Readerbuzz: The Sunday Salon: I Take on Two Summer Challenges

A week that began with a wonderful Mother's Day, and included a fun get-together with my new Galveston writing group, as well as a couple of challenging walks with my sister and Zumba and some swimming, plus lots of good reading...

What I Read Last Week:

Happy Place by Emily Henry (Current Fiction)

Life in Five Senses:

How Exploring the Senses Got Me Out of My Head and Into the World

by Gretchen Rubin (Nonfiction; Happiness)

What I'm Reading Now:

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (Classic)

Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson (Naturalist Book Club)

The People's Hospital: Hope and Peril in American Medicine by Richardo Avila (Current Nonfiction)

Last week I posted here at Readerbuzz:

The Sunday Salon: In Which I Finish Four Wonderful Books after Several Weeks of Wandering in a Bookless Desert

Things Getting in the Way of Reading

Sky Surprises

I added two summer challenges to my crazy-long list of 2023 challenges.

20 Books of Summer Challenge

It’s time once again for the 20 Books of Summer, hosted by 746 Books. This year the event will be kicking off on Wednesday 1 June and finishing on Thursday 1 September. If you want to join in, just take the Books of Summer image, and pick your own 10, 15, or 20 books you would like to read. Post the link to your choices in the post’s comments here.

I am tentatively planning to read:

1. Mrs. Bridge by Evan Connell

2. The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat

3. The Thurber Carnival by James Thurber

4. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin

5. How the Light Gets in: Writing as a Spiritual Practice by Pat Schneider

6. The Book of Hope by Jane Goodall

7. Spirals in Time: The Secret Life and Curious Afterlife of Seashells by Helen Scales

8. A Paris All Your Own edited by Eleanor Brown

9. Dangerous Liaisons by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos

10. An Omelette and a Glass of Wine by Elizabeth David

11. Bel Ami by Guy de Maupassant

12. An Astronomer in Love by Antoine Laurain

13. Vango: Between Sky and Earth by Timothee de Fombelle

15. Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse

16. Cuore (Heart) by Edmondo de Amicis

17. Food Americana: The Remarkable People and Incredible Stories Behind America's Favorite Dishes by David Page

18. Complete Stories by Franz Kafka

19. Writing Wild: Women Poets, Ramblers, and Mavericks Who Shape How We See the Natural World

20. The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese

Big Book Summer Challenge, the annual summer reading challenge, kicks off in less than two weeks, at the start of Memorial Day weekend! Check out last year's challenge page for details, pick out a Big Book (400 or more pages) or two, and join the fun! A new challenge page and Goodreads group for sign-ups will go up at Book by Book either May 25 or 26.

The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese is my plan for my summer big book.

Are you doing either of these challenges?

I'm at a full day of advanced training for my naturalist group, A Look Back at Texas History, on Saturday. The sessions I'll be attending are:

• “The Forts Velasco” – Chris Kneupper, Texas Master Naturalist – Cradle of Texas Chapter
• “Commemorating El Camino Real de los Tejas” – Tom Byrd, Past President of El Camino Real de Los Tejas National Historic Trail Association
• “Vernon & Florence Merriam Bailey” – David J. Schmidly, Biologist and Professor, Past President of Texas Tech University and Oklahoma State University
• “Regenerative Ranching in the Native Prairies of Texas” – Casey Wade, President and CEO, Dixon Water Foundation
• “Black Indians: The Lost Culture” – Dr. Lisa Uhlir, Professor of Government, Tarrant County College

I'll be sharing what I learned from a local museum's recent exhibit on slavery in our county with the group.

Good Thing #1

There's nothing like walking with your sister,

who used to run marathons,

to help you set a record for the number of steps in a day.

Wow.

Good Thing #2

The Great American Baking Show!

Good Thing #3

Mother's Day was fantastic.

I spoke to or saw all of my family last Sunday,

and I received two wonderful new books and a gift card for books.

And there were bubbles and blocks and cars and a picnic and Candyland...

I'm happy you joined us here at the Sunday Salon. Sunday Salon is a place to link up and to share what we have been doing during the week. It's a great way to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there.

Some of the things we often talk about at the Sunday Salon: