ADVENT
3 Days to Christmas!
Monday, December 22, 2025
Sunday, December 21, 2025
Saturday, December 20, 2025
Portraits of Philosophers by Minco van der Weide -- BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Portraits of Philosophers by Minco van der Weide (Platonic Press 2025)
While studying philosophy at Cambridge, filmmaker Minco van der Weide started making a documentary featuring contemporary philosophers. The project combined Minco’s love of photography with his interest in philosophy. The project developed into a new book, Portraits of Philosophers, out now from Platonic Press in a gorgeous, linen-bound coffee table edition.
Minco interviewed 13 influential philosophers, asking them to discuss “what constitutes a life well-lived, what love is, where to find purpose, and how to face suffering with wisdom.” He crafted these interviews into verbal portraits of these living philosophers, presented along with his striking black and white photographic portraits. The philosophers come from different backgrounds, speak with their own voices, and approach the questions from varied perspectives. The questions asked invite no easy answers and the ideas presented sometimes contradict each other.
This is not a typical coffee table book of beautiful pictures with little substance. The photographs are a stirring enhancement to the rather dense thinking expressed in the text. This isn’t a book to flip through but to savor. Readers may wrestle with the ideas they encounter, but Minco encourages that struggle as his readers confront their own understanding of the human condition.
PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
Portraits of Philosophers is an elegant, clothbound coffee table book that pairs striking photographic portraits with intimate interviews about philosophy. It captures the presence and the ideas of some of the most influential philosophers of our time.
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER
Platonic Press is a UK independent publisher turning profound ideas into beautifully made, readable books. We pair lucid writing with intimate access to leading thinkers, creating clothbound volumes that invite conversation as much as they reward reflection. For retailers: cross-category appeal, strong display presence, and full partner support—with flexible wholesale terms and stock-free dropshipping.
NOTES
Portraits of Philosophers is out now and available through Platonic Press and select booksellers. Platonic Press was kind enough to send me a review copy of this new book. Thank you, Platonic!
Varsity magazine published an interesting profile of van der Weide that you can read online here.
Friday, December 19, 2025
Thursday, December 18, 2025
Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies -- BOOK BEGINNINGS
BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS
Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies
Thank you for joining me for Book Beginnings on Fridays. Please share the opening sentence (or so) of the book you are reading this week. You can also share from a book that caught your fancy, even if you are not reading it right now.
MY BOOK BEGINNING
"It's going to be a great nuisance for both of us," said Freddy. "Couldn't you make a fuss about it, Tom?"-- fromm Tempest-Tost by Robertson Davies.
Tempest-Tost is the first novel in Robertson Davies' Salterton Trilogy set in a fictional Canadian university town. This first book, published in 1951, is a comedy of manners focusing on an amateur production of Shakespeare's The Tempest.
I loved Davies's Deptford and Cornish Trilogies so much that I've put off reading the Salterton books because then I will have no more to look forward to. That may sound silly but makes sense in book world!
The Friday 56 is a natural tie-in with Book Beginnings. The idea is to share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of your featured book. If you are reading an ebook or audiobook, find your teaser from the 56% mark.
Freda at Freda's Voice started and hosted The Friday 56 for a long, long time. She is taking a break and Anne at My Head is Full of Books has taken on hosting duties in her absence. Please visit Anne's blog and link to your Friday 56 post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from Tempest-Tost:
YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS
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THE FRIDAY 56
Freda at Freda's Voice started and hosted The Friday 56 for a long, long time. She is taking a break and Anne at My Head is Full of Books has taken on hosting duties in her absence. Please visit Anne's blog and link to your Friday 56 post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from Tempest-Tost:
She did not seek to thrust herself upon her goddess; she wished only to love and serve Mrs. Caesar Augustus Conquergood, to support and if such a thing were possible, increase her grandeur. If Mrs. Caesar Augustus Conquergood's name might appear, alone, at the top of an otherwise double column of patrons of the Salterton Little Theatre then, in Nellie's judgment, the drama had justified its existence, Thespis had not rolled his car in vain, and Shakespeare was accorded a posthumous honor which he barely deserved.
