It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date
Hello everyone! I missed posting yesterday – we were helping my cousin to move as much as we could from his late parents condo to get it ready for selling. It was pretty emotional, as well as physically difficult – and hot! The A/C wasn’t working and I was melting. We got a lot done though.
Also – I am so behind on visiting blogs and commenting and responding here. It is a goal this week to catch up!
Moving on to books!
Read Last Week:
I am actually still reading Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop. It is a quiet, thoughtful read and I am taking my time. There is a lot to mull over while reading and is not necessarily a book you race through. Or at least I can’t. Primer and Punishment on the other hand was a fun fast read. I really enjoyed it and I just adore Sawdust the cat!
Reading This Week:
In addition to reading the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop, I am also reading Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers. I just started it last night before bed, but I was so wiped out I only got through a few pages before I needed to turn off the light and sleep. I have a feeling I am going to love it though. This is also a book from my fall TBR – I have dipped in before September, my own boundary line for fall content and fall things. I guess all these Augtober posts are getting to me and influencing me! And we are not that far away now so… I went for it.
Not a whole lot right now. When we have time at the end of the night, we are watching The Great British Sewing Bee. We actually have caught up to the latest season! I found a Frog and Toad cartoon that looks so cute – Wyatt is not going to want to watch it with me now that he is at the advanced cool kid age of 9, but … too bad he is going to have to. It just looks so cute and I want to watch it, so he can watch it with me.
And that is it from me today! I hope you all are well!
Hello everyone!! I am so grateful for coffee this week. I am running on coffee and peanut butter toast this week – I have just been so busy! I am trying to prep for school and for Cub Scouts while also making sure Wyatt enjoys the last few weeks of summer.
One thing that happened – Wyatt got a hair cut!!
Our neighbor works at a barber shop and she did such a great job! I absolutely love it, and Wyatt does too. The barbershop is very swanky and Wyatt felt like a big shot in there among the adults.
He got it just in time for his cousin Mermaid Girl’s birthday party too. She had a cosmic bowling party and it was a blast. I had to laugh – it’s like no matter what, you can count on bowling shoes to always look exactly the same as they did decades ago.
I also got to bowl – and it was pretty sad. Lol. I came in last, tying with Chrissy’s mom. (Chrissy is my SIL) We were both not wonderful at bowling. I even took bowling in college as one of one PE credits! I remember Billy and I would have to practice bowling every week so that I could show improvement in class. We didn’t have to be good, just show that we got better. It was a stretch but I did it. Our practice sessions became just an excuse to get together with all of our friends every week, who also joined us at the bowling alley.
We also had our second Cub Scout committee meeting. The committee is made up of family and friends but it is still nerve wracking to me because I am the person who needs to run it and do like 90% of the talking. Right now we are still getting everything made all official, collecting applications and dues and signatures and learning the ropes of the big fundraiser that is starting, the popcorn sale, as well as planning the first meeting which is at the beginning of September, and the first outing, which is a few days after. It will be so fun once we get through all of this red tape, and can really get started.
We have our council meetings at the rowing club in our town, and it is such a great spot, right on the river and bonus, adult beverages that are very inexpensive.
I’m really cramming because of course all of this starts at the same time – school, Scouts, and then to throw a big wrench in there, Wyatt has a three day EEG at the hospital right in that same week. At least I guess we will get it all out of the way at once!
Of course we went to the library and got ice cream this week! Our favorite ice cream place closed for the season on Thursday so we had to make sure to get in before they shut down. So one day we went to the library, checked out a mass of books, and hung out on the giant porch reading for a bit before going to get ice cream. Then we went the very next day and got ice cream with my dad as well!
Wyatt and I both loved sitting on the big porch. It is so high up and set so far back from the road that it felt like we were just in our own bubble or our own little world. Wyatt really enjoyed people watching and wheeling around out there too. Can I just move into the library? Wyatt and I decided that would be a super cool place to live.
Looking forward to fall, which is right around the corner, I am busy making plans for field trips and little mini-vacations, for Halloween and scouts. I am also planning out my fall TBR (we will see how I do – I am not great at sticking to the plan), and all the comfy cozy bloggy stuff that Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I do together. This year we are even having a little giveaway in October and I am really excited about it!! And speaking of comfy cozy fall things, this is our fall movie line up and dates, if you want to watch or post along with us! The dates listed are the dates that our posts will go up! I think we have a fantastic list and I am really looking forward to just slowing down this fall.
