Roni Loren's Blog, page 3

You know that Taylor Swift song “I Forgot That You Existed”? So that happens to me regularly now that I’m in my forties. Something pops up in an article online or someone mentions a “You remember when this happened or this movie or that actor…” and suddenly something or someone that I forgot existed pops up fresh in my brain again. Then, often, nostalgia kicks in.

So recently when I saw a Sandra Bullock movie scroll across my Netflix suggestions, I got hit with that nostalgia feeling. I didn’t forget that Sandra existed. I did see and enjoy The Lost City in the theatre when it came out a few years ago. (I mean, how could I resist a movie about a romance novelist on book tour with her cover model getting caught up in an action plot? If you haven’t seen it, consider that a bonus Friday Night In suggestion.)

Her career has continued, but I had forgotten Early Sandra and just how big of a deal she was during the 90s and aughts. I mean her filmography during that time is stacked: Speed, A Time to Kill, Practical Magic, The Net, Hope Floats, Two Weeks Notice, Miss Congeniality, and two of the movies I’ll be featuring today.

I think her magic is that she has the ability to play the endearing girl-next-door in a rom-com (or a mean boss in a rom com like The Proposal) but also can hold her own in action movies and dramas. You believe that she could be your laid-back best friend but could also kick a bad guy’s ass if someone kidnapped you. :)

So, for tonight’s Friday Night In, might I suggest an early Sandra movie? I have two that I’ve watched recently to share, but really, you could pick almost any from her list and have a good time.

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While You Were Sleeping (1995)

If you’re of a certain age and a lover of romantic comedies, you’ve probably already seen this movie. I definitely had, but it had been years and I’d forgotten how absolutely delightful it is.

This is peak girl-next-door Sandy. She plays Lucy, a lonely single woman who works in a token booth for the Chicago “L” trains. She has developed a crush on Peter (played by Peter Gallagher), one of the men who takes the train every day. She’s never spoken to him, so she just fantasizes about him from afar. But one day, he’s robbed on the train platform and falls onto the tracks. He’s knocked out cold and she has to save him, but in the chaos of the rescue and getting him to the hospital, people think that she’s his fiancee—including his big, boisterous family. And Peter’s in a coma so he can’t refute this claim.

The movie follows Lucy as she falls for Peter’s warm and welcoming family and gets trapped even deeper in the lie. And Peter’s brother, Jack (Bill Pullman in his 90s floppy-haired glory) is not buying Lucy’s story and is set on refuting it.

I enjoyed this rewatch so much. The leads have great chemistry. The side characters are lovable and funny. And the humor is great without being slapstick or over the top. Also, I’d forgotten this is set at Christmas/New Year’s so it’s a nice winter watch on top of everything else.

So, if you’re looking to escape into a cozy romance, maybe put this one on tonight. It’s streaming on Disney+ as of right now.

28 Days (2000)

This is one I hadn’t seen before. At first, I thought 28 Days would be a straight-up comedy, but if this were a book, it’d probably be shelved in the women’s fiction section. There’s humor here, but it’s premise and setting are more serious.

Gwen is a mess. She thinks she’s doing okay and yeah, maybe she likes to drink, but she’s just having a good time, right? She’s able to fool herself with that lie (along with her enabling boyfriend’s help) until she ruins her sister Lily’s (Elizabeth Perkins) wedding and gets into legal trouble. Now she’s facing jail time unless she goes to a 28-day rehab program

Whereas Lucy in While You Were Sleeping was sweet and endearing, Gwen is prickly, defensive, and mean. When she enters the program, she thinks she’s above it all and the other residents are pathetic. Her hubris is short-lived though because they’re not going to let her get away with her bad behavior. She’s either going to have to work the program and deal with the childhood wounds that led her to being an alcoholic or she’s going to go to jail.

This movie tackles some serious topics and has some serious moments (please check trigger warnings if you're concerned), but I liked seeing Gwen’s growth as a character. The side characters are sometimes a little over-exaggerated, but I also was rooting for them. They’re meant to offer some comic relief in what would otherwise be a somber movie.

I saw some reviewer opinions when I was gathering info for this post that felt the movie was poking some fun at rehab programs or people in them, but I didn’t feel that way. I used to be a social worker and provided therapy in a teen day program for a while. The teens that were there were dealing with some serious issues (so serious that they couldn’t be in regular or alternative school) but there was still humor and silliness. There was eye-rolling at some of the group therapy activities because they can seem goofy or woo-woo even when serving a therapeutic purpose. So I guess I was okay that the movie leaned into that a little.

Overall, I enjoyed this watch, and if you want a movie that fits the theme of Dry January, this one could fit. It’s currently streaming on Netflix.

Hey, you could even serve mocktails with your movie night. I have this cookbook and it has some fun and tasty drinks in it.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you have a great weekend!

Have you watched anything lately that stirred up nostalgic vibes for you?

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In the past week, I’ve had the rare experience (at least for me lately) of reading two books that were both one-sitting reads. It helps that they were short, but the bigger help was that they were both propulsive and completely absorbing (in very different ways.)

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A tough but touching novella

What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella (Amazon | Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Okay, so, we’ve talked about how I don’t read about certain things/subjects. However, last week, I broke that rule when I loved a book that happened to have a bug scene in it. Apparently, I’m in a mood to break my own rules because my number one thing I don’t read is books with a cancer storyline—and this book is literally about that.

This was not my planned read. I was trying to read something else and it just wasn’t holding my attention, so I opened up the Kindle app on my phone and started scrolling. I had heard this book was fiction but that really it was autobiographical at its core because Sophie Kinsella has been dealing with a medical diagnosis. I don’t think I’d heard that it was cancer.

So, I opened it up on my phone to sample the opening pages. Note: I never read a book on my phone. The screen is too small and I have a Kindle and I just don’t. Well, forty-five minutes later or however long it took, I finished reading this on my phone. I was drawn in by the story and the writing style from the jump.

This novella opens with Eve, a novelist who has just gotten a great idea for a book. The book idea strongly resembles Kinsella’s breakout book Confessions of a Shopaholic. The story quickly fast-forwards through all the success it brings her (movie deals, premiere parties, etc.), then suddenly Eve wakes up in a hospital with huge holes in her memory—including how she got there, what certain words are, who she was before. She’s had surgery for a brain tumor. What follows is Eve, her husband, and five kids dealing with the diagnosis.

I’m not going to lie. This is a tough read because you know the author is going through this herself. The cancer is incurable. She is having to face heartbreaking realities. But Kinsella offers such insight and little moments of hope that I am thankful I read it.

For instance, when her husband asks about bucket list items she wants to tackle, she realizes that she just wants “home life plus” not elaborate travel or sky diving. She wants to get the good theatre tickets. She wants to buy the fancy marmalade.

So that’s what I took away from this. Appreciate all the little things in your day-to-day. And buy the good jam.

If you’re not sure about this one, just give the opening pages a try to see if it connects for you.

A 5-star read that confirmed I don’t want Alexa or Siri running my house

William by Mason Coile (Amazon | Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Y’all. This book. I’m not easily scared by fiction, but this book got me. I am already averse to AI stuff. I unplugged my Alexa smart device years ago and have Siri turned off on my phone because just the idea that something is always listening freaks me out. (I grew up watching movies with villains like HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey and the T-1000 in Terminator 2. I don’t want a sentient robot, thank you very much.) So this book was aiming straight at that fear.

