Sunday, March 15, 2020

The Sunday Post #216



The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. I’m linking up with The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date. 

*This post contains affiliate links. I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.






The Sunday Post #216








Public Service Announcement


Today is the last day to live your Charlie and the Chocolate Factory dream. Book Depository is hiding special bookmarks in the orders they ship. If you find a gold, silver, or bronze bookmark, you can win free books or discounts on your next order. Check this link for details on the contest and how to win free books. (But hurry because today is the last day to place an order.)









On The Blog Last Week









On The Blog This Week


  • On Monday I’m starting a project to help authors who are impacted by Coronavirus. I need your help with my project! Please come back tomorrow.
  • On Tuesday I’m sharing my spring reading list.
  • On Wednesday I’m doing the Birthday Book Tag (because it’s my birthday).







In My Reading Life


I finished two books last week. The first was If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio. It’s about a group of college students who are friends and rivals. One of them is murdered at a party. The others are suspects. The book didn’t live up to the hype for me. I enjoyed the plot and the small college setting, but the characters are all flat. I didn’t know them well enough to find their behavior believable.




Then I read A Study In Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle. This is the first Sherlock Holmes story ever published. I loved seeing Sherlock and Watson meet and become partners. I finally know their backstory! (This is probably why you should read series in order.) The mystery is a bit too disjointed for my tastes, but it’s full of twists. It was really interesting to see how the iconic characters got their murder-solving start.




Right now, I’m reading The Sign Of Four by Arthur Conan Doyle. I’ve decided that I should read these books in order instead of bouncing around.








In Brooklyn’s Reading Life


Last week, the only new book we read was Open The Barn Door . . . by Christopher Santoro. It’s a flap book, so kids have to open the flaps to see what animal is hiding. The “story” is tedious for adults, but Brooklyn loves this book. We’ve read it approximately a billion times. Brooklyn (1 year old) understood the flap concept quickly. She’s grabs the flaps as fast as I can turn the pages.








In The Rest Of My Life


Five things that made me happy last week:

  1. I’m still exercising and eating healthy every day. I’m very sore and very hungry. I guess that means the diet is working?
  2. The McMillions documentary series is over. If you want to binge the whole thing, now is the time. It’s about how a powerful crime family rigged the McDonald's Monopoly game. It’s fascinating and kind of funny. I recommend it.
  3. I’m officially an Amazon Associate! My blog was (finally) approved. Thank you to everyone who uses the Buy it on Amazon links on this blog. If you buy a book through those links, I earn a commission, but you do not pay more for the book. The commissions will be used to fund giveaways and other blog-related stuff.
  4. I’m going to participate in O.W.L.s Readathon next month. The readathon website is confusing, but I think you pick a magical career and then only read books for your career’s prompts. It should be interesting. This readathon has been around for years, but I’ve never participated.
  5. This is the last time you have to see this fish. (I know you’re thrilled.) I achieved all the Pondathon quests!









I Want friends For My Birthday










Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other! See you around the blogosphere!





29 comments:

  1. I get you with the Hungry part, and living healthy. Tons of water always helps me. And now it's just me trying to get rid of the habit of bottled water.

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  2. Haha, yes, if I'm hungry then I assume my diet is working, too!

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  3. "I’m very sore and very hungry. I guess that means the diet is working?" Don´t know what diet you´re on, but one that makes you feeling hungry despite the fact that you´ve eaten, isn´t a good diet. And no, a body who is sore and hungry isn´t losing weight in the long term. Happy reading!

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  4. I laughed so hard at that diet quote at the top of the page. Truth! Good for you for sticking with your program. I am at the age of I-don't-care, though I should. I think I will miss the fish. It's pretty cute.

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  5. I'm making my way slowly through the Sherlock Holmes novels and stories, although I have read some previously. I'm trying not to be overly strict with the reading order, but am somewhat keeping to the order as I make my way through them slowly this year.

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  6. I saw a couple of things this week that I want to promote. One is the Stay at Home Book Tour for authors created by Anne Bogel on her blog Modern Mrs. Darcy. The other is the 24in48 Readathon set for next weekend. I saw a link to that on Bryan's blog, Still an Unfinished Person.

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  7. OK now you have me intrigued with your project to help authors AJ! I will try to be back tomorrow ;-)

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  8. I've read different Sherlock novels and short stories, but I definitely want to get through them all...and I probably should go in order too. LOL I need to start eating more healthy, but this whole self-quarantine thing does not make that easy. I want alllll the sweets.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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  9. I sat my O.W.L.s last year and it was fun! It's less confusing once you start. I didn't have time to sit my N.E.W.T.s last year because of an ARC avalanche, but I'll be sitting them this year. I hope you will be joining in for those, too! ⚡

    Have a wonderful week! 🌞

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  10. Ah those wicked flap books! Both my kids love them, though the older one does it all by herself now. It's tedious, I agree, lol but such hours of fun for the kids, haha!