And now just some randoms from the camera roll!
Have a great weekend everyone, and I hope you do something that makes you smile!
The Top Ten Tuesday for today is all about transportation! Prompt: Planes, Trains & Automobiles/Books Featuring Travel (books whose plots involve travel or feature modes of transportation on the cover/title) (submitted by Cathy @ What Cathy Read Next)
Well, it is summer. I live in the Great Lakes State (Michigan). And I love the setting of a houseboat! There is just something that feels so nostalgic/retro and wholesome about a houseboat, and I love the idea of just floating on the water, living there, waking up to sunrises and going to bed with sunsets out over the water. It just sounds so peaceful! All this paired with the fact that I am currently reading a book set on a houseboat, inspired this list of books with houseboat/canal boat settings!
I have only read two of these (well one and a half) but I am intrigued by them all! So I guess this list is my top ten list of boat books that I want to read!
I have never read Katie Fforde but I know a lot of people have. I might have to start with these two, The Rose Revived and Life Skills.
I love the vintage covers on both of these middle grade books, especially the Houseboat Mystery. (which is the one that I have read lol) Houseboat Girl looks really cute too! I am very into older middle grade books, and I will have to pick this one up!
I had not heard of either of these but look how adorable they both look!! And look, Katie Fforde endorsed the Cosy Canal Boat Dream. I might have found a new theme for myself here.
The Houseboat by the Quay sounds like a great summery read! It is part of a whole series and the entire series looks adorable, honestly.
The Tail of Emily Windsnap is not the original book I picked for this spot (that was A Kiss, A Dare, and a Boat Called Promise) but I decided this one just sounded more fun, despite not having a boat on the cover. The main character has lived on a houseboat her entire twelve years of life, and it has mermaids in it. So cute!
Primer and Punishment is the book that inspired this list. I am currently reading it and it is so fun. I want to live on a houseboat, even for a week! And the cat is named Sawdust, I love it!!!
The Narrowboat Summer has been on my list forever and ever. I just love that cover and the idea of a summer spent on a narrowboat.
And that is my summery homage to living on the water!
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date
Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well! It’s crazy to think we are eleven days into August already. This summer is flying by! I can feel autumn in the air this weekend; we had the windows open all day yesterday and it was wonderful. It has just been so muggy all summer that we haven’t really been able to do that, so it was nice to air everything all out!
I didn’t read much last week. I spent a lot of the week working on school or Cub Scout stuff. We are getting so close to September and then it will be go time! When I finally took a break I usually worked on my embroidery. I finished my cat and plants piece, and started a new one for fall! Wyatt’s been playing from sun up until sundown these days too, which is good. I love to see him getting involved in things and playing. I can’t wait for Billy to finish the wheelchair ramp so that we can have easier access to outside!
Reading This Week:
I did start both of these last week and I am enjoying them both quite a bit! I am hoping to finish them this week.
We are watching The Great British Sewing Bee at night when we finally collapse into bed. It is one of those calming shows, just like the Bake-Off. I usually watch a bit of YouTube too, when I first get into bed and start sewing. The people in my rotation these days are Randi Lynn Reed, Kristina at With Love, Kristina , and Ahya’s Cottage. So many online accounts everywhere are already introducing fall content which seems premature to me, but I get it. I am ready for the coziness of fall too.
And that’s it from me today! Enjoy your week everyone!
Part of me is like, we homeschool. Do we even really need anything for back to school? We roll differently around here. We school differently around here. If we decide to spend a whole day just focused on one topic, we will! If we want to take a day off, we do! Do we want to have school at the museum one day? Then we go!
Every homeschool family has their own routine, their own way of doing things that work for them, and things that are useful. What works for me might not work for other people, and that is ok. In fact, that is the point! I make my homeschool work for Wyatt, for his strengths and interests.