Henry is a robotics engineer who is feeling some distance between him and his pregnant wife, Lily. He loves her deeply, but he knows he’s not the easiest to love back. He’s agoraphobic and can’t walk outside their house without panicking. Also, he spends most of his time in the attic working on William, an AI robot that he hasn’t let Lily see yet.

One day, Lily has invited two co-workers over for brunch so that they can meet Henry and see the house (which has all the smartest of smart home tech.) Henry is nervous because they never have people over and he hasn’t met these two. But when they arrive, he decides to show all of them William. But William has developed some ideas of his own and he’s figured out how to access the smart house systems…including the locks.

This is horror done right. I was creeped out from the start, a little disoriented, and completely compelled to turn the pages. (I even downloaded the audiobook from the library so I could continue reading when I had to drive the dog to the vet yesterday for a vaccine, lol.) And the ending was…well, you’ll have to find out. :)

DO NOT READ REVIEWS. This is a short book (a little over 200 pages) and a lot of reviews give too much away and can spoil some great plot points. So, if what I’ve said interests you, just jump in!

And maybe turn off your smart devices while you’re reading.

Have you read either of these? I’d love to hear what you’re reading this week. Let me know in the comments!

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It’s time for another edition of the Happy for Now list! If you’re new here, this is just a weekly list of the little things that are making me happy for now.

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A home yoga option that makes me less likely to “cheat”

I have long been a fan of at-home yoga. As much as I love the dim lights and soothing atmosphere of a yoga studio, I am not as big of a fan of being in a group of people when my shirt flips over my head and I’m groaning because I can’t keep my leg lifted for one more second in three-legged dog.

At home, I can wear what I want and curse if I need to (a long exhale still counts even if it sounds like f******k, right?) and not worry about how ridiculous I might look in whatever positions I’ve pretzeled myself into.

For years, I’ve been a subscriber to Yoga with Adriene. I really love her style and her overall energy. However, this year, I’ve decided to change things up. I wanted to try something new because, as much as I love (and recommend) Adriene’s videos, she does mostly short practices and that made it a little too easy for me to “cheat” on how much exercise I had planned to do.

Yes, fifteen minutes of yoga is a great thing, but this year, I’m really trying to get in a minimum of half an hour of some type of movement daily. When I’m tired and see that she has an 18-minute practice that day, even if I planned to do 30-45 min, it’s a little too easy to say, oh, that’s good enough today. And then do that every time…

So this year I decided to try Glo Yoga, and two weeks in…I’m in love. (That link is a referral link that will get you 2 months free.) The site (and app) has a large library of classes that include different styles of yoga (vinyasa flow, hatha, yin, etc.), pilates, meditation, barre, HIIT, strength, and a few other things.

The search options in Glo

I’ve done six classes so far (vinyasa, hatha, and yin yoga and one pilates) and truly liked them all. The instructors are easy to follow and each time I felt like I really got what I wanted out of the class.

Your homepage keeps simple stats for you

They have a variety of time options, so I guess I could still technically “cheat” but when I search, I search for 30 minutes and up, and so far, that’s keeping me honest. :) The subscription price ($30 a month) is more than I was spending on my other subscription but is cheaper than a gym class, so I’m good with it.

So, if you’re looking for yoga or pilates options at home, it’s worth checking out.

Enhancing my reading: ASMR Rooms

One of my big goals this year is to increase the amount of fiction I’m reading. But like many of us, I can struggle with focus when sitting down to read.

I had a plan to read once I settle in for the night after dinner. However, even though I had a stack of books ready to go, I found I wasn’t picking them up. When I thought about why, I realized that I was putting on the TV for background noise (mainly so my sleeping dog wouldn’t bark at every little thing) but it was distracting me, even when I put on something I didn’t care about watching.

So this past week, I decided to try putting on a YouTube ASMR reading room video on my TV instead. If you’re not familiar, these are long-playing videos of an atmospheric scene that has soothing background noises like rain or snow and a crackling fire or library sounds like someone turning pages.

These are working for me. It’s enough noise to keep the dog chill, and it lets me sink into my reading without looking up every few minutes because of a loud commercial or whatever. I haven’t been doing it long enough to have favorites, but here are a few I’ve tried that I’ve liked.

Library Sounds for Studying

Cozy Old Castle Room with Rain and Fireplace Sounds

Winter Day Reading Nook

Sitting on the Porch on a Stormy Day

A lip balm that makes me want to collect them all

My skincare and makeup routine is about as simple as it gets. I’m a basic drugstore moisturizer girl and if I don’t have coaching appointments, I don’t bother putting on makeup most days. However, I do love a good, natural lip balm.

Burt’s Bees has been my go-to for years, but recently I discovered Hurraw lip balms, and the bee has been dethroned!

These are vegan and cruelty-free, so you can feel good about the ingredients, but what I love the most is how they feel and the fun variety of scents.

These go on really smoothly and don’t feel thick on your lips. Your lipstick can easily go over it. And the scents are fabulous! I have already ordered more types than I need, but so far, I’m partial to the coffee scent and the Earl Grey, but really I haven’t come across one I haven’t liked yet.

They’re not as cheap as your garden variety lip balms, but you can get a three-pack of different scents for $17.95 on Amazon, which isn’t too bad, especially when you know they’re using good ingredients.

Alright, that’s all I have for you today. I hope you have a great rest of your weekend!

What’s making you happy for now? I’d love to hear!

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I had planned to talk about a different movie this week, but y’all, I couldn’t get through it. I attempted A Family Affair with Joey King, Zac Efron, and Nicole Kidman on Netflix. I went in blind and didn’t realize this was going to be a rom-com with a romance between Efron and Kidman.

I can sometimes roll with an age-gap romance if it’s done well, but I just didn’t feel any chemistry between these two and I found myself literally cringing during the first love scene. I really liked Joey King in her role, but it wasn’t enough to keep me watching.

So, instead, since much of the country is under snow as I write this (on Thursday) and we’re getting rare snow in my part of Texas, I thought I’d offer some trapped-in-the-snow movie options that inspire staying inside this weekend under a blanket. (Also, if you’re anywhere near the terrible California fires, my thoughts are with you and I hope you are staying safe.)

Scary Snow No Exit

This movie is based on the book of the same name by Taylor Adams (looks like it’s currently available on Kindle Unlimited by the way.) As usual, I liked the book better than the movie, but the movie still did a pretty good job of adapting the thriller.

This is a taut thriller/horror that will have you gripping your blanket tight and leaning forward toward the TV. Darcy leaves her court-required rehab program (illegally) because there’s a family emergency and she has to get to her mother.

However, she gets caught in a blizzard and is forced to ride it out at a rest stop before continuing on her journey. There are a few other people stranded, and she plans on keeping to herself. But when she goes outside for something, she sees a child’s hand slam against the window of a parked van (not a spoiler since it’s on the movie poster above.) So now she knows there’s a child locked in there and someone inside is responsible. But who? And how does she help the child while also not tipping off whoever is responsible? Oh, yeah, and there’s a blizzard so there’s nowhere to escape to.

Did I mention this one’s tense?

