The Sunday Salon: Reading Away the Cold

 

Welcome! I am delighted that you joined us here at the Sunday Salon. 

What is the Sunday Salon? 

The Sunday Salon is a place to link up and share what we have been doing during the week. It's also a great opportunity to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there. 

Yes, I brought my beautiful red cape to Thanksgiving in Chicago, but it turns out that you were right, Mae, and I needed a little more. Borrowed hats, gloves, scarves, socks, coats, blankets---these were all things we needed in Chicago winter weather. It wasn't snowing when we got there, but the temps hovered near freezing and the winds were gusting up to 60 mph---that's hurricane-force winds, people! The Saturday snowfall set a one-day record for November---8 1/2 inches---and our flight was delayed. The plane had to be de-iced, but we did finally fly out of Chicago. We made it to Dallas at midnight and we had to sleep in the airport where we took a 6 am flight home to Houston. 

And, of course, the heat and drought we experienced through November is now gone here in Texas, and we are bundling up in chilly (for us) temps in the 50s and 60s.

What I Read Last Week:

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy

What I'm Reading Now*:

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai (fiction)

Saint Francis of Assisi by Demi (nonfiction picture book)

The Tears of Things: Prophetic Wisdom for an Age of Outrage by Richard Rohr (spirituality)

Dear Writer: Pep Talks and Practical Advice for the Creative Life by Maggie Smith (writing)

The Penguin Book of Haiku edited by Adam L. Kern (poetry)

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf (classic; writing)

Everything is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection by John Green (nonfiction)

String Too Short to Be Saved: Recollections of Summers on a New England Farm by Donald Hall (memoir)

Warrior Scarlet by Rosemary Sutcliff (classic; children’s)

Bird Talk: Hilariously Accurate Ways to Identify Birds by the Sounds They Make by Becca Rowland (nature)

Good Things: Recipes and Rituals to Share with People You Love by Samin Nosrat (foodie)

A Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare (play)

*I do not plan to finish any of these books until January 1st.

This is the way I trick my mind into thinking that I am starting 

off the year strong.

What I Posted Last Week Here at Readerbuzz:

The Sunday Salon: I'm Shivering in Chicago

Who Knows Where December Will Take Me?

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny  by Kiran Desai: Book Beginnings on Fridays, First Line Friday, The Friday 56, and Book Blogger Hop

I am participating in the 2025 Ho-Ho-Ho Readathon, hosted by Kimberly at Caffeinated Reviewer. The event runs from Wednesday, November 26 to Wednesday, December 17. Read or listen to as many holiday or winter themed books as you wish. Share your progress using #2025HOHOHORAT. Take part in at least one challenge and read two books to be eligible for the grand prize. Link up here to join in the fun. 

Challenges:

Victoria Hamel “Holiday Cookie Recipe Exchange“

I shared my husband's family's recipe for Fattigmands,

a Norwegian Christmas cookie. I posted about making

Fattigmands in 2012 here.

Lisa @ Lisa Loves Literature “Holiday Book Scavenger Hunt“

Books Read for the HoHoHo Challenge:

The Christmas Countdown by Holly Cassidy

• 
  

Action for Happiness December 2025 Calendar

All 2025 Reading Challenges are complete!

I began to list 3 Good Things every day during the pandemic. Now I've established a regular routine of writing down my 3 Good Things. Here are 3 Good Things from last week:

Good Thing #1:

Jordan loved the Christmas Lambchop we brought him.

Good Thing #2:

We made a Thankful Pumpkin.

Each person wrote down what he/she was thankful for.

Good Thing #3:

What a wonderful Thanksgiving we had with our Chicago family.

Weekend linkup spots are listed below. Click on the picture to visit the site.

        

I hope you will join the linkup for Sunday Salon below.

