Space Station Mir

 As usual, it's that time again to adjust the Top Ten Tuesday topic because tonight is the third night of Hanukkah. Hanukkah always starts on the 25th of Kislev but that sometimes needs some adjusting on the Gregorian calendar. Happy third night to my fellow celebrants, and happy almost-winter and/or winter holidays to everyone else! Since I also missed last week's topic, I've decided to share some cozy snowy reads--the topic was books set in snowy places but Jana added cozy and I like that as well-- to get into the wintery mood as well as some books I'd like for Hanukkah. Books Set in (Cozy) Snowy Places Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliott--This one is set during Hanukkah in Maine and NYC, so lots of cozy snow and wintry scenes in this evocative Hanukkah romance--and yes, it does involve a lot of food... The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis--Narnia is, of course, not an entirely nice place when the Pevensie children enter it, yet Mr. Tumnus, Mr. and Mrs....

I've been offline a bit since I spent the first week of December visiting a friend in Australia (!) and then this next week catching up on things, but here I finally am catching up on blog posts! Books Read in November 2025 How About Now by Kate Baer--I heard about this poetry collection on Cup of Jo and a few other online venues, and I'm so glad I did! I really enjoyed these paeans to millenial womanhood.  Don't Forget to Write by Sara Goodman Confino (Book club read)--Another feisty young Jewish woman in 1960, a time period that doesn't work for her personality--this was a little one-note but very amusing tone and I have it on good authority that it perfectly evokes Atlantic City/Jersey shore in that time period. Winterfrost Market (Tales of Midwinter Haven #1) by Jenny Sandiford--This is a perfect cozy fantasy read with a strong romantic subplot. I really admire how the author builds a diverse wintry world with some high fantastical stakes and literally "cozies...

Thanks to my book clubs, I've been exposed to more books out of my comfort zone--and every once in a while, I'm very grateful. And even if a book isn't my thing, it's still worth it to me to get to discuss it with other people, so it's a win/win for me! That said, I'm finding that I enjoy books from almost any genre and of almost any type--it really just depends on the book itself. Years ago, I would have said that romances and poetry weren't my thing, whereas, now, I'd consider both in my regular rotation. Even a year ago, I might have said mysteries weren't my thing, but now, I find myself reading a few every now and then. Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Books I Enjoyed That Were Outside My Comfort Zone The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century by Kirk Wallace Johnson--This may be the best book I've read this year, and I wouldn't have read it without a book club. The first few chapters were tedious at times, ...

Well, this is about to get interesting! I've been feeling the need to revamp my bookshelves gradually creeping up, so maybe this will inspire me to get started. It is a little hard to "randomly" grab when my shelves are organized by genre and/or TBR--I should maybe just grab from the TBR shelves--books I haven't wanted to read in years but haven't wanted to give away😭... Happy Top Ten Tuesday! The First 10 Books I Randomly Grabbed From my Shelf   ( Stand in front of your book collection, close your eyes, point to a title, and write it down. If you have shelves, point to your physical books.) The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien--I own multiple editions, but the one I randomly pointed to is the beautiful gold-edged hardback from the LOTR set my husband bought me for our first anniversary. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey--My husband's stepmom gave this to him, and I'm still the only one of us who's read it. Fairly obvious but hel...

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...

I love this topic for rejoining Top Ten Tuesday!  I'm trying to lean in as much as possible to the coziness of fall and the upcoming winter season. I've done a lot better with that the last few years. Just because it isn't my favorite doesn't mean I can't enjoy it. Plus, some books I'm reading lately that are apropos for the Halloween atmosphere pervading my neighborhood this month at least.  Cozy/Atmospheric Reads Adenashire, a Cozy Fantasy Book Series by J. Penner--These books are the epitome of cozy fantasy with distinctive characters from a variety of creative fantasy backgrounds, including orcs, fennex, and gargoyles. The Bloodstained Key by Charity Rau--Not so cozy, but stiflingly atmospheric--a Gothic novel set inside a fairytale. The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall--Really captures the cozy atmosphere of a small town and a trove of magical family secrets. An Amateur Witch's Guide to Murder by K. Valentin--I don...

September turned out to be quite a reading month, and I'm actually in the middle of various books of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry--books are my oldest and surest source of comfort and I've been needing a lot of that. High holidays are also a great time for reading after services since I try not to write or use technology on those days.   Books Read in September 2025 My Life With the Walter Boys by Ali Novak--The TV show has been a guilty pleasure so finally checked out the source material--very similar and lives up to the show. Lavender House (Evander Mills #1) by Lev A.C. Rosen--I enjoyed The Bell in the Fog so much that I went back and read the first book and intend to read the rest--so glad when book club turns me onto a book or series I enjoy that I might not otherwise have read! American Journal: Fifty Poems for Our Time, edited by Tracy K. Smith--Book of poems I got awhile ago but didn't really jibe with--I finished reading them all this month, and while I enjoyed...