The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott

Title: The Secrets We Kept

Author: Lara Prescott

Publisher: Knopf 2019

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 349

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Decades - 1950s; 52 Book Club - 4 Different POV

At the height of the Cold War, Irina, a young Russian-American secretary, is plucked from the CIA typing pool and given the assignment of a lifetime. Her mission: to help smuggle Doctor Zhivago into the USSR, where it is banned, and enable Boris Pasternak’s magnum opus to make its way into print around the world. Mentoring Irina is the glamorous Sally Forrester: a seasoned spy who has honed her gift for deceit, using her magnetism and charm to pry secrets out of powerful men. Under Sally’s tutelage, Irina learns how to invisibly ferry classified documents—and discovers deeply buried truths about herself.

One of the book club selections for the year. Thank good that this story is by and large interesting and thought-provoking. We follow multiple women in multiple locations as they are involved in a variety of espionage activities. The story mostly focuses on Olga and Irina, but I found their stories not my favorite. I wanted to hear even more about the typists and specifically about Sally. It was fascinating to me how the various women are directly involved in espionage, but are still somehow left out of actual intelligence. It’s an interesting dichotomy in history. By the end of the book, I was very sad about the fates of all the women featured in the book. But the story is probably much more realistic that way.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Gate of the Feral Gods by Matt Dinniman

Title: The Gate of the Feral Gods (Dungeon Crawler Carl #4)

Author: Matt Dinniman

Publisher: Dandy House 2021

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 632

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

New Achievement! Total, Utter Failure.

You failed a quest less than five minutes after you received it. Now that’s talent.

A floating fortress occupied by warrior gnomes. A castle made of sand. A derelict submarine guarded by malfunctioning machines. A haunted crypt surrounded by lethal traps.

It was supposed to be easy. One bubble. Four castles. Fifteen days. Capture each one, and the stairwell is unlocked.

Here's the thing. It's never easy. Carl and his team can't go it alone. Not this time. They must rely on the help of the low-level, I-can't-believe-these-idiots-are-still-alive crawlers trapped in the bubble with them. But can they be trusted?

Welcome, Crawler. Welcome to the fifth floor of the dungeon.

Yet another amazing Carl book in which I gasped out loud no fewer than 10 times. The level got a little convoluted in itself, but the characters shine through to really make this book. It was lovely to see more scenes involving other crawlers and the larger storyline at play. We get some epic action scenes and some great adversaries. Denise, the feral goose, was absolutely amazing! Hands-down my favorite boss in the series. Once we got to the last two hours of the book, I couldn’t put it down. Shit hit the fan and I had to keep reading to find out how Carl and Donut were going to survive this one! Cannot wait to read to the next one in the series.

Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #1 Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #2 Carl’s Doomsday Scenario

• #3 The Dungeon' Anarchist’s Cookbook

• #4 The Gate of the Feral Gods

• #5 The Butcher’s Masquerade

• #6 The Eye of the Bedlam Bride

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W18: More Cancelled Activities

What We Studied

The weather threw us for another loop and we had to cancel a variety of activities this week. On the flip side, we got a ton of random school bookwork done this week instead of going out.

A’s ELA, Math, Science, and History

Literature and Poetry

Arthur finished both our read aloud and the coop book club selection. And we started the next read aloud. It’s related to our previous one and should spark some interesting discussions about censorship. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills. We started the first Reading Explorer book which focuses on reading comprehension. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by EL Konigsburg

• Band This Book by Alan Gratz

• The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer L. Holm

• My America poem collection

• Reading Explorer 1

Quentin finished our read aloud. He gave it three stars out of five stars. But he claims that he really liked it. We are pushing our Blossom and Root lessons out two weeks. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Just Beyond the Very Very Far North by Dan Bar-El

• Fox Versus Winter by Corey R. Tabor

• Winter is for Snow by Robert Neubecker

• Little Penguins by Cynthia Rylant

• Penguin Problems by Jory John & Lane Smith

• Winter White by Christianne C. Jones

• Five Flying Penguins by Barbara Barbieri McGrath

• A Polar Bear in the Snow by Mac Barnett

• Penguins Don't Wear Sweaters by Marikka Tamura

• The King Penguin by Vanessa Roeder

• Pirate & Penguin by Mike Allegra

• Winter Lullaby by Dianne White

• Virgil & Owen Stick Together by Paulette Bogan

• The Trouble with Penguins by Rebecca Jordan-Glum

• When Winter Comes by Aimee M. Bissonette

Q’s ELA and Math

Math

Arthur finished the last unit for Singapore 5A. We covered ratios this week. We will move on to 5B.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin continued Singapore 2A with a big review of numbers to 1000. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Singapore Common Core 2A

Q’s Bird Unit

Social Studies

Arthur covered the Spanish American War this week. This sets use everything for our World War I study next week.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Cobblestone: The Spanish-American War

Quentin took a little break from our regular history chapters and covered the ancient city of Troy this week.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• Find the Journeys Around the World by David Long

• The Wooden Horse of Troy by Cari Meister

• The Trojan Horse: How the Greeks Won the War by Emily Little

Q’s ELA, Math, and History

Science

We ended up not going to chemistry class due to the weather and my migraine. We did cover the text information and should be good for next week’s meeting. Plus we read two chapters in our Story of Science book.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin got back into the RSO Life curriculum and covered birds this week.

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

• Birds by Ann O. Squire

• Birds by Jon Wood

• Birds by Carme Lemniscates

• Birds by Kevin Henkes

• Birds by Pamela Hickman

• Birds by Miranda Krestovnikoff

• Bird Count by Susan Edwads Richmond

• The Last Rainbow Bird by Nora Brech

A’s ELA and Math

STEAM Coop

The weather gave us a bit of a break the meant we actually got to meet this week. Quentin’s class takes about shapes and made some 3-D shapes using toothpicks and clay. I taught Arthur’s class and we covered symmetry. Along with a name symmetry graphing activity, we started an origami project to carry over to next week.

Art and Music Time

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

Because of the weather, we ended up bumping art and music into our plan this week. The boys really got into the art from Andy Warhol, especially loving the soup paintings. And they enjoyed the music for the week also.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• DK Art and How It Works

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• Iconic Composers by Nicholas Csicsko & Emi Ferguson

• 13 Art Movements Children Should Know

• 13 Artists Children Should Know

• 13 Modern Artists Children Should Know

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström

• Why is Art Full of Naked People? by Susie Hodge

• Andy Warhol: Pop Art Painter by Susan Goldman Rubin

• Andy Warhol Pop Art Painter by Susan Goldman Rubin

• Uncle Andy’s by James Warhola

• Uncle Andy’s Cats by James Warhola

• Fabulous! A Portrait of Andy Warhol by Bonnie Christensen

• Art is Everywhere: A Book About Andy Warhol by Jeff Mack

• Biography Book by Mike Venezia

Art nad Music Unit

Field Trip

The weather cancelled our planned field trip. Thankfully we got it rescheduled for later in the month.

Q’s ELA

High

• Getting stuck in the house was not exciting, but we did get a ton of book work done. And we had lots of cozy time reading and playing games.

Low

• The weather was killing us once again. Snow storms and temperatures below zero really hindered our plans.

A’s ELA

Next Week

• Starting our new read aloud

• Beginning our World War I study for history

• Jumping into new our math units

• Exploring some new concepts about the periodic table

• Easing into Greece with some myths and stories

• Learning about mammals for science

• Hopefully heading outside for a nature walk and field trip

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Sum 41 "Rise Up"

Throwback band for this week! Loving this new song. Bringing my punk days to the forefront.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #2

As I look outside my window: It looks bright and sunny, but I know that it’s still very very cold.

Right now I am: Marinating our steaks for dinner… always with the food prep.

Thinking and pondering: Which books should I pack for my upcoming reading weekend? Right now I have 10 sitting in a pile. I most definitely will not complete 10 books, but should I take them all? I will probably want to have options. I’m going to lean into my mood reading side.

On my bedside table: Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells; Untouchable by Talia Hibbert

On my tv this week: We finally watched a history of folk horror documentary and it was delightful. We also watched some other movies.

Listening to: Lots of audiobooks, which is weird for me. J got me hooked on the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, so I was binging those. I’m also listening to the Murderbot series. Mostly a reread for me, but I wanted the whole experience leading up to the volume that was released in November.

On the menu for this week:

• Monday - Whatever Dinner

• Tuesday - Buffalo Chicken Dip

• Wednesday - Fancy BLT Grilled Cheese

• Thursday - Jerk Pork with Caribbean Salsa

• Friday - Sesame Chicken

• Saturday - Pesto Stuffed Shells

• Sunday - Leftovers

On my to do list: Appointments to be made, lists to be made, reservations to be made.

Happening this week:

• Monday - Chemistry Class; Book Club

• Tuesday - Zoo Day; Coop Happy Hour

• Wednesday - Home Day

• Thursday - Backyard Playworld; Errands

• Friday - Fontenelle Forest Hike

• Saturday - Home Day

• Sunday - Steering Committee Meeting; Book Club

What I am creating: I started work on my December Daily 2023 album this weekend. I had to order more photo paper, but I got most of the pictures printed. Next I need to pull all my base papers out and start laying out pages.

My simple pleasures: Having a schedule, chips and dip, interesting conversations

Looking around the house: I got most of the first floor all picked up. Helpful because we have coop happy hour on Tuesday night…

From the camera: Nothing… I apparently didn’t take photos this week.

Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura

Title: Raiders of the Lost Heart

Author: Jo Segura

Publisher: Berkley 2023

Genre: Romance

Pages: 357

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library Love; She Reads Romance - Nerd with Glasses

Archaeologist Dr. Socorro “Corrie” Mejía has a bone to pick. Literally. 

It’s been Corrie’s life goal to lead an expedition deep into the Mexican jungle in search of the long-lost remains of her ancestor, Chimalli, an ancient warrior of the Aztec empire. But when she is invited to join an all-expenses-paid dig to do just that, Corrie is sure it’s too good to be true...and she’s right.

As the world-renowned expert on Chimalli, by rights Corrie should be leading the expedition, not sharing the glory with her disgustingly handsome nemesis. But Dr. Ford Matthews has been finding new ways to best her since they were in grad school. Ford certainly isn’t thrilled either—with his life in shambles, the last thing he needs is a reminder of their rocky past.

But as the dig begins, it becomes clear they’ll need to work together when they realize a thief is lurking around their campsite, forcing the pair to keep their discoveries—and lingering attraction—under wraps. With money-hungry artifact smugglers, the Mexican authorities, and the lies between them closing in, there’s only one way this all ends—explosively.

Mix together Indiana Jones, Romancing the Stone, and some Lara Croft and we get this fun, action-filled romance story. Corrie and Ford have the type of history that I am definitely okay with when it comes to romance stories. I don’t like friends to lovers, but adore enemies to lovers. Their relationship definitely falls into that second category. Of course, we have tons of sexual chemistry, but they cannot seem to stop bickering and fighting over every little thing. I enjoyed the shift of setting to an archaeological dig in the Mexican jungle and the added dash of intrigue and mystery. Once the characters finally admit their attraction to each other, I loved seeing their relationship evolve over the rest of the adventure. A very fun romance book.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson

Title: Strands of Bronze and Gold

Author: Jane Nickerson

Publisher: Random House 2013

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 352

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Fairy Tales - Bluebeard; Library Love

When seventeen-year-old Sophia Petheram’s beloved father dies, she receives an unexpected letter. An invitation—on fine ivory paper, in bold black handwriting—from the mysterious Monsieur Bernard de Cressac, her godfather. With no money and fewer options, Sophie accepts, leaving her humble childhood home for the astonishingly lavish Wyndriven Abbey, in the heart of Mississippi.

Sophie has always longed for a comfortable life, and she finds herself both attracted to and shocked by the charm and easy manners of her overgenerous guardian. But as she begins to piece together the mystery of his past, it’s as if, thread by thread, a silken net is tightening around her. And as she gathers stories and catches whispers of his former wives—all with hair as red as her own—in the forgotten corners of the abbey, Sophie knows she’s trapped in the passion and danger of de Cressac’s intoxicating world.

Glowing strands of romance, mystery, and suspense are woven into this breathtaking debut—a thrilling retelling of the “Bluebeard” fairy tale.

Last year I read a great Bluebeard retelling (T. Kingfisher’s The Seventh Bride), so I had to go looking for another one. I found a ton of short stories in collections, but I wanted a full length story. I finally found this book and snapped it from the library. Overall, I thought this was really good. Sophia sufficiently grows and changes throughout the novel. Enough so that I could actually appreciate her has a character. From there, we get some great side characters with enough of their agency to make full people instead of tools for Sophia’s story. In fact the only characters that I didn’t love were Sophia’s family. But I get ultimately she has to be left all alone to face her fears and take her agency back. I loved the slow reveal of the mystery and the past, but I do wish that it happened slightly faster and more time was spent with Sophia wrestling with what to do with the information. Ultimately, this was a good readable entertaining retelling of the Bluebeard story.

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook by Matt Dinniman

Title: The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook (Dungeon Crawler Carl #3)

Author: Matt Dinniman

Publisher: Dandy House 2021

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 534

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Welcome to the Gun Show!

The top ten list is populated. The sponsorship program is open. The difficulty is ramping up. The first three floors were nothing compared to what Carl and Donut now face.

The Iron Tangle. An impossibly-complicated subway system built out of the world's subterranean railway systems, all combined and then tied together into a knot. Up is down. Down is up. Close is far. The cars are filled with monsters, the railway stations are less than safe, and the exit is always just a few stops away.

But there is hope. For the first time, the crawlers are all working together. The loot is better than ever. And the secret to unraveling it all may be hidden in the pages of a seemingly-useless book. Welcome, crawlers. Welcome to the fourth floor of the dungeon.

Oh yes! Another crazy adventure starring Carl and Donut! This time, the floor is all about a messed-up train system complete with multiple lines, different mobs, and a larger mystery of the construction itself. I loved seeing how our character navigated this one and finally figured out that they need to make more connections amongst the other crawlers. Brandy the fire demon was a lovely addition to their encounters. And I always love the appearance of mimics (not when actually playing Dungeons & Dragons, I hate them then). But the best part of this book was the acquisition of the title object. I cannot wait to see how Carl uses the information within on future levels. As always, the audiobook is the only way to go for this book!

Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #1 Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #2 Carl’s Doomsday Scenario

• #3 The Dungeon' Anarchist’s Cookbooks

• #4 The Gate of the Feral Gods

• #5 The Butcher’s Masquerade

• #6 The Eye of the Bedlam Bride

Next up on the TBR pile:

Teach Me by Olivia Dade

Title: Teach Me (There’s Something About Marysburg #1)

Author: Olivia Dade

Publisher: Olivia Dade 2019

Genre: Romance

Pages: 261

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library Love; She Reads Romance - Nerd with Glasses

Their lesson plans didn’t include love. But that’s about to change…

When Martin Krause arrives at Rose Owens’s high school, she’s determined to remain chilly with her new colleague. Unfriendly? Maybe. Understandable? Yes, since a loathsome administrator gave Rose’s beloved world history classes to Martin, knowing it would hurt her.

But keeping her distance from a man as warm and kind as Martin will prove challenging, even for a stubborn, guarded ice queen. Especially when she begins to see him for what he truly is: a man who’s never been taught his own value. Martin could use a good teacher—and luckily, Rose is the best.

Rose has her own lessons—about trust, about vulnerability, about her past—to learn. And over the course of a single school year, the two of them will find out just how hot it can get when an ice queen melts.

Overall, I really enjoyed Dade’s other series Spoiler Alert. This book didn’t quite do it for me. I wanted to like it so much especially as it featured teachers. But… I think the book spent a lot of time discussing teaching and how Rose had to present herself on the job. Too much time. I just lost interested at multiple parts of the book. And ultimately, I wasn’t super excited for the main couple like I should have been. I would have liked more scenes of them together after their first night together. Instead, we flash through time to get to the big confrontation at the end. I just wasn’t totally into it by then. I did look at the summaries for the other two books in the series and I might just try those.

There’s Something About Marysburg

• #1 Teach Me

• #2 40-Love

• #3 Sweetest in the Gale

Next up on the TBR pile:

Damaged Goods by Talia Hibbert

Title: Damaged Goods (Ravenswood #1.5)

Author: Talia Hibbert

Publisher: Nixon House 2018

Genre: Romance

Pages: 181

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: COYER

Spice Meter: 5

Second chances shouldn’t feel so sinful.

Laura Burne‘s husband is a monster, her diamond ring is a trap, and her pregnancy is the push she needs to finally escape. She runs away seeking safety… and finds Samir Bianchi, her long-lost teenage sweetheart.

With his kind eyes and dirty smile, Samir’s still hot as hell—and he still treats Laura like a goddess, baby bump and all. The wild boy she spent one magical summer with is every inch a man, and he’s more than ready to care for her tiny family.

But Laura’s been keeping a secret Samir might never forgive. When she finally confesses, will he remain by her side? Or is this fairytale ending too good to be true?

CW: Domestic Violence (in past, but discussed on the page)

And here we get Laura’s story as touched on very briefly in the previous book. I really wanted to love this story of empowerment and opening up to love, but ultimate, I didn’t love it. Laura is a prickly character that I really wished had sought out therapy instead of solitude. And I must say that pregnancy storylines are really not my favorite. They’re fine, but I have lots of mixed feelings about them. Samir is great and I really fell for him over the course of the novella. But their pairing just didn’t work for me. Oh well. They can’t all be winners.

Ravenswood

• #1 A Girl Like Her

• #1.5 Damaged Goods

• #2 Untouchable

• #3 That Kind of Guy

Next up on the TBR pile:

A Girl Like Her by Talia Hibbert

Title: A Girl Like Her (Ravenswood #1)

Author: Talia Hibbert

Publisher: Nixon House 2018

Genre: Romance

Pages: 288

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Library Love; She Reads Romance - Reverse Grumpy Sunshine

Spice Meter: 5

Ruth Kabbah is okay with being an outcast.

Between her autism, her comic book nerdery, and the whiff of scandal her small town can’t forget, Ruth will always be Ravenswood’s black sheep. Since she prefers silence and solitude to gossip and pub crawls, that suits her just fine—until Evan Miller comes to town.

Ex-military man Evan is gorgeous, confident… and he’s Ruth’s new neighbour. Unlike everyone else, he doesn’t seem to mind her crotchety ways or her cooking disasters. In fact, if Ruth didn’t know any better, she might think Evan likes her.

But Ruth’s been burned before, and some lessons are hard to forget.

She can’t let her guard down—no matter how many home-cooked meals Evan brings over. Because affection is temporary, trust is made to be broken, and the heat of desire is a dangerous thing to play with.

So why does this man feel so safe?

