Hello readers! This week’s newsletter brings you my one and only can’t-survive-without clothing item and some books I really wanted to feature individually but never got around to ~ let’s dive in!
We are fully into soccer, baseball and graduating senior season right now (and I spent way too much time on Thursday’s piece) so today’s newsletter is going to be a shortish one. Friends, I’m just leaning falling into this wild stage of life with total abandon and want to remind everyone yet again of my very favorite book for any parent of teenagers ~ It Goes So Fast: The Year of No Do-Overs by Mary Louise Kelly. Read, weep, repeat.
Might as well listen, weep, repeat as well………
Before I move on to books, my annual evangelism:
Spring means the return of loose comfy dresses and skirts for me, and those mean a return of my one and only MUST HAVE piece of clothing. I literally (okay, my inner thighs literally) can’t survive without these ThighSociety slip shorts ~ I own multiple pair of them, and talk them up to everyone I meet. It’s been years and years of my love affair with ThighSociety ~ I’m an evangelist! They’re well worth the cost, are NOT shapewear, wash really well as long as you don’t dry them, and are so so comfy. I prefer the 9” cooling version and would simply not survive the sweaty seasons without them. I have now even started wearing them under pants with rough inner seams and any loose pants/shorts since I’m so sensitive to clothing. IYKYK. If you’re someone who has always worn thick cotton bike shorts as slip shorts, I beg you to try leveling up to these. I just wish they’d make a full length version for me to wear all year long!
This is not an ad. But if ThighSociety would want to hire me as an influencer I would be the best one they have ever had and would strut around in ALL the free shorts they’d send me and would hike up my skirts to show them off. If they’d even give me a referral link I’d share the hell out of it. Alas, this is just me telling you about something I love.
I’d love to hear about YOUR one and only can’t-live-without clothing item!
Yay for more book recommendations!
Please remember that I have decided to hold back my reviews of pre-release titles until their respective monthly release newsletters ~ that means my recent reads selections will all be titles that you can get your hands on immediately!
During this busy / fun / emotional time, I’m leaning into some springy and summery reads to soothe my brain. I’ll have a whole bunch of spring reads for you next week, and am currently reading this and listening to this and thoroughly enjoying the experiences so far. When life is slower I can dive into tougher and more contemplative books, but this week I’m needing light and seasonal treats. I’ve also spent the week helping tons of staff members back up their laptops before getting new ones next month, and if anything drives me to light reads, it’s this part of my job. I’m always completely amazed at how differently people approach digital file storage and management ~ this task truly requires curiosity, empathy, and a sense of humor.
The books I’m sharing today include everything from a married romance to a translated sensation and a LOT in between. I was going to feature many of these in other roundups or individually and just didn’t, but I also didn’t want to forget to share them! Short snippets and fewer graphics today than usual because ….. see above.
Nothing But it All by Adriana Locke ~ A sweet, married romance with a great family cast and Parent Trap-esque plot. I want MORE romances featuring parents of teens! I’m happy I found it via Kindle Unlimited Read & Listen.
Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín ~ I first read this book around the time of its 2009 release, and only remember loving the quiet beauty and simplicity of the story. I revisited Brooklyn (via audio) last month, in anticipation of the sequel Long Island arriving this summer, and was so relieved to love it just as much this time around. This story is simple and quiet, but also manages to portray homesickness and being torn between two worlds so achingly well. The last portion of the book broke my heart both times I read it.
Erasure by Percival Everett ~ This 2001 book has been EVERYWHERE, so I finally listened to it. It’s a satire of the publishing industry but also a really thoughtful story about family and an aging, ailing parent and complicated siblings. Thousands of smarter people than me have written about it, and I’m the least qualified to do so so I’ll just say that I really appreciated this story and haven’t stopped thinking about it. You can read my full review, but you should really just listen to
talk about it on on her podcast ~ I loved this episode.Olga Dies Dreaming by Xóchitl González ~ I love books about wedding planners and messy families and gentrification and this super smart book hit those marks so hard. I also learned so much about Puerto Rico and can’t wait to read the author’s newest book | my full review
The God of Good Looks by Breanne Mc Ivor ~ I believe this might be the first novel I have ever read that’s set in Trinidad, and also my first ever about a male makeup artist? I enjoyed this on audio and have *thoughts* on the new audio cover ~ read my full review for those.
Help Wanted by Adele Waldman ~ My nerdy mostly-latent business brain adores books about workplaces and workers and this big box store novel brought me right back to my college retail days. Great on audio | my full review
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, Geoffrey Trousselot (Translator). A book I’ve had for years and finally read, and once I got oriented, really appreciated. I’m excited to read further installments in this cozy little time travel series | my full review
All of these books are available to read now ~ I hope you found a title that intrigued you today!
Have you read any of these books? Have any of them on your TBR? Let me know!
If you liked this post and want to support my work, please consider sharing this edition of my newsletter with your reading friends, buy me a coffee, or upgrade your subscription to paid! Just sharing is a huge help, though ~ thank you ☺️
Did you miss my last recent reads roundup?
That’s all for this edition, my friends!
Thanks for reading,
I love to hear from readers, so please do reach out to me with questions or feedback at mindfullibrarian@substack.com . If we aren’t already connected on Goodreads, I would love to see you there as well!
Thank you for shouting out the episode! I really enjoyed that book!
Love a personal clothing recommendation sprinkled in.