This Perfectly Imperfect Life

Today I'm sharing with you Flight Of Dreams , the second novel by She Reads.org co-founder Ariel Lawhon , my first 5 star read of 2016 ! Genre: (Historical) Fiction Synopsis from the publisher, Doubleday, 2016 Advance Reading Copy Not For Sale paperback edition, 324 pages:  "With everyone on board the Hindenberg harboring dark secrets, Flight of Dreams is an utterly suspenseful, heart-wrenching examination of one of the most enduring mysteries of the twentieth century. On the evening of May 3, 1937, Emilie Imhoff boards the Hindenberg. As the only female crew member, Emilie has access to the entire airship, from the lavish dining rooms and passenger suites to the gritty engine cars and control room. She hears everything, including rumors circulating about bomb threats, but Emilie is more focused on her feeling for Max, the ship's navigator... and keeping her own plans under wraps. What Emilie can't see is that everyone - from the sweet cabin boy to the high...

Welcome to my first official post as one of the new members of the She Reads Blog Network! (Click here if you missed my announcement about being a part of this incredible group of women). In today's Off The Shelf, I'm sharing with you The Gates of Evangeline by Hester Young , one She Reads' Books of Winter . Genre:  Fiction Synopsis from the publisher, G.P. Putnam's Sons, an imprint of Penguin Random House L.L.C., 2015 hardcover edition, 410 pages: "Her Gift Can Save A Child... If It Doesn't Destroy A Family First. When New York Journalist and recently bereaved mother Charlotte "Charlie" Cates begins to experience vivid dreams about children in danger, she's sure that she's lost her mind. Yet these are not the nightmares of a grieving parent. They are warnings that will help her and the children she sees, if only she can make sense of them. After a little boy in a boat appears in Charlie's dreams, asking her for help, she fin...

Book mail! With a few extras. Flight Of Dreams by Ariel Lawhon. 1/25/16  Book mail! The Gates of Evangeline by Hester Young. 1/26/16 That exciting news I mentioned at the end of my previous post?  I didn't know how to go about announcing it here. Until the book mail arrived that is! (Silly, I know, but y'all know how I can be from time to time. And for those who don't? You'll get used to it!) On January 12th, She Reads.org announced the newest members of their Blog Network ( here ) and I'm thrilled to announce that I've been included! Around the holidays they announced they were accepting applications for new members and I decided to throw my name into the hat. "Why not?!" Because I'm not a book blogger, and not what I consider a traditional book reviewer, I didn't expect to be among the chosen, so I was very surprised and excited to receive the email saying I was!   What is She Reads? Click here . For The Books of ...

Many of you know, and for those who don't, I moderate a Southern Lit Lovers group on Goodreads , which I created back in 2008. When it comes to 'genres within a genre,' Southern literature is a favorite near and dear to this Northeastern gals heart. (Something most of you know about me already as well!) Recently we read Long Man by Amy Greene . Like her debut novel Bloodroot , Long Man is transportive and engrossing. Amy's writing once again not only ensconced me in the souls of her characters, but in the soul of the places they live. I loved it! Last week I inadvertently turned our Southern Lit Lovers author chat with Amy into an interview. As both a reader and a writer, plus being a big fan of her writing, I couldn't help myself with all the Qs! Amy graciously gave me permission to share my part of the chat here with you when I asked. I hope you all enjoy my chat with Amy as much as I have! We often talk about 'genres within a genre' (for exam...

I have a surprise that may brighten what has been a rough Winter for so many, especially those fellow gardeners who are chomping at the bit for Spring, or those just looking for a fun read!  I have one beautiful paperback copy of Norman Draper 's novel, Backyard , to give away thanks to Mr. Draper and his publisher, Kensington Publishing Corp. !  Here is the synopsis from the back cover: "Livia is a nice little suburb in the upper Midwest - but behind the manicured lawns and pristine hedges seethes a ruthless desire to be the greatest green thumb of all... George and Nan Fremont have created a paradise in their backyard, complete with the semi-hallucinogenic exotics and a comfy spot for drinking their favorite merlot. Marta Poppendauber's garden is a pleasantly haphazard as she is. And Dr. Phyllis Sproot, Livia's self-styled and cantankerous gardening expert, has determined the exact formula for the only correct garden possible. But, once Burdi...

For another installment of The Mono Diaries! I would like to say I'm finally getting better, again, (knocks on wood) but I'm afraid to think that because I felt like I was turning a corner a couple of weeks ago, and then caught cold-flu bug and went back down hill. (To the point the Hubbs was genuinely worried about me, emotionally as well as physically). As a result, I haven't been retested for mono yet, so I don't know if I still have it or not. (I'm hoping not!) I have to touch base with the doctor tomorrow or Wednesday and go from there. So it's February! How in the heck did that happen already?!  I did finish reading two novels in January: A Fall Of Marigolds by and The Invention Of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd. Both had me feeling like I had been on incredible journeys by the time I finished each! Highly recommended.  Have you read anything good so far this Winter? We've had winter storm after winter storm, although we are faring bet...

