Sunday, May 31, 2020

Lovely Books and Things - 5.31.20

Lovely Books and Things
My Weekly Books and Films Update

Linking up with:
Sunday Post (details)
Mailbox Monday (details)

~*~

HAPPY THINGS:

1. Sleeping in (especially on the weekend)

2. Discovering new songs on Refinery29 (here)

3. Whimsical mural art - found on Fillmore Street


~*~

Bought:

Sharks in the Time of Saviors
by Kawai Strong Washburn
Magical Realism, Hawaii | Goodreads

Library: audiobook

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
by Suzanne Collins
Dystopia, YA | Goodreads

NOTE: Most of the virtual author events below are recorded and can be currently accessed for a listen - check per site

Virtual Author event: hosted by Booksmith
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
Tune in Tuesdays 11am pst VIRTUAL: ZYZZYVA & The Booksmith Present: Lockdown Lit @ Lunch
A conversation between Erin Somers and Mary South

Stay Up with Hugo Best
by Erin Somers
Contemporary | Goodreads

You Will Never Be Forgotten: Stories
by Mary South
Contemporary, Humor, Short Stories | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Booksmith
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)

Brown Album:
Essays on Exile and Identity
by Porochista Khakpour
Memoir, Essays | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Borderlands Books
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
A conversation between N.K. Jemisen and Rebecca Roadhorse

The City We Became
by N.K. Jemisin
Fantasy, New York | Goodreads

Black Sun
(Between Earth and Sky #1)
by Rebecca Roanhorse
Fantasy | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Paris Review
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)

Drifts
by Kate Zambreno
Literary | Goodreads


AND watched: on Netflix

Never Have I Ever (2020)
tv series, season one
Creators: Lang Fisher, Mindy Kaling
Stars: Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Darren Barnet, Poorna Jagannathan
Comedy, Indian American | imdb | my rating: 5

The complicated life of a modern-day first generation Indian American teenage girl, inspired by Mindy Kaling's own childhood.

DELIGHTFULLY funny, but also deals with serious issues.


AND watched: online part of SFFILM

One Thousand Stories: (2019)
The Making of a Fresco
Director/Writer: Tasha Van Zandt
Star: JR
Biography, Documentary Short | imdb | my rating: 5

One Thousand Stories is a 14-minute documentary that follows JR’s process of creating his first video mural project The Chronicles of San Francisco, which was mounted at SFMOMA in the summer of 2019.


~*~

* image source: JR at SFMOMA

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

*** THANKS to those on the front line during these times ***
Shelter In Place - Day 76, Week 12

Stay healthy! Be safe!

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Saturday, May 30, 2020

Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson

Nothing To See Here
by Kevin Wilson

Published: 2019
Publisher: Ecco
Genre: Magical Realism
Hardback: 254
Rating: 5
Goodreads
Website

First sentence(s):
In the late spring of 1995, just a few weeks after I'd turned twenty-eight, I got a letter from my friend Madison Roberts.

Lillian and Madison were unlikely roommates and yet inseparable friends at their elite boarding school. But then Lillian had to leave the school unexpectedly in the wake of a scandal and they’ve barely spoken since. Until now, when Lillian gets a letter from Madison pleading for her help.

Madison’s twin stepkids are moving in with her family and she wants Lillian to be their caretaker. However, there’s a catch: the twins spontaneously combust when they get agitated, flames igniting from their skin in a startling but beautiful way. Lillian is convinced Madison is pulling her leg, but it’s the truth.

Thinking of her dead-end life at home, the life that has consistently disappointed her, Lillian figures she has nothing to lose. Over the course of one humid, demanding summer, Lillian and the twins learn to trust each other—and stay cool—while also staying out of the way of Madison’s buttoned-up politician husband. Surprised by her own ingenuity yet unused to the intense feelings of protectiveness she feels for them, Lillian ultimately begins to accept that she needs these strange children as much as they need her—urgently and fiercely. Couldn’t this be the start of the amazing life she’d always hoped for?

With white-hot wit and a big, tender heart, Kevin Wilson has written his best book yet—a most unusual story of parental love.


My two-bits:

Just the right amount of quirky to read during this covid-19 time.

Loved how the protagonist character growth and developing relationship with the kids.

