Mini Book Reviews: Stillmeadow Daybook, Marigolds for Malice, An Escape Goat

It’s time for mini book reviews again! I like to do them in groups of three, sometimes four. Today I have three!

I am so thankful that I learned about Taber. I am slowly trying to make my way through her books, and this was the second one that I have read. I liked this one a little better than Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge, which I loved, only because it was all in Taber’s voice and perspective, and it was nice to meander through her life with her. She has such a wonderful POV, and it is just a relaxing and slice of life read.

ETA: Taber is an author who wrote memoir, essay style books about her life in the country and on the cape. It is gentle vintage fiction from an earlier era. I love the gentleness and just everydayness of it.

“April twilights are blue and deep. The air smells of growing things and running brooks. The pond holds the sky in it. The stars come out.”

This is the third and maybe final book in the series, which makes me sad. I really loved this series! It is a cute, easy to read series, and is absolutely so cozy. I love the town of Poppyville and I will miss it – and of course Dash as well, that cute little corgi you see on the cover. This book in particular was a lot of fun as it had a gold rush plot which is not something I see in very many books. One thing that I loved as well was a Gladys Taber reference! I could not believe it, considering I had just read Stillmeadow Daybook!

“I’d never get to sleep feeling so anxious, so I dug out a book of Gladys Taber essays that never failed to relax me, and read for an hour or so, reveling in her descriptions of cocker spaniels and life in an old Connecticut farmhouse..”

An Escape Goat was another really fun cozy! In this one, the main character Callie has connected with long lost family on the East Coast (she is from Seattle) and started a goat yoga retreat business on their farm. Of course, being a cozy mystery means that someone has to die. And they do. I said on Instagram that this is like a book version of a Luke Bryan song, but with murder, and I stand by that. It just has all those vibes – wholesome summer fun on the farm, big old trucks barreling down country roads, picnics with all the fixings, outdoorsy activities, small towns. I really loved it and need to get the next one in the series!

And that is about it from me here! Just a few short little thoughts on some good reads!

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is doing well. We had a full week but it was a fun one. We have one more obligation today and then we are all coming home and putting on comfy clothes and decompressing. Lol.

Books:

It was a good week, but I barely had any time to read. I did finish Watership Down for my yearly reread, and I am partway through An Escape Goat.

I loved my journey with the rabbits of Watership Down, as always. And I am loving Zen Goat way more than I thought I was going to! I am definitely going to be seeking out the rest in the series.

This week I am reading more barnyard books. Lol.

Screens:

It was a super busy week, so we did not really watch anything. I did watch a few YouTuber channels here and there though, and I have a few new favorites that I am watching lately.

Rebecca at Literary Wanderings has become a regular watch for. I am really enjoying her vintage sleuths series of videos – and of course had to share them with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings of course, with her love of Nancy Drew!

Rebecca is also the channel where I learned about Gladys Taber last winter. She has some great recommendations and information, especially about older books.

I also enjoy watching Shelby’s Cottage. She only produces a video maybe once a month, but they are always really well done. I love her slow living ways. I can’t reproduce her routines at my house, but it is nice to pull maybe a little suggestion out that is manageable. I also find it interesting that I am drawn to YouTube channels where the person is an artist as their occupation, a painter or designer or illustrator. I have a type! Lol.

Last week I did manage to post a lot!

Books With Disability Representation – this has evolved into a passion project. I am either creating a website or a page that will be a searchable database of books that have disability representation. I have a feeling it is going to take a while but it will be worth it!

Traveling Through Books: Heidi

Thursday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Book Review: Raising Hare

In-Betweens:

We celebrated Independent Bookstore Day! We popped into two of our local bookstores, and picked up a few books. One had a few other vendors there as well, including a sourdough bakery, so we also purchased a loaf of rosemary sourdough and some sourdough sugar cookies which were phenomenal. This was our haul. I tried to support independent authors (Pattern of Betrayal) and local authors (The Busiest Place You Know). I got Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead as a free ARC from making a purchase at one of the stores. It has a crazy title but I have heard really good things about it.