However, that being said, there are some things that I have found to be very helpful. Some are just things for my ease and convenience, some are things that are needed by Wyatt. And no, not just snacks, although we do need those too. I have made this list just to put it out there in the world, in case someone is looking around for some ideas or has a need and I know the answer. I know that I learn from other homeschool parents, even if I take their idea and adapt it a bit. I love that about homeschool, how organic it is.
Let’s start with the things that I really like and use a lot.
This post does contain affiliate links.
I tried to take a photo of my two favorite workhorses, Laminator and Hole Punch, but it turned out really weird no matter what I did. Like a sketchy ad on Facebook Marketplace or something. So, I am just using the stock photos from Amazon.
A lot of the time, Wyatt’s curriculum that I buy is stuff we have to print. Thank goodness Billy works for an industrial printshop! At the beginning of the year, when I am putting together all the binders of material for him and for me, since they do come with a teacher/parent guide, I am extremely thankful for my electric hole punch. It’s a hit with the kids too, as both Wyatt and Mermaid Girl enjoy playing with it if it is out. Lol.
The laminator is also super useful. I make all sort of different resources for Wyatt that we use over and over, and having them laminated preserves them. I also use it for other things as well – I just bought a game that has those slips of paper for each game play, where you check off, etc, and we are just going to laminate a few so that we can use those with dry erase markers as well.
Another thing that I really love are the front opening changeable frames that I have! Like every kid, Wyatt loves his work displayed Since we homeschool in the dining room most of the time, I wanted a way I could display his work in a bit nicer, tidier way. These frames are perfect for that, and Wyatt loves it. And during the summer I can just put photos in there, or Wyatt’s art work – whatever I want. We also use bunting to display his artwork in our den. I actually love this myself – it is always so bright and cheery and cozy feeling to see it hanging there.
Also, our aquarium water is not green – that is just a reflection. We actually just had it tested and it is perfect, the lady said!
I also need a planner to survive. I am a planner girl. I have a Passion Planner for my life, and then a Clever Fox Teacher Planner for school this year. I am a person who has to physically write things down to keep track of appointments and lessons and all that stuff and this system works well for me. I also liked my planner that I used last year. I also might really like green.
And that is enough about me! Let’s see what Wyatt likes!
I asked him what he liked best that we had, and unsurprisingly his first answer was paint. So then I asked him what else he liked, and he told me a few different things. The second thing he picked, and I should have known, is all the games we have. He loves games so I have a bunch of games to accompany his learning. It took me a while to get used to the idea that learning through games was also learning, and for Wyatt it works really well! I should probably look and see if there are any games that would be useful for this school year.
His final favorite is his little light up globe! This made me smile, I wasn’t expecting him to pick this. My mom got him the globe for Christmas and I am sure she will be tickled when I tell her it made his favorites list. You can actually see it in the picture above of our table, but this is the stock photo. It’s a small little globe and it lights up – it is pretty cute and does the trick!
I had put together a homeschool curriculum earlier this spring; if you are interested in peeping what we are doing this year, you can find it here.
So these are our favorites – now what about you? I would love to hear from anyone, homeschoolers, parents, teachers, grandparents – whoever! If you have any tips, favorite items, anything at all, just let me know in the comments!
Hello everyone! I hope everyone is doing well! I was in a bit of a mood yesterday, and looking back it seems really common for me to be in a bit of a funk in August. In my blog last year I even quoted Sylvia Plath, and her reference to August as the “odd uneven time”. And who am I to argue with that, it feels so true. Today though, the sun is shining and I am feeling a bit more me, and less like the algae at the bottom of a pool during a long humid summer. (last night I was texting my friend Lisa and I was being super emo on purpose and referred to myself as the algae and she told me to write a poem, and I added on some worn out and dirty flip flop imagery. Just being silly. Lol)
We have been having a lot of fun though lately. We went to a Parisian-inspired brasserie for Billy’s birthday, and then the next day, which was way too hot and humid to actually be outside, we went for a drive to see what we could see.
Everyone was enjoying the lily pads, including that adorable young buck there. We hung out riverside for a bit, the breeze just idling past us as we sat in the back of the Subaru until we just could not do it any longer. Look at my poor little guy! He shows heat immediately!
