Monday Mini-Reviews: Spring Break Edition

Reading in the first part of 2026 has started out slow.  I've read really good books, but with job uncertainties (again) I have found it hard to focus on reading.  Even though I still don't know what will happen to my job next year, I did manage to finally get lost in some really great books during my week off.

Upward Bound by Woody Brown is going to be one of the best books I read in 2026.  Brown was the first nonverbal autistic person to graduate from UCLA, writing this entire novel with his adapive technology.  Upward Bound is a daycare for adults with a variety of disabilities. Chapters are narrated by the various people who spend their days there, from residents to workers.  Brown shines a light on a portion of the population that are often ignored, giving voice to them.  I will be recommending this book to everyone for a long time.

Lake Effect by Cynthia D'Apris Sweeney begins in 1977 with Nina who receives a copy of the famous book The Joy of Sex from a recently divorced friend. Nina starts to examine her own marriage, which seems to be missing something.  When she and the next door neighbor begin a relationship, the lives of both families are changed forever.  And and decades later, Clara, Nina's daughter still has not managed to reconcile with her mother's decisions.

The Foursome by Christina Baker Cline is a fascinating fictionalized version of the marriages of Chang and Eng, the Siamese twins who settled in North Carolina in the 1800s.  This entire novel is told from the perspective of Eng's wife Fanny.  I've long been curious about these men and the fact that despite being conjoined boht married and had ten and eleven children apiece.  I absolutely devoured this one.

So Old, So Young by Grant Ginder is perfect for anyone who has a friend group from college that they remain in touch with through decades.  If you liked The Four Seasons on Netflix, this is also a book for you. Told over the course of twenty years and five different parties, we see how the friendships of six college friends change over time.

It Girl by Alison Pataki- I can count on Pataki for interesting historical fiction and this is no exception.  Evelyn Talbot is the first Gibson Girl, her likeness is so familiar that she is a celebrity.  Evelyn finds herself taken advantage of by a vaiety of powerful men, and even in the middle of what was referred to as the crime of the century.  

Celestial Lights by Cecile Pin - this story starts on the day of the space shuttle Challenger explosion, also the day Ollie was born.  Decades later Ollie is in space himself, a mission that is taking him away from his family for years. This novel moves back in time as Ollie remembers various events in his life that has led him to this place.  Although I've seen this one listed as science fiction, it feels more like realistic fiction and had a good mix of space/character development that I thoroughly enjoyed it.  

I really couldn't have asked for better reading this past week, but I've got plenty of other great books to choose from.  

Friday Five

 Spring break has been uneventful and full of time to basically do nothing. I started strong by completing a few cleaning projects early in the week, but mostly I let myself read a lot of amazing books and sleep in.  Little Sister was home from college for the week, so we took a day trip to Minneapolis to see one of her best friends who attends the University of St. Thomas and do a little shopping. 

I found plenty online to pique my interest.  Enjoy!

1.  Willow Quinn Sandal

2.  Opal Rollneck Knit Sweater

3.  Striped Pointelle Scalloped Neck Sweater

4.  Military Jacket

5.  Lou and Grey Double Stripe Pintucked Luvstretch Wide Leg Pants

6.  Tencel Ruffle Front Shirt

7.  The Ultimate Wide-Leg Pant in Airy Denim

8.  Relaxed Voile Puff Sleeve Top

9.  Ruffle Hem Slip Skirt

10.  Imperfect Women

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?

Waiting on Wednesday: Dolly All The Time

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released novel I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: Dolly All The Time by Annabel Monaghan

Due out: May 26, 2026

Synopsis taken from Amazon: 

If they start by pretending, can they end with something real?

Dolly Brick has never met a problem she couldn’t solve. Not when her mom left when she was twelve, and not at thirty-nine when she moves with her son back to Whitfield, Rhode Island for the summer to keep her dad and brother from losing the family home.

So when she comes across Stewart Whitfield—annoyingly handsome scion of the Whitfield family—with a flat tire and at the wrong end of a very public, very humiliating breakup, it’s in her nature to help. But Stewart’s proposed arrangement ends up being more than either of them bargained for, because as public dinners and high society benefits turn into sunset boat rides and kisses that hit her bloodstream like a ghost pepper, Dolly starts to feel something more than helpful. She’s never relied on anyone besides herself, can she really start now?

Friday Five

 Spring break is just a day away - and by some bizarre twist, I was already at work by the time we received a phone call for a two hour delay.  And then a short while later school was called off for students, and teachers would have a work day.  We aren't unaccustomed to snow days, but today there is a wind warning - and more importantly several schools had a transformer blow which means they are without power. 

So, I'm cleaning off my desk, filing things that have piled up, and even enjoying visiting with some colleagues, which hasn't happened much since I am running around from building to building.

1.  RD Style Kellie Denim Trim Cardigan

2.  Gigio Short Sleeve Puff Sleeve Blouse with Peter Pan Collar

3.   3D Floral Bonnie Dress

4.  Women's Long Sleeve Mariner Johnny Collar Polo

5.  Maggie Ruffle Neck Cardigan

6.  Design History Short Sleeve Stitched Cardigan Sweater

7.  Organic Cotton Cropped Cardigan

8.  Jayla Leather D'Orsay Slingback Dress Pumps

9.  Tag and Initial Necklace

10.  The Midi - I love this new challenge that I spend a few minutes each day.

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?

Kid Lit Thursday

 I have found my new favorite read aloud: The Future Book by Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris.  This is such a fun book to share with students.  I've snagged a copy that I've been carrying around in my backpack in the event I make an impromptu visit to a classroom.

This is a book that is just as fun to read with lower elementary as it is with upper elementary (or even middle school).  This takes less than five minutes to read, and I think it's a winner for any audience.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Shippers

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released novel I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: The Shippers by Katherine Center

Due out: May 19, 2026

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

After a whole lifetime of being bad at love, JoJo Burton decides to solve her intimacy issues once and for all at her sister’s destination wedding on a cruise ship. With the help of a little pop psychology, she diagnoses herself with a fixation on the neighborhood guy who was her her first crush and first kiss (and who just happens to be a newly-divorced wedding guest ), and she decides to woo him during the cruise for some long-delayed closure. Only problem is, her sister’s a little busy being a bride at the moment―so JoJo ropes in her childhood bestie, Cooper Watts, to be her wing man. Cooper: who RSVPed no, but then showed up, anyway. Cooper: who left town without a word four years earlier and moved to London. Cooper: who was, if she’s honest, the worst heartbreak of JoJo’s life. It’s bliss for her to see him again, and it’s agony, too―and the more they team up for Project Conquest, the more she obsesses over questions she can’t bring herself to ask.

Shipboard antics ensue in this witty, heart-tugging, childhood-friends-to-lovers romance―as JoJo and Cooper fake flirt, slow dance, share a cabin, sing duets, treat sunburns, get jealous, rescue each other over and over, and finally, at last, figure it all out in the most blissful, swoony, romantic way.

No one does summer romance quite like Katherine Center. THE SHIPPERS will take readers on the cruise of a lifetime in a story awash with romantic longing, top-notch banter, long-held secrets . . . and true love rediscovered.

Monday Mini-Reviews: Five Star Read: Lady Tremaine

I'm not a girl who grew up reading fairy tales. The stories were read to me, but I didn't have any special attachment to them, or the Disney movies that then followed.  

Lady Tremaine is a re-telling -or an untelling, as Hochhauser called it in a recent podcast I listened to - told in the perspective of Cinderella's stepmother.

 

The wicked stepmother and horrible stepsisters from the Cinderella of my childhood look vastly different than they do in Tremaine.  We get an entirely different perspective when we hear Lady Etheldreda's side of things.  Her first love ended in tragedy, leaving her with two young daughters, and the need to create a life on her own.  Etheldreda is a survivor, and despite the variety of challenges that life continues to present to her, she perseveres.  When she finds a man who can bring some sense of stability for her and her children, she takes the chance, also taking on raising Elin, who has been raised without a mother for much of her childhood.  

Elin isn't the easiest child, yet when the prince picks her over one of her new stepsisters, Etheldreda doesn't understand what the attraction could be  until she does a little research on her own and realizes that things aren't quite what they appear.

I loved this book so much, and will think of Cinderella in an entirely different way from now on.

Friday Five

Fri-yay!  I am so ready to have a weekend, although I've got nothing planned.  I look forward to downtime, and yet, sometimes, that seems a little boring.  Becoming an empty nester isn't something I'm enjoying every minute of.  I like having the girls home and always being busy.  So, apparently I need to find a few new hobbies.  I've found a few things to share with you this week - the spring weather is making me ready for warm weather clothing.  

 

1.  Spot On Half Zip Sweatshirt

2.  Margot Embroidered Blouse

3.  Mackie Mary Jane Espadrille

4.  Zoey Pullover Sweater

5.  Denim Puff Sleeve Top

6.  Millie Tee

7.  Preston Pleated Top

8.  Valencia Lace-up Platform Espadrille

9.  Field Jacket

10.  Rooster on HBO

That's it for me this week.  What's caught your eye?

Waiting on Wednesday: American Fantasy

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature where I highlight a soon to be released novel I can't wait to read.

This week's pick: American Fantasy by Emma Straub

Due out: April 7, 2026

Synopsis taken from Amazon:

When the American Fantasy cruise ship sets sail for a four-day themed voyage, aboard are all five members of a famous, nineties-era boy band and three thousand screaming women who have worshipped them since childhood.

Feeling slightly out of place amid this crowd is Annie, newly divorced, turning fifty with an empty nest, and here on a lark to appease her sister. Yet when the lights come up and the idols of her youth begin to sing, something is unlocked. Call it memory. Call it nostalgia. Call it the chemical reaction of hormones, hope, and sexual reawakening. Between the slushy alcoholic drinks, the familiar music, and the throngs of middle-aged women acting like lovesick teenagers, Annie finally reconnects to a long-submerged part of herself. By the time she meets one of the band members—not just a celebrity but someone in need of a friend—she has accessed a new sense of possibility.

In a smart and incisive book packed with laugh-out-loud reflections on fame, aging, marriage, and middle age, Emma Straub delivers a richly textured story that shows us real passion is never truly lost, that what we love makes us who we are, and that deep meaning can sometimes be found in a sea of screaming fans

Monday Mini-Reviews: A Week Of Little Focus

 

If you read my Friday post, you'll know that last week was rough.  I have had a hard time focusing as I ponder my job prospects.  Reading has been almost non-existent.  

I did actually find a way to read two books this weekend, and enjoyed them both.

I've had this book since last winter. My husband read it and enjoyed it, but it has sat on his nightstand ever since.  

Theodora goes with her fiance Connor to his family's winter retreat at Idlewild where they are planning to spend the holiday.  While there, Theo starts to remember bits and pieces that seem familiar to her; she was adopted when she was four and there has always been a missing piece from her early years.  

Theo is also getting threatening texts from someone who doesn't want her at Idlewood, and as more of her past seems to indicate that she spent some time at Idlewood, when she finds a picture of her and her mother there she wants to find answers that have long eluded her about what happened to her mother. 

I turned pages quickly in this book which kept my attention - a difficult task at this point.

 Anna Quindlen is an auto-read author for me.  And this latest novel is a solid addition to her collection of work.

Polly and her three friends have been meeting for book club for years, weathering the ups and downs of daily life.  As a gift her book club friends give her a DNA ancestry kit that show Polly is related to someone she's never even heard of. Although she's convinced the test must have be mistaken, she still wants to explore the results.

Add this in with her fertility problems, and one of the book club member's health problems, and this is a novel with fantastic character development that I didn't want to end.

There's always a let down after a story ends, so I'm left looking for my next great read.