We also celebrated my mom’s 79th birthday! We all went over and had ice cream and hung out and told stories.

And with that everyone, I will say goodbye for now. I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

And just a reminder:

Lisa of Boondock Ramblings and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone!! It’s been a crazy week, weatherwise, around here. We had a middle of the night, 2 am tornado warning on Tuesday (or sometime mid-week), where we stumbled down the basement to take cover. A tornado was confirmed to have touched down a few miles away in our neighbor city, so that was fun. Michigan had 9 tornados confirmed that night. I don’t know who moved tornado alley up but I am not enjoying it. It also rained all week, with our only nice day being Friday. Now we have a freeze warning and possibly snow in the forecast for tomorrow! It’s crazy around here!

Books:

Last week I read two bunny books! Well, I have not finished my umpteenth reread of Watership Down yet, but I did finish Raising Hare. It was really interesting reading them at the same time, even though the lagomorphs in Watership Down are rabbits not hares. I have a few book reviews coming up, but I will say I loved Raising Hare and it should not be triggering for those who are sensitive to animals and animal death, like I am. Feel free to ask me about it if you want. I hate when people gatekeep that info!

This week I will finish up Watership Down, and I plan on starting a cozy mystery and a middle grade.

I love the idea of goat yoga, or any yoga with some animal. Lol. I am going to be looking for one around here to try once. I couldn’t get this book at my library, so I bought it on Pango for $3! I love Pango, it is a platform for people to sell their used books. I have a link in the sidebar where you can get $5.00 off your first purchase if you use the code CRACKERCRUMBLIFE at checkout. My process for finding books is library first, then Pango, then I have to decide how badly I want a book. Lol. Anyway I didn’t mean to turn this into a Pango ad. Sorry about that! I just wanted to share that.

I am also reading Roll With It, a middle grade book about a girl with Cerebral Palsy.

Screens:

Billy and I are still watching Young Sherlock. I think we have two episodes left? On nights that we are tired we watch episodes of Brokenwood that we have already watched. We’ve been on the go a lot lately, and later than I want to be on the go, and our routine has been off so it’s been more Brokenwood than Young Sherlock lately!

In-Betweens:

I have started going to yoga! I used to go all the time before I was a mom, and I have finally finally prioritized it in my life again. And of course, now that I have been going and enjoying it, wouldn’t you know that Wyatt’s Little League schedule has games on yoga night? Arrgh! Lol. His season is only 6 weeks though, and my friend Kelly and I are going to switch to a different class somewhere else during that time. My plan is to go back to the original class though, because it is held in a very old building, on the top floor, and I love the feel of the room. It has a good vibe and sometimes while I am in savasana I think about all the people who have been in that room over the decades and their purposes.

I also want to mention that it is Disability Book Week this week. I didn’t realize this was a thing until a few days ago when I saw it on Instagram and I am very excited about it! I will be more prepared next year but this year I am going to participate how I can. I am including a video from the website that explains more about it. You can also find a list of suggested books for different ages here.

And just a reminder:

Lisa of Boondock Ramblings and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

And that is it from my corner of the world! I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone! It’s so cold and dreary here today, at least right now. It is supposed to warm up though this afternoon, to 76, but we will see. I am having a hard time believing it!

Books:

Over the last two weeks I read three books.

Heidi is a buddy read with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings. We were going to stretch it out over the month but I accidentally read it all the other day. I think Lisa is pretty close to finishing it as well. I am so glad that we read it; I absolutely adored it!

Marigolds for Malice is part of the Enchanted Garden mystery series, and is book 3 of 3 according to Amazon. It was pretty good and I am bummed the author stopped writing this series. I feel like there was more to tell about Ellie and her garden and the town of Poppyville!

