Five Things to Tell You Vol. 18
stellar nonfiction, recent movies, summer plans and more!
Well, hello there! So happy to see you today!
I need to ask first thing ~ have you taken action to show support for public libraries yet this week?? Libraries are about MORE THAN BOOKS and serve as a vital support center for so many communities. We all can give five minutes to show up and work to save federal funding!
Okay, thanks for doing that! Now you can settle in with your favorite snack …
On Tuesday I shared so many light reads, and today I have to shift to the heavier stuff I have been reading lately. I go through phases of just inhaling nonfiction, especially when it’s on topics I am interested in and written in a narrative format.
These are three new nonfiction releases I just gobbled up in the past few weeks, and I want the entire world to read them ~ especially given the fact that federal funding for these issues (homelessness and global tuberculosis) has just been virtually eliminated by the current administration. My heart is broken, so I just keep reading.
Read The Lost and the Found: A True Story of Homelessness, Found Family and Second Chances by Kevin Fagan for a decades-long, heavily-reported account of the lives of two different people who were sleeping rough on the streets of San Francisco, and the lengths their families went to rescue them.
Read Seeking Shelter: a Working Mother, Her Children, and a Story of Homelessness in America by Jeff Hobbs for the story of a mother who went to extraordinary lengths to provide and care for her children in Los Angeles County while being homeless for years.
These two books provide very different perspectives on this tragedy in America: that of those who have hit the rock bottom of addiction and hope, and also those who are doing everything “right” according to society’s rules and still can’t find an affordable place to live. Both accounts are heartbreaking and infuriating. If you want to read my absolute favorite book on this topic, also read Rough Sleepers by Tracy Kidder.
Next up on this topic is one I am waiting in line for at the library: There is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America by Brian Goldstone. I also plan to read Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson as parts of it relate to the housing crisis.
To learn just how political views on homelessness have changed in recent years, listen to this hour long documentary from Soundside out of Seattle.
Read Everything is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of our Deadliest Infection by John Green to have your eyes blown wide open at just how much this disease has impacted the history of humanity (including Western society’s obsession with thinness and whiteness), and continues to ravage impoverished communities worldwide. John Green is my hero and I will read everything he ever writes.
On a lighter note, I am three for three on my goal of going to a movie at the theater once a month this year! I am so happy I made this goal and invested in it up front with the Marcus Movie Club subscription, because knowing I had already paid for the monthly ticket AND had the additional discounts has definitely helped me make it a priority.
Last weekend I went to see Snow White with the 7th grader and her friend and we all had fun both watching it and then analyzing the fact that it very much felt like a few humans were plopped down into an AI image generator prompt for “cozy magical woods” in all of the woods scenes.
But again ~ I’m no film critic and it was a nice afternoon with the teens with my feet up. No complaints!
And THEN, we got home after the movie and grocery shopping and the girls wanted to watch a movie their friend at school had told them about ~ Kinda Pregnant on Netflix. I got sucked in too ~ because Amy Schumer ~ and also, irreverent teacher movies are my favorite.
Seriously, I am obviously NOT in the majority on movies because I was shocked to see the terrible Rotten Tomatoes reviews afterwards ~ I loved it and laughed so hard. No shame. Also, this is NOT a kids’ movie, but my 7th grader watches adult stuff all the time and her friend swore her parents wouldn’t care ~ don’t be shocked if you don’t think it’s appropriate for your own middle schooler!
This is the time of year when my summer really starts taking shape and DAMN, am I pleased with how it’s looking! I have off from June 7 - August 14 this year (shortest school summer yet!) and I have …
Caamp tickets, Head and the Heart tickets, Lumineers tickets, a work trip to Philadelphia for the ALA Conference, a family gathering, a camping trip, a family Colorado trip to my mom’s, and am hoping that all other days in between those things involve either early morning paddleboarding on the lake, languid afternoons at the pool, or both.
When asked when I could attend (voluntary) work meetings this summer, my answer was: NEVER. I’m not joking. On the survey about dates that worked for me, I chose ZERO DATES.
I shared last week in my Tuesday newsletter that I have been investing in some new casual dresses for my spring & summer wardrobe, and I am excited to announce that I found another winner! This was the first one I found and loved.
So many sleeveless dresses don’t work for me because designers seem to assume that human tops and bottoms have the same proportions ~ and mine don’t. So often if the waist / hips / butt fit great, the top is HUGE on me and the armholes hang down to the waist. This one did not work, and neither did this one.
When packing for summer travel, especially when I refuse to pay for a carry on bag, wrinkle-resistant dresses are the absolute best way to conserve space in my backpack. I prefer them for work and life in general too! And of course, if I wear dresses, I am ALWAYS wearing these. I buy the black 9” in XL/XXL. Worth every penny x a million. Add a denim jacket or a button down tied high at the waist for chilly moments ~ outfits for months.
If you are anywhere near Southern Wisconsin, make sure the Ridges and Rivers Book Festival in Viroqua, WI is on your calendar for Saturday, April 26!
I have attended this festival the past two years and loved every second, and have a full schedule already planned for this year! I have been stalking the author names as they have been released to make sure I read their work before I go see them speak.
This year I am excited to see Brian Reisinger (Land Rich Cash Poor), Amy Pease (Northwoods), and William Kent Krueger (so many books!), and spend time perusing the booths and book shop as well. If I have the energy, I would also love to stay and see local author Michael Perry speak that evening.
That’s all for this week ~ thanks for reading! Please feel free to reply to this email or use the link below to leave a comment to chime in about any of these things, or to share one of your own things ♡
Thanks for stopping by!
I also loved Kinda Pregnant (that meet cute with Will Forte was one of the best ones in recent history, IMO) and was shocked to see it get such low ratings!
I have definitely not cracked the code of understanding what earns a good rating on Rotten Tomatoes, that’s for sure! I’m so happy you loved it too, Michelle!