Watch it on Hulu

Stephen King Snow The Shining

You don’t get more snowed in than The Shining. Jack Torrance just wants some quiet time to write that pesky book he can’t seem to write. Trapping him and his family in an isolated hotel that’s snowed in for months in the mountains of Colorado sounds like a great idea!

(I should probably take out the sarcastic tone because, as a writer, sometimes that kind of distraction-free isolation does seem tempting!)

This one holds up to a rewatch if you haven’t watched it in awhile, but you may be using that blanket to cover your eyes some of the time. It’s still scary.

Misery

What is it with Stephen King, troubled writers, and snow?

When famous author Paul Sheldon crashes his car in the snow, he’s rescued by Annie Wilkes and brought back to her cabin to recuperate. Turns out, Annie is a huge fan of his books and she’s got some ideas about where the story should go—and she doesn’t take kindly to editorial changes.

This movie used to seem outrageous to me (terrifying and well done but outrageous), but since the internet and seeing how far some fans will go when it comes to the object of their fandom…I mean, I don’t know. Plausible?

Trapped Not Just In Snow But In Time Groundhog Day

Ah, the movie that was so successful it gave us a new saying. It’s like Groundhog Day. I know it’s not Groundhog Day yet, but this movie has a snowy setting and the theme of being trapped, but in this case, trapped in time (and in Punxsutawney, PA.)

Groundhog Day is the movie that made me fall in love with the time loop premise. To this day, it’s still one of my favorite tropes. If I see a romance or really any genre mention that someone is trapped in a time loop, I’m buying it almost every time. Maybe I just love the idea of being able to fix mistakes and get something exactly right. Or maybe it’s the concept of fate and how one little moment/decision can change the trajectory of your life (both a magical and terrifying thought, lol.) Whatever the reason, I can’t resist this movie anytime it comes on. (I have the same affliction with My Cousin Vinny. If it’s on, I’m watching.)

I’m sure everyone knows the premise, but just in case. Phil the weatherman, who is an insufferable ego-driven jerk, has to go to Pennsylvania to report on the groundhog and he is not happy about it. He’s basically an ass to everyone he meets, but just when he thinks he’s done with the stupid assignment, he wakes up and it’s the same day all over again.

This is funny and heartwarming and just an all-around good time.

Family-Friendly Fantastical Snow The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

Some of y’all are going to be snuggling up with the kiddos for movie night, so if you want something snowy and family-friendly that isn’t Frozen, I’d go with the classic Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

I credit the Chronicles of Narnia as one of the books that I read as a child that first made me want to be a writer. I’m still looking for a magical door in the back of my closet.

This first installment follows Lucy and her siblings. They evacuated the Blitz in London and have escaped to the country where they discover a door to a magical place in the back of the wardrobe. Narnia is trapped in eternal winter thanks to the White Witch and has no Christmas. It will be up to them to help Aslan the lion to save Narnia.

This movie is beautiful to watch and Narnia is a fantastical world to get lost in. I think this would be a perfect pick for a cozy winter night.

This one is streaming on Disney+.

Alright, that’s the list this week. I hope you found something worth watching! I’m hoping to have a Friday Night OUT because we have tickets to the Cotton Bowl, but it’s a wait-and-see situation with the weather. Fingers crossed!

Also, if you’d like something warm to drink while you watch a snowy movie, I love Starbucks “Medicine Ball” tea (on the menu it’s their Honey Citrus Mint tea) but I don’t have a Starbucks around the corner. So, I’ve been using this copycat recipe for the last few years, and it’s delish. It’s also the best thing ever if you have a cold. Between the flu and sinus infections, the dudes in my house have been sick for almost three weeks now, so there has been lots of tea over here.

Copycat Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea recipe (from The Kitchn)

Hope you enjoy your weekend! Stay safe out there.

Have you watched any great movies lately? What movie do you have to watch if you see that it’s on?

If you like the new content here, let me know by hitting the like button. It helps me get a feel for what I should keep doing and what I should change up. Thanks!

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It’s a feels-like temperature of 2 degrees here in Texas as I write this, which basically means we all panic and hide because Texans know how to deal with 102 but not 2. So, what better way to spend the day than staying inside where it’s warm and reading (or listening to) a creepy story by the fire?

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

I have talked before about my love for the horror genre, but I have to admit that there are a few subgenres that I’m not as drawn to. I love a good haunted house story, but when a story is labeled “Southern Gothic”, I sometimes worry that it’s not going to be for me. There’s often a specific kind of grotesqueness to it that hasn’t worked for me in the past.

However, when I heard someone recommend (I can’t remember who!) A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher (Libro.fm | Bookshop.org | Amazon), I was intrigued by the premise, so I decided to give it a shot and grabbed the audiobook.

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What It’s About

Sam Montgomery gets a call from her brother—“Mom seems off”—and he wants Sam to check on her. Sam is an archaeologist and an etymologist, so she studies ancient bugs and is currently working on a tedious project. She figures driving down to North Carolina to spend some time with her mom while also getting some quiet time to work on this project sounds like a great idea.

But when she arrives, things are weird from the start. The house, which used to have colorful walls and decor, is now painted stark white, and her grandmother’s old paintings, which she knows her mom hates, are now back on the wall. On top of that, her mom just seems jumpy and weird. She doesn’t want Sam to cuss. She wants them to say grace before meals. All things her mom wouldn’t have cared about before.

Sam’s worried her mom is suffering from early-onset dementia or some medical ailment, so she decides to stay for a while and hopes that spending time with her mom will help her figure it out.

But what if her mom is scared for a reason? And, uh, what’s with the vultures hanging around? Oh, and is that a jar of teeth in the garden?

My Thoughts

This book was such a welcome surprise! I went in expecting a creepy story and I got that, for sure, but what I didn’t expect was the humor. This is a super voice-y novel. I adored Sam’s voice and outlook on life. Her humor is super wry and clever, and I found myself laughing aloud regularly. She was one of those characters I’d want to be friends with—but we’d have to meet at MY house, not her mom’s creepy-ass house. :)

Sam and her mother’s relationship is warm and supportive, and I was rooting for these characters the whole time. This is definitely slow-burn horror, so I wouldn’t go in expecting a thriller pace or a scare-a-minute. But the author did a great job of building the dread chapter by chapter. You could feel the tension tightening with each new discovery Sam made.

What I also appreciated was how the author handled one of the common criticisms in horror—why did the character take so long to believe *insert plot thing*—that the house was haunted, that their spouse was possessed, that aliens had invaded, etc. In this case, Sam is a scientist. She is going to look for a rational explanation for everything. She’s not going to jump to supernatural conclusions. That is believable.

Now, a warning, some gross things happen. I have a very significant bug phobia…and Sam is an etymologist, so I was worried. To avoid spoilers, all I will say is that how the author handled a thing I’d normally be too freaked out to read was pretty impressive. (But if you’re worried about it, look up trigger warnings first.)

So innocent…

So, overall, this was a great read and I’m definitely going to check out T. Kingfisher’s backlist. I love a great voice. I feel like this character could’ve told me any story, and I would’ve been interested in it.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND doing this one on audio. Mary Robinette Kowal did the narration and it’s one of the best I’ve heard. Here’s what Library Journal said:

"Narrator Mary Robinette Kowal wonderfully conveys the wryly funny prose and the creeping horror of the story. Giving each character a distinct voice, Kowal deftly and consistently moves between them and superbly renders Sam’s voice."—Library Journal

The audiobook is less than 7 hours, so it was a quick listen (especially when I speed it up to 1.3x speed) and it kept me good company while I was cooking and doing dishes.