This elaborate writing tyle might not be to everyone's taste, but it make me laugh so I like it. I love a good, shaggy novel with lots of humor and lots of plot.
FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
Weaving a tapestry of wonderfully developed characters, smoldering rivalries, and witty satire, Robertson Davies introduces the first book in the Salterton Trilogy.
An amateur production of The Tempest provides a colorful backdrop for a hilarious look at unrequited love. Mathematics teacher Hector Mackilwraith, stirred and troubled by Shakespeare’s play, falls in love with the beautiful heiress Griselda Webster. When Griselda shows she has plans of her own, Hector despairs on the play’s opening night.
Wednesday, December 17, 2025
The 2026 European Reading Challenge -- WRAP UP PAGE
THE 2026 EUROPEAN READING CHALLENGE
WRAP UP PAGE
THIS IS THE PAGE FOR WRAP UP POSTS
TO LIST YOUR REVIEWS, GO TO THIS PAGE
TO SIGN UP, GO TO THE MAIN CHALLENGE PAGE, HERE, OR CLICK THE BUTTON ABOVE
LINK YOUR POST
When you complete the 2026 European Reading Challenge at whatever level you signed up for, please do a wrap up post and enter a link to your post here. Please link to your wrap up post, NOT the main page of your blog or social media profile.
A wrap up post can be very simple. You can do a separate post on your blog or social media platform. Or, if you participate in the challenge on your blog and just update your original post without doing a separate wrap up post, that's OK too. Just post a link to your updated post here. If you participate on social media, please do some kind of wrap up post listing the books you read and link it here.
OR LEAVE A COMMENT
If you want, you can also simply leave a comment below listing the books you read. Please include your name, the names of the books, the authors of the books, and the countries of the books.
WANT THE PRIZE? WRAP IT UP!
Without some kind of wrap up post, I don't have any way to know if you finished the challenge. I like to know so I can visit everyone. But it is more important if you are competing for the Jet Setter Prize. If you want to compete for the prize, you have to leave a wrap up post or I will have no way to know if you visited more countries than the other people competing with you. This is also why you need to identify the country of your book. I don't want to guess and I don't want to research.
When I announce the prize winner, Honorable Mention will go to the participants who visited the most countries (but not as many as the winner), with links to their wrap up posts. If you don't link a wrap up post, I won't be able to find you.
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NOTE ABOUT DATES
You have until December 31, 2026, to finish reading the books. You have until January 31, 2027, to finish your reviews and your wrap up post. I will announce the winner as soon as possible after January 31, 2027.
The 2026 European Reading Challenge -- REVIEW PAGE
THE 2026 EUROPEAN READING CHALLENGE
REVIEW PAGE
THIS IS THE PAGE TO LIST YOUR REVIEWS
IF YOU HAVE FINISHED, WRAP UP POSTS GO ON THIS PAGE
TO SIGN UP, GO TO THE MAIN CHALLENGE PAGE, HERE, OR CLICK THE BUTTON ABOVE
LINK YOUR REVIEWS HERE
Please add links to your review posts in the Linky box below. Please put your name and/or the name of your blog or social media handle, the name of the book you reviewed, and the country of the book or author. For example: Gilion at Rose City Reader, War and Peace, Russia.
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When you review a book for the 2026 European Reading Challenge, please add it to this list using the Linky widget above. Please link to your review post, NOT the main page of your blog or social media account.
You do not need a blog to participate. If you review books on Instagram, Facebook, goodreads, or some other platform that generates a URL, you can add link to the review in the Linky box above the same as a link to a blog post. Please link to the review, not your profile page. If you have questions about how to find the URL for a social media review post, leave a comment to ask me, email me at gilion at dumasandvaughn dot com, or DM me on Instagram @gilioncdumas. Please follow me on Instagram before you DM me or your message will be hidden and I probably won't see it.
REVIEWS
You do not have to review books to complete the European Reading Challenge. You can complete the challenge simply by reading one to five books (or more), each set in a different European country or written by an author from a different European country. But if you do review books, please link your reviews here so other people can find them.
Also, if you want to win the Jet Setter Prize, you have to review the books. Only books reviewed count for the prize. If you are competing for the prize, definitely link your reviews here. You can link all your reviews, but only one book per country counts towards the prize.