Finally, I finished up Stillmeadow Daybook by Gladys Taber. It is funny that Lisa and I both were reading this at the same time, and didn’t realize it! I loved this one even more than Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge which I read at the beginning of the year. I loved Taber’s voice, and perspective, and so many of her thoughts are valid still today. (although there were some outdated references and signs of this book being of its time) I had so many book tags sticking out of the library copy that I ended up buying my own. That is a sign to me I need to own it! I was lucky enough to find a copy it and also Amber: A Very Personal Cat being sold together for seven dollars on Ebay. They are paperback which is my preference, so even better!

This week, I am visiting my old friends, the rabbits of Watership Down. If I finish, I feel like it will be a good time to also start Raising Hare!

Screens:

Billy and I have been watching Young Sherlock. It took me an episode or two to get into it, but I am really enjoying it now.

I also subjected my family to the original cartoon movie of Watership Down the other day. It wasn’t as bad as I remembered? Wyatt was not traumatized either so I was relieved. Wyatt hasn’t watched much with violence in it, just How to Train Your Dragon and The Mummy, so I was nervous but he did good. He seemed more excited that he was watching a movie version of my favorite book.

In-Betweens:

Do you ever have weird coincidences happen, that are not algorithm related because we know that those are not actual coincidences, but where something pops up where you are not expecting it? This happened to me this week. I had just finished Stillmeadow Daybook, and started Marigolds for Malice, when I encountered a reference to Gladys Taber in the cozy mystery! It was so weird!

I have to agree, reading Taber always relaxes me with tales of her life.

My cousin’s daughter also got her first job! And I was excited to hear that it was at one of my favorite local shops. So of course I had to go and visit, and of course I had to buy something..

I found this distinguished gentleman for half off, and had to bring him home. He is actually a vase, so I need to buy a few flowers to pop into his little ears. Lol. I have named him Hazel. Of course.

Other random photos from the week:

And just a reminder:

Lisa of Boondock Ramblings and I host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea.  This link-up is for book and reading posts or anything related to books and reading (even movies based on books!). Each link party will be open for a month. You can find that link up for this month here.

And that is it from my corner of the world! I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books About/Set In Places on My Bucket List

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Today’s Prompt: Books About/Set In Places on My Bucket List

Oo I love this one! Now, how to narrow this down? *thinkthinkthink*

Iceland (Secret Nights and Northern Lights) has been a bucket list country for me for a long time. Knowing it is just a six hour flight from me, which doesn’t seem to bad, especially with no layovers, makes it seem slightly within reach? I would love to see the Northern Lights there. One reason I liked this book so much is that I feel like I learned along with the main character about places to see within the country.

The Giraffe Manor Hotel in Nairobi (Tea with Elephants): Talk about a dream!!! Ever since I learned this place existed I have wanted to go, but it is very expensive so I will have to just keep dreaming. While this book isn’t quite the same thing, it makes me think of a trip like that. And this series sounds really fun! I have this book on my potential Summer TBR.

Chincoteague: Technically, I have been here, but so briefly and I was so young that I don’t remember. So I want to “go back” and see it, and I want Wyatt to see it too. I have been saying it for years now, we just need to do it!

Peru (Secret of the Andes): I have never read this book, but I think about reading it all the time, especially with Wyatt. Lol. Maybe this summer. I feel like Peru is magical, with deserts, mountains, and a rainforest, and would just be so beautiful and diverse to visit, with so much to see and do.

Italy (Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies): I would love to go to Italy. Anywhere in Italy, just send me there!

Loch Ness (Nessie Quest): I love cryptids, and the Loch Ness Monster is my favorite! I don’t believe in them (or do I?) but I would love to visit Scotland, and while it would be neat to see my family who lives there and see where my grandma and her family came from, I would really like to visit Loch Ness. And Edinburgh, just throwing that in there too.

Cornwall (Rebecca): I have no idea why I want to go to Cornwall so badly. I just do. I think I love the whole seaside of it, the history of the smugglers and the coves, and I find myself drawn to books set there.