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  11. Congrats on your diet. I am actually doing one as well, it's been working really well, just working on portions. I plan to add more walking with temperatures getting better in Illinois.
    I'm curious about your upcoming posts this week. Happy birthday, and stay safe!
    So glad you are reading Sherlock Holmes in order. I recently listened to them all in order, it was a great experience. I'm preparing to do the same with Hercule Poirot.
    I finished lots of books during the pondathon, but I didn't get all the rewards - I explained why on my pondathon post.
    My Sunday post https://wordsandpeace.com/2020/03/15/sunday-post-29-3-15-2020/

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  12. Oh, I look forward to your coronavirus project.

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  13. Best of luck with the diet - though do be careful not to get too hungry for too long... otherwise your body will start to convert muscle - not a good idea. I listened to Stephen Fry's audio book of the complete Sherlock Holmes collection and listened to it (all 72 hours...) last summer while decorating the bathroom. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and was intrigued by the different narrative structures Conan Doyle used. Have a peaceful, healthy week.

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  14. Yay for Pondathon! Go fishy!!! And I've never read Sherlock, isn't that odd?

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  15. The part about losing 14 days of happiness made me laugh. My husband and I went on the South Beach Diet a couple of years ago and after about 10 days we decided we had to either add some carbs back in or get divorced. We were both beyond miserable! I listened to A Study in Scarlet this summer and enjoyed it though I agree about it being disjointed. When we went back in time to Utah I thought something had messed up with the audio file. Have a great week!

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  16. I feel like I should give the Sherlock Holmes books a try at some point. I will need to remember to try to go in order when I do. That hungry part of a diet is usually why I fail. I eat junk when I feel hungry which just makes things worse. I remember how much my kids enjoyed those flap books but they usually ended up tearing them up in the end. Have a great week!

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  17. I am going to have to come back tomorrow and see how you suggest we handle this virus thing... I wish I could go kayaking for two weeks!

    www.thepulpitandthepen.com

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  18. I wish you the best with your efforts. I found I had to slowly build an exercise routine. I started wit pushups and gradually increased them and added other things like weights, crunches and finally pull-ups on a bar. I got out of the habit and now I have to start over, but for about 6 years I did my things every day. As far as eating I tried to eat protein and veggies, only starch at one meal. And the key thing was I didn't eat if I wasn't actually hungry, it's ok to be a little hungry or to wait a short time to eat. Nuts were an especially good snack food, filling and high protein for me. I lost 50 pounds in about 6 months and went from a size 18 to a size 4. I'm in between those as I'm 10 years older now and not as careful, but I know what I need to do. Good luck!

    Have a safe and healthy week! Enjoy your new reads! I have all the Sherlock Holmes books and I love them.

    Anne - Books of My Heart Here is my Sunday Post   

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  19. Can't wait to see your project---I'll be checking back tomorrow!!

    Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction

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  20. I am curious about If We Were Villains.

    Good advice at the end of the post. We all need more kindness, and our connections to other bloggers is vital.

    Thanks for sharing and for visiting my blog.

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  21. I have a special place in my heart for a Study in Scarlet. It's such a mess. My weekly update

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  22. Congrats on your pondathon achievement!

    Wishing you a great reading week, and good health and a very happy book-filled birthday! 🥳

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  23. OMG! I didn't know about that Charlie and the Chocolate Factory dream on the Book Depository. That's so fun! I guess I missed it though. :D
    Have a great week and happy reading.

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  24. I have been trying to eat healthy and exercise more too. My brother's heart attack was a wake up call for both of us. I am seldom hungry though (except apparently right now). I've gotten hooked on audiobooks which are nicely filling the time that I would normally devote to watching baseball. Come see my week here. Happy reading!

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  25. I'm also dieting and walking 3-4 miles every day with my dog. So far so good as I've finally reached the point where I'm not hungry all the time. It was rough until I hit that point, though! Keep it up!

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  26. That's a fun little thing The Book Depository is doing with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Good job on the exercise and dieting! Happy reading! :)

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  27. That diet quote you shared is so me, lol. And I'd say if you're hungry all the time, your diet and exercise routine must be working. :)

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  28. I'm going to have healthy meals but then fattening treats during my upcoming isolation! I feel as if I've lost weight through nerves and stress these last couple of weeks! Don't work yourself too hard and make sure you eat enough to stay healthy, especially in a pandemic!

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  29. The graphic at the top had me giggling! That's how I feel everytime I go on a diet/healthy eating kick.

    Hope this week is a good one!

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