This last weekend, I finished reading my first book of 2015, and what a delightful read it was!   Synopsis of A Good Year For The Roses by Gil McNeil , from the 2014 Hyperion/ Hachette Book Group paperback edition: " Life hasn't been a bed of roses for Londoner Molly Taylor lately. Newly divorced and struggling to find a new home and a way to support her three boys, she's astonished when her beloved Aunt Helena dies and leaves her Harrington Hall, a three-hundred-year-old manor house on the Devon coast, where Molly grew up. But does Molly really want to run a bed-and-breakfast in an old house where the only thing which doesn't need urgent attention is Helena's beautiful rose garden? And what about Uncle Bertie, who's been a few sandwiches short of a picnic for years, and fires his cannon from the cliff tops at random moments? Or Betty, his rude parrot who is not averse to biting people who annoy her? Yet, Molly's best friend Lola is all for it....

I have been biting my tongue for a couple of weeks now, until all of the details were worked out, but now it's time to let y'all in on a little ( BIG! ) secret:  Southern author Sarah Addison Allen is going to do a chat with my Southern Lit Lovers group on Goodreads *and* we have 3 ARC's of her upcoming novel, First Frost , to giveaway to 3 lucky members on November 4th!  I believe First Frost is a followup to her debut novel Garden Spells . Holy cow have I been excited to share this news!! For all of the info on the chat and giveaway rules, click here .  I can't thank Angie from Sarah's publisher enough for reaching out to me to set all of this up with Sarah and for sending me my own ARC of First Frost!!! Now, these sweet looking little candies came with my copy of First Frost and they were supposed to be a part of the photo above, but... Just before I set everything up, Mama kitty decided to make herself comfy and in the p...

My girlfriend, who started the Wednesday evening bookclub, is a teacher and she is doing a presentation on reading for the teachers at her school tomorrow (after the kids go home for the day). She asked me if I could send her a photo of myself either holding a favorite book or in front of one of my bookcases because I am the inspiration for who she wants her students to be as readers! Is that awesome and humbling or what?! I'm not much of a fan of having my picture taken or of taking my own, but, I was so touched by her request (choked up in fact) and the reason for it, I couldn't say no! This is the photo I took today to send her: Often we don't think we make an impact on those around us. Often we do, but we don't usually find out. Imagine what a difference it could make to that person if we did tell them?! I can tell you it's made a difference with me. Have you told that person who inspires you that they do and why? Well go on then and go ...

Last Friday, I started re-reading Courage and Craft by Barbara Abercrombie and the following  To Do from the book really stood out to me this time: "Try writing a description of what's outside your window for twenty-one days. Train your eye as if you were looking through a camera or had a paintbrush in your hand." This helps you to really see what's going on around you and not let the writing be only about what you're feeling at any given time your journal. While I've been making it a habit to make myself journal during times of upheaval (something I used to do, but then quite suddenly stopped in 2010), I thought this would be a great exercise for me to challenge myself with. Barbara's book is a great resource and source of inspiration! On Saturday 3/15, I sat at the kitchen table, where I do a lot of my writing in general, looked out of the patio doors, which essentially combine to make one enormous window, and wrote: Outside my window - #1 - ...

Wednesday night I went to bookclub. I know, I had an IV session on Monday and going out within 3 days of it isn't usually a good idea, but I'd read our February book (The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty - loved it!), I missed last month's and really wanted to go! (I haven't been to bookclub since December between being sick so often and the Wintry weather). I had so much fun! They're a great group of women to spend time talking books & life with and we share a lot of laughs too. Along with food of course. By the time I leave, I not only feel refreshed, I feel so normal! It's flipping wonderful! I'm sure you healthy folks haven't the foggiest idea what I mean when I say I feel so normal, although stay-at-home moms might. I've talked about this here before: Living with disease tends to be isolating and lonely, at least it is for me, an because of unpredictable & uncooperative body, I spend much of my time at home, alone. ...

Taken from a 2012 post, which you can find here . You all know I am a big fan of purging - the de-cluttering and simplifying of ones surroundings - because it truly does a mind and soul a world of good. I can't recommend it enough! Well, I've been holding on to some specific items for years. Why? For many reasons, but mainly because I truly liked these things and I had hoped over time they would lose the negativity of situations and people from my past they were associated with. They didn't. It's been in the back of my mind since the end of November to finally get rid of these things. I was ready but, with a sick and passing kitty, and all the emotions I was going through with him, I wasn't ready. If that makes sense. This Saturday afternoon, I finally purged them. Hubbs and I had a spat just before I went back down to the basement to put a load of laundry in the dryer and start another in the wash. I was ticked off, to say the least. Plus I had been ...