WRAP UP
If you complete the challenge, please link some kind of wrap up post on the wrap up page. That way, I know who finished the challenge. If you do not do a wrap up post separate from your sign up post -- you just update your original post -- that's fine! But please, please, please link to the updated post after you finish the challenge. It is too hard for me to count all your reviews to figure out if you finished the challenge or not. If you are going for the prize, you have to leave a wrap up link so I know you are in the running.
NOTE ABOUT DATES
You have to finish reading all books by December 31, 2026. You have until January 31, 2027, to finish your reviews and your wrap up post. I will announce the winner(s) as soon as possible after January 31, 2027.
Tuesday, December 16, 2025
Monday, December 15, 2025
Sunday, December 14, 2025
Saturday, December 13, 2025
The TBR 26 in '26 Challenge -- WRAP UP PAGE
WRAP UP PAGE
FOR THE TBR 26 IN '26 CHALLENGE
January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2026
THIS IS THE PAGE TO LINK YOUR WRAP UP POSTS
TO LINK A REVIEW, GO TO THIS PAGE
TO SIGN UP FOR THE CHALLENGE, GO TO THE MAIN CHALLENGE PAGE OR CLICK THE CHALLENGE BUTTON ABOVE
LINK YOUR WRAP UP POSTS HERE
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WRAP UP LINKS
If you complete the challenge, please link some kind of wrap up post in the Linky box above. That way, I know who finished the challenge. If you just update your original post and do not do a wrap up post separate from your sign up post that's fine! Please still add the link to the updated post in the box above.
If you have trouble adding your link, leave it in a comment and I will add it or email me your link at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com and I will add it for you. Please put your name and the name of the your blog or your social media handle and the platform in the comment or email so I can find you. Thanks!
REVIEWS
If you review a book for the TBR 26 in '26 Challenge, please add the link to your review on the review page. Please link to your review post, not the main page of your blog or social media account.
You do not have to have a blog to participate in this challenge. If you review books on Instagram, goodreads, or some other social media, use the link from your social media review post in the Linky box on the review page. Please link to the review, not your profile page. If you have questions about how to find the URL for a social media review post, leave a comment, email me at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com, or DM me on Instagram @gilioncdumas.
The TBR 26 in '26 Challenge -- REVIEW PAGE
REVIEW PAGE
FOR THE TBR 26 IN '26 CHALLENGE
January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2026
THIS IS THE PAGE TO LIST YOUR REVIEWS
IF YOU HAVE FINISHED, WRAP UP POSTS GO ON THIS PAGE
TO SIGN UP, GO TO THE MAIN CHALLENGE PAGE OR CLICK THE BUTTON ABOVE
LINK YOUR REVIEWS HERE
Please put your name and/or the name of your blog or social media handle and the name of the book you reviewed. (EX: Rose City Reader, War & Peace, or @gilioncdumas, Pride & Prejudice.) Please link to your review post and not your blog home page or main social media profile page.
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LINKS
If you review a book for the TBR 26 in '26 Challenge, please add the link to your review in the Linky box above. Please link to your review post, not the main page of your blog or social media account.
You do not have to have a blog to participate in this challenge. If you review books on Instagram, goodreads, or some other social media, use the link from your social media review post in the Linky box above. Please link to the review, not your profile page. If you have questions about how to find the URL for a social media review post, leave a comment, email me at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com, or DM me on Instagram @gilioncdumas.
If you have trouble adding your link, leave it in a comment and I will add it or email me your link at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com and I will add it for you. Please put your name and the name of the book you reviewed in the comment or email. Thanks!
BOOKS AND REVIEWS
You do not have to review books to complete the TBR 26 in '26 Challenge.
The only point of the challenge is to clear 26 books off your TBR shelf in 2026. You can pick all of them them ahead of time, some of them, or none of them. You can choose at whim. If you pick them, you can change your mind later and switch books. The only "rule" is that you must own the book before January 1, 2026.
Your TBR shelf can include a virtual shelf of ebooks or audiobooks, as long as you owned them prior to January 1, 2026. It does not include library books.
This is supposed to be fun!
WRAP UP
If you complete the challenge, please link some kind of wrap up post on the wrap up page. That way, I know who finished the challenge. If you just update your original post and do not do a wrap up post separate from your sign up post that's fine too! But please still add the link to the updated post on the wrap up page.
If you review a book for the TBR 26 in '26 Challenge, please add the link to your review in the Linky box above. Please link to your review post, not the main page of your blog or social media account.
You do not have to have a blog to participate in this challenge. If you review books on Instagram, goodreads, or some other social media, use the link from your social media review post in the Linky box above. Please link to the review, not your profile page. If you have questions about how to find the URL for a social media review post, leave a comment, email me at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com, or DM me on Instagram @gilioncdumas.
If you have trouble adding your link, leave it in a comment and I will add it or email me your link at gilion (at) dumasandvaughn (dot) com and I will add it for you. Please put your name and the name of the book you reviewed in the comment or email. Thanks!
BOOKS AND REVIEWS
You do not have to review books to complete the TBR 26 in '26 Challenge.
The only point of the challenge is to clear 26 books off your TBR shelf in 2026. You can pick all of them them ahead of time, some of them, or none of them. You can choose at whim. If you pick them, you can change your mind later and switch books. The only "rule" is that you must own the book before January 1, 2026.
Your TBR shelf can include a virtual shelf of ebooks or audiobooks, as long as you owned them prior to January 1, 2026. It does not include library books.
This is supposed to be fun!
WRAP UP
If you complete the challenge, please link some kind of wrap up post on the wrap up page. That way, I know who finished the challenge. If you just update your original post and do not do a wrap up post separate from your sign up post that's fine too! But please still add the link to the updated post on the wrap up page.
Friday, December 12, 2025
Thursday, December 11, 2025
The Santa Klaus Murder by Mavis Doriel Hay -- BOOK BEGINNINGS
BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS
The Santa Klaus Murder by Mavis Doriel Hay
Thank you for joining me for Book Beginnings on Fridays. Please share the opening sentence (or so) of the book you are reading this week. You can also share from a book that caught your fancy, even if you are not reading it right now.
MY BOOK BEGINNING
I have known the Melbury family since the time when Jennifer, the youngest daughter, and I climbed trees and built wigwams together in the Flaxmere garden.-- from The Santa Klaus Murder by Mavis Doriel Hay. I like that beginning. You can tell from the get go this is a country house mystery because "Flaxmere" just sounds like the name of a Stately Home of England. I adore country house mysteries, especially one set at Christmas.
The Santa Klause Murder is a Golden Age crime novel first published in 1936. The British Library reprinted it in 2013 as part of its Classic Crime series. The BLCC series features many Christmas-themed mysteries and I'd like to read them all. My book club picked this one for our December meeting.
The Friday 56 is a natural tie-in with Book Beginnings. The idea is to share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of your featured book. If you are reading an ebook or audiobook, find your teaser from the 56% mark.
Freda at Freda's Voice started and hosted The Friday 56 for a long, long time. She is taking a break and Anne at My Head is Full of Books has taken on hosting duties in her absence. Please visit Anne's blog and link to your Friday 56 post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from The Santa Klause Mystery:
YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS
Please add the link to your Book Beginnings post in the box below. If you share on social media, please use the #bookbeginnings hashtag.Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Thumb-Linky widget will appear right here!
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THE FRIDAY 56
Freda at Freda's Voice started and hosted The Friday 56 for a long, long time. She is taking a break and Anne at My Head is Full of Books has taken on hosting duties in her absence. Please visit Anne's blog and link to your Friday 56 post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from The Santa Klause Mystery:
Ladey Evershot, who has no little ones of her own, is never behindhand in giving her opinion about other people's, and she seemed to have some idea that Santa Klaus was old-fashioned and the children would see through him. Well, I must say I like a bit of old-fashioned fun at this festive season myself.
FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
Aunt Mildred declared that no good could come of the Melbury family Christmas gatherings at their country residence Flaxmere. So when Sir Osmond Melbury, the family patriarch, is discovered―by a guest dressed as Santa Klaus―with a bullet in his head on Christmas Day, the festivities are plunged into chaos. Nearly every member of the party stands to reap some sort of benefit from Sir Osmond's death, but Santa Klaus, the one person who seems to have every opportunity to fire the shot, has no apparent motive. Various members of the family have their private suspicions about the identity of the murderer, and the Chief Constable of Haulmshire, who begins his investigations by saying that he knows the family too well and that is his difficulty, wishes before long that he understood them better. In the midst of mistrust, suspicion and hatred, it emerges that there was not one Santa Klaus, but two.
Wednesday, December 10, 2025
Red & Green Books to Put You in the Holiday Spirit -- BOOK THOUGHTS
BOOK THOUGHTS
Red & Green Books to Put You in the Holiday Spirit
I'm in a festive mood because I finished my last trial yesterday. The last one! I've practiced law for over 33 years, the last 18 spent working with adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. My work was rewarding and I love the clients I've helped over the years. But I now have one foot and the toes of the other over the line to retirement. There’s still a fair bit of administrative wind up for my last cases, but (knock wood) I won’t have to go to court again. I loved my lawyer career, but I’m ready to spend time with my retired lawyer husband.
Now I plan to spend more time playing with my books, like this, and reading them. See any books here you’d read or have? I started A Christmas Treasury and am enjoying it tremendously. Just what I needed tto transition from work-mode to holiday-mode.
Blood Upon the Snow (1944) by Hilda Lawrence
The Case of the Abominable Snowman (1941) by Nicholas Blake
A Holiday for Murder (1938) by Agatha Christie
The Gilded Man (1942) by Carter Dickson
Singin’ and Swingin’ and Gettin’ Merry Like Christmas (1976) by Maya Angelou
Christmas Stories by Charles Dickens
Elizabeth David’s Christmas (2003 compilation) by Elizabeth David
The Drunken Botanist (2013) by Amy Stewart
Evergreen (2023) by Lydia Millen
A Christmas Treasury of Yuletide Stories & Poems (1994), edited by James Charlton and Barbara Gilson
Snow White and Other Grimms' Fairy Tales (2022 MinaLima Edition) by The Brothers Grimm
The St. Nicholas Anthology (1952) edited by Henry Steele Commager
The German Christmas Cookbook (2023) by Jürgen Krauss
Downton Abbey Christmas Cookbook (2020) by Regula Ysewijn
Alpine Style: Bringing Mountain Magic Home (2024) by Kathryn O’Shea-Evans
Tuesday, December 9, 2025
Monday, December 8, 2025
If We Still Lived Where I was Born by Maria Giura -- BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
If We Still Lived Where I was Born by Maria Giura
I try to read poetry every morning, but I am no student of the genre. I don’t know what makes a poem a “good” poem or what I should look for in poetry to judge its merit. I feel a little intimidated by poetry. This all makes it difficult for me to review books of poems and I usually avoid doing so. But I thought Maria Giura’s memoir, Celibate, was fascinating and well-written, so I was willing to read and review her new poetry collection, If We till Lived Where I was Born.
I’m glad I did. Giura’s poems are accessible, evocative, and interesting. They read like little stories, mostly about her life with her extended Italian-American family. They are thoughtful in tone but never maudlin. The way they focus on everyday matters stirs up similar memories that make them easy to relate to. One called “December 8” I particularly liked and, since today is December 8, it is the perfect one to share:
Our mother always waited untilIf We Still Lived Where I was Born is a collection of poems that can be appreciated and enjoyed by poetry connoisseurs and readers like me who shy away from poetry. I highly recommend Giura’s new book.
the Immaculate Conception,
before she decorated.
She pulled out
garland and lights
and the gold, antique fruit,
danced the Christmas tree
into its red-bowl stand.
She sprayed the windows
with snow
and belted
Christmas Card to You
with my sisters and me.
She tied the mistletoe
and spread the tablecloths,
hand made ornaments she hung with satin string.
Outside she wrapped lights
around both sides of our house,
fixed colored bulbs into the Holy Family
except for Jesus dim in His hay.
She baked and shopped, wrapped and cooked,
poured herself out.
In other homes, Christmas started
the day after Thanksgiving,
but we waited.
