This year (2025) finds me with 53 years of teaching “under my belt.” I have taught all levels from pre-K “(library lady” or “book lady”–volunteer) to juniors, seniors, and graduate students enrolled in my Advanced Writing class at the university where I have just completed 34 years. My first paying teaching job was junior high, and I spent 13 years with ages 12-13, the “difficult years.” I had some of the “funnest” experiences with this age group. When I was no longer the “young, fun teacher,” I taught in an elementary school setting before sixth graders went on to junior high, teaching language arts blocs, an assignment that was a “dream-fit” for me. After completing graduate school in my 40s, I went on to community college, then university teaching. This past fall I accepted a part-time teaching job at Apogee Gulf Coast Schools in its first year at the Alvin campus. After my Better Half died n 2022, I achieved a lifelong dream: opening a bookstore of my own, Rae’s Reads. A year later, I sold the house we had lived in for 47 years and moved into the bookstore. My goal is to circulate and repurpose books.
Just as teaching is “in my blood,” so is a passion for reading, writing, libraries, and everything bookish.
This blog will be open to anyone who loves books, promotes literacy and wants to “come out and play.”
Although this book was published in 1984, it deals with a very current issue– CLUTTER!
Dan Aslett has written a hilarious self-help book on decluttering. Clutter’s Last Stand is at turns sympathetic, sarcastic, and sadistic. Aslett takes no “back talk” when he tells the reader to get rid of something and has no sentimentality towards personal treasures. The cartoon illusions are excellent and tend to take the “sting” out of giving up your “stuff.” Judith Holmes Clarke’s cartoonish characters shout out this message, “It’s time to de-junk your life!”
The author gives tips on decluttering your home, your job, your mind, and your keepsakes. At the beginning is a Junkee Entrance Exam. My score said, “100-150 pts. The End is Near…You’re in trouble. Read Clutter’s Last Stand three times, gird up your loins and start de-junking ruthlessly.”
This is the ultimate self-improvement book. “This book will make you happier, freer, neater, richer, and smarter…it will solve more home, family, marriage, career, and economic problems than any book you’ve read.” I’m not so sure about the author’s claim here, but the book comes close!
ONE OF MY 2022 READING CHALLENGES WAS TO READ 22 NOVELS IN 2022
TODAY I updated my Reading Log and filled in titles on my 2022 challenges. To my delight, I discovered I had FINISHED the Novel Challenge to read 22 novels from January to December. Actually, to date I have read 26 novels.
Novels are one of my main passions. At one time in my life, I read ONLY novels.
Here they are in the order I read them:
Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Saenz, the sequel to Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe/Summer by Edith Wharton, which I also used for the “What’s in a Name reading challenge and could have used for the Classics Club / Rez Dogs by Joseph Bruchac, a novel in verse which I read for the Cybil’s judging/ The Awakening of Miss Prim by Natalia Sanmartin Fenollera, a lovely literary love story/ Interior China Town by Charles Yu, which was a book club selection for my Page Turners book club/ The Monk Downstairs by Tim Farrington, which taught me a great deal about Buddhism / The Van Gogh Cafe by Cynthia Rylant, a sweet, gentle story/ The Dependents by Katherine Dion, a contemporary novel/ The Paris Library, based on the brave people who kept the Paris Library open during the occupation of Germany in WWII, told in novel form/ Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristin Higgins, an author I have come to seek out/ The Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Bully, a YA novel and a thriller/ Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh, also used for The Classics Club/ The City We Became by N.K. Jeminsin, my new favorite sci-fi novel and the first in a series I look forward to reading / Fan Girl by Rainbow Rowell, a book that taught me what fan fiction was/ French Braid by Anne Tyler, one of my favorite authors/ Welcome to the School by the Sea by Jenny Colgan, a YA novel about a British boarding school/ The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, also used for The Classics Club and a Third Tuesday Book Club selection / The Children Act by Ian McEwan, first read then watched the film version/ Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson, a thriller that had me holding my breath/ At Least You Have Your Health by Madi Sinha, a women’s novel/ Lost for Words by Stephanie Butland, an audio Book about Books/ Lost Roses by Martha Hall Kelly, the prequel to Lilac Girls, which I read last year/ Book Lovers by Emily Henry, a novel about the publishing industry/ Accordion Crimes by Annie Proulx, the only disappointment on this list/ The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki, a novel narrated by a Book/ Arcadia by Lauren Groff about Hippies on a commune in the 70s.
