My blog is about the books I'm reading, the independent bookstores I visit, the author and book events I attend, and any bookish related things I come across in the months and years to come!
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
I am such a mood reader! Planning my specific reading list in advance is quite precarious as I am prone to changing my mind on a whim. However, I will try to read all of the following books this spring.
1. Frankenstein In Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi
2. The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff
3. The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama
4. Woodworking by Emily St. James
5. Culpability by Bruce Holsinger
6. Knots In My Yo-Yo String by Jerry Spinelli
7. Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukaasonga
8. Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson
9. The Tilted World by Tom Franklin & Beth Ann Fennelly
10. The First Thing We Do by Glenn J. Hill
Have you read any of the above books? Let me know in the comment section below!
I first listened to the unabridged audio version of The Rock, the Road, and the Rabbi by Rabbi Jason Sobel and Kathie Lee Gifford, which is wonderfully narrated by Kathie Lee Gifford. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this work of nonfiction and hope to listen to it again.
Ever since listening to The Rock, the Road, and the Rabbi by Rabbi Jason Sobel and Kathie Lee Gifford, I've been meaning to read Mysteries of the Messiah by Rabbi Jason Sobel. This is the year I made this goal happen.
As a side note, I had a dream earlier this year where my deceased, paternal grandfather wanted me to read Mysteries of the Messiah!! He was a deeply religious man in his later years and also very outspoken. So, when ancestors speak to us in our dreams, perhaps it is wise to sit up and take notice. This dream was another reason to move Mysteries of the Messiah up on my reading list.
How did I like Mysteries of the Messiah by Rabbi Jason Sobel? It's packed with biblical information!! I am not very well versed with regards to any particular religion, so I was a bit overwhelmed by the amount of information presented in this book. I will most likely have to revisit Mysteries of the Messiah a few times before it all sinks in due to the fact that I am not well versed with the bible or other Judeo-Christian texts. Overall, I really liked Mysteries of the Messiah.
I listened to the unabridged audio version of Mysteries of the Messiah, which I felt was passably narrated byNeil Hellegers. My chief complaint regarding the narration of Mysteries of the Messiahis that I felt that Neil Hellegers read this book too quickly.
Below is the publisher's summary for Mysteries of the Messiah by Rabbi Jason Sobel:
Highlighting connections that have been hidden from non-Jewish eyes, Rabbi Jason Sobel pulls back the curtain to shed God's light on the holy scriptures.
Most people do not understand how the Bible fits together—even people of faith. Too many Christians accept half an inheritance in that they are content to embrace merely the New Testament. On the flip side, Jews often experience this by embracing only the Old Testament. But God has an intricate plan and purpose for both.
In Mysteries of the Messiah, Rabbi Jason Sobel, raised in a Jewish home in New Jersey but now a follower of Yeshua, pulls back the curtain to show the many connections in Scripture hidden in plain sight. Known for his emphatic declaration "but there's more!" he guides readers from the story of creation through Revelation to see the passion and purpose of the Messiah, the Torah, and several of the patriarchs and prophets.
God's Word, written by many people over thousands of years, is not a random selection of people and stories, but they have intricate connections. Rabbi Jason connects the dots for readers, helping them see with clarity what God intended.
Also, see the short book trailer below for Mysteries of the Messiah where the author, Rabbi Jason Sobel, plugs his book.
I am giving Mysteries of the Messiah by Rabbi Jason Sobel a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars.
Wow, just wow, national exam finds that 40% of US 4th graders are below basic reading level. Additionally, over 50% of US adults are not able to read at a middle school level.
This is scary 😱 news! As a nation, how are we supposed to stay competitive and relevant without an educated workforce in the generations to come if literacy is low?
Last night, I watched the California Book Club monthly online event hosted by Alta Journal. This month, the featured book and author was White Oleander by Janet Fitch.
I remember reading White Oleander more than two decades and really enjoyed it at the time. I really enjoyed hearing Janet Fitch talk about White Oleander, her writing process and so on.
Above is the YouTube video from last night's event featuring Janet Fitch, should you care to view it.
I signed up for Hoopla through my public library at the end of December 2025. Each month, I am able to borrow four items per month via Hoopla for FREE. This includes music, movies, audiobooks, ebooks, or some combination of these items as a digital download.