How could the Savior of the world be born
without his mother,
how could I have learned
to cherish my faith
without mine?
NOTE
FROM THE PUBLISHER’S DESCRIPTION
In Maria Giura's If We Still Lived Where I Was Born, the narrator unlocks the meaning she's made of her childhood and heritage, spirituality and lost loves and draws the reader in to retrieve their own. The collection begins in the apartment above her parents' Brooklyn pastry shoppe where she imagines them still fighting, still making us, still together, then shifts to adulthood where she learns to stay still long enough to listen for the story, and then returns to childhood where her mother and aunts teach their kids to spread out their blankets and live. Moving between New York and Italy, between family and "stranger," these poems show longing and vulnerability, but also the thrill of being young and part of something larger than oneself, of making peace, and pursuing the path you were meant to. They brim with the people and places that have taught her the most and ring with pathos and celebration, from her immigrant father waiting for her on the corner . . . bread in his hand to the sister who pulled the music out of her, helped her make her own song. Beginning with a journey to a literal birth place and extending outward to many figurative places of self-discovery, this collection explores what lasts when all else passes away.
Sunday, December 7, 2025
Saturday, December 6, 2025
November 2025 Monthly Wrap Up -- BOOK THOUGHTS
BOOK THOUGHTS
November 2025 Monthly Wrap Up
My Life as a Man (1974) by Philip Roth. This was a mobius strip of a book. It starts with two short stories featuring a Nate Zuckerman prototype. The second part is a novel about Peter Tarnopol, the author of the two stories, which turn out to be based on his (also fictional) life. Both the Tarnopol and Zuckerman are alter egos of Roth, so it really spirals around itself. Only Roth could pull of a stunt like this.
Highland Fling (1931) by Nancy Mitford, her first novel. Although not as polished as her later novels, The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate, this was a fun country house romp reminiscent of Evelyn Waugh or Anthony Powell.
The Devil’s Advocate (1959) by Morris West was an undercover gem. I loved it! It is the story of a terminally ill priest assigned to investigate the possible sainthood (ie: play the Devil's advocate) of a man who died in the war in an Italian village. It won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize in 1959.
Persuasion (1817) by Jane Austen, my final reread in celebration of her semiquincentennial.
Brazil (1994) by John Updike. This was an odd one about star crossed lovers in Brazil. There's a cross country adventure, gold mining, cannibals, and a fantastical twist that turns the story on its head. Add a lot, lot, lot of graphic sex to confirm that this one was not for me even though Updike is one of my favorite authors. Apparently, when you are as successful as him, you get to experiment.
Shake Hands Forever and A Sleeping Life, both in The Third Wexford Omnibus by Ruth Rendell. These are books nine and ten in her Inspector Wexford series, which I like more and more as I work my way through it.
Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau. This short book was the last in a boxed set of Thoreau’s major works. I finally finished the others, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, Walden, and The Maine Woods, so, being a completist, I reread this one.
L’Appart: The Delights and Disasters of Making My Paris Home by David Lebovitz. I always enjoy a good expat memoir and this one adds cooking (with recipes) and a disastrous home remodel, so it was extra fun.
Girls in Their Wedded Bliss (1964) with Epilogue (1986) by Edna O’Brien. This is the sad, final book in her Country Girls Trilogy.
Falstaff (1976) by Robert Nye. This 1975 book of historical fiction has been on my TBR shelf for years. It is the fictional autobiography of Shakespeare’s beloved comedic character. His picaresque adventures were highly entertaining. Not only did he participate in the historical highlights of the 1400s, he met other Shakespeare characters along the way. But the sex talk was over the top. It went from bawdy to downright raunchy to sometimes pornographic. A little went a long way and a lot went too far. I’m glad I read it but it’s not for the faint of heart. The book is on Anthony Burgess's list of 99 Novels: The Best in English Since 1939, a Personal Choice.
The Complete Stories (1999) by Evelyn Waugh. I was in a readalong group on Instagram that read all Waugh's fiction over the last two or so years, one every other month. We finished with the short stories. I loved the entire experience.
The Green Knight (1993) by Iris Murdoch, a typically delightful shaggy tale by one of my favorite authors.