If you’re looking for something to creep you out and also make you laugh, give this one a try. But it IS horror, so if that’s not your thing, you’ve been warned.

And if reading a Southern Gothic story makes you crave some southern food…

The (OMG Delicious) Magnolia Table Biscuits

For our Christmas holiday, we drove down to Austin, but on the way, we made a pit stop in Waco and ate at Magnolia Table, Joanna and Chip Gaines’ restaurant.

I have to admit, despite knowing it was always packed, I was a little skeptical that the food would actually be anything special. Chip and Joanna are famous for being home renovators and designers on HGTV, they’re not chefs. But here I am, admitting I was being a food snob and was wrong, lol.

We started off our meal with their biscuits, and no hyperbole, they were actually the best biscuits I’ve ever had. Buttery and tender and melt-in-your-mouth. I could’ve just had a basket of those for lunch and been happy.

But, of course, there were more indulgences. My husband and I split the pimiento grilled cheese with butternut squash soup and the cinnamon roll pancakes. Both were fantastic, and splitting was the right choice because the grilled cheese was so rich, I’m not sure I could’ve eaten a whole one. Best to cut it with some pancakes! :)

Sadly, I forgot to take photos of the biscuits. We basically fell on them like hungry lions. BUT, I do have the recipe!

not the actual biscuits but still, yum

Magnolia Table Biscuits recipe

So, if you can’t make it to Waco, TX anytime soon, you can make them at home. I haven’t tried my hand at them yet, but they’re on my list.

I also promptly bought the first two Magnolia cookbooks (Bookshop.org | Amazon) because they have many of the recipes from the restaurant in them, including the biscuits and pimiento cheese!

Leonard tasted the books and thinks they’re yummy

Now I know we won’t be able to pass through Waco without stopping at the restaurant each time. That drive from Dallas to Austin really is calorically treacherous! Kolaches, Buc-cee’s fudge, Round Rock donuts, now Magnolia Table. I’ll have to wear my stretchy pants next time.

That’s all I have for you today!

A special thanks to those of you who have been liking and commenting on the posts! Since I’ve made a lot of changes here lately, it’s nice to get feedback on whether or not those changes are welcome. :)

Stay warm, y’all!

Roni

What are you reading this week? Has a book in a genre/subgenre that you didn’t think you liked ever surprised you and changed your mind? What’s your favorite road trip food?

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Welcome to another edition of the Happy for Now list! This week I thought I’d lean into that New Year’s energy and share a few things I’ve found that make building habits a little easier.

Because we could all use a little help with that, right? Habit-building is hard. Adult behavior change is extra hard. But not impossible. I can look back and see things that I’ve changed over the years that have stuck. I went almost two decades of my marriage not making our bed each day. Now, I make it (or my husband does) every day. Now it feels weird if I don’t get to pull back the covers on a neatly made bed when it’s bedtime.

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So, what can make change a little easier?

Learn about habits in an easy-to-remember way

I know not everyone will want to sit down and read a book about habits, but I know there are some fellow nerds out there who will, so I’m passing along the rec that changed how I think about habit formation.

I’ve read a number of books about habits (Atomic Habits, The Power of Habit, Stick With It, etc.) and each has provided great info, but the one that stuck with me and that I go back and reread every few years is Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin (Amazon | Bookshop.org).

I think because she divides people into four categories about how we handle inner and outer expectations (Upholder, Obliger, Questioner, and Rebel) and then gives memorable names to different habit strategies and pitfalls (The Clean Slate, The Lightning Bolt, The False-Choice Loophole, The Strategy of Identity, etc.), it has stuck in my head longer.

Also, I like that even though she has researched the science and shares some of it, she also uses her own life and family as an experimenting ground and gives real-life examples of how she’s tried to implement these things. It’s supremely practical, which I love. For instance, I know that not every personality type gets the energy from the start of a new year, but I do. So I lean into that fresh start to launch new habits.

If you love the idea of the four tendencies, she also wrote a book just on that. And, if you want to get a feel for her style before reading, she shares a lot of this info on the Happier podcast.

Make it easier to track what you want to track

Most of us have heard some version of “we manage what we monitor” or the William James quote, “My experience is what I agree to attend to.” But they’re not just sayings. Science backs this up.

When we keep track of something or monitor it in some way, we’re more likely to continue that habit. We have so much going on in our lives that it’s very easy for things to fall off our radar. If we don’t pin those things (to mix metaphors) to that radar, most of us will forget.

Now, I’ll put in the caveat that tracking can become unhealthy in certain cases. I’ve had many a coaching session with a writer where I tell them to STOP tracking their word count for a while because they’re in burnout or overly anxious or the pressure is blocking them or they really need to focus on edits and edits often mean losing words. Tracking our food can make us more aware of what we’re eating, but for some, this could lead to disordered eating behavior. SO, take this with a grain of salt and know thyself.

But as someone who does get a lot of benefit (and enjoyment) from tracking things, here are some tools I’ve found helpful:

The Day One App for Reading and Movie/TV Tracking The Day One App main view

Reading is always a habit I want to keep in my life, and I love tracking it. I used to be a die-hard paper reading journal person. I loved the whole process of putting it together and writing my thoughts about books in it. However, once I started sharing more of what I read and watched in this newsletter, I needed a more efficient way to search and keep track. I also needed a place where I could write a messy, honest, private review. Writing my unedited thoughts in public online in a place like Goodreads was just not going to work as an author. Those are reader spaces plus it’s just awkward.

I did some research a few years ago and there are a lot of great reading trackers out there that are spreadsheet-style. Both the Currently Reading podcast and Sarah’s Bookshelves Live Podcast offer trackers to Patreon subscribers that will give you endless stats about your reading and cool charts. Also, recently I saw that at The Mindful Librarian created and shared a Reading Log that will provide data about her reading.

I love all the ways people are coming up with to track their reading, but spreadsheets are not my happy place. I like the idea of them, but I can never stick with that habit because it just looks so dry and…math-y. I’m visual. I wanted something pretty. That’s when I figured out I could use the Day One journaling app as a Book and Movie/TV tracker. I started this in 2022 and am still loving it.

I love that it’s visual, that I can easily search it, and that I can keep separate journals for each year. I also like that I can use it on my desktop and my phone and it syncs. It just works for me. There are multiple views you can use. I generally stick with the one above, but there are some fun ones I click on sometimes.

You can view your reading via the calendar view too Another view that puts the date on top of the pictures in your entries

You can also make templates for your journals so you don’t have to retype the information each time. Here are my templates for book reviews and movie reviews.

my book review template

my movie review template

You won’t get year-end stas with this system beyond the basics (how many you read/watched), but if you want something easy to use that’s visually appealing, I recommend it!

Tracking habits with the Streaks app Ones that are colored in are done. The number inside is how many days or weeks I’ve kept the streak. I reset some at the new year so don’t judge me, lol.

For other habits, I experimented this year with the Streaks app. There is something powerful about the “don’t break the chain” concept, and I love a checklist, so the Streaks app satisfied me on both levels.

