Friday, December 30, 2016

Favorite Things of 2016


I love making my favorite things of the year list. This year's list leans heavily toward media and family. Books are usually my very favorite things of the year, but I do have an interests beyond books--as my husband will occasionally remind me.





1. Dinner out with the kids
When I thought of favorite moments of the year, I immediately thought of the day we took my (step)son, daughter-in-law, and grandson out to eat to celebrate my son's employee of the month award at work. We tried a Mexican seafood place, loved the food and time together, and took lots of goofy pictures. (That's me in the cable-knit sweater and pearls....)



2. Quando, Quando, Quando video
I absolutely adore this video that I ran unto this year. It's so charming. And now, it's available as an MP3 on Amazon, and he's working on a CD. Watch it. You'll be charmed.



3. Kevin Can Wait
I've been decrying the lack of good family sitcoms that last few years. Too many reality TV and crime dramas later, the pendulum is finally swinging back toward family shows. At our house, we're especially excited about Kevin Can Wait, staring Kevin James, the actor of our favorite sitcom of all time, King of Queens.



4. Last Man Standing
I also tried a few episodes of Tim Allen's Last Man Standing this year and was instantly hooked. I love this show, and not only for Allen's conservative politics (though that is a lot of it).



5. Modern Mrs. Darcy podcast
Until this year, I assumed you had to have some sort of device in order to listen to podcasts. I've never been happier to be wrong. I've loved the Modern Mrs. Darcy podcast this year where guests tell Anne Bogel three books they love, one book they hate, and what they're reading now, and she returns book recommendations.



6. Photo collection additions
I collect a number of things (dog figurines, dog show ribbons, Christmas ornaments, etc.), but my favorite collection is my collection of antique photographs. I spent a couple months early this year bidding on some stunning pieces on eBay, including this pair of portraits from the 1930s of Margaret Rolfe and her parrots Flossie and Laura. Suffice it to say, finding portraits of birds is very rare.
 

7. Note from my dad
On the first anniversary of my father's passing, I was climbing the stairs at the library (where I work), thinking about Dad, when I saw a post-it on one of the doors that read: "You are here for something." I just knew this was a message from him. On my way back down the stairs at the end of the day, the note was still up, so I snatched it before custodial could. It now sits in a frame on my bedside table to remind me that even though I don't know what yet, I'm here for something.


8. Blog interviews
I enjoyed conducting two interviews on my blog this year, the first with Brady Carlson author of Dead Presidents, the second with Anne Byrn author of American Cake. Both came about because the authors read my review of their book and contacted me, and I didn't let a good opportunity pass.



9. Poetry, especially the poem “I Am Really Just a Tambourine”
This year I read 1,431 poems, and I loved every minute of it. It was like going home. A number of them were poems I already knew and loved, but more were new to me. One poem that particularly stands out is Hafiz's "I Am Really Just a Tambourine."



10. X-Files
Back in the mid-90s, my college boyfriend introduced me to X-Files with all its grisly, spine-tingling, paranoid fun. I'd forgotten what a fabulously-done show this was until my husband took to DVR-ing the series, and we started watching them from the beginning. The weird thing is, I remember episodes though I've only seen them once twenty years ago. Now that's lasting TV!


What were some of your favorite things of the year?

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Best Picture Books of 2016

This year I indulged in 114 acts of whimsy when I read 114 children's picture books. I can't get enough of them! I try to narrow my favorites down to 20 each year, but this year I just couldn't. So here are 30 of my absolute favorite picture books read this year. Almost all were published in 2016, but a few are backlist. And you'll have to forgive me, I can find the time to read them, but I can't find the time to comment on them all.








 What would you add or challenge from my list? I'd love your recommendations!

Monday, December 19, 2016

Countries Visited in my 2016 reading


Countries Visited this Year in My Reading
I love to read global nonfiction. History, family travel, living abroad, politics and foreign policy—they’re all favorite topics of mine. This year is the fourth year I’ve tracked my progress around the world with this handy map creator (though this year I couldn’t produce a map for some reason). Since I don’t travel in reality, I created a map of where I’ve traveled “virtually.”


2016 Countries

Argentina

Australia

Bahamas

Canada

Ceylon (Sri Lanka)

Chile

China

Cuba

Congo (I think? Somewhere in the African jungle.)

East Germany

Egypt

England

Falkland Islands

France

France

Germany

Grenada

Israel

Italy

Japan

Jordan

Laos

Lebanon

Nova Scotia

Russia

Soviet Union

Sweden

Syria

Thailand

United States of America



Other locations:

Atlantic Ocean

Hogwarts (fictional)

Mount Everest

Narnia (fictional)

Nollop (fictional)

2013-2016 Countries
Afghanistan

Congo

Argentina

Australia

Bahamas

Bhutan

Bosnia

Brazil

Canada

Ceylon (Sri Lanka)

Chad

Chile

China

Cuba

Czechoslovakia

Denmark

East Germany

Ecuador

Egypt

Ethiopia

Falkland Islands

France

Germany

Great Britain

Greenland

Grenada

Guatemala

India

Indonesia

Iran

Ireland

Israel

Italy

Japan

Jordan

Kuwait

Laos

Lebanon

Mali

Mexico

Mongolia

Nepal

North Korea

Norway

Pakistan

Philippines

Poland

Puerto Rico

Russia / Soviet Union

Scotland

Siberia

South Korea

Sweden

Syria

Tahiti

Taiwan

Thailand

Turkey

United Kingdom

United States of America

Wales

Yugoslavia

Thursday, December 15, 2016

The books that surprised me most this year (in a good way)

I'll admit it, sometimes I read books that I don't have high expectations for. These books have to work doubly hard to impress me having a strike against them on page one. Not all of these books were begun with low expectations for the final appraisal, but they all surpassed any expectation I had.