Space Station Mir

Halfway through, it began to feel October-like. Chilly, windy, leaves finally starting to change color, with that characteristic October scent in the air. I don't love October with the vivacity of an Anne of Green Gables, but I'm belatedly learning to appreciate the autumnal turn with the romantic maturity of an Anne Eliot. And I had the great good fortune to see Chesapeake Shakespeare Company's rendition of Persuasion as a play, adapted by Sarah Rose Kearns--I highly recommend both the particular production and the script, which was everything I could have dreamed of and more in a superb and thoughtful homage to Austen. She even referenced the sonnet I most associate with Anne's moment of melancholy in the woods, "Bare ruined choirs where late the sweet birds sang..." Books Read in October 2025 The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Mend Our Broken Hearts and World by Sharon Brous--My rabbi referenced the central anecdote in a previous year's High Holiday ser...

It's already mid-fall, so I've already read some of these, but I imagine I'll finish more before the fall is out! I'm reading quite widely these days--I seem to be reading 3-6 books at any given time, because of book clubs, yes, but also mood, format, and availability. Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Books On My Fall 2025 To-Read List An Amateur Witch's Guide to Murder by K. Valentin--I received this ebook for review from LibraryThing, and I've never been quite so pleased with my choices! This was a hilarious ride from the get-go and crammed full of witchy Goth kid oddities and gore--a perfect Halloween read, and hopefully the beginning of a series! A Bridesmaid's Guide to Murder by Abigail Scott--Another ebook I received for review from LibraryThing--and whatever it is, books ending in "Guide to Murder" are killing it for me these days! (Let's not look too deep...) I'm not finished, but I'm loving it so far. Don't Forget to Write by Sara Go...

The Fire Apprentice by Jane Buehler (Sylvania #5)  Release Date: March 18, 2025 I previously reviewed The Village Maid and The Woodland Stranger   for LibraryThing, both of which I loved, especially the latter. When I heard that Jane Buehler had another book coming out in the cozy fantasy romance series set in her bucolic land of Sylvania, I knew I wanted to review it! Sadly, it wasn't on offer from LibraryThing at the time, so I appealed directly to the author, who kindly sent me an eARC (and it sounds like her books will be back on LibraryThing's Early Reviewers soon as well).  Jane, the female protagonist, is a character that was introduced briefly in earlier books. Like all of the books so far, you could read The Fire Apprentice as a standalone and wouldn't miss out on any of the present story. However, if you want a fuller picture of Sylvania, the different human and fairy (and dragon!) cultures, and the interrelationships between the sets of characters in each of ...

  Court of Venom drips with atmosphere, magic, and intrigue. The Middle Eastern fantasy setting and unique magic system reminded me of Tasha Suri's Empire of Sand , however, the protagonist, Badriya, is darker than Suri's Mehr. Partially blackmailed, partially driven by her own motivations into being the queen's assassin and the court's herbalist (for a price), when Badriya says she's full of poison, she doesn't mean it figuratively. The title is absolutely apt for this royal drama set in a lush yet venomous oasis amid a treacherous desert, and the tight cast of characters each surprise you in their own way.  I would highly recommend the book to Middle-Eastern-inspired fantasy fans, and I would happily read a sequel! Received for review from LibraryThing Early Reviewers. 

7. Against the Country by Ben Metcalf Ben Metcalf's Against the Country is a novel distinguished by two attributes: its virulent attitude toward untamed terra firma and its excessive use of parentheses. On both counts, it is entertaining, but not as deep as its elevated vocabulary and precise punctuation might suggest. The editor, however, and/or the author, are to be highly commended on the appropriate if ample use of commas, semicolons, colons, and the aforementioned parentheses. Footnotes are, mercifully, contained, if not brief. Popularly compared to southern Gothic, Metcalf's narrator has at least a superior reliability to most of Faulkner's, and the prevailing mood, while depressing, does not quite reach the lugubrious depths of O'Connor. It's a book I suspect many raised in the country could relate to, if they were not likely to be outdone by the aforementioned vocabulary. At any rate, it encourages the rest of us to remain, if not happily, more safely ...

I've received a couple new reads lately, hopefully reviews will be soon! Against the Country: A Novel by Ben Metcalf, through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld, via Bookmooch

14. Every Boy Should Have a Man by Preston L. Allen Release Date: May 7, 2013 Every Boy Should Have a Man is a classic in the vein of Voltaire and Swift. A quick read in simple language, this account of a world where giants keep men as pets and for food has many implications on issues ranging from animal rights to racism to environmentalism. There is nothing else quite like this being written right now. This is one of those books that will appeal on many levels to multiple people. Both children and adults could get something out of this. In the first half of the book, I couldn't help thinking my dog would get a kick out of it! What is the relationship between ownership and companionship? Can loyalty be commanded? What is consent and what is bestiality? Some of those latter questions might not have relevance to our world, but then again they might or might in the past or future. I wouldn't strictly define Every Boy Should Have a Man as science fiction, but it definitely ...

I recently joined LibraryThing, and I'm still figuring it out, as there is quite a lot going on, and I'm not the most tech-savvy. Still, I've added the Currently Reading widget to my sidebar and I've entered in a small percentage of my books, those that I feel are most representative of my taste and my collection at large. At some point, I will get a paid account and enter them all, but that's an endeavor for a long period of time. Among my most interesting discoveries so far have been early reviewer books that I can request, lottery-style, from publishers. I've done so for June, so fingers crossed! I've also been checking out recommendations based on my books, and I just found my library statistics, which are surprisingly mesmerizing. I've discovered that 52.17% of my favorite books were written by women, 47.8% by men and only 38.1% of the authors are alive, as opposed to the collections of 91% of other LibraryThing users. Things may be slower as ...