TUESDAY POTPOURRI: INTROS/TEASERS — INSTRUCTIONS FROM A HEATWAVE — MAY 7

 

 

Welcome to another Tuesday celebrating bookish events, from Tuesday/First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea; and Teaser Tuesdays hosted by Should Be Reading.

My feature today is Instructions for a Heatwave, by Maggie O’Farrell, an ARC from Amazon Vine.

 

Intro:  Highbury, London

The heat, the heat.  It wakes Gretta just after dawn, propelling her from the bed and down the stairs.  It inhabits the house like a guest who has outstayed his welcome:  it lies along corridors, it circles around curtains, it lolls heavily on sofas and chairs.  The air in the kitchen is like a solid entity filling the space, pushing Gretta down into the floor, against the side of the table.

Only she would choose to bake bread in such weather.

Consider her now, yanking open the oven and grimacing in its scorching blast as she pulls out the bread tin.  She is in her nightdress, hair still wound into curlers.  She takes two steps backwards and tips the steaming loaf into the sink, the weight of it reminding her, as it always does, of a baby, a newborn, the packed, damp warmth of it.

***

Teaser:  He puts a hand to his brow.  Conversations with his mother can be confusing meanders through a forest of meaning in which nobody has a name and characters drop in and out without warning. (p. 33)

***

Blurb:  Sophisticated, intelligent, impossible to put down, Maggie O’Farrell’s beguiling novels—After You’d Gone, winner of a Betty Trask Award; The Distance Between Us, winner of a Somerset Maugham Award; The Hand That First Held Mine, winner of the Costa Novel Award; and her unforgettable bestseller The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox—blend richly textured psychological drama with page-turning suspense. Instructions for a Heatwave finds her at the top of her game, with a novel about a family crisis set during the legendary British heatwave of 1976.

Gretta Riordan wakes on a stultifying July morning to find that her husband of forty years has gone to get the paper and vanished, cleaning out his bank account along the way. Gretta’s three grown children converge on their parents’ home for the first time in years: Michael Francis, a history teacher whose marriage is failing; Monica, with two stepdaughters who despise her and a blighted past that has driven away the younger sister she once adored; and Aoife, the youngest, now living in Manhattan, a smart, immensely resourceful young woman who has arranged her entire life to conceal a devastating secret.

Maggie O’Farrell writes with exceptional grace and sensitivity about marriage, about the mysteries that inhere within families, and the fault lines over which we build our lives—the secrets we hide from the people who know and love us best. In a novel that stretches from the heart of London to New York City’s Upper West Side to a remote village on the coast of Ireland, O’Farrell paints a bracing portrait of a family falling apart and coming together with hard-won, life-changing truths about who they really are.

***

I’m loving it already!  What do you think?  Come on by and let’s chat.

 

TUESDAY POTPOURRI: A MORNING WITH BOOKS, COFFEE, & THE DVR — FEB. 19

Yesterday was one of those stay-at-home days; because of the holiday, I didn’t even go to the post office.  Just the supermarket for supplies.

But today I’m getting an early start so I can mail things.  First I’m enjoying some coffee in one of my favorite mugs.  Note the stack of books ready to go out to giveaway winners.

In my restlessness yesterday (that’s what happens when I stay at home!), I did some more rearranging of the entry/dining area space.

In this photo below, note that the wicker loveseat is once again up next to the floor-to-ceiling bookshelf.  From the dining room, you can see the angled sofa table and the little dropleaf table where I pay bills.

Earlier I was blogging my Teaser Tuesday meme….and finding new books to add to my list.  But before that, I woke up in the middle of the night to keep reading Evil at Heart.  And then had nightmares when I went back to sleep.  EEEEK!

Now I’m going to finish watching my favorite TV shows that are on my DVR from last night:  Switched at Birth, The Carrie Diaries, Monday Morning, The Following, Deception, and Castle.  Yes…a lot of shows for one night!

I watched Dallas live.  Love that show!  Here are my thoughts about the show over at Chocolate & Mimosas, my “guilty pleasures” blog.

