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Happy Monday, readers! I hope you had a great weekend. I spent a good portion of it looking for my copy of the Grease fotonovel. Unsuccessfully, I might add. But I know it’s in this house somewhere! I’m sure I put it somewhere to keep it safe, but I hid it a little too well because now I don’t remember where it is, lol. (More like GRRRR is the word, the word that you heard, amirite?)
Have you ever seen a fotonovel before? I wonder if they even make books like this anymore. It’s the whole 1978 movie adaptation told through hundreds of still photos. I loved it to pieces when I was a kid, so much that the cover fell off. I WILL FIND YOU, FOTONOVEL.
Moving on, I have a bunch of fun bookish stuff to share with you to kick off your week, including the first of many amazing 2021 books that I have been dying to tell you about! Say it with me now: YAY, BOOKS!
Remember that whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, I am sending you love and hugs. Please be safe, and remember to wear a mask and wash your hands. And please be mindful of others. It takes no effort to be kind. I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty
Here’s Monday’s trivia question: “The Fastest Kid in the Fifth Grade” is the title of the third chapter in what children’s classic? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)
Deals, Reals, and Squeals!
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The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa is being adapted into a film, with Reed Morano directing and Charlie Kaufman attached as the screenwriter.
American poet Louise Glück has won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Here’s a fun cover reveal for Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa.
The trailer for News of the World, based on the novel by Paulette Jiles and featuring Tom Hanks, has been released.
And here’s the trailer for the fifth season of The Expanse.
Rick Riordan Presents released the covers for Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares by Tehlor Kay Mejia and The Last Fallen Star by Graci Kim
Dickinson has received an early season 3 renewal at Apple TV+.
Here’s the first look at the cover of Fences: Disarmed by Sarah Rees Brennan.
Christopher Paolini’s first novel for adults, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, will be made into a film.
A date has been set for the second season of Snowpiercer.
And here’s the cover reveal for XOXO by Axie Oh.
Book Riot Recommends
At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)
Loved, loved, loved:
Picnic in the Ruins by Todd Robert Petersen (Counterpoint, January 5, 2021)
During my vacation, I read several upcoming releases that are already going to be my favorite books of next year. Let’s start with this one, since it comes out the first week of 2021: This is a crime novel about archaeology, theft, and the past. Part of the story involves a young archaeologist who gets caught up in a murder, after she accidentally sees the priceless items the killers stole from their target. The killers are a pair of brothers who are part esoteric lunkheads, part vicious cutthroats. But this isn’t just a thriller – it’s also one of the funniest books I have read in years. (There’s a scene involving the use of “Staying Alive” by The BeeGees during CPR that had me in tears, and a Star Wars reference that had me cackling.) Plus, there are several intense chase scenes, fantastic dialogue, and a lot of smart discussion about who owns history. It’s an excellent read from start to finish and would be perfect for fans of Elmore Leonard, William Boyle, and The Coen Brothers.
TL;DR: Riotous comedy + psychopathic murderyness = very much my jam. I loved this book to freaking pieces.
What I’m reading this week.
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Whereabouts: A Novel by Jhumpa Lahiri
The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk
Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner
There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura
Fake Accounts by Lauren Oyler
Pun of the week:
“I’ve started sleeping in our fireplace. Now I sleep like a log.”
And this is funny:
To be fair, I look like this every time I eat salt and vinegar chips.
Happy things:
Here are a few things I enjoy that I thought you might like as well:
- Star vs. the Forces of Evil. (This is perfect for fans of Gravity Falls and Steven Universe.)
- FOLD IT IN: All six seasons of Schitt’s Creek are available now on Netflix!
- The Great Pottery Throw Down. I love Keith the Crying Judge.
- Purrli: This website makes the relaxing sounds of a cat purring.
- Here are livestreams of animals. I particularly enjoy the bat one.
- And more cute animal pictures.
- Disney Emoji Blitz!
And here’s a cat picture!
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“Der-dee-der. Look at me, I’m a hooman.” – Zevon
Trivia answer: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. (Does anyone want to cry just hearing the title? No? Just me?)
You made it to the bottom! Thanks for reading! – xo, L
All right, that’s it for me! Liberty is back this week, and I’m sure that she’ll have tons of new book news she’s excited to share with you. Thanks for hanging out, and here’s one last photo of my kitten and dog, who are slowly growing used to each other!
I’ll leave you with this picture of my adorable little reading buddy! He spent most of the afternoon curled up on my lap purring away while I read. My heart!
That’s it for me, book nerds! I leave you with this photo of all the animals in my household under temporary truce whilst perched on the dog bed. The dog clearly did not sign up for this.
That’s it for me, book nerds! I leave you with this photo of my kitten hanging out in his shark bed. It only seems appropriate, given that he loves to bite and we sing “Baby Shark” at tom approximately three times per day.
That’s it for me, book nerds! I leave you with a photo of the kitten, who has grown even more curious and now climbs everything. Here he is, having discovered the TV. (As an aside, anyone else watching The Vow on HBO? It’s absolutely BONKERS and a bit scary.)
I leave you with more kitten cuteness! Yes, that is a playpen for the kitten. Don’t let this photo deceive you, he is so rambunctious that we have to try and contain him, even when we’re right there. He (mostly) abides by this, but once he finds the confidence to break out I’m sure he’ll be unstoppable!
I shall leave you with this photo of my new kitten, Jin! Yes, we might have adopted him in part because he’s orange and therefore matches our big cat (they haven’t met yet). He’s very cuddly and I anticipate lots of good kitten snuggles in our future!