Here’s a look at some interesting things we read/ saw / thought / did last week plus what I’m currently reading.

Bookish

ONE+ The finalists for the 2018 National Book Awards have been announced in the categories of Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Books in Translation and Young Peoples’ Literature. The winner will be announced on Nov. 14, 2018.

TWO+ OK, so I’m not making my bed each morning and placing a book on my pillow … but the other ideas in How to Make Reading a Habit sound spot on.

THREE+ Do You Like To Follow Book Blogger Trends?(Or Do You Flee)? I don’t think we follow any trends here at GXO – we kind of do our own thing … whatever that thing is at the moment! But we do read some books based on blogger love!

FOUR+ Dewey’s 24-Hour Readathon is on October 20.

FIVE+ Check out this list of Goodreads Readers’ Favorite YA Books of the Last Decade. How many of these have you read?

SIX. We’re in full swing for #WickedGoodReads month – so check out these 3 #WickedGoodReads That Will Keep You Up All Night and Another 3 #WickedGoodReads That Prove You Can’t Always Trust The People Close to You!

Life

SEVEN+ I feel a blog post coming in the future similar to How I Keep My Creative Fuel Tank Topped Up Throughout The Year. How do you keep your creative juices flowing?

EIGHT+ These Mummy Brownies for Halloween and Halloween BerryWorld Strawberry Ghosts look like the easiest Halloween treats ever … plus brownies = yummy!

NINE+ This smoothie tho! Yup – I’ve already started with cranberry everything for the Fall.


Currently Reading

Last week I finished off An Unkindness of Ghosts, Rivers Solomon. It was a hard read as it was seriously depressing – as are most books involving a society based on slavery – but it was a little all over the place, which made it a bit of a slog to get through. Then, Britt Marie Was Here, Frederik Bachman came off hold and I managed to get through the entire thing. What a book! It was very much character driven – like one of his other novels that I’ve read, A Man Called Ove – and Britt Marie reminded me a lot of Eleanor in Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine. All those books are fantastic reads – and you need to add them to your reading list stat!

Britt Marie Was Here, Frederik Bachman

Britt Marie Was Here

Britt-Marie can’t stand mess. A disorganized cutlery drawer ranks high on her list of unforgivable sins. She is not one to judge others—no matter how ill-mannered, unkempt, or morally suspect they might be. It’s just that sometimes people interpret her helpful suggestions as criticisms, which is certainly not her intention. But hidden inside the socially awkward, fussy busybody is a woman who has more imagination, bigger dreams, and a warmer heart that anyone around her realizes.

I’m currently listening to the audiobook of The Heart Goes Last, Margaret Atwood as I’m traveling to Dallas Texas for a few days. I want to LOVE Atwood’s books, but find I’m mostly meh about the books I’ve read, including this one. I might be one of the few people out there that didn’t love The Handmaid’s Tale. And I also read Oryx and Crake which was a head trip but too weird for me.

The Heart Goes Last, Margaret Atwood

The Heart Goes Last

Stan and Charmaine are a married couple trying to stay afloat in the midst of an economic and social collapse. Job loss has forced them to live in their car, leaving them vulnerable to roving gangs. They desperately need to turn their situation around – and fast. The Positron Project in the town of Consilience seems to be the answer to their prayers. No one is unemployed and everyone gets a comfortable, clean house to live in … for six months out of the year. On alternating months, residents of Consilience must leave their homes and function as inmates in the Positron prison system. Once their month of service in the prison is completed, they can return to their “civilian” homes. At first, this doesn’t seem like too much of a sacrifice to make in order to have a roof over one’s head and food to eat. But when a series of troubling events unfolds, putting Stan’s life in danger. With each passing day, Positron looks less like a prayer answered and more like a chilling prophecy fulfilled.

Have you read any books by Margaret Atwood? What are you reading right now?

(Photo by Ryoji Iwata on Unsplash)
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// Comments //

  1. Ha – I did love The Handmaid’s Tale, but am now trying to figure out what of hers to read next and I’m getting such mixed advice from people!