So far, I've checked out only ebooks or audiobooks through Hoopla. I have checked out the maximum amount of books each month.
I have created a wishlist of 36 books that I will able to borrow through Hoopla this year. That's 9 months worth of books I can borrow before the end of 2026!
Is there anyone else out there hooked on Hoopla too? I can't figure why I didn't sign up for Hoopla sooner.
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
I have plenty of books with green book covers in my personal collection. Below are ten books with green covers I still very much want to read.
1. Home Before Dark by Riley Sager
2. The Sisters of the Glass Ferry by Kim Michele Richardson
3. The Imposters by Tom Rachman
4. The Floating Girls by Lo Patrick
5. The House Girl by Tara Conklin
6. Furious Hours by Casey Cep
7. The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart
8. Weyward by Emilia Hart
9. When the Tamarind Tree Blooms by Elaine Russell
10. Creepers by David Morrell
Happy Saint Patrick's Day! I hope you're reading great books!
I remember the rock band, Redbone, from the 1970s... And, I remembered them as a one hit wonder for the song, 'Come and Get Your Love'. Little did I know that Redbone actually had many other hits too.
I really enjoyed this comic book/graphic nonfiction book!! Redbone was an all Native American band and they made it big time. I learned not only a lot about the origins of Redbone, but also a lot about Native American history and Native American activism during the 1960s and 1970s. Pat Vegas, a co-founder of Redbone, is a Native American and Native American activist as well.
Below is a book trailer for Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band by Christian Staebler:
I am giving Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band by Christian Staebler a rating of 4stars out of 5 stars.
I watch Criminolly, a book related YouTube channel, about reading and books. Olly, from Criminolly, did the "What Matters About Reading?" book tag, which I enjoyed watching.
I decided to do the "What Matters About Reading?" book tag here on my blog too.
1. What do you want to get out of reading? What stays with you after?
I read for a wide variety of reasons. I read for entertainment, escapism, relaxation, learning new things, empathy, and diversity.
What stays with me is the enjoyment of reading a book and feeling relaxed and satisfied after I've read a book. I also find joy in learning new things, which is probably why I love reading nonfiction books so much.
2. What is reading with intention?
Reading with intention is reading books that fulfill your interests and needs. Plus, being present and savoring the written word with relish.
3. What interests you about somebody else’s relationship to a book?
I like knowing what makes someone excited about reading books in general, what genres they like reading, and hearing what makes a book they've read great.
Sometimes, I am even swayed to read a book by another avid reader based on the book's summary and what this reader thought about the book.
4. How do you talk about books with others? What do you usually want them to know about a book?
Usually, I share my thoughts about books I've read here on my blog. I also share my thoughts about books on Bookcrossing with other readers in the forums section. This year, I am also participating in a monthly online book club offered though the public library, where we discuss a book club pick we've read during the month. Additionally, I discuss books with other avid readers in person when I can.
5. Do you review books (publicly or privately)?
I review books publicly! Hence my blog! Occasionally, I will leave reviews on Goodreads or Amazon.
6. Do you use a rating system? Why? Why not?
Yes, I use a rating system when reviewing books. I give my reviews a numerical rating between one and five. 1 = terrible, 2 = okay, 3 = like, 4 = really like, 5 = love. If the book I read falls between two ratings, then I'll give it a rating of 1.5, 2.5, 3.5, or 4.5.
I like to rate books after reading them to gauge how I liked reading them at that moment in time.
7. Do you ask yourself if you’ve liked a book? And how much does liking a book matter?
Yes, I ask myself if I've liked a book I've read and this is important to me. I don't want to read poorly written books or things I'm not enjoying... Or if, I'm reading something to learn a topic/subject, then I should learn something from reading the book.... Otherwise, what's the point (in this case) if I learn nothing from the book. So, enjoying a book matters a lot.
8. What do you seek out from others who read publicly? Reviews, summaries, analysis, a curriculum?
I like hearing other people's thoughts regarding what they think about the books they've read, whether they write reviews for blogs, etc., participate in book clubs, or just like discussing books in person with other people.
9. Who do you go to for those things?
The short answer is a variety of places...Sometimes I find books from blogger reviews or Bookcrossers, book club picks, the articles I read, the topics I'm interested in learning more about, genres I like reading, or books from authors who I have read books from in the past.
