Friday 5ive- May 26, 2023

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly post featuring five things that caught my attention this week. I can't believe that it is Memorial Day weekend already, where does the time go?

1) My husband had a conference in Orlando this week and the Spouses Program hosted a trip to the Kennedy Space Center. It was fascinating, we got to see massive rockets, a space shuttle, and the actual Mission Control  Firing Room for the Apollo 8 mission. That was thrilling reliving history.

The actual Mission Control display

2)  I was asked to lead a book discussion for Laura Dave's The Last Thing He Told Me for the Spouses Program. Called Books & Bubbles (cute name!), we had tasty mimosas while we had an insightful discussion of the book and the Apple TV+ miniseries adaptation starring Jennifer Garner. She's very good in the series, I highly recommend the book and the series.

3) I received two lovely gifts this week. The first is a beautiful bookmark created by Donald Simon, a non-speaking artist who has autism. I love the colors, it makes me smile just to look at it. The second is a charming book necklace handcrafted by Peg & Awl, Philadelphia artists. I will be wearing this to a book event next week. 

4) I was able to catch an online presentation of The William Morrow Fall 2023 Fall Fiction Showcase . Eight authors spoke briefly about their novels, and each one was so interesting I added them all to my TBR list. Nina Simons' Mother Daughter Murder Night is about three generations of women who get together to solve a murder for fun, you know like you do with your Grandma and Mom. This one intrigues me a great deal. Sam Rebelein was inspired by Bruce Coville and R.L. Stine as a youngster, and his book Edenville is a "scary fun romp through urban legends" acccording to him. Yomi Adegoke's debut novel The List tackles the MeToo movement, social media, lies, secrets and the internet, as a young woman must comes to terms with the fact that her boyfriend's name is on a list of men accused of bad behavior towards women. Jean Kwok's new novel, The Leftover Woman, is a "love letter to motherhood". When a Chinese woman gives birth and is told her daughter died, she later discovers that her husband sold the baby to a United States couple, and she goes in search of her lost daughter. This one sounds so good! Sandra Newman's Julia is a feminist retelling of the classic George Orwell book 1984 from the perspective of Winston's girlfriend Julia. Tim O'Brien's new book America Fantastica is a road trip novel that goes from August 2019- August 2020 and deals with Covid lockdowns, a presidential election, and the welcoming of Neo Nazis. He says it's not political, it's fun.  Lola Akimade Akerstrom 's Everything Is Not Enough shares the story of three young women navigating "life, love and lust" in Sweden. It deals with the meaning of "forgiveness, grace, and gratitude". Ariel Djanikian's The Prospectors is a historical novel about two sisters who leave California for the Klondike during the Gold Rush. This one is for fans of  Amanda Coplin's The Orchardist (like me.) You can watch the entire presentation here.

5) Along with the rest of the world, I was saddened by the death of Tina Turner. I got to see her on her Private Dancer tour in the 1980's with my best friend Lisa, and it was a my first (un)official date with my now-husband at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. It was an amazing show, and she was such an inspiration to so many artists. She was a true original, there was no one like her. I saw the Broadway show based on her life, which was phenomenal, and if you haven't seen the documentary on her life on HBOMax, do so now. When Mattel created a Tina Turner doll, I got one right away, that's the kind of serious fan I am. Rest in peace Queen.

Have a great Memorial Day holiday, summer is on the way. Until next time.

Friday 5ive- August 27, 2021

Welcome to the Friday 5ive, a weekly blog post featuring five things that caught my eye this week. The Friday 5ive took last week for a mini-vacation.

1)  Can you believe August is almost over? Why does summer go by so fast? I love summer, but my youngest sister loves autumn and can't wait for it to begin so she can have her pumpkin spice latte. Our brother made her a board for her "Coffee Corner" at her house. I'm always impressed by anyone with artistic skill (as I lack it). 

2) We traveled to Boston last weekend to visit our youngest son. He took us to his golf club, Granite Hills Links in Quincy, for lunch and the view there is incredible. You can golf while overlooking the skyline of Boston as seen in this photo. Apparently the club is one of the most popular wedding venues in Massachusetts and there was a wedding and a bridal shower there on the day we visited.

3) While the guys golfed, the gals spent the day at Nantasket Beach in Hull, and while walking the beach we came across a large group of young children talking surfing lessons. It was fun to watch them get up on their boards.  

4) Speaking of different seasons, I watched the Christmas episode of Ted Lasso on Apple TV+ and it was so delightful. If it didn't put a smile on your face, you are truly a Grinch. I particularly enjoyed the homage to my favorite Christmas movie, Love, Actually. Whenever I am feeling down or losing faith in humanity, I will play this episode. 

5) As I spent time in airports and on planes, I was able to read uninterrupted.  First up was Kristin van Ogtrop's memoir Did I Say That Out Loud-Midlife Indignities and How to Survive Them. Ogtrop, was the former editor of Real Simple magazine, and her essays on such things as her climb up the corporate ladder from joy to agony as magazines folded up publication, to the time she nearly died from accidentally swallowing a plastic fork tine, to the vacation home her family bought with her sister's family will have you laughing and crying. It makes a good pairing with Sara Arnell's midlife crisis book from a few weeks ago, There Will Be Lobster. While I've been reading books about midlife crisis, I don't think I'm in one. (right?) 

Laura Dave's suspense novel, The Last Thing He Told Me, tops the bestseller list and I can see why. When Hannah receives a note from Owen, her husband of one year, reading "Protect her", she is totally unprepared for what is ahead of her. Her husband has disappeared after the company he works for is raided by the SEC and FBI and the head of the company is arrested. What happens next as Hannah attempts to keep her 16 year-old stepdaughter safe and unravel Owen's true identity kept me frantically turning the pages. Dave has written a few other books, but not suspense novels like this. I think she has found her genre and this is scheduled to be a limited series on Apple TV+ with Julia Roberts. 

I also read a psychological thriller, Where I Left Her, by Amber Garza, about a parent's worst nightmare. Whitney drops off her 16 year-old daughter Amelia at a sleepover with her new friend Lauren. When Whitney returns to pick Amelia up the next day, an elderly woman answers the door and says that no one named Lauren lives there, Whitney agonizes over what happened to her daughter. Like The Last Thing He Told Me, this book keeps you turning the pages, and the ending twist is a shocker. My full review is here. 

We seem to be going backwards with COVID, so please wear a mask, wash your hands, stay socially distant and get a vaccine. It's the best way to keep each other, especially young children who can't get a vaccine yet, safe.