CW: Domestic Violence (in past, but discussed)

After reading the third book in this series and picking it for my book club selection, I decided to circle back around and read from the beginning. This one did not disappoint. We get a reverse grumpy sunshine trope with two seemingly different people. In fact, these two people are perfect for each other, challenging and complementing each other. Ruth is not an easy person to be with and Evan may be too easy to be with. But together, we get to see them fit together to form a great partnership. The sections detailing the domestic violence in Ruth’s past were difficult, but Hibbert always the space I needed to process it and continue to read. It helps that those conversations are not in the same chapters as the spicy scenes. I like a bit of separation. (As opposed to how my previously read book, Under Her Skin, approached the conversations.) I got to the end and had that warm and fuzzy feeling to their relationship. That’s what I want in my romance.

Ravenswood

• #1 A Girl Like Her

• #1.5 Damaged Goods

• #2 Untouchable

• #3 That Kind of Guy

Next up on the TBR pile:

The Magician by Rebecca Serle

Title: The Magician

Author: Rebecca Serle

Publisher: Amazon 2023

Genre: Speculative Fiction

Pages: 25

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 52 Book Club.- Magical Realism

A mother-to-be is awed by her own mother’s chaotic and unknowable approach to life and its natural mysteries in a smart, witty, and whimsical story by the New York Times bestselling author of One Italian Summer.

Growing up with an eccentric but loving mother who levitates for a living, Charlie always wondered, How does she do it? Defying gravity is no easy trick. Neither is motherhood. Now that her mother is leaving New York for bigger skies in New Mexico, it’s a new stage in life for both of them in an ever-evolving relationship that reveals the true magic of being a mother.

I was not a fan of the previous Serle book that I had read, but was intrigued by the summary of this one. Should have listened to my gut reaction and left this one unborrowed. Despite the magical realism, this is really a story of a mother and daughter going their separate ways. I didn’t love the ending and the (in my opinion) shoe-horned in magic. It just didn’t do it for me.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Signal Moon by Kate Quinn

Title: Signal Moon

Author: Kate Quinn

Publisher: Amazon 2022

Genre: Speculative Fiction

Pages: 57

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: COYER

Yorkshire, 1943. Lily Baines, a bright young debutante increasingly ground down by an endless war, has traded in her white gloves for a set of headphones. It’s her job to intercept enemy naval communications and send them to Bletchley Park for decryption.

One night, she picks up a transmission that isn’t code at all—it’s a cry for help.

An American ship is taking heavy fire in the North Atlantic—but no one else has reported an attack, and the information relayed by the young US officer, Matt Jackson, seems all wrong. The contact that Lily has made on the other end of the radio channel says it’s…2023.

Across an eighty-year gap, Lily and Matt must find a way to help each other: Matt to convince her that the war she’s fighting can still be won, and Lily to help him stave off the war to come. As their connection grows stronger, they both know there’s no telling when time will run out on their inexplicable link.

Do not let the short length fool you. Kate Quinn packs this short story with so much plot and characterization that you would swear that it had to be longer. But at the same time, the prose does not lag. I zipped through this story and then wished that I could turn around and read it again for the first time. With a very quick but concise setup, we are thrown into the mystery of the transmission as Lily tries to understand what she just heard. From there, we switch to Matt and piece the two storylines together. I was absolutely tearing up by end of the story. There’s a reason that Quinn is one my favorite writers.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Under Her Skin by Adriana Anders

Title: Under Her Skin

Author: Adriana Anders

Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca 2017

Genre: Romance

Pages: 344

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: She Reads Romance - Small Town Romance; Library Love

Spice Meter: 5

His scarred hands are the gentlest I've ever known. If only life were a fairy tale where Beauty got to keep her Beast…

Every morning I wake up and remind myself I am not my past, but beneath my drab clothing hides a secret—proof of the abuse I suffered at the hands of my possessive ex, tattooed on my skin in a lurid reminder of everything I've survived. I'm alone and in hiding, trying to rebuild some semblance of a normal life. I didn't expect healing to come in the form of a rough ex-con whose rage drives him in ways I'll never understand.

Ivan's scars are on the inside—a wounded soul like me. But day by day, this gentle giant proves to me that there are second chances in life, and he deserves them as much as I do. And maybe finding each other will finally allow us to pick up our broken pieces and make something beautiful and new…

CW: Sexual and Domestic Violence (before the book begins, but discussed in detail)

This was one of the books that was on a list of older protagonists. I wanted to find an older protagonist for my book club pick. This one shuffled down the pile and I’m glad it didn’t. I ended up not loving this book very much. Sure we get an older protagonist, but it’s one that’s been on the receiving amount of a shocking amount of domestic and sexual violence. I really had to take some breaks in reading this book and even skimmed a few pages that detailed the violence. It’s a okay story with okay characters, but ultimately, I came to the end of the book hoping that Uma went to therapy instead of jumping into bed with Ivan. Seriously, consensual sex does not “fix” past trauma. I was very conflicted by the ending HEA and really wished that this had taken a much more empowering turn than it did. And the revelations from the neighbor really threw me. I do like black humor, but this seemed to be more a case of people not taking situations seriously.