~*~

* part of the Tournament of Books 2020 (here)

* part of ibc book club (here)

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Lovely Books and Things - 5.24.20

Lovely Books and Things
My Weekly Books and Films Update

Linking up with:
Sunday Post (details)
Mailbox Monday (details)

~*~

HAPPY THINGS:

1. Three-day weekend :-)

2. Mini doodle-a-day in my bullet journal

3. Baby Chef Kobe of Kobe Eats on instagram (here) - so adorable


~*~

Bought:

Dancing in the Lowcountry
by James Villa
-Contemporary, Romance, Southern | Goodreads


Library: audiobook

Weather
by Jenny Offill
-Literary, New York | Goodreads


NOTE: Most of the virtual author events below are recorded and can be currently accessed for a listen - check per site

Virtual Author event: hosted by Alta Magazine
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
Tune in Wednesdays 12:30pm pst Alta Asks

Maggie Brown & Others: Stories
by Peter Orner
Short Stories | Goodreads

Virtual Author event: hosted by Booksmith
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
Tune in Tuesdays 11am pst VIRTUAL: ZYZZYVA & The Booksmith Present: Lockdown Lit @ Lunch

The Illness Lesson
by Clare Beams
Historical | Goodreads

Too Much: How Victorian Constraints Still Bind Women Today
by Rachel Vorona Cote
Historical, Feminism | Goodreads

Virtual Author event: hosted by Books Inc.
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)


We Are Not Free
by Traci Chee
Historical, YA, Japanese-American | Goodreads

Forest of Souls
(Shamanborn #1)
by Lori M. Lee
Fantasy, YA | Goodreads

This is My Brain in Love
by by I.W. Gregorio
YA, Chinese-American | Goodreads

Virtual Author event: hosted by Green Apple Books
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
A conversation between Stephanie Danler and Anna Wiener

Stray
by Stephanie Danler
Memoir | Goodreads

Uncanny Valley: A Memoir
by Anna Wiener
Memoir | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Book Passages
Register and listen to the archive of this or to future Book Passages author talks for free (here)
A conversation between Lori Gottlieb and Dr. Rick Hanson

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone:
A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed

by Lori Gottlieb
Memoir, Psychology | Goodreads

Neurodharma:
New Science, Ancient Wisdom, and Seven Practices of the Highest Happiness

by Dr. Rick Hanson
Psychology | Goodreads


AUTHOR ALERT: fans...

John Grisham
Virtual Event at Book Passage (here)
Wednesday, May 27
12pm pst / 3pm est


AND watched: online for CAAMFest 2020

Tigertail (2020)
Director/Writer: Alan Yang
Stars: Tzi Ma, Christine Ko, Hong-Chi Lee
on Netflix
Drama, Taiwain | imdb | my rating: 5

In this multi-generational drama, a Taiwanese factory worker leaves his homeland to seek opportunity in America, where he struggles to find connection while balancing family and newfound responsibilities.

Fruit Fly (2009)
Director/Writer: H.P. Mendoza
Stars: L.A. Renigen, Mike Curtis, Theresa Navarro
Comedy, Musical, Filipino-American, San Francisco | imdb | my rating: 4

Filipina performance artist Bethesda moves into an art commune to search for her long missing biological mother. Along the way, she comes to realize that she just might be a fairy princess, fag hag, fruit fly.

Larry Itliong cookie
created by Cookie Activist, Jasmine Cho
see more cookie creations (here)
featured in CAAMfest 2020

Check out her book:

Role Models Who Look Like Me:
Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders Who Made History
by Jasmine Cho
History, Children, Picture Book | Goodreads

~*~

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

*** THANKS to those on the front line during these times ***
Shelter In Place - Day 69, Week 11

Something amusing: Wes Anderson–inspired guide to surviving the lockdown by Madelaine Turner

@in_too_deepmp3

i tried to see if I could make this only using things I could find in my apartment. hope you like ! 😂 ##fyp ##foryou ##wesanderson ##film

♬ original sound - in_too_deepmp3


Stay healthy! Be safe!

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Camp ToB 2020

Camp ToB 2020
summer reading program (details)
from the Tournament of Books

Camp bylaws are the same as last summer:

- Every week we’ll read half of each book, then discuss here on Wednesdays.

- We’ll be joined in the commentary booth each week by a different member of the Commentariat. (Please volunteer for that in the form below!)

- At the end of each month you decide which of the two books we just read heads to the end-of-summer finale, where you’ll cast one final vote to decide which of our summer reads heads to the 2021 Tournament of Books.