The British Baking Book: The History of British Baking, Savory and Sweet (2020, US Ed.) by Regula Ysewijn. This was interesting and there are several recipes I'd like to try, but is Britain really so obsessed with dried fruit and candied peel?
Ivanov (1887) and The Seagull (1896) by Anton Chekhov are not in the picture above because I forgot. I’m trying to read more classic drama and I'm glad I read these, but I can't say they are favorites.
Friday, December 5, 2025
Thursday, December 4, 2025
Afterward by Bristol Vaudrin -- BOOK BEGINNINGS
Afterward by Bristol Vaudrin
Thank you for joining me this week for Book Beginnings on Fridays where participants share the opening sentence (or two) from the book they are reading. You can also share from a book you want to feature, even if you are not reading it at the moment.
MY BOOK BEGINNING
Afterward, I broke open. I cried.
-- from Afterward by Bristol Vaudrin.
Afterward is a new novel that explores the aftermath of tragedy. The exact tragedy is not revealed until the end, so we watch the protagonist deal with what happened and her boyfriend's subsequent hospitalization without really knowing just what happened.
I admit, the cover gives offputting Charlie Kirk vibes. But Afterward gets nothing but 5-star reviews on amazon and is generating a lot of buzz. I was happy to accept a review copy and look forward to reading it.
Read more about Afterward in the publisher's description, below, and on Bristol Vaudrin's website.
YOUR BOOK BEGINNING
Please add the link to your book beginning post in the linky box below. If you participate or share on social media, please use the hashtag #bookbeginnings so other people can find your post.
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THE FRIDAY 56
The Friday 56 asks participants to share a two-sentence teaser from their book of the week. If your book is an ebook or audiobook, pick a teaser from the 56% point.
Anna at My Head is Full of Books hosts The Friday 56, a natural tie-in with Book Beginnings on Fridays. Please visit My Head is Full of Books to leave the link to your post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from Afterward:
She was shocked at my news about Kyle."Oh, honey, that's just awful! When did it happen?
FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
Torn from her normal routines-coffee, sex, barhopping, and disc golf--she finds herself in an unfamiliar world of hospital visits and doctor's appointments, all while navigating an unexpected move to a new apartment and enduring the disapproval of her boyfriend's mother, as well as the gossip of her friends and coworkers. (Plus the suspicious looks of strangers, and the unbearable strain on her credit card...and did we mention the gossip of her friends and coworkers?) Along the way, she meets every obstacle with...well, not grace, exactly. In fact, pretty much the opposite of grace. Maybe more like bitchiness, truth be told. And all the while, the aftereffects of the tragedy cast a pall over everything she does--and threaten to destroy everything she has.
Bristol Vaudrin's fascinating debut novel is an engrossing and darkly comedic read with an unforgettable narrator/protagonist. Watching her struggles--real, imagined, and in-between--we too must choose between kindness and judgment, between condescension towards someone who simply doesn't have a clue, and empathy with a person struggling to deal with something we all must face: the desire to hold on to the things we enjoy when the world around us changes in ways we didn't expect.
Wednesday, December 3, 2025
Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Monday, December 1, 2025
ADVENT 2025: COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
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ADVENT: COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
To see more vintage cards, click on the "Advent" or "vintage postcard" tags at the bottom of these posts (or bottom of the page) to find hundreds of images from past years. You will find nativity scenes, Santas, wreaths, Christmas trees, elves, cats, birds, dogs, deer, ornaments, gifts, candles, bells, and lots more!
THIS YEAR'S THEME
Some years I have a theme, some years it's catch as catch can. Last year I went for a wreath theme. This year it's going to be a mishmash. My real life Christmas has no theme either. It's a crazy month as I try to wrap up a few law cases before the end of the year and there's just a lot going on. I usually have my tree up by now, but not this year. I hope to go buy one tomorrow and get it decorated.
DECEMBER BLOGGING
I always plan to do holiday-themed blog posts every year, but never seem to get around to it. There's a lot going on in December! But I hope to get a few Christmas-temed posts up. I have a stack of Christmas and winter book on my nightstand that I hope to read this month. And I treated myself to a stack of the British Library's Christmas "Crime Classics" that I want to post about and start reading.
