It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday - Nov 2

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 November, everyone! Can you believe we are in month eleven of 2026? It blows my mind. Hope you had a nice week. Mine was good, yet emotionally exhausting. Last Thursday, I attended the ribbon-cutting for the new Veterans Home in Holyoke. It is amazing! I haven't been there since my father-in-law's death. It was nice, however, to connect with friends who also lost loved ones during the early months of the pandemic. Here are some photos from my week:

Date night dinner on Halloween

New Veterans Home in Holyoke, MA

Some of the Holyoke Soldiers' Home Coalition who advocated for the new home

Theo is not a fan of the scarecrow

Evening walk in our woods

Have you decided on your books for the Ho-Ho-Ho Readathon? Look for my post later this month.

I have decided that if I finish a book, it won't appear on my list for the week. I will simply post my review when it's time. If it is for a virtual book tour, the date that I plan to post the review will appear in the list of upcoming events. 

I still haven't started Harboring the Enemy: The Civil War Heroine History Forgot by R. C. Duffy yet. Not sure if I can before it expires. 

I bought an Audible copy of this book so I can read it in time. The TV MBA: Business Lessons from Popular Culture by Rhymer Rigby is great, though I find his reading speed hard to follow.

I am enjoying Starry-Eyed Christmas by Sheila Roberts. This is for a December review.

 

You can read my First Chapter Review of Shifta by Miles Joyner later today.

The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles still didn't get any attention this week. I wish I could get more downtime. Not looking likely with my work schedule and a trip to see the Lil' Princess coming up. 

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

I will be reading Just Enough Room for Christmas by Robin Currie soon. 

Upcoming Events

• 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. 

Only two new arrivals this week. One for review and one was free with a promotional credit. 

A Match Made at Christmas by Amy R. Anguish et al.

T is for Traffic Cone: The City Pigeon's Alphabet by Sarah Feingold

Christmas Year Round

This week's Journey through Christmases Past looks back at 1955. So many interesting things happened that year. 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. Check out the details here if you wish to participate. Space is limited. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Recent kidlit arrivals appear here.

Laura's Little Houses

Wished Michael Landon a happy birthday. He would have been 90 on Halloween. See that post here.

I also asked which Little House on the Prairie character I should profile next. Please weigh in here.

That's it for me. I am in and out today, so I will check in as I can. Enjoy your day!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Oct 19

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. 

Here we are at the next-to-last Monday of October. How has your month been going so far? I never did buy fall plants to decorate my porch. The house is barely decorated. I have so many wonderful ideas and little time to implement them. Oh, well! Next year could be different. I would much rather cook and bake than decorate anyway, which I've done a bunch of this month. I am hoping to make banana bread and Autumn Spiced Jam this week. Depends on how things go. I might have a listing that I didn't expect. The Lil' Princess is home for a few days, so I might steal some work hours to spend time with her. 

On Saturday, the Lil' Diva and one of her friends joined us at the Greek Festival at St. Luke's. On Sunday, my sisters and I went to the 5th Annual Mystic Apple Festival at Olde Mistick Village. It wasn't as thrilling as expected, but it was still fun. Here are a few photos:

Love me some good Greek food

Wooden Advent calendars (Will Santa bring me one?)

Would also like Santa to bring me this train

Irish omelette at Somewhere In Time Cafe (They have a Winnie the Pooh theme)

I thought of Travis and the Lil' Princess when I saw this ornament

ProWritingAid is hosting Novel November (NovNov) again this year. Is anyone participating? I doubt I will, but I might use some of that motivation to work on Sheltered Hearts. I am about halfway done. Considering that I want to participate in this year's Ho-Ho-Ho Readathon, writing time will be impacted. My brain could probably use the break. 

As far as reading goes, it was a better week than last week, but still not as productive as I needed to stay on top of my reading goals and commitments. 

I didn't open The Eyes of River by Cindy K. Sproles because all I really want to read is holiday fiction right now. Loved what I had read, and need to get back to it. 

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

I finished She Forgot She Was Free: Returning to the Girl You Were Before the World Got Loud by Giselle Mascarenhas. You can read my review here.

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

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

Continued with Building A StoryBrand 2.0: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen by Donald Miller. I might want to order this in printed form.  

I read the first few chapters of  Starry-Eyed Christmas by Sheila Roberts for a December review.

 

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

Upcoming Events

• Drive Down the Purchase Price of Your New Car by Dale Dallman - Oct 23 (Interview & Giveaway)
• 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 keep sharing new books. 

As is typical when I feel overwhelmed, I buy things. Usually books. I guess I could have worse habits. I grabbed Countdown to Christmas from Dianna Houx's Holiday Countdown series with credits. 

Arriving tomorrow is The Christmas Courier by Roseanna M. White. 

I also added Yuletide Murder at Sea by Sue A. Stewart and The Christmas Cottage by Fiona Baker to my Kindle Unlimited library. 

Christmas Year Round

I skipped Journey through Christmases Past this week because I was out with my sisters. However, I announced a new feature for authors coming up during the holiday season.

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. I already have my first two authors signed up. Space is limited. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

I reviewed Mixter's Monster Mash by Regan W. H. Macaulay. You can read that review here.

Laura's Little Houses

Still working on a character profile of Harriet Oleson. These take a fair amount of time, and I haven't had much time to spare lately. 

Phew! That was a lot. Hope you enjoyed traveling through my week with me. Looking forward to reading what you've been up to in the last seven days.