Streaks is a simple app that lets you enter a habit you’d like to track, select how often you’d like to do it (daily, multiple times a week, weekly, monthly, etc.), and then each day, you press the little icon (which you get to choose!) when you complete the habit and it gives you a satisfyingly cheery sound and fills the circle with color. ←don’t underestimate the power of a fun sound and color, lol.

Hey look, as soon as I finish this newsletter, I’ll get to fill in that bottom right one and turn it full green!

It will also send you notifications that remind you if you haven’t done something that day. You can turn those off if need be. I only have notifications set for some of them.

You can make multiple pages and swipe through them. I divided mine by health habits and then the more work-related things, but you do you.

The app is dead simple to use, works on both my desktop and phone, and has been effective in keeping me on track with things.

This is my version of pinning stuff to my radar and it makes me happy to fill things in.

Decision Fatigue Reduction

As I’ve been setting up my goals and habits for the new year, I’ve been thinking a lot about decision fatigue. For instance, if I have to decide what I want to wear to work out, I may not work out because I get tired just from the deciding. So, I chose one standard thing to wear for exercise—black yoga pants and a T-shirt and done.

If I have to decide what’s for dinner, I end up waiting until I’m too hungry and then just fall back to the quickest most convenient thing (sloppy joes again, everyone!) So I’ve made the goal to meal plan at the beginning of the week, then I know what I need to prep in the morning. And when it’s time to cook, there’s no decision to be made so I actually make the thing I’m excited to make.

Speaking of cooking, I’ve mentioned I have a collection of 300+ cookbooks. Well, friends, that is a decision-fatigue extravaganza because which to pick? Then, which one of the 100 recipes inside? Do I have these ingredients? Ahh!

see the little number in the corner? Very high tech ;)

So I’m experimenting this year with a randomization system for my cookbooks so that a) I actually use my cookbooks (a goal I always have) and b) I don’t drown in decision fatigue. It may sound silly, but this week I labeled my cookbook shelves with numbers. Before I meal plan on Sunday, I’m going to pull a number and choose a cookbook off that shelf. I will have to make at least ONE recipe from that book.

This method won’t get rid of all the decisions, but it will narrow them down a lot. If it works well, I may consider using this with my TBR shelves (though that one makes me a little more nervous since I’m such a mood reader.)

Why am I sharing this? Well, I know most of you probably don’t have my cookbook affliction, but there’s probably somewhere in your life where you can reduce the decision fatigue. Where do you find yourself stalling out and getting overwhelmed? Which habits get derailed because of decision overwhelm?

For instance, a year or so ago, when I set a goal to have a healthy, protein-focused breakfast, I decided I would have eggs every day. So, literally every day I’m home now (well, 97% of the time), I have two boiled eggs topped with really fancy hot sauce. And I love it every day. And I have no decisions to make. It’s a grooved-in routine and habit now.

This makes my morning calmer, I accomplish my goal of having a healthy breakfast, and I’m not hungry until lunch because of the protein. Wins all around.

So I encourage you to think about if there’s a place in your life where you can cut down the number of decisions. A small change can make a big difference.

Alright, I hope you found something that will make you happy for now! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Are you trying to develop any new habits this year? Do you track your reading or anything else? What tips and tricks or apps have you found helpful? Are you feeling decision fatigue in some area of your life? Let me know in the comments!

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Happy New Year!

Over the last couple of years, there’s been an uptick in the popularity of books that are “No Plot, Just Vibes”. These are books that are character-driven, often slower and more introspective, and just have a feel to them. Normal People by Sally Rooney falls into this category for me.

I think the appeal of these types of stories, especially lately, is that they’re often calming or soothing in some way. You can just relax into them and spend time with the characters (as opposed to something like a page-turning thriller that has your heart beating faster.)

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As a reader, I think there’s a place for both. No Plot, Just Vibes doesn’t work for me if I’m in a distracted state. In that case, I need something to move more quickly. But when I’m in the right mood, a vibe-story can be just right.

This applies to movies, too. And a movie trilogy that was doing No (well, little) Plot, Just Vibes way before it became a term was the Before trilogy with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy.

all the vibes

If you’re not familiar with this trilogy, it started with Before Sunrise in 1995, continued nine years later with Before Sunset in 2004, and then concluded nine years later again with Before Midnight in 2013.

What’s remarkable about this is that you get to follow these two people from the start of their romance and then watch them age and mature in real time as if you’re really checking in with them and seeing how their life has been since you last saw them. I think that’s a beautiful thing—that these two actors and the director were patient enough to let the story unfold in that way and trust that viewers would come back. We didn’t get the fast-forward to the happy ending and epilogue (which, of course, as a romance writer, I’m not opposed to, but this gave a unique spin to the story.)

Now, I will say that I really loved the first movie and liked the second. I appreciated the third and what it was trying to do, but for my romantic heart, I wish it would’ve been different. However, I’m glad I watched all three.

So what are they about?

Before Sunrise

On a trip to Vienna, American Jesse (Ethan Hawke) meets a French woman, Celine (Julie Delpy), and convinces her to spend the day with him. The movie takes place over 24 hours (all the movies use this timeframe) and is probably 95% dialogue. Like, I’m not kidding. If you’re not into long talks, this movie may not be for you.

They are young and beautiful and asking all the big life questions as they start their adult lives. They have long, philosophical conversations rife with existential angst. They are attracted to each other—I mean, of course they are, have you seen these two?—but more than that, they are falling for each other’s minds. I think that’s what got me about these movies. Brains are sexy. Deep thoughts are hot.

Remember those meandering conversations you could get into with friends or partners late into the night when you’re young and have nowhere to be? When the world is laid out ahead of you but you’re scared because you have no idea what you’re getting into? That’s this movie.

Both of the characters are flawed, which of course makes them interesting, and those flaws will continue to manifest as the trilogy goes on, but this start is a strong one and will leave you wanting more in the best way. (Warning: Don’t expect a neatly tied-up bow at the end.)

Before Sunset

I’m not even going to give you the minimal plot points for this one. I think it’s better if you go into each movie after the first one blind because each leads to the next and has spoilers.

Just know that it’s nine years later and we’re going to spend another day with these characters. There were some aspects of this one that bothered me (just a personal aversion to a certain plot point) but I still really enjoyed the time I spent with these characters as they wandered around Paris.

Before Midnight

Okay, so if you are a hopeless romantic (as I am), you may want to stop with the second movie. I’m not mad that I watched this last one. I think it would’ve bothered me not to be a completist. But in my brain, I’m going to file this as a separate movie from the other two. I feel like this one was trying to do something a little different.

Before Midnight is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel service, and it included a great interview with Ethan Hawke that I watched afterward. He said that the one rule when they wrote the movie was to have the characters not tell one lie (he and Delpy wrote much of all three movies). So it was trying to be a realistic portrayal of a midlife relationship.

I appreciate what they were trying to do, but I found it too cynical (and often too mean) for my taste. Maybe that’s because I’m in a midlife relationship and, even after being with my husband for almost 26 years now, he’s still my favorite person and I still want to have long, philosophical late-night talks with him (okay, admittedly they’re probably morning or early evening talks now, lol. Who has the energy to stay up late?) All that to say, I’m still a hopeless romantic and believe things can stay romantic over a long time, so this movie was a tougher hang for me.

So, I’ll leave it to you to decide if you want to stop at part two or complete the trilogy. :)

If nothing else, you get some truly gorgeous settings in each: Vienna, Paris, and Greece. The locations definitely add to the vibe. And why not enhance your own Friday Night In vibe…

Add to the vibe of the night

If you want to add to the “just vibes” marathon, cook something French (or Austrian or Greek.)

Need a suggestion? Grab My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz (Amazon | Bookshop.org) from your library or favorite bookstore and choose a recipe with all the Parisian vibes. I recommend the Steak Frites Au Beurre De Moutarde (Steak with Mustard Butter and French Fries). It felt fancy but was easy to make and delicious. Plus, the book has great food writing and is one of those cookbooks that can be read like a novel.

Hope you found something worth watching. :) Whatever you decide to do this Friday night, I hope it’s a good one for you!

How do you feel about the No Plot Just Vibes thing? Not for you, definitely your thing, or you have to be in the right mood? If you have other suggestions for movies or books that fall under this category that you enjoyed, share them in the comments!

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I love New Year’s Eve. Not because we go out—we don’t. Not because we drink champagne—we don’t. Not because we stay up until midnight—we usually don’t make it past the NYC ball drop at 11pm our time. But I love it because we stay in and cozy up and take down the Christmas tree and clean out things and, most nerdily, I close out my current planners and break out the new ones.

I have been a dedicated paper planner lover for at least a decade now, and at the end of each year, I give a lot of thought to what worked for me and what didn’t. For instance, when I was in burnout and then recovering from it, I realized a daily planner was too much pressure (all those to-do slots to fill and me not filling them) and I moved to a weekly layout.

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Happily, in 2024, I felt better and was ready to go back to my daily planner. It’s been great getting back into the rhythm of that. I used it every day except for vacation days. So, I’ll be sticking with that in 2025. But, of course, I can’t have just one planner. Each has its own purpose. Here’s what I’m using this year:

The day-to-day workhorse planner: The Day Designer I went with the tan faux leather cover. Ain’t she pretty?

The Day Designer has been the planner I’ve used the most over the years (since 2016 according to my order record.) It has a simple, elegant daily layout that is fine all on its own or blank-slate enough to add washi tape and stickers.

I like the huge space for a to-do list along with a column for my schedule, so I can put in coaching appointments or whatever else is going on that day. I’ve also sometimes used it for time-blocking. I love that there’s a Today’s Top Three box because that helps me prioritize. There are four boxes each day labeled Due, Dinner, Dollars, and Don’t Forget.

I don’t often use these boxes for their intended purposes but I do repurpose them. Sometimes I use the Dollars box to record word count when writing. Sometimes I’ll use a box to record a workout. There are also boxes at the bottom for extra notes and for daily gratitude. On weekends, the page is a little different with Saturday and Sunday on the Same page (Top 3 and schedule only, with a space at the bottom for future planning for the next week.)

What it looks like when I decorate the pages.

You also get full monthly calendars and some light goal-setting stuff at the beginning.

I think what I love most about it besides the smart layout is that it’s minimalist and elegant. I don’t like committing to one design for the whole year, so planners that are very colorful or have a bold design for the year aren’t my jam because I get bored of looking at the same colors or design elements. Day Designer lets me change it up with what washi tape (decorative paper tape), stickers, and pen colors I use or I can keep it simple for some weeks.

It’s my Goldilocks planner. Just right.

My washi collection I may have a washi problem ;)

The goal-setting planner: Powersheets

Yes, I could set goals in the Day Designer, but I have found that I really like a system that guides me through big-picture questions for the year (and months.) I like questions to evaluate how those plans went and ways to make adjustments.

I have used the Powersheets from Cultivate What Matters for at least 5 years now if not longer and have found them tremendously useful. This is NOT a day-to-day planner. This is specifically a goal-planning system that walks you through the process of evaluating the different areas of your life and then setting goals around that.

At the start, you set up to ten big-picture goals you have for the year and then you break them down into a goal action plan.

After that, there is a process to go through each month where you evaluate how the previous month has gone, what you’d like to focus on in the coming month, and then set monthly/weekly goals and daily practices. This monthly tending page is where the magic is for me (that and the big goal-setting at the beginning.)

Each month, I decorate this page, set my goals, and then keep it open on my desk to check in with regularly. It helps me keep the ship pointed in the right direction.

At the end of each quarter, you also have the opportunity to check-in and revisit your big-picture goals from the beginning and adjust as needed.

The process has really kept me mindful and focused over the years. It’s one of those systems that works if you use it as intended. I love that it acts as a memory object as well. I can go back through the years and see what things keep coming back up, which goals I’ve met, what progress I’ve made. There’s also a spot for favorite memories each month and that’s fun to revisit.

So, if you’re looking to tackle some big-picture things in 2025, maybe check the Powersheets out. (Also, note that some of the stuff on the website is religious, but the Powersheets have no religious component.)

My I’m-Figuring-It-Out-Because-They-Were-Pretty-and-On-Sale Planners: Happy Planners

So. Okay. I cannot be expected to resist when Michaels puts Happy Planners on a BOGO sale. I bought these two because they were pretty and cheap and because I know I always find some use for random notebooks and planners. Also, because they are on a disc system, I can mix and match pages or frankenplan them together.

This first one has their horizontal layout, which generally works better for me than their classic vertical one. I’m considering using this one as a meal planner.

I figure I can put the dish/recipe location in the main section and then use the checkbox on the right to list any prep steps I may want to get out of the way earlier in the day.

This next one has the dashboard layout.

This one I think will turn into my content calendar for this newsletter. On the left side, I can list out the tasks I need to do, the post ideas, and what’s coming up the following week. Then, on the right side, I can list out the actual post schedule for the week.

We shall see!

The Wall Planner

This one isn’t used for planning but for recording. I really like Doodlelove’s calendars on Etsy and have ordered a few different versions over the years. I usually use them to record word count, but this year, I think I will use it for something different. I may use it to record exercise minutes since movement is a big goal for me in 2025. I could also use it to note the books I’ve read.

Regardless of how I end up using it, I love how pretty this looks on my wall and how sturdy the paper is.

Photo from Doodlelove on Etsy

So that’s the lineup this year. I’m sure the system will flex and shift around as I go, but I’m looking forward to this combo.

Some other planners or systems I’ve used and loved

Need a weekly layout instead or want to mix and match layouts? I love Cloth & Paper’s gorgeous designs. Super elegant.

Want a quarterly planning system that is flexible and can be done on paper or digitally plus uses a Kanban board? Try Sarra Cannon’s HB90 system (affiliate link.) Even though I use the Powersheets, I incorporate many of Sarra’s planning components (like the Kanban board) into my goal-setting. Plus, she’s a delight.

Alright, I think that about covers it. I hope you all have a wonderful New Year!

I’d love to hear if you use any planning systems and which you’ve found work best for you! Are you a planner? Do you like paper or have a digital system? Or, tell me what you’re doing for your New Year’s Eve! :)

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I can usually map how my year has gone based on what non-fiction I’ve read, what topics have drawn me in, what I was trying to learn, find, etc. So looking at my top non-fiction this year, it seems I had a year of purposely slowing down and grounding myself—food, crafts, being online less, embracing slow productivity, etc.

Missed my top novels of the year? Find those here.

I’m good with those themes. Better than the years I was reading books with “how not to drown” themes. :)

So, what rose to the top?

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*Note: This post gets long so if you can see the whole thing in your inbox, click through to read the rest online.

Favorite General Non-Fiction

Generations by Jean M. Twenge (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

This was a comprehensive look at the different generations. I found the topic fascinating, nostalgic at times, and also a bit depressing, particularly when she got into the parts about how social media has changed us. I particularly enjoyed learning about the generations before mine. (I’m Gen X but close enough to Millenial to be considered a Xennial, which has characteristics of both.) It’s heavy on stats, but she broke it up into topics within each generation so that it was easy to follow and stay engaged. I listened to this in audio, and I’d recommend it in that format. I think in print it would’ve been more of a slog. This was a 5-star read for me.

Favorite Tech Critique Reads

Yes, this is a niche topic, but it’s one I can’t seem to resist.

Filterworld by Kyle Chayka (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

Why do coffee shops in every country now look like the same Instagram photo? Kyle Chayka answers that question and more in Filterworld. He digs into our current online state and how algorithms are teaching us what to like (whether we realize it or not), which in turn, flattens the uniqueness of different places and different groups. I found this whole thing both fascinating and scary. It made me think about things like books—yes, there have always been bestsellers and trendy books, but if we’re on TikTok and Instagram and seeing the same type of book content over and over and the same books/authors, lots of other types of books are getting missed. Read this if you want to think about those things more deeply. This was also good on audio.

Extremely Online by Taylor Lorenz (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

This book was basically the history of the early internet and social media. Parts of it made me nostalgic for the early versions of the social internet. (I met my husband in an AOL chatroom, lol.) But much of it was straight-up scary. As the history is tracked, you can see the dominos falling to get us to where we are now. However, it’s a compelling listen and if you were around during those different eras, it makes you realize what an epic shift you’ve lived through.

Favorite Improve-Your-Life Books

Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

I have to be careful with Burkeman’s books. They have a tendency to knock me on my butt. Four-Thousand Weeks rocked me when I read it. In a good way but also in a what-am-I-doing-with-my-life way. So, I braced myself for Meditations for Mortals.

Here’s a bit of the back cover copy: “How can we embrace our nonnegotiable limitations? Or make good decisions when there’s always too much to do? How do we shed the illusion that life will really begin as soon as we can “get on top of everything”? Reflecting on quotations drawn from philosophy, religion, literature, psychology, and self-help, Burkeman explores a combination of practical tools and daily shifts in perspective. The result is a life-enhancing and surprising challenge to much familiar advice—and a profound yet entertaining crash course in living more fully.”

Even though you’re supposed to read this daily, I raced through it. But I plan to go back and read it as intended over four weeks as well. I underlined a ton and because I’m a Gallup Strengths coach, I couldn’t help but notice how different sections almost talked directly at certain Strengths (personality characteristics.) So, if you want a shake-up, try Burkeman.

Slow Productivity by Cal Newport (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

No one will be shocked by this pick. I’m a Cal Newport fan girl. I love his combo of wanting to get big things done in your life and career but doing it in a focused, sane way that avoids burnout. If you haven’t read anything by Newport, I’d say read Deep Work first. This is an extension of what he started in that book. Some of it is office-work focused, but I still got a lot from the concepts.

Favorite Memoirs

Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

This is in the running for my fave of the year. Highly recommend you go with audio for this one since Ina narrates. I was already an Ina fan and own all of her cookbooks, but this just made me love her more.

This isn’t a fluffy food memoir, though there is a coziness to it because she is so warm. Her story is one of grit and determination, business acumen, love and friendship, and, of course, food. So many things! I expected this to be good, and it was even better than I was hoping. I wanted to hug it at the end.

Hooked by Sutton Foster (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

I loved Sutton Foster on Younger and when I saw she’d written her memoir through the lens of the crafts she’s done, I had to pick it up. I thought the framing device of the crafts was clever. She’d tell you about the craft she was making at the time of an event in her life and then go into the event. You get to go behind the scenes on Broadway and on the filming of the shows she’s done, so that was fun. She also had some challenging things to go through, so there are tough parts too. Once again, do this in audio if you can.

Speaking of crafts…

Favorite Crafty Books

I learned how to crochet this year, so I went through a phase of checking out ALL THE CRAFTING BOOKS at the library. I’m sorry if anyone else in my town wanted to learn crochet this summer. They would’ve been left without any how-to books. :)

Modern Crochet by Teresa Carter (Amazon | Bookshop.org)

I learned the basics of crochet with a Woobles kit and their helpful videos. But I learned how to make an actual scarf I could wear with Modern Crochet. I loved that this book had simple yet elegant designs that a beginner like me could tackle. I can’t wait to try my next one.

Knitting Yarns edited by Ann Hood (Amazon | Bookshop.org)

This is a collection of essays by writers and the role of knitting in their lives. If you’re looking for an audiobook that’s an easy listen and will keep you company while you do chores, this fits the bill. Cozy and relaxing.

Old-Fashioned on Purpose by Jill Winger (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

So this isn’t a crafting book, but it speaks to what crafts fall under—doing things by hand—so I'm putting it here because it’s my newsletter and I can do what I want. ;)

Winger covers a number of topics in this and not all apply to me, but what I took from it was how doing things by hand, the old-fashioned way, can have a lot of psychological benefits. Cooking a meal from scratch can be soothing. Working in your garden can be calming. Generally, she shares ways to be more grounded in the real world. I’ve worked hard this year to be online less and in the real world more and this helped me think more deeply about that.

I also liked that she didn’t bring religion into this because so many simple living books veer into that territory and that wasn’t what I was looking for.

Favorite Foodie Books

The Tenth Muse by Judith Jones (Amazon)

Before you read the new biography The Editor, which is about Judith Jones, the famed Knopf editor who discovered Julia Child (and had a star-studded list of other authors), maybe go directly to the source and read Judith’s story of working with famous cookbook authors. (I did a full review here if you’d like to know more.)

Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

I really enjoy Ruth Reichl’s writing. I reread her memoir/cookbook combo My Kitchen Year this year, in which she documents the year after Gourmet magazine (of which she was editor) closed down. But I realized that I’d never read her memoir about actually being the editor of Gourmet. Save Me the Plums documents that journey and gives an insider look at what it took to put the magazine together. I really liked this on audio.

Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

The print copy of this book has been on my TBR shelf for literal years. It’s thick and intimidating. So finally I decided to check it out on audio from the library and give it a try that way. That worked! I made it through 15 hours in short order.

This documents Kingsolver’s year of her and her family trying to eat only food that she’s grown or that was grown within a 100-mile radius. I would say you need to be pretty interested in this topic to get through this because she goes pretty deep into the process and the societal implications. (And of course, the writing is beautiful because it’s Barbara Kingsolver.) But I enjoyed listening to this and it inspired me to try to do a little vegetable gardening myself. I grew two jalapeno peppers and three entire cherry tomatoes over the summer. I know. You’re impressed. ;) (I did have better luck with herbs at least.)

Favorite Books for Writers

1000 Words by Jami Attenberg (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

I love hearing writers talk about writing. Jami Attenberg asked over fifty writers to share their wisdom and pep talks for fellow writers and then compiled them. This is a book you can jump in and out of, reading an entry here and there. I did a lot of underlining.

Walking in This World by Julia Cameron (Amazon | Libro.fm | Bookshop.org)

When I need to remember that writing is about creativity first and business second, I go to Julia Cameron. I always feel better after reading one of her books, and this one was just what I needed at the time. It inspired this post on The Nourished Writer: Entering my Phoebe Buffay Era

The Art of Slow Writing by Louise DeSalvo (Amazon | Bookshop.org)

This was so much more than I expected it to be. I expected it to be a straightforward writing manual, but instead, it was essays about the slow-writing life, using lots of examples from famous writers (mostly of lit fic.) So much of what was talked about resonated with me and affirmed what I yearn for in my writing life, what feels natural, honestly. Writers now are under such pressure to produce quickly that sometimes we forget that art has always taken time. That’s a feature not a bug.

Whew! That was a long one. I hope you found something you want to add to your TBR for 2025.

What was your favorite non-fiction read this year? Did you see any themes emerge in your reading overall?

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I love an end-of-the-year favorite books list, and it’s a tradition I do here in the newsletter, but I have to say…it’s been a weird reading year.

In my newsletter for writers, The Nourished Writer, I recently talked about how my reading can be an emotional barometer for me. In that post, I tracked my reading through the years and showed how signs of burnout were showing up years before I realized it. So, when I calculated my stats for this year’s reading, I definitely gave the results some side-eye. What did this list of books say about my year?

I don’t feel like I’m in burnout anymore. I’ve done a lot of work in that area and feel pretty good overall. But I think these stats show that maybe because of the long recovery from burnout, I’ve drifted further and further away from my reader self.

In what way? Well, let’s start with some stats.

The Stats

How many books I’ve read this year so far: 52 (respectable but the lowest number for me since 2016)

How many books I’ve DNFed: 13 (12 fiction, 1 non-fiction)

Format:

Print - 16

Ebook - 10

Audiobook - 19

Audio and Print combo (when I own a paper copy but get the audiobook from the library and bounce back and forth) - 6

Fiction vs. Non-Fiction: 17 fiction, 35 non-fiction

That last stat is the one that stood out most to me — 67% of my reading was non-fiction this year and 92% of my of my DNFs were fiction. Non-fiction is always an important part of my reading life, but this year it took over.

Also, audiobooks were my top way to read, which in some ways is great—yay, audio—but also indicates that I had trouble sitting still and just quietly reading. Audiobooks are listened to when I’m doing chores or cooking or driving somewhere. They are not me, cozy on the couch, escaping into a book.

So, these numbers are one of the reasons I’ve been making changes to this newsletter this month with plans to have a more book-focused newsletter in 2025. I need to refocus on reading fiction for pleasure. I need to make time for sitting still and getting quietly lost in a story. And good intentions aren’t enough for me. I need goals and obligations. :) So, you, dear reader, are my added motivation to amp up my fiction reading in 2025. I will read for me, but I will also be reading for you so that I can pass along the recommendations.

So, thank you for being here!

Alright, enough babbling about numbers. Let’s get to what made the fiction faves list this year.

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FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2025 - FICTIONFave General Fiction

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

I talked about this one back in February and usually, if I read a book early in the year, it doesn’t hang on to make my favorite of the year because of the recency effect. However, this one has remained with me and gets the top fiction spot for me this year.

Bright Young Women is a fictionalized account of the Ted Bundy murders told from the perspective of the women—Pamela, a sorority sister of one of the victim’s who is also an eyewitness; Ruth, one of the Seattle victims; and, Tina, Ruth’s friend. It also jumps around in time from before the murders (for Ruth), the time of the sorority murders, and then modern day.

Don’t believe the marketing that calls this a thriller. The beginning reads like a thriller because it opens with the sorority murders, but after that, this becomes a story of tough, smart women not letting people dismiss them and not letting Bundy get away with it.

Fave Classic

Anne of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery

Here’s what I said about it back in July:

“Next up is a classic that I somehow never read, and I’m so glad I’ve remedied that oversight now! Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery was an absolute joy and delight. And if you want to talk about sentence-level beauty, you can’t go wrong here. There are so many quotes worth underlining, I don’t even know where to start. The setting descriptions are magical and Anne is a ray of sunshine. This is the perfect escapist read for a tough day/week/month.”

Fave Thriller/Suspense

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

I’m sure I’m not the first person you’ve seen rave about this book. It’s absolutely everywhere, but it is worth another mention. It almost was my top book of the year, but Bright Young Women barely edged it out because it stayed in my head more. This is sometimes labeled as a thriller, but I think that’s a misnomer. I would say this is solidly a slow-burn literary mystery. You need to give it some time to unfold, but the build up is worth it. This is a dual timeline (1975 and present day) following two mysteries, both surrounding a summer camp run by a rich family. It’s not a short book but I devoured this in almost a day.

Fave on Audio - Fiction

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

I love when a book has a podcast element to the mystery and then they bring that into the audiobook production. The opening line is “A podcaster has decided to ruin my life, so I’m buying a chicken.” ←-that gives you the idea of the voice

The basics: Lucy was accused of her best friend’s (Savvy’s) murder but there wasn’t enough evidence and she has no memory of that night. She’s called back home for her grandmother’s birthday party, but really, the grandmother wanted her home so she’ll participate in a podcast about the murder. Because we have an unreliable narrator, this one keeps you guessing. Usually, I hate the unreliable narrator thing, but here it worked for me because her unreliability is the fact that she has no memory of it, not that she’s purposely concealing something.

This is a popcorn suspense novel done right. It was fast-moving and compelling even when I sometimes actively disliked the protagonist.

Fave Romance

The Sweetheart List by Jill Shalvis

Full admission: I DNFed a lot of romance this year. I was having a really hard time finding something that clicked for me. Maybe it’s the current trends, maybe it’s me. Who knows? But what I do know is that Queen Jill Shalvis brought me joy with this fun, sweet story about Harper who escapes to Lake Tahoe to open a bakery but ends up dealing with a grumpy tavern owner and a local runaway teen. Funny, heartwarming, and just an all-around good time.

Honorable Mention - Fiction

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Sometimes you need a story about a lonely elderly woman befriending a sentient octopus named Marcellus. This was a lovely, beautiful story. The only reason it slid to honorable mention status was because it got a little slow in the middle for me. But it’s still very much worth the read.

Overall Thoughts

Well, one thing stood out. Book of the Month club brought me three of my faves. (Not all of their books were hits for me though. I finished one yesterday that I’m still mad about, lol. I’ll post about that one another day.) Still, my ongoing subscription seems to be worth it if it brings me faves of the year. (I’m an affiliate if anyone wants to try out a membership.)

The other thing that stood out is that literary mysteries/suspense seem to be a sweet spot for me. One of my faves from a previous year, I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai also fell under this category. So I need to be on the lookout for those types of books.

And lastly, on the romance front, I need to do some work. Maybe I need to dip into backlist and see if I can get my romance-reading groove back.

Alright, this letter is already getting on the long side, so I’m going to save my favorite non-fiction of the year for another installment, but I hope you found something to add to your list!

I’d love to hear what your favorite novels of the year were. Did you have a good reading year? A weird one? A bad one? Let me know!

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