California/Sequoia National Park (Kildee House): Ok, this is a place I have been but it is a bucket list for me to take Wyatt there to see the giant redwoods. They are so awe inspiring and amazing to see, I know he would love it too! I loved Kildee House, even though it made me cry a few times!!!

Japan (The Curious Kitten at the Chibineko Kitchen): I chose this book in particular because while Tokyo seems like it would be neat, I would not want to be there long. I would rather visit quieter, more rural areas.

The Shire (The Hobbit): I would like to visit the Shire. Or live there. I could very easily be a hobbit..

And that is it from me today! I hope that whatever you do, you do something that makes you smile!

My Monthly Wrap Up and Faves

Hello everyone!! I want to start doing these at the end of the month. I always do one in my book journal so it makes sense for me to make one here in this space as well!

This month, I read 7 books, that were a mix of genres.

I read two nonfiction, one poetry book, two cozy mysteries, a cozy fantasy, and a middle grade. I also had on DNF, sadly.

I was able to add the nonfiction books to my nonfiction challenge goal of Nonfiction Nibbler in Shelleyrae’s Nonfiction Reading Challenge. I seem to be stuck on memoirs but that is ok, this is the most nonfiction that I have read in a while.

As for settings, I visited rural France, 1920s Montreal, California, the Hudson Valley NY, and Long Island.

Faves:

Of course it was. Magic and cats and cat rescue and Montreal and the 1920s. It was such a great book! I will be reviewing it soon.

I am a cohost with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings, who thought of the monthly bookish linkup A Good Book and a Cup of Tea for all things book, not just books read or reviews, but bookstore visits or author visits or whatever else bookish you can think of!

We have decided we will be featuring our favorite posts from the month here. I do read all the posts even if I don’t comment. I only like to comment from my actual laptop and not from my phone, which is a problem sometimes when I read the post on my phone. ( I am working on more time to read and comment though. )

Here are my four favorites from this past month!

A First for the Blog Marsha at Marsha in the Middle’s Wuthering Heights post. She mainly posts about her life and fashion so it was so cool to hear from her about her favorite book.

A Curated Reading List to “Savor” in 2026 I loved this list of books to read and enjoy from Paula at Between the Bookends

The Strawberry House Marg at Intrepid Reader shared her review of The Strawberry House by Rachel Burton and I have to say it sounds amazing!

From My Children’s Book Cabinet – Finchen I love when Cat shares about vintage books in her collection!


And for some non-book related faves….

Covergirl Bliss You Berry Lip Balm – if you are not really a lipstick person but still want some color, this is the answer.

My newly short(er) hair

Getting happy mail from pen pals

Homemade pancakes with fresh from the farm syrup

Spotting snow drops and rabbits on walks

Journaling

And that is it from me today! I hope that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!


Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well! We had a pretty quiet week around here last week, which was nice!

Books:

Last week I read Trixie Belden, which was a blast from my past, and it was a crazy ride. I enjoyed returning to the world of Trixie and Honey!

I also read the second in the Enchanted Garden series. This series is just what I am needing right now; it is light and easy, keeps my attention, and makes me think spring with all of the garden and flower talk.

This week I am planning on starting two books, maybe three if the third in the Enchanted Garden series comes in for me at the library.

I plan on starting these The Sugar Rush by Peter Gregg, and Heidi. I am reading Heidi as a buddy read with Lisa at Boondock Ramblings and I am looking forward to it. I haven’t read it before! I missed this one in my childhood somehow.

Screens:

Not too much here on the tv/movie front, again. I have been going to visit my mom in the evenings, so I don’t get home until later and by the time Billy and I sit down to watch tv together we are pretty tired out. This usually means we watch a comfort show, and we are revisiting Brokenwood. I love that show so it is not a hardship.

I did post a few times last week.

Springtime Book Tag

Top Ten Tuesday: My Spring TBR

Coffee Catch Up

Also, just a reminder that Lisa and I cohost a link up, A Good Book and a Cup of Tea, for bookish links all month long. Anything book and reading goes! You can find it up in my header area.