What is going on in your world on a Tuesday?  Busy things?  Relaxing?

 

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: BOOK BEGINNINGS & THE FRIDAY 56 — JAN. 4

Welcome to some bookish fun today as we share Book Beginnings, hosted by Rose City Reader; and as we showcase The Friday 56 with Freda’s Voice.

To join in, just grab a book and share the opening lines…along with any thoughts you wish to give us; then turn to page 56 and excerpt anything on the page.

Then give us the title of the book, so others can add it to their lists!

If you have been wanting to participate, but haven’t yet tried, now is the time!

What better way to spend a Friday?

Fridays are our time to reflect on what’s ahead, like books we’ll be reading soon.

I’ve already planned out next week’s reads, and the book I’ve chosen is from that pile.

So I’m sharing from a book on my stacks called There Was an Old Woman, by Hallie Ephron (an ARC).

Beginning:  Mina Yetner sat in her living room, inspecting the death notices in the Daily News.  She got through two full columns before she found someone older than herself.  Mina blew on her tea, took a sip, and settled into her comfortable wing chair.

Wow!  I love it….and I see my future in just a few years (lol).

***

56:  Boxes were clustered near some old car batteries on the floor by the car door.  One box contained cigarette cartons.  Another was nearly full of liquor bottles.

***

Amazon Description: There Was An Old Woman by Hallie Ephron is a compelling novel of psychological suspense in which a young woman becomes entangled in a terrifying web of deception and madness involving an elderly neighbor.

When Evie Ferrante learns that her mother has been hospitalized, she finds her mother’s house in chaos. Sorting through her mother’s belongings, Evie discovers objects that don’t quite belong there, and begins to raise questions.

Evie renews a friendship with Mina, an elderly neighbor who might know more about her mother’s recent activities, but Mina is having her own set of problems: Her nephew Brian is trying to persuade her to move to a senior care community. As Evie investigates her mother’s actions, a darker story of deception and madness involving Mina emerges.

In There Was an Old Woman, award-winning mystery author Hallie Ephron delivers another work of domestic noir with truly unforgettable characters that will keep you riveted.

***

Now I’m off to see what the rest of you are sharing!

SUNDAY POTPOURRI: DISCOVERIES — OCT. 28

 

 

Stormy weather brings out the candles, flashlights, and for some, the generators.

We had a little rain this week, but nothing major.  But now is the season for unpredictable stormy days.  Or predicted ones.  Like on the East Coast.  For all my friends there, be safe.

The candle pictured above has a story.  And I think I’ve told it on another blog at another time, but perhaps it bears repeating.  And embellishment.

Not the falsehood kind, but the extra details kind.

It was 1968.  I lived in a suburb of Sacramento, CA, with a toddler and a newborn.  My husband traveled a lot, so I was left to my own devices. 

Walking was a favorite pastime, as I could bundle the kids in a stroller, and off we would go.  A favorite destination was a supermarket in the neighborhood that had a large gift section.  Quirky things.  Fascinating things.  Like that candle.  There was something about it that just appealed to me.

So I bought it.  It has traveled with me from place to place over the years.  And there were a lot of places. Fourteen different addresses in the 1970s.  Three places in the 1980s (see, I was stabilizing!).

In the 1990s, I only moved once.

Now I’ve been at my current address for five years (I came here from my thirteen-year stint in the foothills in 2007).

The point being:  this candle (and various other collections of mine) has been around.

Sometimes I remember something I once had, and look around, wondering where it is.  Did I lose it along the way?  Throw it in the giveaway bins?  Or is it still packed in a see-through bin in my garage?

Last week, I was searching for some office supplies that I knew I had seen recently, but thought I might have moved them to the bins.  Well, I hadn’t; but in my quest, I did find a box of old photos still in a bin, and confiscated some of them.

I scanned a few, like these:

My Older Brother and Me: Circa – 1946 or 1947

My Mom and Me: Fixing Me

I really love the fact that these old black and white photos look good…especially when compared to more recent ones (from the 1970s) that have faded and/or taken on an orange tint.