Afterwards we were feeling peckish so we pulled in to an A&W. Are these just a Michigan thing, or are they all over? It’s just a drive up restaurant, like you see in all those 1950s movies, where you eat in your car. Billy ordered a root beer float for us all to share which was the perfect idea on such a hot day.
We also had a sad moment Saturday morning. Our beautiful Betta, Moon, had passed away in the night. Wyatt was upset over this, as was I. I could not figure out why either, which was more troubling. We took a sample of our water in to the aquarium store we go to, which only deals with fish and they are very knowledgeable, and the nice lady who always helps us, Sam, checked our water parameters and said our water was perfect. I showed her a picture of our set up to make sure I didn’t have to many plants, and nope that wasn’t it either. So we talked about some different things, trying to brainstorm what happened to our poor Moon – is the filter too fast, creating a current? No. Anything obviously wrong, like discoloration of the fins, etc? Nope. Then we got to feeding. I only fed him 3-4 pellets once a day, with a fasting day, which is what you are supposed to do. However, I do feed the snail in there as well, and we came to the conclusion that he was snacking on Sunny’s food too, and Betta’s will eat themselves to death. We decided as well that since I do have so many plants that I don’t need to give Sunny a wafer to supplement his food. We did end up getting another fish for Wyatt, which he has named New Moon. This one is a female Betta, and has the shorter fins. She is very pretty, petite, and very zippy. As a mother I am obsessed with keeping this fish alive for my kid; I told my Dad, of all the pets we have Wyatt decides he most loves the two fish, who are the most fragile. I am happy he loves them though.
We also went to a good old-fashioned block party on Saturday! The next block down was having a block party, with the street closed off and everything, and one of the families who we talk to here and there invited us down. We didn’t stay super long since it was so humid and hot, but we did go and hang out for a bit. It was nice to chat with them more than just the hi here and there small talk. And Wyatt had a blast!!! They had a ramp for bikes and of course, Billy took Wyatt up and down it. And his face! He also tried to go up it by himself when were chatting which gave me a heart attack. That kid, I swear. Lol.
Overall, it has been a fun few days!
And here are just some random photos..
And I hope that whatever you all do today, that you do something that makes you smile!
This weeks prompt is: Ten Favorite Books from Ten Series
I am not really much of a series reader! There are times when I just will stop reading a series because I don’t want things to change in the series; I like it just the way it is. I did this with Outlander – I didn’t want to read on while Jamie got older. I wanted to keep the book memory of him just how I liked it, thank you very much. Or sometimes I start a sequel, and I just don’t like it. The magic of the first book is gone. This happens to me a lot. So, saying all of this, this was a difficult TTT for me. It was a fun one though! I can’t say that these are my favorite series or not, but I must have liked them quite a bit to read more than one book, and I will leave it at that!
I love Amanda Flower! I love these two series by her, and also her Living History series as well. I haven’t started the Garden magic one yet but I know I will love it too. And, I guess I must like the Halloween/fall theme quite a bit since all three of these are autumnal! I also love the Lighthouse Library series – I mean who would not want to be a librarian living in a lighthouse library? What a cool job!
Three very different books in this row! Lol. The Farmer’s Daughter by Lisa Howeler is the first book in her Spencer Valley Chronicles books, and my favorite of them all. I just love the story of Alex and Molly, the humor that Howeler infuses into her books, and the community as a whole.
This is not the last book in the series that I have read, although it is my favorite. I love Claire and Jamie in America, although the previous books were awesome as well.
I have read and reread the Little House series a billion times. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I have read them, it is insane. I do have a few standout favorites in the series, but of them all, I love this one. I love the little sod house – as a kid I thought that would be amazing to live in! As an adult, I can understand why Ma was a little less enthused.
I really enjoyed the Fox Crossing Maine series by Melinda Metz. For three years I could count on a new one to bring in the new year with. There was just something so fun about this little town in Maine that made me want to read about it – plus, a magical fox!
I LOVE the Truly Devious books (except for the last one). This one was my absolute favorite so far. I was so wrapped up in the mystery and could not wait to find out whodunit.
So I am still waiting for the third book in this series to come out, and I am hoping that there is one in the works. This is a newer series by Karen White and I absolutely love it. I love New Orleans and always have, I love historic preservation, and I love ghost stories, so this series is a huge win for me!