The Christmas Songs Book Tag

 

Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl created The Christmas Songs Book Tag in 2015 and she brings it back each year for people to participate in. Because she does this every year, she limits her choices to books she has read in 2025. She also tries to only use one book one time. You can do whatever you would like. :)

1. “All I Want for Christmas Is You”: Favorite bookish couple.

Gus and Woodrow from Lonesome Dove

2. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”: Name a book where a character is away from home (school, vacation, etc.).

James by Percival Everett

3. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”: Name your favorite “little” book (children’s book, short story, novella, etc.).

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

4. “Santa Claus is Coming to Town“: What book(s) do you hope Santa brings you this year?

The Daily Stoic Journal by Ryan Holiday

5. “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”: Which book turned your nose red (made you cry)?

Hiroshima Diary: The Journal of a Japanese Physician, August 6-September 30, 1945 by Michihiko Hachiya

6. “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”: Your favorite book/kind of book to read during the holidays.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss

7. “We Three Kings”: Your favorite trilogy/book from a trilogy (or feel free to fudge it and pick a book from a series).

The Thomas Cromwell series by Hillary Mantel: 

Wolf Hall, Bring Up the Bodies, The Mirror and the Light

8. “Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow”: A character you would love to be snowed in with.

I'd enjoy spending time in snow or in springtime with the four fascinating characters from The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim.

9. “Last Christmas”: A book that seriously let you down.

Rome and a Villa by Eleanor Clark

10. “White Christmas”: An upcoming release you’re dreaming about. 

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

Now it’s your turn! Which books would you choose for these prompts?
Please link up your Christmas Songs Book Tag (the actual post and not your blog link) here so others can come visit you!

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai: Book Beginnings on Fridays, First Line Friday, The Friday 56, and Book Blogger Hop

 

Today's Featured Book: 

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny

by Kiran Desai

Genre: Fiction

Published: September 23, 2025

Page Count: 645 pages

Summary: 

When Sonia and Sunny first glimpse each other on an overnight train, they are immediately captivated yet also embarrassed by the fact that their grandparents had once tried to matchmake them, a clumsy meddling that served only to drive Sonia and Sunny apart.

Sonia, an aspiring novelist who recently completed her studies in the snowy mountains of Vermont, has returned to her family in India. She fears that she is haunted by a dark spell cast by an artist to whom she had once turned for intimacy and inspiration. Sunny, a struggling journalist resettled in New York City, is attempting to flee his imperious mother and the violence of his warring clan. Uncertain of their future, Sonia and Sunny embark on a search for happiness together as they confront the many alienations of our modern world.

 

BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY is hosted by Rose City Reader. What book are you happy about reading this week? Please share the opening sentence (or so) on BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAY! Add the link to your blog or social media post and visit other blogs to see what others are reading.

Happy Friday and welcome to the FIRST LINE FRIDAY, hosted by Reading is My Superpower! It’s time to grab the book nearest to you and leave the first line.

The sun was still submerged in the wintry murk of dawn when Ba, Dadaji, and their daughter, Mina Foi, wrapping shawls closely about themselves, emerged upon the veranda to sip their tea and decide, through vigorous process of elimination, their meals for the rest of the day.

THE FRIDAY 56 is hosted by Anne of Head Full of Books. To play, open a book and turn to page 56 (or 56% on your e-reader). Find a sentence or two and post them, along with the book title and author. Then link up on Head Full of Books and visit others in the linky. 

Night thoughts assaulted him. Why was he here? What could it lead to? His life was elsewhere. It was foolishness. He wasn't going to stay in Delhi. How could Sonia come to New York City? It would take two unwavering wills. It would take considerable money. It would take asking her to be his wife. He was too young for a wife.

After reading Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World by Vivek H. Murthy, M.D., it seemed logical to read The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny.

The purpose of THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, and befriend other bloggers. THE BOOK BLOGGER HOP is hosted by Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer.    

December 5th - What kind of book do you like to curl up with in the winter? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer)

Any kind of book! A hot cup of coffee is nice, too.