Sometimes our discoveries are great…and at other times, not so much.  This is one I scanned awhile ago.

1972: My Youngest Son and Me

 

Very faded.  You can’t tell from this photo that my dress was bright green, purple, and red.

Now, with photos living on our computers (keep the flash drives handy!), we can hope for better longevity.

So…my assorted (and potpourri) of topics has led to this question:  What recent discoveries have you made?  What led you to the quest?

FRIDAY POTPOURRI: TIE-DYE & BEADS — A DIP INTO THE PAST — OCT. 26

 

 

Maybe it’s because yesterday was my birthday, which always triggers a traipse down memory lane for me…or perhaps it’s because I’m always rearranging things and in the midst of it all, I recalled a beaded curtain I once had.

For whatever reason, I’ve been on a journey to find another beaded curtain. 

First I strolled into a shop that I haven’t visited in many years.  Called Kaleidoscope, it is definitely a blast from the past.

That shop is where I found my other beaded curtain.  But they were out of them…getting more in November.  Sounds like a reasonable wait…except I got impatient.

As I stretched my memory curve, trying to think of another place, I thought:  Google!  Yippee!  My search yielded some online venues, and Amazon was on the list.

Now I have the Tie-Dye Beaded Curtain with hanging hardware wending its way to me!

Okay…I know that I said my rearranging stuff was supposed to curb the shopping impulses.  And it did work, for the most part.

In fact, after I took my hats/handbags rack out of the bedroom and into the living room, I thought the urge would be satisfied.  And it worked…for awhile.

 

But my birthday made me think:  why not?

What do you dream about and wish for when you’re feeling nostalgic?  Or like celebrating?

TUESDAY POTPOURRI: INTROS/TEASERS — BETWEEN THE LINES — OCT. 23

 

 

 

Welcome to another Tuesday Potpourri, in which we celebrate bookish events, from Tuesday/First Chapter/Intros, hosted by Bibliophile by the Sea; to Teaser Tuesdays hosted by Should Be Reading.

My spotlight today is on Between the Lines, by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer.

 

Intro:  The Beginning

Once upon a time in a land far, far away there lived a brave king and a beautiful queen who were so much in love that wherever they went, people stopped what they were doing just to watch them pass.  Peasant wives who were fighting with their husbands suddenly forgot the reason for the argument; little boys who had been putting spiders in the braids of little girls tried to steal a kiss instead; artists wept because nothing they could create on canvas came close to approximating the purity of the love between King Maurice and Queen Maureen.  On the day they learned that they were going to have a child, it is said that a rainbow brighter and grander than anything ever seen before arched across the kingdom, as if the sky itself was waving a banner of joy.

***

Teaser:  He closed his eyes, imagining Princess Seraphima, who would be consigned to a lifetime of misery with a villain if he didn’t manage to save her.  p. 44

***

Amazon Blurb:   New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult and her teenage daughter present their first-ever novel for teens, filled with romance, adventure, and humor.

What happens when happily ever after…isn’t?

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.

And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.

Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale.

***

What do you think?  I am undecided about this story, but I’m going to give it a try.

WEEKEND POTPOURRI: LAZY DAY ACTIVITIES — OCT. 6

 

I’ve been having a great day of lazing around the house this morning, playing with my new TV; reading on Sparky, my Kindle; and watching an old DVD that still makes me cry, even though I’ve probably watched it twenty times.

What movie, you ask?

Terms of Endearment, with Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, and Jack Nicholson…awesome!

 

Don’t you find that watching an old movie on a new TV screen renders the whole experience a bit magical?  Well, it does that for me, anyway.

I took Sparky with me to run errands afterwards, and ended up having lunch at Mimi’s…again, in the neighborhood.  I love this neighborhood, as so many of my favorite eateries and shops are so close by.

