From Bottom to Top:
1. The Beginner's Guide to Starting a Garden by Sally Roth
I first got this book from the library, but liked it enough that I asked for it for Christmas. It is basically landscaping with common plants that people often give away. It has designs and tips for beds and gardens that seem practical and I could make. We have several beds that need reworked in our yard and I thought this would be a great reference.
2. The Edible Garden, a Sunset book by Hazel White and Janet Sanchez
I received a gift certificate for Christmas to an edible landscape company. I have a tree in mind that I want to get, but wanted to do some more research before I made any decisions. So when I ran across this book at the library, I brought it home for more study.
3. The Family Handyman
I brought home this magazine from the library because it had an article on a deck makeover, a project that we want to do at some point.
4. Laughter, the Best Medicine II, Reader's Digest
Remember this feature in Reader's Digest? I guess it's still there, actually, but I'm not sure since I haven't seen a Reader's Digest in a while. Anyway, I picked this book up at a used book sale to have some light, quick reading. It's the perfect bathroom reader or easy reading to go to sleep by.
5. The Beautiful, Edible Garden by Leslie Bennett and Stefani Bittner
Another book I checked out from the library to do a little more research before I decide what to buy with my gift certificate for edible plants.
6. The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
This is the book I read last month for my book club and needs to taken back to the library. The club agreed that it was a good book and enjoyed it. The basic story has a golem and a jinni stranded in New York City in 1899 without their typical masters and abilities. There are many levels to the story from the golem and jinni trying to survive in the human world anonymously to commentary on the immigration experience. It provided a lot of discussion for my club.
7. Why We Sleep by Matthew Wallace
This is a current popular book by Matthew Wallace, PhD, a sleep researcher. His goal with the book is to help people understand what sleep is and how important it is to our health and well being. I've just started the book, but I am already learning a lot.
8. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
This is my book club's selection for February. The book itself got very good reviews and the Netflix series based on it has won a lot of awards. I may the last person around to read it; so far I find it engaging.
Are you a read-one-book-until-it's-finished kind of person or a read-several-books-at-once sometimes finishing one of them kind of person? What does your nightstand look like?
What a fun post. Lots of gardening books! You'll have to let us know what you decide to plant. I bought a book called "Eat Your Yard!" a couple of years ago, because I wanted to learn about eating the weeds in my backyard (our yard is ONLY weeds!) but I really never did anything with it besides perusing it. I just don't trust that I can recognize the weeds they're talking about.
ReplyDeleteI love borrowing books from the library, and the more I borrow, the happier I am, but also the more stressed I am because it means I have to find time to read all those books! Thankfully these days I have carved 30 to 45 minutes each night to read before going to bed and I'm really loving it.
I'm usually a "let's read a book from cover to cover before I start the next one" kind of reader, but the library always intrudes on those plans by letting me know that a book (or two!) that I put on hold is suddenly available for me to read, and many times they're new releases so I only have 7 days to read them. So my plans fall by the wayside and I have to put my current book down and read the library book(s) in a hurry. There's really no way to avoid this, unfortunately.
I love The Family Handyman! Our library carries it and I used to borrow it all the time but then my "honey-do" list grew very long and Greg was irritated with me, hahaha. So many projects that I think "It would be so easy to do this!" but sadly I'm not talented in that regard and Greg.. well, he thinks he's talented the way my mom used to think she was a great cook. Both of them are kind of delusional :) Of course, he did design and build our beautiful shed all by himself and he did do a very good job so I'm mean-spirited. I'm just sick and tired of him using caulk for every project, whether it's appropriate or not.
Will you and your husband be working on the deck yourselves, then? That sounds like a big project!
What I have on my nightstand right now (and on the arm of the futon too!) are:
1) my current read: The Puzzle Palace: Inside the National Security Agency, America's Most Secret Intelligence Organization, by James Bamford. Super interesting but out of date by now (written in the early 80s) and very very detailed so it's more like a long résumé and org chart. It was a Christmas present from Greg since my library system doesn't have it and I wanted to read it.
2) The Man Who Broke 'Purple': Life of the World's Greatest Cryptologist, Colonel William F. Friedman, by Ronald W. Clark. I also bought it since it's not available via my library system. I read his wife's biography back in December. She also was a cryptologist who just recently got recognition for her amazing work so I wanted to read more about the family and that environment.
3) The Migraine Brain, by Carolyn Bernstein, M.D. You recommended this to Greg (well to me, because he's not going to read it) but I have yet to read it!
4 and 5) will be library books that I'll pick up tomorrow morning as they are waiting for me: "Don't Let Go" by Harlan Coben, one of my favorite authors and "Frederick Carder's Steuben Glass" by Marshall Ketchum because I fell in love with Frederick Carder's glass pieces at the art museum last weekend so I want to learn more about him and his creations. I think I'll only have 7 days to read the Harlan Coben book so I'll have to put down my NSA non-fiction book.
There are a lot of plants that I recognize that I could eat from my yard and I have eaten a few of them. However, it's not something I do regularly.
DeleteWe will probably hire someone for the deck, but we'll have to see at the time. My husband is very capable, but doesn't have much time. Right now there are a couple of other big projects in front of it and we're just gathering information.
You should not stress about reading your library books. The worst thing that happens is that you return them unread and check them out again later if you're still interested. I understand a little of the pressure for a 7-day book, but you aren't committed to that one either.
I'm not sure how it works in FL, but here in Maryland if our system doesn't have a book, we can order it from any other place in Maryland if they have it. It is used all the time by people. Also, most libraries are in a national system to order books from. Those may take a little longer to get, but it can be done. You might check into that if there's a book you're interested in, but don't want to buy.
Also, do you have a certain amount of time on a hold before it goes away? We have 10 days and if I already have several books, I check it out on the last day, so I will have more time to pay attention to it.
Anyway, happy reading!
The Harlan Coben book is one that I had already checked out once but wasn't able to read within the prescribed 7 days, so I had returned it so the next person could get it faster. I put it on hold again yesterday and was number 51 in line so I figured it would be a long time until I got it again. I was very surprised when I got the email today that I could go pick it up! It must be my own library's copy. The manager told me that he usually has one copy of each new release that they keep permanently so it doesn't figure into the number of copies leased that people put on hold, and if he sees a local patron requesting it, he just gives it to that person. We do have 7 days to pick up the book so I do wait to get them if I can't make the time to start reading them right away. I was told on Monday or Tuesday that the Frederick Carder book was ready to be picked up. Since I'm going to get the Harlan Coben book tomorrow (because I'll have more time to read this weekend than I do during the week), I'll get that one at the same time.
DeleteOnce upon a time we had ILLs in our library system and I used those all the time because I was homeschooling YS through 2nd grade. However the 2007 economic crisis forced our county to cut the program and they haven't reinstated yet, even though I keep asking for it and even suggested they charge a nominal fee to cover the cost of mailing, for instance. So it's a no-go for us. We can suggest purchases, and they have purchased several of the books that I have suggested, but I never know whether they do decide to purchase it or not and then when they purchase it because their system isn't set up to alert you that they have it, so now I find it easier to just buy the book used on Amazon. But I rarely buy books unless I mean to keep them.
Sounds like you have a plan and I hope that you ILL's back soon.
DeleteOoh, that's a nice selection of books! I love the concept of edible gardening, and, at one time tried to have an edible garden. But the plants didn't do too well with our drought and heat! Now, it is a matter of encouraging whatever consents to grow!
ReplyDeleteWhat's on my nightstand? A layer of dust! A crossword puzzle book. The books to read and peruse are all in a pile on the floor, next to the bed and nightstand! Some quilting books, the library book (which I have realized is a re-read!), some magazines (Better Homes and Garden, and a knitting patterns magazine), and a couple of other fiction books.
You do have some edible gardening. Don't you have some fruit trees among other things?
DeleteSounds like you have a pile beside you nightstand similar to mine. A selection of books for whatever suits your mood.
Yes, you are right, I do have several fruit trees! Plus the curry leaf trees and a rosemary bush, and I've recently planted two grape vines. I also have a few other plants that can be considered edible - roses are grown for decorative impact, but their petals are edible and I've made jelly with them (as I don't spray them). I also have a yucca plant, and I've read that the flowers are edible, but I haven't actually eaten them!
DeleteAlways good to see what others are reading. I'm working my way through Jan Karon's latest book, To Be Where You Are. I don't like the later Mitford books as well as the earlier ones, but this one isn't bad. She flits around with her character's voices a lot and it isn't always clear who is talking/thinking until you get into it. Not a good book to put down for a long time as it's easy to lose the thread of the dialogue.
ReplyDeleteI also did some Reader's Digest reading this past week. I've been busy with my mom (who has experienced a sudden drastic worsening in her vision due to a medical issue) so I've been seeking out light reading as an antidote to stress. Oh, and like Bless, what you will find on my nightstand will be a layer of dust. Not proud of it, but there you are.
I read several of the early Jan Karon books, but have not kept up with the later ones. I understand the light reading. When I'm stressed, I can't read anything close to heavy. I hope there's a resolution to your mom's difficulties soon.
DeleteThanks you. My mom has had macular degeneration for awhile and has been seeing a retinal specialist. Around Christmas she had a new condition which basically compromises blood flow to the optic nerve which resulted in her (then) good eye having a big loss of vision. She is on steroids now as sometimes that helps with some vision return but I'm not optimistic. We've had a lot of doctor visits and I've been adapting her apartment to make her safer. Still more to do. She is holding up well but I know it's a struggle for her.
DeleteI know that it is a struggle for the whole family. Sending positive thoughts and prayers your way.
DeleteFor Christmas my DIL gave me a subscription to Texture with unlimited magazine reading from about 200 magazines. I read January's Reader's Digest cover to cover. I did not even know they were still publishing. They still have the little humorous bits throughout the magazine. Years ago I had an old Bennet Cerf book I found at a yard sale that was filled with snippets like laughter is the best medicine. That is a great reading list.
ReplyDeleteI remember Bennet Cerf riddle books from when I was a kid. I'm not sure if I've seen his joke books. My grandmother always got us a subscription to Reader's Digest and I enjoyed it. Paper magazines are on their way out, but it would be fun to see Reader's Digest again just like the good old days.
DeleteI have several books going right now, some aren't that interesting and put me right to sleep. I try to find free to almost free books so sometimes my current library reflects the options for acquisition. I don't get library books because my cats would mess them up and I'd be in library doodoo. The Readers' Digest was always around our house when I was growing up but I haven't seen one in decades now either.
ReplyDeleteI think my cats have only peed on a book once, so I don't need too many precautions with books. Especially since they are all old now.
DeleteHowever, when we travel, I usually don't take library books because it's hard to retrieve them if I leave them somewhere. I usually buy books from the Library Book Sale books of donated books. I don't have to pay any more than a dollar when I shop there. Sometimes I leave the books behind for someone else.