Next up on the TBR pile:

Currently #1

Reading: I dove into next month’s book club selection, The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott, and I’m very intrigued by the Cold War historical fiction.

Watching: Somehow J and I missed S3 of Party Down when it aired back in February. We rediscovered and are working our way through.

Listening: I got fed up with my giant Apple Music shuffle. Tt would move from hard rock to classical to singer/songwriter. Sometimes I just really want to listen to more metal selection. So I made a Heavy Bangers mix to hit when that’s all I want. It was a great decision! Already loving it.

Making: I’m teaching symmetry this week in coop and I have a few projects in mind. I need to make a few examples so the kids know what they are doing.

Feeling: It’s so incredibly cold here this week. Below zero temps since last Monday, I think? Plus two snowstorms that dumped a decent amount. I’m just so cold right now.

Planning: My reading weekend is three weeks away! I’ve started the grocery list and the book selections list. My last list will be clothes and such, but that’s no fun. I’d rather contemplate what I want to eat and what I want to read.

Loving: The cold weather has me in the mood for curries and chilis. I’ve made both this week and sitting loving it!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Homeschool W17: Winter Arrived with a Vengeance

What We Studied

After a few weeks of light schoolwork and complete break, we were back at it last week with a full curriculum load. We had planned on chemistry class, a field trip, coop, and a nature hike, but the weather took a turn. Everything except for coop was cancelled due to two winter storms and below zero temps with whiteout conditions. So, I had to seriously modify our schedule and pulled in a lot more curriculum. Even with the heavier load, the boys ended up playing outside for hours most days. We are trying to enjoy the snow while it lasts.

Q’s Science

Q’s Science, ELA, and Math

Literature and Poetry

Arthur started one of my favorite childhood books. We should finish next week.. We also moved on to starting the next coop book club selection. Beyond the actual literature, we are working on some basic grammar skills. We finished the first Reading Explorer book which focuses on reading comprehension. He also continued his Super Secret Notebook from Blossom & Root.

• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by EL Konigsburg

• The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer L. Holm

• Reading Explorer: Intro

• My America poem collection

Quentin started a very winter themed book with me. We are pushing our Blossom and Root lessons out two weeks. He also worked on some basic grammar.

• Sing a Song of Seasons

• Just Beyond the Very Very Far North by Dan Bar-El

• Polar Bear by Candace Fleming

• Polar Bear Morning by Lauren Thompson

• Polar Bear Night by Lauren Thompson

• Polar Bear Postman by Seigo Kijima

• Polar Bear's Underwear by Tupera Tupera

• The Little Polar Bear Tales a Stand by Hans de Beer

• Polar Bear Island by Lindsay Bonilla

• Once Upon a Winter Day by Liza Woodruff

• My Winter City by James Gladstone

• Bright Winter Night by Alli Brydon

• Winter is Here by Kevin Henkes

A’s ELA, Math, Science, and History

Q’s Bedtime Books

Math

Arthur started the last unit for Singapore 5A. We covered ratios this week. We will finish this unit next week and move on to 5B.

• Singapore Common Core 5A

• Orbiting with Logic

Quentin started Singapore 2A with a big review of numbers to 1000. We also continued our logic book.

• Lollipop Logic Book 3

• Singapore Common Core 2A

Q’s History, ELA, and Math

A’s ELA and Math

Social Studies

Arthur covered two weeks worth of history lessons because of our snow days. We talked about the Progressive Era reforms as well as Teddy Roosevelt and Taft.

• DK American History

• We were There Too! Young People in US History

• Words that Build a Nation

• Heart and Soul

• Nat Geo Our Country’s Presidents

• An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

• A Different Mirror for Young People

• This is Our Land: A History of American Immigration

• Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom

• Alice Paul and the Fight for Women’s Rights

• The Remarkable Rough-Riding Life of Theodore Roosevelt and the Rise of Empire America by Cheryl Harness

Quentin also covered two weeks of history with a chapter on the Hebrews and Phoenicians and a chapter on the Minoans and Mycenaeans.

• History Quest Early Times

• DK When on Earth?

• Human Wold

• DK History

• DK Timelines of Everything

• DK A Child Through Time

• A History of Western Art

• DK Science Year by Year

• DK Myths, Legends, and Sacred Stories

• Find the Journeys Around the World by David Long

Science

Chemistry class was canceled due to the first winter storm. Instead, we read two chapters in our Story of Science book.

• RSO Chemistry

• DK Super Simple Chemistry

• Story of Science Vol. 2: Newton at the Center by Joy Hakim

• DK The Elements

Quentin took a detour from our RSO curriculum to learn about the Arctic, Antartica, polar bears, and penguins. We talked a lot about winter and how animals survive.