It is also the time of year to plan next year's reading challenges. I am hosting the European Reading Challenge again in 2026 and a TBR 26 in '26 challenge. I will get those posts before the end of the year, I promise!
What are your blogging plans for December? Do they include planning or posting any 20265 reading challenges?
Please join me tomorrow when the Rose City Reader advent calendar continues!
Thursday, November 27, 2025
The Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote -- BOOK BEGINNINGS
BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS
The Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote
Thank you for joining me this week for Book Beginnings on Fridays where participants share the opening sentence (or two) from the book they are reading. You can also share from a book you want to feature, even if you are not reading it at the moment, which is what I'm doing this week.
MY BOOK BEGINNING
Talk about mean! Odd Henderson was the meanest human creature in my experience.
-- from The Thanksgiving Visitor by Truman Capote.
The Thanksgiving Visitor is a short story by Truman Capote originally published in the November 1967 issue of McCall's magazine, and later published as a book by Random House in 1968. It's a childhood tale about a boy and a bully bothering him and was inspired by Capote's own childhood in Alabama.I thought this would be a good pick for Thanksgiving week. For those of you celebrating, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving and a relaxing holiday weekend! If you want to read The Thanksgiving Visitor, it is available online here. There is also a beautiful Modern Libray edition combining another, connected story called One Christmas. 
YOUR BOOK BEGINNING
Please add the link to your book beginning post in the linky box below. If you participate or share on social media, please use the hashtag #bookbeginnings so other people can find your post.
Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Thumb-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
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THE FRIDAY 56
The Friday 56 asks participants to share a two-sentence teaser from their book of the week. If your book is an ebook or audiobook, pick a teaser from the 56% point.
Anna at My Head is Full of Books hosts The Friday 56, a natural tie-in with Book Beginnings on Fridays. Please visit My Head is Full of Books to leave the link to your post.
MY FRIDAY 56
-- from The Thanksgiving Visitor:
The noises of the house were lovely, too: pots and pans and Uncle B.'s unused and rusty voice as he stood in the hall in his creaking Sunday suit, greeting our guests as they arrived. A few came by horseback or mule drawn wagon, the majority in shined up farm trucks and rackety flivvers.
I pulled that from roughly 56% of the way through the book because the story is not 56 pages long.
Monday, November 24, 2025
A Map of Her Own by Dede Montgomery -- BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A Map of Her Own by Dede Montgomery
In the contemporary story, Celia is in Astoria, Oregon, at the mouth of the Columbia, looking for a new occupation when her job on a commercial crabbing boat ends abruptly. Celia enjoys the excitement, freedom, and natural beauty of working on a fishing boat, but not the low wages that require her to also work as a waitress to make ends meet. In the historical story, Emma works in for a paper mill in its paper bag factory in Camas, Washington, also on the Columbia River. Like Celia, Emma works in a male-dominated field that presents unique struggles to the few women working in it.
The two stories are connected by the Columbia River and the common experiences of both women. Montgomery skillfully weaves the two storylines together, offering insight into the working lives of her characters and women in general. The Pacific Northwest, with its beauty and difficulties, makes a memorable backdrop to the story.
If you like immersive novels with strong women characters and a strong sense of place, you will love A Map of Her Own. It is an excellent book club pick or holiday gift.
NOTES
Read teasers from A Map of Her Own here on this Book Beginnings post. I interviewed Dede when her Beyond the Ripples book came out. Read my interview here. You can also check out Dede's website for information anbout her and her writing.
FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
It's 2024 in Astoria, Oregon. Celia's return to another crabbing season is over before it begins when the boat captain suffers a heart attack, hastening her decision that this would have been her final season anyway. Now all she has to do is figure out what to do next. Simple. Right.
It's 1912 In Camas, Washington. Emma is proud of her job making paper bags at the Columbia River Paper Company, but resents her family's expectations for her to also take care of her younger siblings and help with the household chores after her shift is over.
Celia and Emma are both searching for their true selves in a world where women either give in to society's and family's expectations or have the courage to create their own destiny.
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