide Murder at Sea by Sue Stewart - Nov 4 (Interview)
• Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower - Dec 14 (Review)
• Starry-Eyed for Christmas by Sheila Roberts - Dec 16 (Review)
• Sugar Sand Land by Patricia Leavy - Dec 17 (Spotlight & Giveaway)

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme was last hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. It appears to be on hiatus, but I will keep sharing new books. 

Somebody, please stop me! I grabbed a few Kindle freebies and an audiobook since we last visited. I also ordered three used books and the latest from Sheila Roberts. That should be it for 2026, though I might have one more Audible purchase in me. 

I Once Knew A Guy Named Charlie by Jacklyn Smith

Blogging for Today's Writer by Edie Melson

Have Yourself A Merry Little Meltdown by Sheila Roberts

The Mistletoe Express by Tara Baisden

Montana Christmas Magic by Kaylie Newell

Once Upon a Christmas by Jane Porter

A Home in the West by Lori Copeland and Virginia Smith

Christmas Year Round

This week's Journey through Christmases Past looks into the tumultuous year of 1837. Find my post here. 

Authors are signing up for my latest idea. The Christmas Memory Collection will feature authors sharing memories, traditions, and other holiday stories. If you wish to participate, you can find the details here. Space is limited. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

This week, I posted a few Halloween books for kids and teens that were released this year. You can find that post here.

Laura's Little Houses

Thanks to some time off, I finished my character profile of Harriet Oleson. If you loved Katherine MacGregor's portrayal as much as I did, you can read that post here.

That's all from me this week. By the time we reconnect for next week's post, November will be here. Bring on the holiday season!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday - Oct 12

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and are about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

Welcome back to Monday! I hope you had a wonderful week. Mine was filled with gardening, eating out, networking events, and real estate offers. Here are a few photos:

Found these potatoes hiding in the dirt when I emptied the growing bags. That always happens. 

Grabbed a bite to eat for lunch while working one day. It's good to treat yourself every once in a while.

Hanging out with one of the lenders I know. Won a great picnic backpack filled with fun stuff. 

Today, the Lil' Princess is coming home for a few days, which makes me happy. 

As far as reading goes, it was a slower week than expected. I didn't open The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles last week. 

I haven't started Harboring the Enemy: The Civil War Heroine History Forgot by R. C. Duffy yet, but I better soon. 

I finished She Forgot She Was Free: Returning to the Girl You Were Before the World Got Loud by Giselle Mascarenhas. Look for my review on October 14.

I read a bit of The TV MBA: Business Lessons from Popular Culture by Rhymer Rigby. 

I finished Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower. Look for the review in December.

I finished The Knot: Problems Can Be Solved by Seth Godin this week. Liked the contents. Probably need it in printed form to make the most of it. 

Then I started Building A StoryBrand 2.0: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen by Donald Miller. This book is fascinating so far. 

 

Upcoming Events

• She Forgot She Was Free by Giselle Mascarenhas - Oct 14 (Review)
• Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower - Dec 14 (Review)
• Starry-Eyed for Christmas by Sheila Roberts - Dec 16 (Review)
• Sugar Sand Land by Patricia Leavy - Dec 17 (Spotlight & Giveaway)

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme was last hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. It appears to be on hiatus, but I keep sharing new books. 

Two new holiday books arrived this week. 

Starry-Eyed Christmas by Sheila Roberts for a December review.

I grabbed The Wish Book Christmas by Lynn Austin from my wish list. 

Christmas Year Round

This week's Journey through Christmases Past post is about Columbus, Indigenous celebrations, and Canada. Check it out here. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Recent reviews at The Children's and Teens' Book Connection include:

Day in the Snow by Fiona Craig

Counting Winter by Nancy White Carlstrom

I also added another "What Do You Think?" post. This one is about favorite children's books. You can read that here. 

Laura's Little Houses

I am currently working on a character profile of Harriet Oleson. 

Lots going on, but it is all fun stuff. Hoping to take Wednesday off so I can spend time with our daughter before she heads back to Maine on Friday. That's it from my end of the world. Enjoy your week!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday - Oct 5

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and are about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date. 

Happy first Monday of October! Hope you had a great week. We had typical New England weather, cool one day and summer temperatures the next. After my closings on Wednesday, I appreciated a few slower work days. On Saturday, I tackled my first fall cleaning task: getting my upstairs office in order. I'm still working on it. That room will become my writing room, away from the many distractions stealing my attention in my new downstairs office. 

Here are a few photos from the week:

Theo taking a breather after our walk

Travis invades Paddy's space if he dares to sit down

Leaves are turning in our woods

Last week was another decent week of reading and reviewing. I brought The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles downstairs so that I can begin it again. Too much time has passed for me to recall the first few chapters. 

Posted my review of Massawa by Pam Webber on Monday. You can find that here.

Posted my review of Beginner's Guide to Using an AI Assistant by Hank Quense.You can find it here.

I posted short reviews of two books I listened to thanks to Audible: How to Train Your Mind by Chris Bailey and God's Purpose for Your Life by Charles F. Stanley. You can read those reviews here.

I haven't started Harboring the Enemy: The Civil War Heroine History Forgot by R. C. Duffy yet, but I will soon because of the time limit.

I am reading She Forgot She Was Free: Returning to the Girl You Were Before the World Got Loud by Giselle Mascarenhas. This is for a review on October 14. 

I started The TV MBA: Business Lessons from Popular Culture by Rhymer Rigby. 

I am also reading Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower for a December review.

I am waiting for the arrival of Starry-Eyed Christmas by Sheila Roberts for a December review. 

Upcoming Events

• She Forgot She Was Free by Giselle Mascarenhas - Oct 14 (Review)
• Still Wild: Poems from the Bear Shack by Suzanne Sunshower - Dec 14 (Review)
• Starry-Eyed for Christmas by Sheila Roberts - Dec 16 (Review)
• Sugar Sand Land by Patricia Leavy - Dec 17 (Spotlight & Giveaway)

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme was last hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. It appears to be on hiatus, but I keep sharing new books. 

I pre-ordered a new book by Jill Kemerer, which arrived last week. Isn't the cover for His First Country Christmas lovely? This is part of what attracts me to Jill's books. 

Christmas Year Round

My Christmas blog is getting busier as we head into the holidays. Recent posts include:

• Getting Ready for the Holidays - Desserts
• Journey Through Christmases Past - Christmas Television Specials From 1948 - 1978

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Recent reviews at The Children's and Teens' Book Connection include:

• Turkey's Fall Fumble by Wendi Silvano. Read the review here.
• Luna and the Lost Cove by Aria Joy Prichard. This review appears here.

Day in the Snow by Fiona Craig and Counting Winter by Nancy White Carlstrom are coming later this week. 

Laura's Little Houses

In honor of what would have been Michael Landon's 90th birthday on October 31, I am sharing Halloween episodes of Little House on the Prairie. You can read that article here.

Wow! That was a lot. Hopefully, these posts are still engaging to you. I'm looking forward to checking out your blogs today.