• The Coldest Places on Earth by Jennifer M. Besel

• Plants in Winter by Jenny Fretland VanVoorst

• Weather in Winter by Jenny Fretland VanVoorst

• All About Winter Weather by Kathryn Clay

• Why Do Bears Seep All Winter? A Book About Hibernation by Mary Englar

• Polar Bears by Gail Gibbons

• Nat Geo Kids: Polar Bears

• Polar Bears by Valerie Bodden

• Polar Bear by Dee Phillips

• Do You Really Want to Meet a Polar Bear? by Marcie Aboff

• Polar Bears by Elaine Landau

• Polar Bear Fur Isn't White and Other Amazing Facts by Thea Feldman

• The Polar Bear by Jenni Desmond

• Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner

• Click Magazine: No Place Like Home

• Winter Bees and Other Poems of the Cold by Joyce Sidman & Rick Allen

• Frozen Wild: How Animals Survive in the Coldest Places on Earth by Jim Arnosky

• Penguins by Seymour Simon

• Penguins by Ann O. Squire

• Penguin Chick by Betty Tatham

• RSO Life

• DK Oversimple Biology

Art and Music

Q’s Math, ELA, and Science

STEAM Coop

Another January, another coop semester begins. It was a little touch and go for a few days as to if we would actually have coop, but the weather settled enough to get to our meeting hall. All the levels explored Geometry and Art for their first theme. I taught the oldest class and we learned about how artists use basic shapes, played the shape game, and then made collages with shapes.

Art/Music/Crafts/Cooking/Documentary

This was another area that I pulled from later weeks to take advantage of the time. We ended up covering two artists (Picasso and Chagall) and two composers (Haydn and Debussy). This will help us when we hit a week and I cannot fit in art and music.

• DK Music and How it Works

• DK The Arts

• DK Art and How It Works

• Modern Art Adventures by Maja Pitamic and Jill Laidlaw

• 13 American Artists Children Should Know

• A Child's Introduction to Art

• Women in Art by Rachel Ignotofsky

• Iconic Composers by Nicholas Csicsko & Emi Ferguson

• 13 Art Movements Children Should Know

• 13 Artists Children Should Know

• 13 Modern Artists Children Should Know

• The Story of Paintings by Mick Manning & Brita Granström

• Why is Art Full of Naked People? by Susie Hodge

• Just Behave, Pablo Picasso! by Jonah Winter

• Pablo Picasso by Mike Venezia

• Paris in the Spring with Picasso by Joan Yolleck

• Papa Chagall Tell Us a Story by Laurence Anholt

• Marc Chagall by Jude Welton

• Through the Window: View of Marc Chagall's Life and Art by Barb Rosenstock

Field Trip

The weather cancelled our planned field trip. Thankfully we got it rescheduled for later in the month.

A’s ELA and Math

High

• January always makes me want to hibernate. The winter storm really added to it, but I was okay with it. The boys got to spend a lot of time playing in the snow. I got to spend a lot of time reading and drinking hot tea.

Low

• The schedule changes did throw me a bit, but we managed to make it through.

Art and Music

Next Week

• Finishing our two read alouds

• Covering the Spanish American War and American Imperialism

• Competing our math units

• Exploring some new elements on the periodic table

• Easing into Greece with some myths and stories

• Learning about birds for science

• Hopefully heading outside for a nature walk and field trip

A’s History and ELA

Q’s ELA, History, and Science

Next up on the TBR pile:

Music Monday - Liliac "Heaven and Hell"

Random found this band on YouTube. That voice is just absolutely amazing!

Next up on the TBR pile:

Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

Title: Carl’s Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2)

Author: Matt Dinniman

Publisher: Dandy House 2021

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 364

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

"The training levels have concluded. Now the games may truly begin."

The ratings and views are off the chart. The fans just can't get enough. The dungeon gets more dangerous each day. But in a grinder designed to chew up and spit out crawlers by the millions, Carl and Princess Donut need to work harder than ever just to survive.

They call it the Over City. A sprawling, once-thriving metropolis devastated by a mysterious calamity. But these streets are far from abandoned. An undead circus trawls the ruins. Murdered prostitutes rain from the sky. An ancient spell is finally ready to reveal its dark purpose.

Carl still has no pants.

They call it Dungeon Crawler World. For Carl and Donut, it's anything but a game..

I think that I am officially obsessed with this series now. I can’t wait until I can sneak in another hour or two of listening to the adventures of Carl and Donut. The audio is fantastic, full of energy and personality. For this book, the game really begins with the Third Floor. We get to meet some new characters, perhaps new allies, and new enemies. The circus portions were delightfully creepy. I loved the Lovecraftian take on the horrors of the Over City. The reveal of the titular Doomsday Scenario was a great addition to leave you wondering about the next adventure. I cannot wait to see what happens on the Fourth Floor!

Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #1 Dungeon Crawler Carl

• #2 Carl’s Doomsday Scenario

• #3 The Dungeon' Anarchist’s Cookbooks

• #4 The Gate of the Feral Gods

• #5 The Butcher’s Masquerade

• #6 The Eye of the Bedlam Bride

Next up on the TBR pile:

Life Right Now #1

As I look outside my window: Everything is white. That last winter storm dropped a ton more snow and the wind hasn’t let up. The below zero temperatures are not helping the situation. But I can concede that all that snow is very pretty to look at.

Right now I am: Deciding what we are going to have for brunch. Sausage, eggs, and maybe banana bread?

Thinking and pondering: I’m working on the Coop Steering Committee agenda. There’s a lot of random things that I want to discuss, but I need to work on prioritizing the really important bits. My biggest question to tackle is how to have people sign up to teach next year without me losing my mind with frustration?

On my bedside table: Despite my best intentions, I have a stack of library books to read. I’m really really going to try to not put a ton more library holds on my card (exception being book club reads). I want to read more from my own Unread Shelves. But for this week, I have The Secrets We Kept by Lara Prescott and Mr. Fixer Upper by Lucy Score ready to go next. Plus I want to listen to the next Murderbot book after I finish this Carl volume.

On my tv this week: The family is continuing to watch Percy Jackson episodes as their air. We also started watching Monarch together. I started Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist (I know, I know, so late to the party) and am absolutely loving it. J and I watched a few movies and finished The White House Plumbers.

Listening to: Mostly just the adventures of Carl and Donut. Maybe I’ll go crazy today and listen to music instead…

On the menu for this week:

• Monday - Spicy Black Bean Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

• Tuesday - Potato Soup with Sausage

• Wednesday - Buffalo Chicken Dip

• Thursday - Whatever Dinner

• Friday - Honey Lime Chicken with Asparagus

• Saturday - Bourbon Grilled Flank Steak

• Sunday - Beef and Barley Stew

On my to do list: My reading weekend is just two weeks away. I need to finalize some plans and make a packing list including a TBR for the weekend. I also need to plan my coop lesson for this week. We are covering symmetry.

Happening this week:

• Monday - Chemistry Class

• Tuesday - Dentist appointment for me

• Wednesday - El Museo Latino field trip

• Thursday - Coop; Winter HS Dance

• Friday - Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company performance at The Orpheum

• Saturday - Home Day

• Sunday - Breakfast Club

What I am creating: I received my 2024 Memory Planner base, so I want to start on January’s pages. But I also need to start and complete my December Daily pages for 2023.

My simple pleasures: Earl Gray Tea Bread, snuggling in blankets, good television

Looking around the house: I need to do laundry today, including sheets, and I want to reorganize part of my office. Otherwise, the house looks pretty good.

From the camera: Enjoying the snow earlier this week. We have much more snow on the ground now, but the temps are below zero.

The Fortune Hunter by Daisy Goodwin

Title: The Fortune Hunter

Author: Daisy Goodwin

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press 2013

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 473

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Unread Shelf; In Case You Missed It - 2013

Empress Elizabeth of Austria, known as Sisi, is the Princess Diana of nineteenth-century Europe. Famously beautiful, as captured in a portrait with diamond stars in her hair, she is unfulfilled in her marriage to the older Emperor Franz Joseph. Sisi has spent years evading the stifling formality of royal life on her private train or yacht or, whenever she can, on the back of a horse.

Captain Bay Middleton is dashing, young, and the finest horseman in England. He is also impoverished, with no hope of buying the horse needed to win the Grand National—until he meets Charlotte Baird. A clever, plainspoken heiress whose money gives her a choice among suitors, Charlotte falls in love with Bay, the first man to really notice her, for his vulnerability as well as his glamour. When Sisi joins the legendary hunt organized by Earl Spencer in England, Bay is asked to guide her on the treacherous course. Their shared passion for riding leads to an infatuation that jeopardizes the growing bond between Bay and Charlotte, and threatens all of their futures.

Another absolutely disappointing book! I was hoping that we would get a glittering portrayal of the Empress of Austria complete with expansive descriptions of time and place. I wanted a more glamorous version of Downtown Abbey. Instead, we focus more on Charlotte and Bay than Sisi and plod through their ridiculous “relationship.” I was thoroughly disgusted with Bay’s treatment of both Charlotte and Sisi and could not imagine what either woman saw in him. He’s nothing special at all. He spends all his lamenting his station in life and expressing love for his horse. Why would an heiress and the Empress of Austria covet a man like that? And there’s the fact that we get little to no information about Sisi throughout the book. She has a tiny waist, likes to hunt, and has ridiculously long hair. None of those things are personality traits and definitely none of those things make her an interesting figure. I really should have just off loaded this book, but you never know until to read it. At least it’s off my shelves.

Next up on the TBR pile: