Space Station Mir

This week's Top Ten Tuesday topic is books having to do with water. I guess that makes sense for a time of year (in the States, anyway) when we really appreciate the value of water, for ourselves and for our gardens. I went with books that center around water or a body of water, and those are usually included in the title, the cover, or both. Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Books About Water The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris--The titular water is actually about a fountain, and it's certainly central to the book.  Life of Pi by Yann Martell--I'd say a book about a boy and a tiger on the ocean fits here, and the classic cover has plenty of sea blue. Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield--Set around a river (the Thames) just like the title suggests, both literally and figuratively. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain--I always associate this classic tale with the Mississippi River, and the covers of most editions I've seen show Huck and Jim in the boat--or just ...

 What a creative idea! I love this topic but it does take some extra thinking. I'll be interested to see what everyone else comes up with. Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Characters from Different Books Who Should Team Up (Or date, be friends with, etc.) Addie LaRue/Nimona--I think these two would have a lot to relate to each other about, two beings who were once people but have become something else. I imagine Nimona accepting a deal from the devil so people see her as the person they most want to see--which means she'll see through Addie's invisibility like David in the book.  Elizabeth Bennet/Temeraire--Similarly, I think these two would have a lot of rebellious 19th century England ideas in common and would make a great team.  Hava from Seasparrow/Miss Benson from Miss Benson's Beetle--They're both weird and relate to animals more than people--and also enjoy travelling. I think they would get along. Ronan from The Raven Boys/Jesper from Six of Crows--I could see them get...

 July was a pretty great reading month, but I got overexcited and have a bunch of new reviews to do, so I'm skipping back and forth between 3-4 books at any given time, which I haven't done for years, but it's fine. Anyway, I finished three. Happy Women in Translation (WIT) month--don't know if I'll get any WIT reads in, but wanted to mention it! Books Read This Month Horse by Geraldine Brooks--bones, art, and horse racing. lot of historical research especially the history of enslaved African American jockeys, grooms, and traders, many of whom were pushed aside after the Civil War. A Gift of Stars by Renée Gendron-fantasy romance set in a complex world heavily influenced by constellations and divine pantheons but the book is centered on one construction site and a couple in an arranged marriage with some baffling stipulations. There's some awkward language and I got a bit frustrated about the long-drawn-out explanation over what was being built and what an unnec...

I frankly don't read a lot of backlist titles anymore (comes with not browsing much anymore heh) and everyone's backlist is someone else's obvious list, but I tried to pick books that aren't currently trending on Booktok or Bookstagram (that I know of), and are a little older or a little less mentioned, at least comparatively to other books in their genres or authors' oeuvres.  Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Forgotten Backlist Titles   The Bondwoman's Narrative by Hannah Carpenter A Traveler in Time by Alison Uttley Your Perfect Year by Charlotte Lucas Miller's Valley by Anna Quindlen Stoned: Jewelry, Obsession, and How Desire Shapes the World by Aja Raden The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley A Woman Soldier's Own Story: The Autobiography by Xie Bingying The Speed of Clouds by Miriam Seidel Fledgling by Octavia Butler The Scar by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko