Books – Natalie the Explorer

September Smiles and 2020 Reading Update #3

October 4, 2020October 3, 2020Natalie67 Comments

Greetings blog friends! How are you doing? I hope your week is going well. October is off to a great start chez Natalie. We had rain and thunderstorms on the last day of September then the sun returned to welcome the first day of October.

Autumn leaves have been showing off their yellow, orange, and red colours in downtown Toronto. On a sunny day, they look brilliant. The air is cool, especially in the morning, just right for cycling and walking.

There are still a lot of late summer flowers, berries, and monarch butterflies around. The variety of colours in parks and gardens now is astounding and makes me want to paint.

I love that when I cycle along the Waterfront trail, the lake views are always changing. On calm days, I can see what’s beneath the clear water. On windy days, the waves roar and splash as they hit the breakwater walls or the rocks along the shore line. The familiar landscape includes water, open space, rock boulders, and trees.

Anyway, today I’m reflecting on my month of September and summarizing the books that I read in the third quarter of 2020.

September Smiles

September was a wonderful month when I enjoyed a mix of health-related activities, i.e. cycling, exercising, meditation, stand up paddling, walking, and yoga. I wrote my weekly blog posts, completed daily language lessons on Duolingo, listened to digital concerts, and read many novels.

Here’s my September in numbers:

1 family meet-up with my sister and nieces.
1 stand up paddling excursion.
3 digital concerts.
4 blog posts.
4 rest days.
13 strengthening workouts.
14 yoga sessions.
18 books (see list below).
18 walks.
22 cycling trips.
30 meditation sessions.
30 French and Spanish sessions.

2020 Reading Update #3

Back in March this year, I wrote a post to share my Reading First Update for the first quarter of the year. Once I started that, it feels logical to continue with Reading Update #2 for the second quarter, and today’s Reading Update #3 for the third quarter.

At a glance, I read 15 books in July, 20 books in August, and 18 books in September. Social distancing due to COVID-19 pandemic means more staying at home than normal and this gives me time to read.

The list of the novels that I read in July is here, in August is here, and in September is below in alpha order of author’s last name:

Woman On The Edge by Samantha M. Bailey.
The Scent Keeper by Erica Bauermeister.
The Real Deal by Lauren Blakely.
500 Miles From You by Jenny Colgan.
Fireworks by Katie Cotugno.
How To Love by Katie Cotugno.
Top Ten by Katie Cotugno.
Turtles All The Way Down by John Green.
I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella.
One Day We’ll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter by Scaachi Koul.
The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda.
The Switch by Beth O’Leary.
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne.
He Will Be My Ruin by K.A. Tucker.
In Her Wake by K.A. Tucker.
Keep Her Safe by K.A. Tucker.
One Tiny Lie by K.A. Tucker.
Wild At Heart (sequel to The Simple Wild) by K.A. Tucker.

I lucked out again with the fiction novels I borrowed to read in September. They’re all really good books written by authors from Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. I look forward to reading more novels from the same authors again.

Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend, October 10 to 12, is coming up. I know I have a lot to be grateful for. If you’re celebrating the holidays, Happy Thanksgiving to you! Stay safe and well.

How did your week go? I’d love to hear your comments.

I link up here.

Summer Week 11: August Smiles

September 6, 2020September 10, 2020Natalie59 Comments

Hello blog friends! How are you doing? Hope all is well with you. Come on in to my blog space so we can share our news over a cup of coffee or tea.

Summer Week 11

Summer week 11, from August 30 to September 5 inclusive, delivered another stretch of good weather. Daytime high temperatures ranged from 22C to 27C (72F to 82F) with mainly sunny days and some rain mid-week.

Beach Visit

I cycled to Cherry Beach early one morning to get my quiet beach time. Cherry Beach typically achieves annual Blue Flag certification where water quality is safe for swimming. It was nice to walk along the beach and listen to the sounds of water and birds.

There are picnic sites, restroom facility, parking lots, and dogs off-leash area outside the beach entrance which make this beach popular, especially on summer weekends.

Cherry Beach picnic site. — Cherry Beach picnic site

Family Visit

My sister and nieces came to visit on Tuesday. We sat outside 2 meters apart by the lake to chat and catch up on our news. My nieces resume their university studies next week so I was glad to see them before they get busy with school.

Park Visit

On another beautiful day, I went for a long walk and paused at Larry Sefton Park. The United Steel Workers of America funded this park creation in 1977 to honor the memory of their director, Larry Sefton. I liked how the deep terra cotta wall provides a nice backdrop to the steel sculpture.

August in Numbers

August ended a few days ago so this week I completed my usual monthly review and month-end digital file back-ups. How did I do in August? Let’s see what the numbers have to say:

1 family visit (and a repeat baking success: a coconut loaf).
1 stand up paddling excursion.
2 canoe excursions here and here.
2 coffee meet-ups with friends.
2 movies: Cake and The Boy Downstairs.
3 digital concerts.
5 blog posts.
12 yoga sessions.
13 strengthening workouts.
20 books (see list below).
21 cycling trips.
24 walks.
31 French and Spanish online sessions.
31 meditations sessions.

Overall August was an excellent month for me. I enjoyed the good weather, had coffee chats with my siblings and friends outdoors, did a lot of cycling, paddling, walking, exercising, learning, reading, and writing.

Reading in August

By switching to e-books and not visiting the library, I gained time to read and enjoyed twenty fiction novels in August. These novels are all really good page-turners and once I start, I want to read to the end. During the day, I’m active and on my feet a lot so by evening time, I’m happy to sit down and get lost in a book.

Here’s my list in order of preference:

The Sense of An Ending by Julian Barnes.
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes.
American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson.
99 Days by Katie Cotugno.
9 Days and 9 Nights (sequel to 99 Days) by Katie Cotugno.
After You (sequel to Me Before You) by Jojo Moyes.
Still Me (sequel to After You) by Jojo Moyes.
One Day in December by Josie Silver.
The Lying Game by Ruth Ware.
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn.
Becoming Rain by K.A. Tucker.
Surviving Ice by K.A. Tucker.
Four Seconds To Lose by K.A. Tucker.
Until It Fades by K.A. Tucker.
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman.
Next Year in Havana by Chanel Cleeton.
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory.
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver.

Novel #1: The Sense of An Ending blew my mind. I read this e-book in one evening as the story is engaging and it’s just 160 pages long. When I finished, my reaction was “Whoa, I didn’t see it coming“.

Novels #1 to #5: Even though love shines in all the novels I read, the deaths of bright and young people in my top five novels made me feel really sad after I finished the books. I had to do long bicycle rides and long walks to clear my head of thoughts about grief and unnatural deaths.

Novels #6 to #16: I usually don’t read sequels or multiple books from the same author in one month. Breaking my own rule, I read and enjoyed the young adult fiction sequel by Katie Cotugno, the trilogy by Jojo Moyes, and the series by K.A. Tucker. Novels #11 and 12 are good thrillers.

Novels #17 to #20: Just because I place the books last on my list, it doesn’t mean #17 to #20 are not good reads. I like all the 20 novels that I read in August. I’m glad to discover new-to-me authors and appreciate all the hard work that these authors put in to write their books. I hope my reading contributes to the overall encouragement for them to write more.

Conclusion

I’m grateful for all the good things that happened. My family and friends are safe and well. I continue to follow public health measures to stay safe and well, too. I look forward to making the most of September.

How did your week go? How was your August? I’d love to hear your comments.

I link up here.

Summer Week 6: July Smiles

August 2, 2020August 1, 2020Natalie78 Comments

Hello blog friends! How are you? Hope all’s well with you. Come on in to my blog space, make yourself at home with a coffee or tea, hot or iced, and let’s chat.

Summer Week 6

Summer week 6, from July 26 to August 1 inclusive, was sunny and warm. The high temperatures ranged from 28C to 33C (82F to 91F). We had heat warning on Sunday and Monday, brief showers on Wednesday, and the rest of the week was beautiful.

I enjoyed plenty of outdoor time cycling and walking on the waterfront trail or in parks by the lake. The flowers in the gardens continue to be amazing. So many colours, shapes, textures, and lovely fragrance that keep bees and butterflies busy.

My new activity of the week was Stand Up Paddling (SUP). I did SUP for about three hours on Toronto islands with my small ‘social bubble’. We paddled and had so much fun. The water was calm and warm. I saw a great blue heron, dragonflies, Eastern kingbirds, pretty water lilies, idyllic sailboats, and more.

July Smiles

Since we’ve just finished July and are now at the beginning of August, I thought of summarizing my fun in July in simple numbers:

1 stand up paddling trip
2 movies (see titles below)
4 blog posts
6 digital concerts (see performers below)
6 kayaking trips
13 yoga sessions
14 strengthening workouts
15 books (see list below)
24 cycling trips
26 walks
31 online French and Spanish sessions
31 meditation sessions

The two movies were both based on true stories and great performances. I gave each movie 4 stars out of 5:

The Big Short (Christian Bale, Steve Carrell and Ryan Gosling).
The Whole Wide World (Renée Zellweger and Vincent D’Onofrio).

The six concerts were performed beautifully by:

The Ton Beau String Quartet.
Slovenian lutenist Bor Zuljan.
Montreal’s quartet Flûte Alors!.
The Venuti String Quartet.
Three Baroque cellists from Montreal: Mélisande Corriveau, Elinor Frey and Andrea Stewart.
The Swedish a capella quartet Kongero: Lotta Andersson, Emma Björling, Anna Larsson and Anna Wikénius.

On the COVID-19 front, case numbers in Toronto have been on the downward trends so as of July 31, the City allows more businesses to re-open, now including indoor gyms, dine-in restaurants, and movie theatres that meet public health guidelines. Masks are required in indoor public spaces and people are advised to continue social distancing.

July Beach Reads

Glorious books and e-books! I was in the mood for reading and set a new personal best reading record in a month: 15 books. I enjoyed every single one of them, about half were e-books and the other half physical books. I re-read some of the chapters in each of the books. They were that good!

All of the authors were new to me, except Jenny Colgan and John Grisham. Although I read Neil Pasricha‘s articles and listened to him on TED Talks before, this was the first time I read one of his books. I’m glad to discover K.A. Tucker who lives in a small town outside of Toronto.

Most of the 15 books are contemporary romance, with adventures, suspense, or thriller twists. Most, not all, have happy endings. They transported me to faraway places such as Bora Bora, England, Israel, Italy, Scotland, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, and various states in the USA.

I group the books into my Top 5 Picks, Next 5 Picks, and Last 5 Picks, based on how much I liked the story and the writing style. They are in alpha order by author’s last name below.

My Top 5 Picks:

Beach Read by Emily Henry.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng.
Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens.
The Happiness Equation: Want Nothing + Do Anything = Have Everything by Neil Pasricha.
The Simple Wild by K. A. Tucker.

My Next 5 Picks:

The Place We Met by Isabelle Broom.
Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks.
Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman.
Burying Water by K. A. Tucker.
Ten Tiny Breaths by K. A. Tucker.

My Last 5 Picks:

The Cafe by The Sea by Jenny Colgan.
Gray Mountain by John Grisham.
The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo.
Be The Girl by K. A. Tucker.
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong.

Conclusion

July was an enriching and fabulous month with fitness, family, friends, and fun while social distancing. I look forward to making the most of August.

How was your July? What are you reading? I’d love to hear your comments.

I link up here.

2020 Reading: First Update

March 29, 2020March 28, 2020Natalie61 Comments

Greetings! I hope everyone is staying safe and keeping a healthy routine. While at home this week, I took an inventory of what I’ve read in the first three months of 2020. I use the Toronto Public Library 2020 Reading Challenge as a guideline to read more widely and add a few categories on my own to make my reading more interesting.

Last year I read thirty two books in the first half and thirty books in the second half of 2019, or 62 books in total. This year I had set a modest reading goal of 36 books because I was planning to travel frequently. Well, with the COVID-19 pandemic and travel cancellations, I may be able to read more than 36 books after all.

Here’s a look at my year-to-date reading listed by author’s last name:

Celestial Bodies, Jokha Alharthi, translated by Marilyn Booth.
Wherever She Goes, K.L. Armstrong.
Bad Move, Linwood Barclay.
Elevator Pitch, Linwood Barclay.
Stand On The Sky, Erin Bow.
Love Walked In, Marisa De Los Santos.
Bone Black, Carol Rose GoldenEagle.
At The Mountain’s Edge, Genevieve Graham.
Comics Will Break Your Heart, Faith Erin Hicks.
And The Mountains Echoed, Khaled Hosseini.
The Flatshare, Beth O’Leary.
A Better Man, Louise Penny.
Daisy Jones & The Six, Taylor Jenkins Reid.
Snowmen, Mark Sedore.
The Art of Racing in The Rain, Garth Stein.
26 Knots, Bindu Suresh.
A Delhi Obsession, M.G. Vassanji.
Starlight, Richard Wagamese.

Number of books read: Eighteen books from January to March 2020.

A book originally written in a language other than my first language: Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi, translated by Marilyn Booth. Altharthi makes literary history as the first female Omani author to be translated into English and as author of the first novel written in Arabic to win the Man Booker International Prize 2019. She shares that extraordinary success with translator and Oxford professor Booth.

A book by an Indigenous author: Bone Black by Carol Rose GoldenEagle, and Starlight by Richard Wagamese.

A book that made me laugh: Bad Move by Linwood Barclay. Barclay is a former columnist for the Toronto Star, a Canadian daily newspaper. I used to read his column and enjoy his humourous writing style.

A book under 200 pages long: 26 Knots by Bindu Suresh at 151 pages and Snowmen by Mark Sedore at 170 pages.

A book over 450 pages long: Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay at 453 pages.

A book for young adults: Comics Will Break Your Heart by Faith Erin Hicks and Stand on the Sky by Erin Bow.

A book to be made into a mini TV series: Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

A book with a dog’s view of life: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein.

A book written in three days: Snowmen by Mark Sedore. This is Sedore’s first published novel and the winner of the 32nd Annual International 3-Day Novel Contest.

A book that took me to other places in Canada:

British Columbia: Starlight by Richard Wagamese.
Nova Scotia: Comics Will Break Your Heart by Faith Erin Hicks.
Quebec: 26 Knots by Bindu Surash and A Better Man by Louise Penny.
Saskatchewan: Bone Black by Carol Rose GoldenEagle.
The Arctic Circle from Canada to Russia: Snowmen by Mark Sedore.
The Yukon: At The Mountain’s Edge by Genevieve Graham.

A book that took me overseas:

Afghanistan: And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini.
India: A Delhi Obsession by M.G. Vassanji.
Mongolia: Stand on the Sky by Erin Bow.
Oman: Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi.
The United Kingdom: The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Toronto library branches have been closed since March 13 until further notice. I look forward to picking up a few books that have been on hold for me when the library reopens. In the meantime, I have a few books at home waiting to be read. Knowing that makes me smile.

What about you? Any recommendations? I’d love to hear your comments.

What Have You Been Reading? Part 2

December 15, 2019December 29, 2019Natalie49 Comments

Back in June this year, I wrote about the thirty two books that I read in the first half of the year. Now that we’re in mid-December and 2019 is coming to a close, I thought I’d write another update to share the books I read in the second half of the year.

Books Read in 2nd Half of 2019

From July 1 to December 15 29, I read ~~twenty eight~~ thirty books. Not bad considering that I was traveling frequently during this time period. I list them by author’s last name as follows:

The Next Person You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou.
The Christmas Train, David Baldacci.
The Suspect, Fiona Barton.
The Life Lucy Knew, Karma Brown.
The Favourite Game, Leonard Cohen.
Little Beach Street Bakery, Jenny Colgan.
The Bookshop on the Shore, Jenny Colgan.
The Endless Beach, Jenny Colgan.
The Moroccan Girl, Charles Cumming.
Crimson Lake, Candice Fox.
Less, Andrew Sean Greer.
All Things Consoled, Elizabeth Hay.
The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway.
The Chai Factor, Farah Heron.
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, Gayle Honeyman.
A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini.
The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini.
And Then You Were Gone, RJ Jacobs.
Elevation, Stephen King.
The Matchmaker’s List, Sonya Lalli.
Happy People Read & Drink Coffee, Agnes Martin Lugand.
Love in the Time of Cholera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Full Disclosure, Beverley McLachlin.
Becoming, Michelle Obama.
Dual Citizens, Alix Ohlin.
The Black Jersey, Jorge Zepeda Patterson.
Kingdom of the Blind, Louise Penny.
Call Me Evie, J.P. Pomare.
The Vanishing Season, Joanna Schaffhaussen.

P.S. I updated the above image and the list of books on December 29, 2019 to include two additional books that I read between December 15 and 29 (The Chai Factor and The Matchmaker’s List).

My Reading Goal for 2019

My reading target was three books per month or 36 books in 2019. My actual reading was 62 books in 2019 (32 in the first half plus 30 in the second half of 2019). I’ve unexpectedly exceeded my reading goal (yay me!).

Top Picks?

In case you’re looking for my “top picks”, it’s difficult for me to short list the books I’ve read this year. Each of the sixty two books that I read is a good read, many of them are award winners or bestsellers. The authors come from various countries around the world. Their bios, stories, and story settings are quite interesting.

Try Something New

I think reading choices, like music, depend on our mood. My suggestion is if you find one of the above book titles intriguing, look up the brief summary of the book on the internet and see if it appeals to you. Also be open to branching out from your usual book genres.

I’m thankful to have access to the excellent Toronto Public Library (TPL) system. I find the TPL 2019 Reading Challenge fun to do. The proposed categories introduce me to new book genres, new topics, and new authors. They make me read more widely. I look forward to reading more in the New Year.

What have you been reading in 2019?

What Have You Been Reading?

June 21, 2019December 29, 2019Natalie77 Comments

I just got back from a two-week trip to Malta and Germany. My trip was part new exploration, to see the sights in Malta and Germany, and part family and friends, to see my cousins near Munich, and my longtime friend near Stuttgart.

I had an amazing time in both countries. The weather was sunny and warm, some days got to 37C (or 99F). I did a lot of talking with my family and friends, a lot of walking, sightseeing, eating, drinking (mostly water to stay hydrated and a few beers), and of course taking photos. More trip details to follow once I get myself organized.

In the mean time, in the Northern hemisphere we welcomed the first day of summer on June 21. Summer brings the promise of many outdoor activities, as well as easy living and reading. This prompted me to reflect on what I’ve been reading this year.

In January, I started using the proposed categories from the Toronto Public Library 2019 Reading Challenge as a guide to read more widely. This has led to getting me to read a bit beyond my usual mysteries and fiction.

What I’ve Enjoyed Reading: From January to date, I’ve enjoyed reading thirty two books that I wouldn’t have read otherwise. I had fun putting the thirty two book cover images into a photo collage. The books are listed by author’s last name below:

A Man Called Ove, Fredrik Backman
The Widow, Fiona Barton
Family & Other Catastrophes, Alexandra Borowitz
The Rough Guide to Croatia, Jonathan Bousfield
Boy Swallows Universe, Trent Dalton
Washington Black, Esi Edugyan
The Choice, Dr. Edith Eva Eger
What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, Nathan Englander
419, Will Ferguson
Gone Girl, Gillan Flynn
Panic Room, Robert Goddard
Scrublands, Chris Hammer
The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
Before the Fall, Noah Hawley
A Brief History of Oversharing, Shawn Hitchins
Sea Prayer, Khaled Hosseini
The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro
When Breath Becomes Air, Paul Kalanithi
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King
Defending Jacob, William Landay
The Bishop’s Man, Linden MacIntyre
Norwegian Wood, Haruki Murakami
Binti, Nnedi Okorafor
In Pursuit of Excellence, Terry Orlick
Love Dishonor Marry Cherish Perish, David Rakoff
Bellevue Square, Michael Redhill
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, Holly Ringland
Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi
Adèle, Leila Slimani
The Perfect Nanny, Leila Slimani
Ru, Kim Thúy
Book Love, Debbie Tung

Book Categories: The Toronto Public Library proposed fourteen categories in the Reading Challenge. I’ve read all of them, and at least one book in each category, hence the total of thirty two books. When a book qualifies for more than one category, I count it in one category only.

Reading Habits: During the day, I prefer to be out and about so I save my book reading for the evening. I read most days but not every day. I usually read one book at a time to pay my full attention to the book. I’ve also been more careful with my book selection since I want to spend my time on good quality books.

Gratitude: I’m grateful to have access to one of the best public library systems in the world. Thanks to the library’s proposed book categories, I’ve been reading many new-to-me and award-winning authors from different countries. I’ve also read more book genres and learned more about international literary awards. I love that I’ve been reading these books without accumulating them in my home.

What’s Next: I enjoy the Reading Challenge and plan to continue for the rest of this year. I may use the additional eleven categories in the Advanced Reading Challenge to make my reading even more interesting. It would be a “wide” success for me if I could finish reading sixty books in more than fourteen categories in 2019.

Your Turn: What have you been reading? What are your reading habits? I’d love to hear your book recommendations.