11/13: Thankful to be able to do something nice for others (like making pots of coffee for the landscapers on a bitter cold morning).  11/14-11/15: Finally remembering to order a certain Christmas present for a certain hubby early enough so it wasn't sold out (he's going to Love it!), and for books, favorite mugs & roses in November.  Sent from my iPhone

Thankful for contented alone time. This one was hard to have a photo for because yesterday afternoon, I was actually cleaning, while Big Bang Theory season 2 played and didn't read, write or knit! L ast full day at the mountain Portable Homestead (our Northwestern NJ home) - a day to myself at that, a rare occasion until Christmastime when Hubby's annual layoff end - and what did I spend the afternoon doing? Cleaning.  Me. Cleaning. And not minding it. Not minding it! Maybe it's having Big Bang Theory DVDs playing that accounts for this odd behavior? (I do so love that show!)   Sent from my iPhone

Aside from that never-ending pile of books I'm always trying to tackle, there are a few permanent fixtures at my bedside. On my nightstand, which is actually an antique record player stand, (too dusty for a photo right now) I have several books nestled into the slots which have been there for quite a long time. Years in fact. And I've re-read them often and likely will continue to! Comfort reads I call them and that's what they are to me. New England Fancies by W. Elmer Ekblaw from 1935, first edition with an inscription by the author, hardback. A gift from Hubbs back in June of 2007, bought downtown here in our coastal town at a tiny antique bookshop we browsed through after dinner at the Thai place and before a movie at the theater across the street. About each season in New England. It's such a wonderful book! I adore it (and Hubbs knew I would). A Year In Provence by Peter Mayle, First Vintage Edition paperback, 1991. I found this gem of a memoir at a loc...

As you can see, I'm not the only resident here at The Portable Homestead who is enjoying having the windows open today! Miss Boo spent the entire morning perched in this spot watching birds and butterflies. The temperatures began to fall, albeit it slightly on Sunday, ending heat wave number 4 of the year, and now the humidity is finally following suit. Though still a bit muggy now, I for one am so thankful for a break from the oppressive humidity & heat! I thought what was left of my sanity would break first. Having bronchitis and a sinus infection (day 11 & counting) as well as hibernating indoors (because of the weather, infections & my body's extreme dislike of hot/humid weather) hasn't helped my spirits (or cabin fever) any. I think the reason why Summer cooties (colds, sinus infections, bronchitis & the like) seem to go on and on is that, despite air conditioning, it's just too hot for soups, hot teas with honey - many of the nourishing ...

Taken Sunday, July 7th, at our wee lakeside home. I always have such good intentions and big plans when it comes to my "Summer reading."  But, who am I kidding anymore?!  I take forever to find a book that I enjoy reading and still take more forever to finish reading it.  Not the case with the novel featured in this addition of Off The Shelf , which has been on my radar (aka to-read list) for a while now and is this month's Southern Lit Lovers group read & chat selection. The Lost Saints of Tennessee by Amy Franklin-Willis My (goodreads) rating: 5 of 5 stars From the Atlantic Monthly Press 2012 hardback edition:  (Spoilers Possible -->) "With enormous heart and dazzling agility, debut novelist Amy Franklin-Wills expertly mines the fault lines in one Southern working-class family. Driven by the soulful and intrepid voices of forty-two-year-old Ezekiel Cooper and his mother, Lillian, The Lost Saints Of Tennessee journeys from the 1940s to the 1980s ...

(Having wifi in the house again + a cold = 'command central' for today!) As most of you know already, (and for those of you who don't), I don't write traditional book reviews.  I share my reactions to a book, especially ones I've loved and enjoyed. In today's Off The Shelf , I'm sharing with you an incredible debut novel,  The Silence Of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski . My journey with Bonaventure began  here  in February and though I finished reading the novel last night, I believe the magic of Bonaventure is far from over! (**Spoilers Possible -->***) Harper Paperback (c)2012 released 2/26/13 synopsis: "Conceived in love and possibility, Bonaventure Arrow didn’t make a peep when he was born, and the doctor nearly took him for dead. No one knows Bonaventure's silence is filled with resonance - a miraculous gift of rarified hearing that encompasses the Universe of Every Single Sound. Growing up in the big house oh Christopher...

So far, 2013 has been a diverse and fulfilling reading year! I've since finished four books after The Language of Flowers (which I finished back in January, click here for my reaction) and now it's time to catch up on them with y'all! (Spoilers are likely, so proceed at your own risk!) Let's start with The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot: 5 of 5 stars. From the BroadwayPaperbacks/Publisher paperback edition : "Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor black tobacco farmer whose cells - taken without her knowledge in 1951 - became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, and more. Henrietta's cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remains virtually unknown, and her family can't afford health insurance. This phenomenal New York Times bestseller tells a riveting story of the collision between ethics, race, and med...