Waiting on Wednesday

This meme was hosted by Breaking the Spine and is meant to highlight some great pre-publication books we all can't wait to get our grubby little mitts on. I'm choosing to continue the tradition even though she has stopped.

The Lonely Fajita by Abigail Mann.

The book is being released by One More Chapter on January 21, 2021.

The book's jacket copy says: It's Elissa's birthday, and she's accidentally booked a cervical smear instead of a celebration... Great. The icing on the cake? Her boyfriend is kicking her out of their houseshare.

So when she's offered the chance to live with a pensioner rent-free, Elissa knows she needs to impress Annie, who turned down the last twenty-two applicants. Somehow, even after Elissa goes on about 'definitely not being an axe-murderer', Annie chooses her.

And just like Elissa, prickly, sweary, big-hearted Annie could use a friend. Elissa may have nowhere else to go, but is she just where she needs to be?

Review: Anonyponymous by John Bemelmans Marciano

I've always liked word origin stories, especially when they have interesting tales behind them. And what could be more interesting than eponymous words, those words that were created based on the name of a person. These sorts of words are most obvious in areas like science (will someone name a flower or pleasant smell or star or something like that after me, please?), literature, and when someone actually creates a new tangible something that they can name after themselves. But Marciano isn't entirely concerned with these words in his Anonyponymous; he's interested in the words we use frequently but have long since forgotten the person for whom they were named. Anonymous and eponymous both.

This is a slight book, very casual in tone, and set up like a dictionary. The words (and people) chosen for inclusion are sometimes indeed what the title suggests but other times they are more common than the author seems to think (or maybe I'm just smarter than the average bear, but I don't really believe that). I was interested to learn about some of the people behind dog breeds (Jack Russell and Dobermann), Candido Jacuzzi and the reason behind his invention, how a man who neglected to brand his cattle inspired the word maverick, that silhouette came about as tribute (?) to a French official who was incredibly cheap, that syphilis was named for a shepherd but not for the reason you think, and many more. Etymology geeks like me will enjoy this although I'd caution that it is best read in small snippets rather than all at once. One or two entries might not be entirely true but it is mostly well-researched if very superficial and brief. It is a breezy, occasionally funny book of the sort of random trivia with which I cheerfully stuff my brain. If this sounds like you too, enjoy!

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This meme is hosted by Kathryn at Reading Date.

Books I completed over the past week are:

Cherries in Winter by Suzan Colon
City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London

Bookmarks are still living in the middle of:

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Reviews posted this week:

nothing

Books still needing to have reviews written (as opposed to the ones that are simply awaiting posting):

Anonyponymous by John Bemelmans Marciano
Dirty Jewess by Sylvia Fishbaum
The Secret by Julie Garwood
Cherries in Winter by Suzan Colon
City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London

Waiting on Wednesday

This meme was hosted by Breaking the Spine and is meant to highlight some great pre-publication books we all can't wait to get our grubby little mitts on. I'm choosing to continue the tradition even though she has stopped.

Pianos and Flowers by Alexander McCall Smith.

The book is being released by Pantheon on January 19, 2021.

The book's jacket copy says: In these fourteen delightful tales, Alexander McCall Smith imagines the lives and loves behind some of the everyday people featured in pictures from the London Sunday Times photographic archive. A young woman finds unexpected love while perusing Egyptian antiquities. A family is forever fractured when war comes to Penang, in colonial Malaysia. Iron Jelloid tablets help to reveal a young man's inner strength. And twin sisters discover that romance can blossom anywhere—even at the altar.

Throughout Pianos and Flowers, McCall Smith employs his indomitable charm to explore the possibilities of love, friendship, and happiness.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

This meme is hosted by Kathryn at Reading Date.

Books I completed over the past week are:

Hieroglyphics by Jill McCorkle
Christmas Pudding and Pigeon Pie by Nancy Mitford
Anonyponymous by John Bemelmans Marciano
Dirty Jewess by Sylvia Fishbaum
The Secret by Julie Garwood

Bookmarks are still living in the middle of:

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
Cherries in Winter by Suzan Colon

Reviews posted this week:

Admission by Julie Buxbaum
Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier
The Windsor Knot by S.J. Bennett

Starting over with 2021--Books still needing to have reviews written (as opposed to the ones that are simply awaiting posting):

Anonyponymous by John Bemelmans Marciano
Dirty Jewess by Sylvia Fishbaum
The Secret by Julie Garwood

Monday Mailbox

This past week's mailbox arrivals:

Snowflakes at the Little Christmas Tree Farm by Jaimie Admans came from me for myself.

How could the tale of a woman mistakenly buying a Christmas tree farm and meeting a pumpkin farmer be anything but delightful?

Homicide for the Holidays by Cheryl Honigford came from my friend Kim.

Holiday themed mysteries are always fun and this one set in Chicago, weaving radio dramas, the Mob, and speakeasies together sounds perfect.

If you want to see the marvelous goodies in other people's mailboxes, make sure to visit Mailbox Monday and have fun seeing how we are all doing our part to keep the USPS and delivery services viable.

Sunday Salon: Best Reads of 2020

As I have in other years, I wait until the year is truly over just in case I read a knockout book in the last few days of that year. I guess I'm always hopeful! But now that 2020 is in the rear view mirror, I have a top ten list for you. These are books I read in 2020, not necessarily books that were published in 2020 and the list could certainly change depending on the day. And while I usually can't keep it to ten, in looking back at this weird year, I find can't remember a lot of the books I read so I suspect that pandemic brain has influenced this unfairly and that many others I read are also quite worthy of being on this list but just didn't stick with me due to rotten circumstances.

The BookNAround Top Ten of 2020

Favorite of the Year:

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels

And the other nine in no particular order but divided by type:

Contemporary Fiction:
A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum
American Dirt by Jeannine Cummins
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy Rules for Visiting by Jessica Francis Kane
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

Historical Fiction:
I Was Anastasia by Ariel Lawhon
Raphael, Painter in Rome by Stephanie Storey

Thriller:
Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden

Non-fiction, essays:
At the Pond compiled by Daunt Books

What were the best books you read this year? What did I miss that I need to add to my reading list for next year?