In-Betweens:

We had a mostly quiet week last week, but we did go out yesterday to the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow in Ann Arbor. We had a great time, ate some fry bread, shopped a bit, and watched some of the dances and the grand entrance.

Today we have a birthday party for the Hurricane. She is turning three! It was supposed to be last weekend, but illness just keeps getting in the way these days. My dad and stepmom can’t make it today actually, because they have Covid!

And I will leave you with just a few photos from my roll before I leave.

And with that I will end here! I hope that you are all doing well, and that whatever you do today, you do something that makes you smile!

Springtime Book Tag

Hello everyone! I saw this book tag on Heather at Bookables Youtube channel and it just seemed fun! I copied the questions from her YouTube channel.

Flowers: All the flowers we remember are blooming again. Pick a book that’s a fresh take on a retelling.

Heather Fawcett’s The Grace of the Wild Things. This is just such a fun, different take on Anne of Green Gables. I loved it! My review here.

Cadbury Mini Eggs: Obviously the superior springtime candy of choice. Pick a book that you consider to be a sweet treat.

Ok, I am not a super fan of Cadbury Mini Eggs. To me the springtime candy of choice is a Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg or Starbust Jellybeans. For my book however, I am choosing one set somewhere that is supposed to smell like marshmallows.

This is one of my all time favorite books. I just love it! I love everything about it. I also love that my dad read it and said the main character reminded him of me! What a nice thing to say. My review here.

Allergies: Seasonal allergies often make your eyes water. Pick a book that made you cry.

This book made me a soggy tissue. I just cried and cried and cried. I loved it though. My review here.

Spring Cleaning: Out with the old and in with the new. Pick a book to unhaul.

I have had this on my shelf forever and I don’t think I am ever going to read it. It seems too sad every time I start it. I should just donate this one and free up a little space, especially since this is a chunker.

Spring Break: It’s the perfect time for an adventure. Pick a book involving a road trip.

This is a wonderful book. I highly recommend it.

Rainbows: I just feel like Spring is made of freaking rainbows. Pick a book featuring an LGBTQ+ character(s).

This book is a fun read, and is perfect for spring! My review here.

Spring Awakening:. Pick a book that’s also filled with completely dysfunctional characters.

I had a hard time with this prompt. I think this one works though!

In like a lion, out like a lamb: Pick a book series that didn’t get better as it progressed.

This is a blast from my past. I loved these first books so much, and then, whoa. They went absolutely insane. If you know you know. I often don’t read all the books in a series anymore, maybe this series is the reason why?

Fun in the Sun: Tag some Friends!

If any of you want to do this feel free!

Books, Screens, and In-Betweens

I am linking up with Deb at Readerbuzz,  Kathryn at Book Date, and  Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

Hello everyone!

Books:

I finished this one up last week, and I adored it. It was just cute and light and easy which was exactly what I needed. I already have the second in the series in my stack to read.

I also read Agnes Aubert, finally, and I absolutely loved every minute of it!!

Which leads us to my reading plan for this week! I have a few I am wavering between so we will see where I land.

These are the two currently on deck for this week. I loved Trixie growing up so I am looking forward to reading at least this one again. And this cover for Nightshade for Warning! So many things that appeal to me – the colors and flowers and the little corgi! I love it.

On Screen and Off Screen:

Not much happening on this front. When we watch tv we are watching old episodes of Brokenwood, one of my favorite shows.

I joined the Analog Life project in January and it is interesting to see how it is has really unraveled in our lives. I will say, my house is a wee bit messier on days now, since all of us have our various projects scattered in little piles here and there as we work on them. My journaling supplies, books, stationary, embroidery, Wyatt’s drawings and colored pencils and paper spread out everywhere, Billy’s leatherworking and painting. I picked up a free puzzle at the library yesterday as well, so we may try that this week too.

