*Alterations by Ray Xu *Mascot by Charles Waters and Traci Sorell
*Not Quite a Ghost by Anne Ursu
Just the right amount of middle-grade creepy. (Which is my top threshold for creepy.) I was feeling “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Were you?
Young Adult
*Funeral Songs for Dying Girls by Cherie Dimaline *Conditions of a Heart by Bethany Mangle *Wrath Becomes Her by Aden Polydoros *Louder Than Hunger by John Schu Ellie Haycock Is Totally Normal by Gretchen Schreiber *There Goes the Neighborhood by Jade Adia
Young Nonfiction
*Climbing the Volcano: A Journey in Haiku by Curtis Manley and Jennifer K. Mann
*The Observologist: A Handbook for Mounting Very Small Scientific Expeditions by Giselle Clarkson
This is my kind of tiny-detail science book.
Grownup Fiction
Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker Business or Pleasure by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Grownup Nonfiction
Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Imposter Behind the World’s Most Notorious Diaries by Rick Emerson
Probably not compelling at all if you aren’t familiar with Go Ask Alice. Incredibly gripping if you are familiar.
Memorializing my three-screen setup for my work computer. It allowed me to keep track of all the things.
The horizontal monitor was where I did my editing work. I could fit a document at 120% and also be able to pop the style guide up when I needed it.
The laptop screen was where I kept track of the requests coming in (or not coming in, as it came to be). I also did my internet searching on additional tabs.
The horizontal screen allowed me to monitor both Teams comments and messages as well as email. It was also where I kept my To-Do lists and opened relevant files.
You can barely see my keyboard, but it’s below the my desk’s top, arranged at just the right height.
On the way to Boise, I traveled with a Portland Thorns high school team. I could tell they were in high school because as we were deplaning, the adults in charge made sure each one hadn’t left anything, including their phones, behind.
While they weren’t great at managing the space they were taking up in the airport, it was fun to travel with them and their cheery red gear.
Having grown disenchanted with hotel/motels (they provide much more space than I need at too high a price; when I price down, they turn scuzzy) I tried out this darling Airbnb. I loved the original art and that bowl of chocolate waiting for me.
The unit was an integrated part of a mid-century and so had those great mid-century details including built-ins in the bedroom.
Also, this cute tiny kitchen.
Look at this darling built-in which is where I would put my spices and staples, were I living here full time.
Sadly, this wasn’t the best location, logistics-wise, so I won’t be staying there again.
*Jimmy’s Rhythm & Blues: The Extraordinary Life of James Baldwin by Michelle Meadows and Jamiel Law *My Block Looks Like by Janelle Harper and Frank Morrison
Middle Grade
*We Still Belong by Christine Day *Not So Shyby Noa Nimrodi *Eagle Drums by Nasugraq Rainey Hopson *The Fire, the Water, and Maudie McGinn by Sally J. Pla *The House of the Lost on the Cape by Sachiko Kashiwaba, Avery Fischer Udagawa (Translation), Yukiko Saito (Illustrations) *Between Two Brothers by Crystal Allen
*The Dubious Pranks of Shaindy Goodman by Mari Lowe
Really gets into those lonely middle school feelings. Cover art gripe: the girls are wearing roller skates, not rollerblades.
*The Jake Show by Joshua S. Levy
I really felt for Jake; it’s tough to be saddled with parents whose vision of their child doesn’t take into account the child’s vision. I needed to suspend my disbelief for a major plot point, but a great read overall.
Young Adult
Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta *Pardalita by Joana Estrela; Lyn Miller-Lachmann (Translator) *In Limbo by Deb J.J. Lee *Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey by Edel Rodriguez
*Going Bicoastalby Dahlia Adler
Two different romances in one novel? Yes, please!
*Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian
Stories of three young men (sneaky historical fiction: two are from prior decades.) Period details were solid, including the contemporary ones. Also good: the journeys of the characters.
Young Nonfiction
*She Persisted: Wilma Mankiller by Traci Sorell *Log Life by Amy Hevron *Everywhere Beauty Is Harlem: The Vision of Photographer Roy DeCarava by Gary Golio and E.B. Lewis
Matt and I took in PCS’s Quixote Nuevo, and had a great evening of theater. The story transports Don Quixote to La Plancha, Texas, where a retired English professor with dementia heads off on a journey for his long-lost love.
Among the great performances and great songs there was also great puppetry. The cast of nine was kept busy with multiple roles, and the story was compelling.
Also, this was a co-production and traveled from the South Cost Repertory Theater in Costa Mesa, California, to the Seattle Repertory Theater and then ended its run in Portland. The set was designed to fit all three stages, and the actors worked for longer because of it. In a time when arts organizations are struggling, this seems like a brilliant plan.
Disneyland, The Unofficial Guide. While this super-planned approach won’t work for everyone, I was a huge fan. It aims to get you what you want out of Disneyland/DCA by planning and prioritizing. It’s also quite amusing in places. The book provides many different touring plans (Two-day with small children, one day without children, etc.) and offers an app to help you plan. The app, alas, is only for IOS right now, so we used the website version in the parks.
Things this book did well: Encouraged walking back and forth across the park to hit rides at the best time rather than a close-by geographical approach. Provided reviews and rankings of all rides so that we could rank the rides into categories of must, maybe, and probably when planning. Provided reviews of every restaurant and recommendations of favorites at those restaurants. Explained how policies like rider switch or single rider could improve your trip. Talked through strategies for best viewing of the light shows and whether one should buy a dining package that guaranteed seats.
Things that didn’t quite hit: Despite the book’s attempt, I didn’t understand how Lightning Lanes worked until my Fairyweather Travel agent walked me through it (and gave me a handout). Having now been there with Lightning Lane access, I also would take a slightly different approach than they recommended (at least at the time we visited).
I would prioritize must-visit (and then maybe-visit) attractions without Lightning Lane access from rope drop to about 11:00 and then start the Lightning Lane process after that time. We waited a very long time for the Peter Pan ride (a maybe-visit) and used our Lightning Lane for the Matterhorn (a must-visit) at 8:30 in the morning when there was basically no line. We should have reversed those. While some attractions did “sell out” their Lightning Lane availability before the day was done, most did not. And we were planning to be there All. Day. Long. so we could have better used the Lightning Lanes beginning in the late morning rather than first thing.
Overall, though, this is a great book and well worth both the money and buying a year’s subscription to the app to view their extended content. At less than $50 total, this book and the paid website will add value to your trip.
The Imagineering Field Guide to Disneyland. Somewhat out of date, this small book provides behind-the-scenes information and fun facts about how exhibits at Disneyland were created. I read it before we left and envisioned paging through it while waiting in line, but never actually did that.
The Imagineering Field Guide to Disney California Adventure. This is very out of date; things have changed a lot since this was published. Still, there was some good information including the relationship between Grizzly River Run and the water at Pixar Pier.
Mouse-Tales: A Behind-the-Ears Look at Disneyland. This book was published in 1994 and contains the experiences of former cast members. There are some fun stories like the one where so many people at the local naval base moonlighted at Disneyland that one Friday when there was a navel emergency, and they were called back to the base, and Disneyland had to close due to lack of workers. Given the era, there were some tales of “funny” mild sexual harassment. The author also discussed the difficulties Black people and all women had getting promoted, which is important perspective. That said, it wasn’t especially gripping, and I didn’t finish it.
I put all four of these books in a Little Free Library. The guidebooks were gone the next day, and the Mouse Tales book lingered for about a week.