Reading list:

The City We Became
by N.K. Jemisin
-Fantasy, New York | Goodreads | my rating: DNF

Sharks in the Time of Saviors
by Kawai Strong Washburn
-Magical Realism, Hawaii | Goodreads | my rating: DNF

The Night Watchman
by Louise Erdrich
-Historical, North Dakota | Goodreads | my rating: tba

Such a Fun Age
by Kiley Reid
-Contemporary | Goodreads | my rating: 5

Weather
by Jenny Offill
-Literary, New York | Goodreads | my rating: 4

Writers & Lovers
by Lily King
-Literary, Massachusetts | Goodreads | my rating: tba


Camp ToB 2020 Reading Schedule:

June 3: The City We Became, first half
June 10: The City We Became, second half
June 17: Sharks in the Time of Saviors, first half
June 24: Sharks in the Time of Saviors, second half
July 1: VACATION
July 8: The Night Watchman, first half
July 15: The Night Watchman, second half
July 22: Such a Fun Age, first half
July 29: Such a Fun Age, second half
Aug. 5: Writers & Lovers, first half
Aug. 12: Writers & Lovers, second half
Aug. 19: Weather, first half
Aug. 26: Weather, second half
Sept. 2: Announce summer champion - Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Lovely Books and Things - 5.17.20

Lovely Books and Things
My Weekly Books and Films Update

Linking up with:
Sunday Post (details)
Mailbox Monday (details)

~*~

HAPPY THINGS:

1. Sunday New York Times Book Review section

2. Pancakes with Guittard chocolate chips - yum

3. CinemaSF Stay-at-Home Saturday night: Clueless dvd, movie snacks from Balboa theatre popcorn pop-up sale and Balboa theatre movie chat room


~*~

Library: audiobook

The Henna Artist
by Alka Joshi
Historical, India, Reese Book Club May pick | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Alta Magazine
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
The Lightest Object in the Universe
by Kimi Eisele
Dystopia | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by BookShop West Portal
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
A conversation between Cara Black and Meg Waite Clayton

Three Hours in Paris
by Cara Black
Historical, WWII, Mystery, France | Goodreads

Last Train to London
by Meg Waite Clayton
Historical, WWII, London | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Book Passages
Register and listen to the archive of this or to future Book Passages author talks for free (here)
A conversation between Jacqueline Winspeare and Jennifer Barth

The American Agent
(Maisie Dobbs #15)
by Jacqueline Winspear
Historical, Mystery | Goodreads


Virtual Author event: hosted by Green Apple Books
Check out their calendar for future free author events (here)
A conversation between Phuc Tran and Que Mai Phan Nguyen

Sigh, Gone
A Misfit's Memoir of Great Books, Punk Rock, and the Fight to Fit In
by Phuc Tran
Memoir, Vietnamese-American | Goodreads

The Mountain Sings
by Que Mai Phan Nguyen
Historical, Vietnam | Goodreads


AND watched: online

Deerskin (2019)
Le daim (original title)
Director/Writer: Quentin Dupieux
Stars: Jean Dujardin, Adèle Haenel
-Comedy, Horror, France | imdb | my rating: 5

A man's obsession with his designer deerskin jacket causes him to blow his life savings and turn to crime.

AND watched: online for CAAMFest 2020

And She Could Be Next (2020)
part 1 of 2
Director: Grace Lee, Marjan Safinia
Documentary | my rating: 5

Filmed from 2018 through 2019, the episodes center individuals at the heart of the movement behind the New American Majority, including: Stacey Abrams (Georgia), Bushra Amiwala (Skokie, IL), Maria Elena Durazo (Los Angeles, CA), Veronica Escobar (El Paso, TX), Lucy McBath (Atlanta, GA), Rashida Tlaib (Detroit, MI) and Nse Ufot, Executive Director of the New Georgia Project.

The Half of It (2020)
Director/Writer: Alice Wu
Stars: Leah Lewis, Daniel Diemer, Alexxis Lemire
Comedy, Romance| imdb | my rating: 5

When smart but cash-strapped teen Ellie Chu agrees to write a love letter for a jock, she doesn't expect to become his friend - or fall for his crush.

~*~

* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

*** THANKS to those on the front line during these times ***
Shelter In Place - Day 62, Week 10

Mask Bear
by fnnch
see more honey bears (here)

Stay healthy! Be safe!

Thanks for stopping by :-)
 
Imagination Designs
Images from: Lovelytocu
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