This spring has been more than a little chaotic, and when I’m feeling overwhelmed I find great comfort in tidying up. I want to be clear: I’m not talking about any kind of serious organizing. I’m talking about cleaning up the mess I allowed to accumulate when I was feeling too busy to put anything away! Reshelving things where they actually belong in the pantry, clearing the books off the kitchen counters, reestablishing order in my makeup drawer: this is what I’m talking about. Organization doesn’t come easy to me, so once I find a tool, trick, or system I love, I tend to stick with it for a ..read more

I love a good audiobook, and yet sometimes it’s so hard to choose what to listen to next! I can’t be the only reader in this position, and with that in mind, today I’m once again sharing a plethora of recent books that I read in the audiobook format. I noticed that the vast majority of my recent reads fell into two categories: literary fiction and love stories. I thought it might be fun to focus my round-up on these two loose genres for easy browsing. Some of these books have previously appeared on the blog (usually in Quick Lit); some are appearing for the first time. My hope is that these a ..read more

Connecting with authors is always a treat, and today I’m delighted to invite you to listen in to a recent conversation with Thao Thai. Thao joined us in the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club to discuss her debut novel Banyan Moon, a juicy family drama that explores what makes a home, the secrets we keep, inheritance and immigrant stories, and so much more. We talk about how this unique story came to be and the story behind the book’s striking cover, and Thao answers a variety of questions from our Book Club members. In addition, we touch on Thao’s forthcoming rom-com, Adam & Evie’s Matchmaking T ..read more

Despite being a morning person, I hate actually waking up. The initial “getting out of bed” portion of the morning is quite possibly the least enjoyable part of my day. Luckily, I have found something that actually makes me ecstatic to get out of bed: my $16 ice roller.  When I tell you I almost sprint to the freezer each morning to use it, I am not exaggerating. The simple daily routine of using my ice roller brings me so much joy. (Even if I am packing school lunches at the same time.) While it is indeed freezing for the first few moments, it quickly feels great and invigorating. As a ..read more

When big changes happen in life, our reading routines can take a hit, and that’s exactly what happened with today’s guest, Caleb Wilson-Johnson. Caleb used to love planning his entire reading year in advance, and took particular joy in discovering the perfect books for each season. But Caleb recently got married and moved across the state to live with his new husband. Both of these joyful events shook up his previous reading routine. Caleb’s interested in exploring what a new path forward might look like as he enjoys these other new starts in his life. Today, Caleb and I consider how he can b ..read more

Welcome to Quick Lit, where I share short and sweet reviews of what I’ve been reading lately on (or around) the 15th of the month, and invite you to do the same. Most of my print reading this month has been in service of the 2024 Summer Reading Guide (coming May 16, did you see?). I won’t talk about those books just yet, but I still have plenty to share. Do you remember last month when I told you my audiobook listening was underrepresented, since I was almost done with three titles at the time? Today I have lots of audio listens to share! This hardly ever happens, but our new editio ..read more

What are you up to this weekend? I’m in Grand Rapids for the Festival of Faith and Writing, though I’m still jet lagged from our family’s spring break trip to Europe to visit our oldest who’s studying abroad in northern Germany this semester. We got to see his small town, take a few day trips, visit with favorite friends, and spend a wonderful long weekend in Copenhagen, plus bring home books, chocolate, an amazing Scandinavian sweater and candle … and an adult ear infection, boo. I shared a few pictures over on Instagram if you’re interested. I hope you have something to look forward to this ..read more

Every so often, I’ll notice a string of books with a niche theme or a sudden proliferation of books on an unexpected topic. Thus the inspiration for today’s post: books about birds. Birdwatching surged in popularity beginning in the pandemic, and the number of related books has likewise proliferated. In the past year or two, I’ve noticed more and more books about different kinds of birds and birders. I did not see it coming but I like it! Today’s list is an interesting mix of memoir, true crime, nature essays, and fiction. Some are pre-pandemic releases; others are quite recent. Whether you’r ..read more

It’s that time of year: our THIRTEENTH annual Summer Reading Guide is coming Thursday, May 16. I am so excited about this year’s guide: it’s going to be forty-two books strong, chock-full of summer reading goodness, made with love and experience and nerdy enthusiasm and hundreds of hours of reading time and literary labors of love. Here’s everything you need to know about this year’s guide! (Spoiler alert: the logistics will be very much the same as 2023.) 2024 Summer Reading Guide and Unboxing Party We’re releasing the guide on May 16. Our 2024 SRG is an included perk for our community memb ..read more

A recent career shift has opened up more reading time for today’s guest, and she’s looking to make the most of this abundance by exploring new-to-her genres and overlooked backlist titles. Tara Bañuelos lives and practices law in Washington, D.C.. In the past, she’s relied on reading as her preferred form of stress management. But with her recent career shift, Tara’s finally able to read for pleasure again, and not just anxiety relief. Tara’s been loving what this has meant for her reading selections, and she’s not suffering for choice: Tara’s access to the regional library system in her area ..read more