And finally Harry Potter. It probably is one of my favorite series of books I have read to be honest, so I don’t think I should leave it off the list (even though I did mention HP in my last TTT post! So repetitive of me!) This one was really cool I thought, with the whole Triwizard Tournament and dragons!
And there you have it! I am looking forward to seeing everyone else’s posts and then putting a hand to my head and saying “Oh yeah! I love that series too!!”
In Detroit at the corner of Grand River and Washington, nestled into the stunning Book Tower building, is the gem that is Le Supreme.
It was a Saturday morning, just in time for brunch, when we headed downtown in nicer clothes than normal, for Billy’s birthday brunch. Billy loves all things French, and I thought it would be fun to surprise him with a special meal for his birthday. We don’t usually make a fuss over our birthdays, but this year, I wanted to make a fuss over my hard working husband.
We chose to valet park since parking can be difficult in that area and we had Wyatt’s wheelchair to consider as well, then made our way through the French blue doors into the colorful lobby of Le Supreme. The hosts were both so sweet, with the male host complimenting my rabbit necklace and the woman being very helpful in finding just the right table. When I made our reservation, I had mentioned it was Billy’s birthday and that we had a wheelchair user so they were prepared for us. They wished Billy a happy birthday and directed us to our table.
I was busy looking all around but trying not to look like a rube who never goes anywhere, but I couldn’t help it. I felt like I wandered into the movie Amelie, which is one of my favorite movies and I was taking it all in. So was Wyatt – his head was on a swivel on our way to the table as well.
It wasn’t too busy yet in the room we sat in, although the front section was bustling and filled with chatter. The color palette of the design and the architectural details of both rooms were absolutely gorgeous – I loved both areas. The sage green, the tiled floor, the wood details of the front room, to the wood and mirrors of the room that we were in both transported Billy and I to another place, reminding us of vacations in New Orleans (we have never been to France but we have been to New Orleans many times!). The waitress offered us a choice of sparkling water or regular – Billy and I chose sparkling, Wyatt the regular. Then we perused the menu.
So I am not the most adventurous eater, but I knew I wanted to explore a bit more than my usual orders at places. I didn’t go wild, but I did order something different than my norm – Eggs Benedict. I wavered between a few things, the Omlette Francais, the Baguette Jambon Beurre et Brie, the Salade Nicoise, or… something safer. I went for slightly safer but out of my comfort zone since I am not a sauces person. Wyatt ordered the pancakes and bacon, and then Billy plumped for the Croque Madame. I also ordered a glass of wine. When in a Parisian-inspired restaurant, why not?
Those pancakes were bigger than Wyatt!
Everything was delicious! Seriously, the best thing I have eaten all year. We were just about filled to the brim with goodness when the waitress told us that she hoped we had saved some room, because they were going to bring Billy out a complimentary Creme Brulee for his birthday. How did they know that is his favorite?
Billy was nice and shared. It was safe to say Wyatt enjoyed his first experience with Creme Brulee…
After we ate we took a quick walk through the lobby of Book Tower, while we waited for the car to be pulled around. It was gorgeous, and we loved the giant window into part of the kitchen.
I want to give a shout out to the valet team here. They were so thoughtful and accommodating, making sure to park so that it was easier to load the wheelchair, offering to actually load the wheelchair, holding the doors open for all three of us.. they were just very good at their job and sort of made the outing feel even more like a dream.
Billy absolutely loved his birthday brunch, and we loved making a bit of special over him. He doesn’t get that very much and he deserves it way more often.
We had a fantastic time, and would 100% go back again. We definitely want to go back for dinner one night, perhaps a date night, although Wyatt behaved perfectly and I was so proud of him.
Overall, this experience was amazing, every last bit of it.
The Details
Le Supreme is located at 1265 Washington Blvd Detroit, MI 48226 and they are open for brunch and dinner on the weekends, and from 4-10 during the week. If you go, I highly recommend the valet service, although there is a parking garage directly across the street, but honestly you might end up paying the same amount. I also recommend making a reservation.