What I’m reading….More Than You Know, by Penny Vincenzi.  It’s a lush tale set in London in the 1960s (at least in the beginning); and I’m loving the reminders of a time in my own past, even though I didn’t live in London.

I have a feeling I’ll be reading this one for awhile (608 pages), as I’m savoring it.  And I’m constantly distracted by other things.

Yesterday was my second son’s birthday.  Here’s a shot of him when he was much younger.

Toddler Brett on the left

 

 

Brett Celebrating the Stanley Cup – Recently

 

He lives a few hours away, so in between visits, we talk on the phone and connect on Facebook.

I’m now planning to watch some DVR recordings…again, on the new TV.  And then read.  And nap, perhaps.

What are your favorite weekend pastimes?

 

WEEKEND POTPOURRI: BLOG EVENTS, LEISURE TIME, & WISHING — SEPT. 29

I launched the weekend by having lunch at this fairly new restaurant in our neighborhood.  I must say that they had a great pomegranate martini; my love of that drink is one of my guilty pleasures.

This one, pictured below, looks a lot like my drink yesterday.

 

 

The lunch was like a little reward for my rather hectic week…and a way to catch up with an old friend.

Yes, my TV is still “dead,” and may or may not be brought back to life via repairs.  If not, I’ve accepted the need to do some shopping.

Maybe later today.

This weekend has also been about Bloggiesta.  I’ve been having so much fun redesigning the primary blog I’m working on…and spiffing up a few others.

I’m waiting for a few new books….here are a couple of them:

Tuesday’s Gone,   by Nicci French, is the sequel to Blue Monday, which I loved.

I’m also waiting for Blackberry Winter, by Sarah Jio, which has been shipped.  Today, perhaps?

Don’t you love the cover?

What books/events/happenings are you excited about today? 

SUNDAY POTPOURRI: ANTICIPATION — SEPT. 16

Autumn seems to shout out that goodies with APPLES are the very thing we need.  Over at Patty’s Books, Thoughts, and a Few Adventures, she’s talking about apple cider donuts.

Now I’m salivating.

I’m thinking that there must be many places around that have apple things.  Barnes & Noble is just around the corner.

Noah is here for a sleepover and very eager to get out of the house.

Meanwhile, I’ve been blogging.  My Sunday Salon post is all about my week in review.  Over at Snow Chronicles, I did some major changes, with a new theme, a new header, and a whole new look.

In two weeks, Bloggiesta is coming, and I’m looking forward to rebooting my Serendipity blog.  I focus on a different blog at each event.

Today I’m reading Looking for Mary, an interesting memoir from Beverly Donofrio, who also wrote Riding in Cars with Boys (made into a movie with Drew Barrymore).

And here’s a little collage I created of my granddaughters.

What does your Sunday look like?  Before I go out, I think I’ll read the papers.

TUESDAY POTPOURRI: CARVING OUT NEW SPACES — JULY 10

One of the things I know about myself is that I like to change things around.  But in my office, the last Bastion of Things That Remain Unchanged, the change bug has finally attacked.

It all started when I got my laptop.  And yes, the laptop, by definition, requires no permanent place.  I have my little table/desk in my bedroom; the dining room table; the patio table….and now the actual office.

On the weekend, we removed the desktop.   There was a lot of huffing, puffing, and sweating…and then the components were gone.

Afterwards, I stared at what remained.  And didn’t like what I saw.

Hmm…what if I moved this table here and that cart over there?  The what-ifs led to more sweating, etc.  Switching the long table with the cart works for me!  Having the long table for my laptop and other work stuff makes more sense.  So here’s what the finished set-up looks like:

You can’t see the cart in this photo…it is to the right, and the printer and scanner now live there.  Below is a “before” shot, with the cart and desktop on the left, and at right angles, the long table.  Now they are reversed.

My muscles feel fine right now, but I’m betting they’ll be hurting tomorrow.

Now I’m going to read and/or watch movies.

A Map of the World, based on the book by Jane Hamilton, is sitting nearby.

What do you like to do when you’ve finished an exhausting project?