Category Archives: Reading & Book Reviews

The Books of My Life: Lindsey Mead

LEM Basin Harbor (3)I’m so excited to have Lindsey Mead here today for “The Books of My Life.” I’m a big fan of Lindsey’s blog, A Design So Vast, where I revel in the magic of her words. Her writing is exquisite. I discovered Lindsey the same way I found Aidan Donnelley Rowley, from reading her essay that was part of the Huffington Post series, “This is Childhood.” Lindsey is a very talented writer – I cannot adequately describe her lyrical style, but her essays about the passage of time evoke such emotions in me that I have stop and reread, because – wow! And her use of imagery, well again, wow. In one of her essays she used a cross country running metaphor to describe her daughter’s growing up and away from her childhood. As the mother of a cross country runner, it pierced my heart. I urge you check out her blog.

Lindsey is a Boston girl (yay!) and a lover of books. She reads obsessively like I do, although our tastes are a little different. Still, her book reviews and recommendations have inspired me to up my game both as a reviewer and a reader. I have ventured outside my reading comfort zone more than once, based on one of her suggestions. Without further ado – here’ is Lindsay’s interview. Continue reading The Books of My Life: Lindsey Mead

Book Review: The Ramblers by Aidan Donnelley Rowley

The Ramblers, by Aidan Donnelley Rowley, is a book I’ve been eager to read. Aidan blogs regularly at Ivy League Insecurities, which is how I first came to know her (and you can read more about that in yesterday’s Books of My Life post). She blogged a lot about the writing of this book, but very little about the details. I had no idea what the book was going to be about, which was genius, because it stoked my curiosity.

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Continue reading Book Review: The Ramblers by Aidan Donnelley Rowley

Books of My Life: Aidan Donnelley Rowley

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One of the first bloggers I discovered after diving into this wild and crazy world of blogging was Aidan Donnelley Rowley, from Ivy League Insecurities. I visited her site after reading an essay she penned for the Huffington Post series, “This is Childhood.” Aidan wrote a breathtakingly beautiful piece about her daughter. If you didn’t catch that series, Brain Child published all ten essays in a book, This is Childhood. Aidan’s blog hooked me on my first visit. Her writing style is unique and inspiring.  The honestly in her blogging gives Aidan the ability to connect to readers in a way that makes you feel like she’s talking to just you. She has no pretense, she writes from her heart and from her soul. I really like her and want to write like her! Continue reading Books of My Life: Aidan Donnelley Rowley

My Favorite Books of 2015

 

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By now, I’m certain that you’re bored by all of the “best books of 2015” posts. There seem to be a lot of them this year (or I’m friends with more bloggers than I was last year). This is the fourth year I’ve compiled my list – and I don’t label my choices as the BEST, because it’s obviously subjective. I haven’t read every book published this year. My reading tastes are varied, but my favorite reads tend to be women’s fiction, which some literary readers poo-poo. I’m more than willing to go down the rabbit hole of war, famine, disease, and grief for the sake of a good story, but for the most part, I like to spend my time in the Shangri-La of happily ever-after. But I also love inspiring nonfiction, American history, and funny and interesting memoirs of people whom I admire or are curious about. Continue reading My Favorite Books of 2015