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Finished reading: The Blizzard Voices by Ted Kooser 📚 1986 | Poetry, historical fiction (The Children’s Blizzard, January 12, 1888) I picked this up at Bluestem a few weeks ago, and a post reminded me of the anniversary of the blizzard (137 years), so I ended up reading it on that day. Having …

Finished reading: Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1) by Leigh Bardugo 📚 2015 | YA, fantasy, heist I do love a good heist story. And this cast of characters was really fun. I don’t love that it ended on a cliffhanger because by the end of the book I felt like I needed a bit of a break from the …

Finished reading: Visitation Street by Ivy Pochoda 📚 2013 | Mystery/thriller (but very much character-driven and not at all plot-driven) This book is set in Red Hook, Brooklyn, just as it was beginning to be gentrified, and has such a strong sense of place–the neighborhood feels like a …

Finished reading: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy 📚 1905 | Historical fiction (French Revolution), classics January bookclub pick This was my second time reading this, and I liked it again, but not quite as much as the first time I read it (several years ago). Baroness Orczy is aggressively …

Finished reading: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans 📚 2025 | Epistolary novel, contemporary fiction I absolutely loved this one. I found myself processing long after, as if Sybil were someone I had actually known. Also, it made me want to write letters. A new favorite. 📖 (library) ✭✭✭✭✭

Finished reading: The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis 📚 2025 | Historical fiction (Hatshepsut-like pharoah), mystery/thriller (but lowkey), dual timeline (1930s, 1978) 🎧 ✭✭✭✭

Reading Project Thoughts: A bit more than a week into thinking about a longer-term reading project, I have thoughts. What is working: I have started both War and Peace (first time) and The Brothers Karamozov (again!), reading at the pace of one chapter a day. W&P is 361 chapters, and TBK is 96 chapters (in the edition …

Reading Project : I’ve been thinking for a while about starting another long-term reading project. I know about myself that I don’t necessarily need to complete a reading project to enjoy it, but I like the idea of planning it out and following as long as it remains enjoyable. As an example of what I …

My Favorite Appetizers in Lincoln, Nebraska: Today I had an appetizer that I wanted to add to my Favorite Appetizers in Lincoln list. Up to now, that list has lived exclusively in my head. but now I’m giving it a place on the blog. Beet Fries at Piedmont Bistro Togarashi seasoning / kewpie mayo / chili apricot sauce / cilantro oil …

Currently reading: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury 📚 This book is different than I remembered–more strangely written and more sinister. It feels like a good October read, but I’m not loving it as much as I did the first time through.

A confession of sin: Father, you tell us in your Word that whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. We confess that we have frequently relaxed our faith. We have allowed ourselves to become cynical, and our cynicism has boiled over with slander, criticism, prayerlessness, and pessimism. How …

Flowers from a dear friend’s garden this morning. Beauty is a balm.

A prayer for one of my kids after a hard first day of school: But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. Psalm 3:3

Yesterday I finished King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby. Each time I talk about this book, I reflexively do a long blink, take a deep breath in, and say, “It was dark” on the exhale. I mean, wow. Although the first one I read, Blacktop Wasteland, is still my favorite, Cosby’s books have …

Our contestants have no idea what game it is they’re about to play. The only way to learn is by playing, the only way to win is by learning, and the only way to begin is by beginning. So without further ado, let’s begin. –intro to Game Changer and the description that keeps coming to mind as …