As for accessibility, they were very accommodating with Wyatt. They do have outdoor seating, but not much of it is shaded and if shade is important, keep that in mind. (it is for us)
I also want to just add that we got a little postcard when we left with our bill, of The Supremes, and I loved that touch of Detroit. Full circle.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date
Hello everyone! I hope you all had a terrific week! Ours had a lot of up and down moments, but we have made it to the weekend, and to Billy’s birthday which is today. We went out for a fancy brunch yesterday to celebrate at a Parisian-inspired brasserie named Le Supreme in Detroit and it was amazing!! I will share all the photos and a full write up later this week, but it was so much fun and so delicious.
I had really good reading week as well!
Read Last Week:
I was gifted a copy of The Blue Castle and I absolutely loved it! So many people told me that this was their favorite Montgomery book and while I have not read very many, I can say that I adored it. The nature writing alone made me sigh with happiness, and the plot of Valancy coming into her own was such a good story.
The Bewitching of Aveline Jones is a middle grade that was really well done. It actually sort of gave me the creeps in a part or two or three! This is the second in the series, and while I haven’t read the first it didn’t really matter. I wanted to read this one first since it takes place in the summer, while the first one is a fall read. I know, I am super weird.
Reading This Week:
These are the two I have lined up! I don’t know if I will get to them both however. Primer and Punishment looks so cute, and I LOVE a houseboat setting. When She Was Me I am reading as part of my own Spooky Summer Camp reading that I am doing this summer.
We are boring with our viewing over here this summer – we just are totally binge watching The Great British Sewing Bee. We are trying to find the Pottery Throw Down for winter, because apparently we can’t get enough of British television.
And that is it from me today! I hope that you all have a wonderful week!
It seems like every July/August I am in the mood for a book that is so beautiful and emotional that I cry. Last summer it was Tom Lake; this summer, it was The Berry Pickers.
The Berry Pickers Publisher Summary:
“July 1962. A Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.
In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective. Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret.
For readers of The Vanishing Half and Woman of Light, this showstopping debut by a vibrant new voice in fiction is a riveting novel about the search for truth, the shadow of trauma, and the persistence of love across time.”
My thoughts:
This book made me cry. A lot. I don’t know if it will make others have the same emotional response that I did however, as some of my emotions were triggered by my own past and trauma. I am just going to say though, it will probably make you cry some. I posted this on my Instagram and someone commented that they read it in the laundromat and just sobbed while reading. I felt that comment.
The story follows the story of a Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia, who spend their summers every year picking blueberries in the same area of Maine. This has been the way it is for years. They are known, they are expected. Yet when one of their own goes missing, not much is done. (surprise surprise) The Mi’kmaq community who is in Maine for the harvest searches secretly while giving the appearance of working, although of course their focus is on finding little Ruthie, not necessarily how many berries end up in their baskets. At the end of the season though, the family must return to Nova Scotia, leaving the mystery of what happened to Ruthie, their daughter, their sister, behind.
The rest of the book is told from the perspectives of two characters, Joe and Norma. Joe was the last one to see his little sister Ruthie before she disappeared, and the guilt of this weighs on him his entire life. We hear from his point of view what the next fifty years were like for him, living in this shadow his entire life – in addition to what also happens to him those next fifty years. Through it all he always has his family though, and the love of his mother, who never ever gave up on thinking her daughter Ruthie was alive.
Norma on the other hand, grows up in a home of privilege, the daughter of a judge. She has been suffocated by her mother’s love which is strangling and oppressive and not healthy, and her mother’s overprotectiveness. Her father is more distant, but she has her aunt June who is the breath of life for her. Supportive and loving, she is there to help and guide and just be there for Norma when she needs it, her whole life. She tries to help Norma understand her mother some but really helps fill in those cracks. Norma has these memories though that don’t make sense, and the sense of unease, or of something missing, never leaves her.
While there is the underlying mystery and the fallout, the idea of love and family in all of its forms is such a huge theme in this book. The love of siblings, of two very different mothers who desperately want to hold on to their daughters yet in two very different ways and under different circumstances – one the physical, the other the memory. It shows the goodness of love and how it can be just joyous and free and supportive and all the things that love is, and also the darkness that some love can bring.
It is a very wonderfully written amazing story, from start to finish. It left me exhausted but so glad that I read it. It was just one of those books that I will never forget.
Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs.. 