Whew! That’s a lot of fine reading! What a good feeling to have one challenge finished for this year. Stay tuned to find out the total number of novels read in 2022.
Thanks to Evin for my elegant sign off.
This meme, hosted by Reading is My Superpower, encourages the blogger to post the first line of a book he/she is currently reading. This first liner is from a book I finished today.A Christian look at setting your home as a place of comfort and hospitality to your family and to others.
” The adventure started on a whim. With a suitcase in my hand, a laptop case and tote bag on my shoulder, and a luggage cart dragging behind me, I stumbled against the door of 209 and pushed it open with my shoulder.”
…And so the adventure of writing this book began for Sally and Sarah Clarkson, mother and daughter who always wanted to write a book together. Ms. Clarkson always believed home should be “a haven of rest and joy that will encourage everyone who enters it.” This 2016 publication contains anecdotes from a real family, a Christian family, the Clarksons. It contains wise advice on creating special memories for one’s children and establishing family traditions , as well as suggestions for seasonal celebrations (my favorites were for fall, possibly because it is my favorite season). Although the Clarkson family moved fairly frequently, they took their sense of “home” with them, relocating their anchor each time. I took notes, and even though my “home” consists of one person now, I plan to celebrate occasions and seasons to ensure happiness and gratitude for the blessings I have been given. The ideas in this book will help me do that.
HOME
Thanks for the image to Carla of “Carla Loves To Read”. Check out her great book reviews and her delightful sign offs on each post.
I wish I had read these books in order, but they were written out of order. I just finished the prequel to The Lilac Girls, Lost Roses. An excellent, warm and sometimes harrowing tale.
This is an excellent book for book clubs, and if I hadn’t already earned a reputation of recommending only novels to mine, I would do so. Kelly published Lost Roses as a prequel to The Lilac Girls, set in WWII (reviewed earlier on PWR). This 2019 publication is set just as WWI threatens in 1914. It is a historical novel which features the Russian Revolution and deals with women’s friendships.
Eliza Ferriday, an American, is a friend of Sofya Streshnayva, a cousin of the Ramanovs in Russia. The novel deals with the rise and fall of that dynasty . As Austria declares war on Serbia, Eliza returns to America, never dreaming her dear friend Sofya and her family will soon be trapped on their country estate. As the Russian Revolution breaks out, and the peasants take things into their own hands, Sofya hires Varinka, a fortune-teller’s daughter to be a nanny to her toddler son, Max. The intersecting of the lives of these three women is what propels the plot forward, creating memorable characters as the author spins her remarkable tale. Each chapter is headed by one of the three characters’ names and by the year, which keeps things orderly and at the same time presents what is going on simultaneously in those women’s lives.
This is definitely a “find” and a darned good read.
Thanks to the blogger at Reading Is My Superpower for the awesome meme.
The idea behind this fun activity is to copy the first line (or so) of a current read or something you are looking forward to reading in hopes of encouraging someone else to read the same book.
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending a book-talk/presentation by Bluebonnet-nominated children’s author, Alda Dobbs at the Freeman Library at Clear Lake in Houston, Texas. It was right down the street from The University of Houston Clear Lake where I am an adjunct professor, so it was an easy trip to make. It was good to see Alda again, our last visit being at my home in Alvin last spring after My Better Half died. She and her beautiful, clever kids spent the afternoon with me and even brought me take out from Mr. Sombrero’s. I posted about it here on PWR as “An Afternoon with an Author.”
Alda was an excellent speaker, constantly engaging the audience with questions and urging them to guess how many or what percent of Mexicans were literate , owned land, etc. The actual facts were surprising. It made the kids realize why the Mexican Revolution happened. She first told about her grandmother, often showing old photographs of what she was describing from newspapers and other sources. Everyone’s attention was focused and engaged.
Her first book, The Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna covered the escape from the fighting in Mexico to the Other Side of the River (the second book) to safety in the U.S.
This book has one of the most exciting endings of any children’s book or YA book I’ve read. And the nice part is…The sequel
…the second book begins at the exact point the other finishes. Here is the first line:
” Prologue”
“Thousands of us–the poorest of the poor, the underdogs–choked the bridge and begged for our lives to the gatekeepers, and despite the glistening over the smooth river below us, everyone including me, believed it was the end of our lives.”
How’s that for excitement at the very beginning of the book, and it’s all TRUE! These are the stories Alda’s Great Grandmother told her mother, who then told Alda. One of the most interesting parts of Dobbs’ speech was how she researched and read for years to validate the stories told to her with photos, newspaper articles and history books. It was an afternoon well spent!
The book will be launched September 2nd at the Brazos Bookstore in Houston, Texas. I plan to be in attendance.
Saturday mornings on PWR (Powerful Women Readers) are reserved for recommendations of kids’ books, just like Saturday morning TV programming in the 50s and 60s (cartoons) was. Today’s recommendation is a whole series.
Gators are funny, and when they play detective, they become even funnier.
I found this particular 2020 publication in my Little Free Library and had a ball looking it over. John Patrick really knows what tickles kids’ funny bones. It is done as a graphic novel, and I’m glad I began with Book One. The illustrations are priceless and the word balloons are easy to follow. Any precocious 8-year-old could read it to himself, but a 5-year-old could appreciate the jokes as he was being read to. Even reluctant readers as old as thirteen are sure to enjoy the slapstick and even more subtle jokes and will enjoy following the plots.
I highly recommend this whole series after examining the first book, firsthand, and looking over the other books in the series online. It is a reader-starter for those who are independent, avid readers as well as those who prefer computer games to “plain old books.” Best of all–they are F.U.N.N.Y.
The Purple Booker has begun this meme were the blogger posts a “teaser” from his/her current read to see if he/she can entice someone else to read the book.
My Tuesday Teaser for 7/12/22 is from a kid’s book I’m considering for Saturday’s “Saturday Morning for Kids,” here on PWR.
This author also wrote Harriet the Spy, a favorite of my fifth grade Sunday Schoolers..
” ‘Just what is it you want to do?’ asked Mr. Sheridan.
‘I want to be a dancer…’
‘Son,’ Mr. Sheridan pushed back his chair, crossed his legs, and lit a cigar. ‘I want to tell you something and I want you to listen. There are many jobs in this world and some good decent jobs, for good decent men to have. Others are jobs that aren’t even to be thought about. Now these people who spend their lives running around a stage are just trash.’ “
Willie, Emma’s brother at seven years old dreams of the day he will dance on the stage. Obviously, his father has different dreams for him. Emma, too, has big dreams; she wants to “show them all.” Will these kids even have the opportunity to fulfill their ambitions? Emma learns that all kids need to have a voice and all kids deserve to have an advocate who will speak for them.
My wishes for you
HAPPY READING–How about sharing your teaser in the comments/replies?
For the past year or more I have been following some teen blogging young ladies from various parts of the U.S., and even other countries, with interest. Their experiences at school, music tastes, photos, etc. differ greatly from my own. However, they are such a creative group that I have learned a great deal from them , and not only ideas for blogging.
Last Christmas, I joined them for Blogmas, posting some Christmassy thing daily for the whole month of December through January 6th, Old Christmas, and reading many, many of the posts on their blogs. This year I plan to do Blogmas again, with the moderation of just doing it twelve days. Some exceptions must be made for my advanced age. LOL
Today, after reading Sateja’s recent post on “The Last Book I…”
Thanks Sateja for the loan of your image.
I decided to accept the open tag because it looked like so much fun. All of the prompts are from a young, fresh, creative mind. The answers are strictly mine.
THE LAST BOOK I BOUGHT
An interesting novel recently reviewed on PWR
THE LAST BOOK I BORROWED
Borrowed from the library and one I am reading now
THE LAST BOOK I GAVE TO SOMEONE ELSE
Sending this book to Australia to help a friend, I hope it is as helpful to her as it was to me.
THE LAST BOOK I STARTED
I LOVE essays! This is my current favorite genre.
THE LAST BOOK I FINISHED
More essays Reviewed recently on PWR
THE LAST BOOK I RATED FIVE STARS
A Sci-fi favorite read earlier this year
THE LAST BOOK I DNF (DID NOT FINISH)
A Children’s book which was part of a series I did not look further into
THE LAST BOOK I LISTENED TO
Good, but I like print better
(I believe Diamond, one of the girls who follow each other’s blogs and whose blogs I follow was the creator of this topic. I just happened to catch it on Satjea’s post.)
Now, wasn’t that fun!
This little exercise provided by my young blogging friends provided joy in my life!
Wouldn’t you like to join in on this tag? Carla? Deb? Are you up to the challenge?
Thanks to my young blogging friend Evin for this sign off!
TheBest Yes: Making Decisions in the Midst of Endless Demands by Lysa Terkeurst is a book that came to me via a friend who was downsizing and getting rid of books she had decided she just didn’t have time to read: her loss, my gain.
A self-help book that actually helps
This book was published in 2014, but its message is more relevant than ever today. It was written for those who have an “overwhelmed schedule and [are] aching with the sadness of an underwhelmed soul.” It was written by the woman who created the Proverbs 31 Woman Ministries, so it is no surprise that her “message” is that there is a “big difference between saying yes to everyone and yes to God. ” Like Terkeust, I suffer from “the disease to please”–everyone, all the time. This, as the author points out, simply cannot be done. Her chapter …
I receive so many of the books I enjoy through trades with friends, donations from neighbors to my Little Free Library that I do not usually buy a book outright just for me to read. This one I ordered through Amazon because the magazine recommendation, for it sounded fresh and appealed to me.
Unusual characters, unusual plot, but familiar themes
This 2022 release begins with a peek at the home life of Maya Rao, a 36 year old gynecologist of Indian ethnicity, who is married to an unflappable college professor and has three kids under the age of 13. Like any mother, she wants only the best for her children, and will accept nothing less than greatness from them, putting pressure on them and on the family dynamic. To say Maya’s life is frantic would not be an understatement. She is driven, the typical type-A personality, ambitious, and feels guilt at not having enough time for her children. At her eldest daughter’s expensive private school’s car-pick-up line, she meets Amelia DeGilles. DeGilles is the wealthy, perfection-incarnate owner of a private health care company. She makes Maya an offer she can’t refuse, and even though Maya has misgivings about the new-age, very expensive health services, the money is too much to turn down. She takes Esther, her nurse-assistant from her current women’s clinic job and begins to practice women’s health services to rich, status-seeking, social climbing women.
When one of her clients takes Maya and Esther along as she seeks a “sea-birth” in Belize for her baby, things get exciting and dangerous for all involved. The ending is satisfying, and in the end Maya makes a good decision about her career and her family, and is even rewarded for rearranging her priorities.
I read this in a ebook, and it went very fast, always keeping my attention with action and touches of humor like the scene where Maya and the kids go through an automatic car wash with the windows down ,near the beginning, or the daughter’s description of a bullying mother as looking like the Little Mermaid. Overall, this book was refreshing and even delivered a couple of timely “messages” subtly as it unfolded an interesting plot.
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