We do still watch television though, don’t get me wrong. And I still do scroll and read the internet and watch YouTube videos. Just not as much. I think today we are going to have a family art session and then watch The Phantom Tollbooth with Wyatt. He loved that book so much that I think he will like the movie as well.

I posted a few times last week as well!

Top Ten Tuesday: Green Covers

Wednesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Mini Book Reviews and a DNF: The Hounding, Daisies for Innocence, La Vie, and A Bit Much

In-Betweens:

Things sort of began to fall into a routine again last week. I am a creature of routine, and it was good to find a new rhythm. I got the few last loose ends for my mom tied up, and now we just work on getting her recovered. Wyatt and I also did some book shopping and refreshed our Little Free Library from the library book sale. On Wednesday last week my husband also gave me orders to take it easy, so I had fun with all of my various hobbies and hanging out with Wyatt playing. It was a much needed rest day. I wrote a few letters to pen pals, experimented a bit with watercolor, worked on my journals – I have my reading journal and my whatever journal that I am playing around with.

I also made it through my Super Tuesday! It was a tough one, ten wheelchair/car transfers y’all with my little guy, and I was whipped. That was one reason Billy insisted on me resting on Wednesday, and like I said, he was so right. But we got a lot of good stuff done.

I’ll leave you with some randoms from my phone – beware, there will probably be lots of photos of Max and Mouse!

And with that, I will leave you for today. I hope that whatever you do, that you do something that makes you smile!

Mini Book Reviews and a DNF: La Vie, The Hounding, A Bit Much, Daisies for Innocence

It’s time for mini book reviews again! I like to do them in groups of three, although today I have a DNF to talk about it too.

Let’s actually start with that one.

The Hounding. I feel like this book has some really important things to say, that it addresses important themes, and is cleverly done. However, it was too grim, bleak, and at times too violent for me. As I was reading it I kept thinking it reminded me of The Virgin Suicides and of the witch hunts, and after I decided I wasn’t reading it anymore I went online to read more about it, where I learned that it has been compared to them both many times. I do think it has a lot to offer but I am not able to read it, at least right now.

La Vie. I always love a book by John Lewis-Stempel. His books are all nonfiction, generally nature nonfiction, and set in England. This one differed as it took place in rural France instead, after he and his wife decided to move there and farm for a change of pace. He was hobby farming, or more farming for the benefit of his family, instead of commercially farming and this book was very charming. It had some sad parts, but mostly happy little vignettes of their farm life in France. It reminded me of A Year in Provence but with more focus on farming and nature, obviously. And, it is another one I can count toward the nonfiction challenge! I already have a few memoirs so it doesn’t fit into a new category but as I am aiming for nonfiction nibbler I don’t need to always stick to categories.

A Bit Much. This book of poetry by Lyndsay Rush was amazing. The way I devoured this book of poetry this week! I’ve had some hard weeks, and honestly this book has helped me along, a poem here, a poem there. I shared so many with my friends as well, snapping a pic and sending it along with entreaties that they need to pick this book up. It is going on my must by list!

I had so many favorites but the standouts for me are Be St Fri Ends, Hysterical, Easy Breezy Lemon Squeezy, Cracks of Light, and Reassurances to Save for a Rainy Day.

Now I will say the same to you that I said to my besties – go find this book and read it. And follow Lyndsay Rush @maryoliversdrunkcousin on Instagram.

Daisies for Innocence. I love a good cozy mystery and I absolutely loved this one. The MC owns an aromatherapy shop, and she blends her own scents and recipes. Like The Good Witch, she has a knack or gift as well for knowing what people need, so there is a bit of a supernatural, or enchanted, element in this book too, another feature I love. And, of course, her corgi Dash. I love a corgi. It made me think of spring and flowers and walks outside, and had a good solid mystery as well. I liked it so much, I requested the second one from the library already!

And that is it from me here! Have you read any of these?

Also linking this up with the nonfiction reading challenge hosted by Shelleyrae at Book’d Out!