CanadianContent discussion

Good morning readers!

I hope everyone is safe and healthy!

What have you been reading? What is next?

Take care everyone!

I'm just back from a grocery run. What an ordeal. We seem to be able to go 8-9 days until a trip to the grocery store becomes inevitable. I'm not a rule-breaker by nature, and with all the rules in retail right now, I get a little panicked that I'm doing something wrong!

This week I'm reading Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. What a fantastic book. I love it! I can't wait until COVID-19 becomes an historical footnote.

I'm doing a new thing right now where I'm reading and listening to the same book. My attention span isn't what it used to be in these anxious times. I'm also watching more TV than usual. I even watched Netflix's Tiger King, which is so bad it's good.

Good morning! I’ve been getting a fair amount of reading done during these quarantine days. I have just finished The Dishwasher from the Canada Reads longlist; an interesting memoir of Stephane coming into adulthood, it was a little slow however always left me wanting to pick it back up. Now I’m into The Home for Unwanted Girls by Joanna Goodman, not on my bingo but one I’ve borrowed from my mother and would like to return it.

On audio, I recently finished The Leopard by Guiseppe Tomasi de Lampedusa. Last year, I listened to Lampedusa, which is the reason why I wanted to delve into The Leopard. They both have a very similar cadence, even the narrators, both with a very rich baritone. I enjoyed both novels, ones I wouldn’t necessarily have gravitated towards if it wasn’t for this group. Thank you for coaxing me outside of my comfort zone Canadian Content! Currently, I’m listening to Frankisstein and loving it!

Happy reading everyone and have a great weekend.

I just finished A Good Neighborhood and was riveted and moved, destroyed and surprised. If I had read what it was about beforehand, I can honestly say that I probably wouldn't have gave it a second look-out I am so glad that I did! Living without the library has certainly made me less choosy! I would reccomend this to anyone.

Also reading Crossing to safety by Stegner and Crow by Amy Spurway-loving this one so far-Cape Breton at it's best-and worst. Available from all NS libraries right now as an ebook-no wait times!

Hello, everyone. Allison, I share your thoughts on the grocery store. I'm trying to stretch my weekly visits to at least every 10 days now and we're ordering delivery when we can. I have a big box of veggies arriving at my door sometime this morning.

This week, I accepted that my reading is slowing way down and I'm trying to roll with it and not be frustrated. I only finished one book: Evidence of the Affair. This was a predictable novella, but it was still a good distraction (and free from Prime Reading).

I tend to wake up early, before the sun is up. This used to be when I went to the gym, but now I'm reading on my Kindle most mornings so I can stay in bed and not have to turn on the light. I'm currently working my way through You Think It, I'll Say It. I'm really enjoying this short story collection.

I'm also reading Caught for bingo. I can't believe it's taken me this long to get around to this book. I've had it sitting on my shelves for years.

I've also started Congratulations, Who Are You Again?, which is a humorous memoir about writing one's first book.

Happy Friday everyone!

@Allison: Sapiens is on my TBR list. I'm glad to hear that it's a fantastic read. Now I'm really looking forward to getting to it soon.
I also avoid any store for as long as possible, and then hit all stores on the same day. Grocery shopping has become less fun than before. We can go around 10 days before we need to top up and we've now got a running grocery list to ensure we don't forget something while we're in the store.

@Sarah: I look forward to your thoughts on The Home for Unwanted Girls. That is on my radar. I hope you are enjoying it.

@Ellie: I hadn't heard of The Good Neighbour but it sounds interesting. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

@Susan: I also keep my ereader at the bedside, in case I wake up early and can "sneak" in a few pages before rising.

This week I finished reading The Alice Network and found it a disappointing read. The author manipulated the characters to make the story go where she wanted to. It didn't read well, I thought. However, I was happy to have read it to find out about Alice Dubois, a real life spy in WWI. The story of her spy group deserves to be told and also deserves a better rendition than this fluffy telling.

I am currently reading:
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants - this is my audio book while out jogging. I'm loving it! It's a wonderful book, read by the author. I find it a very good book for these isolated and unsure times. It talks about connectivity, community, nature, healing.
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - this has been on my ereader for years so I thought I'd try it. I am really enjoying the humor in this book. Glad that I'm finally reading this.
The Big Money - I've finally started the last book of the USA Trilogy. I am enjoying the trilogy, which looks at a slice of American life from before WWI to after through the lives of blue collar workers. It's an interesting look at a time of change.

I hope everyone is doing okay. Keep smiling and stay healthy.

@Sarah, listening to Frankisstein has been one of the reading highlights of 2020 for me. So glad to hear you're liking it too.

Grocery shopping! Who knew it could be so fraught with anxiety? My heart is always pounding like I've run a marathon by the time I make it out of the store. One good thing though is that I've yet to see or hear anyone who seems sick while I've been in the supermarket.

This week I finished and loved Maggie O'Farrell's latest:Hamnet. I really love her writing.

In addition to picking up and setting down 10 other books, I also finished some decent short stories The Three Button Trick and Other Stories


@Susan, good for you for getting veggies delivered. I went for the box of 24 deluxe organic fair trade chocolate bars instead. Seemed more calming than parsnips at the moment. Our plan is to share one bar every 3-4 days with the intention of making them last till late June.

@Storyheart- I love your chocolate bar tale! Awesome :)

My daughter works in the grocery industry and I can feel hers and everyone else's pain right now. There is no pleasure in shopping at the moment (not sure if there ever was, but it is less pleasurable for sure).

Reading still brings me (and hopefully our group) pleasure. I am still plugging away at A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

@Allison- I have been reading and listening to the same books on audio for some time now as I cannot keep my attention on one or other, so why not both when possible. I switch back n forth. It works for me.

@Ellie- A Good Neighborhood sounds intense- I will have to check that out.

@Sarah- I really enjoyed the audio of Lampedusa, so will check out The Leopard, wanted to give it some space between the two reads.

May we have sunny days ahead, with peace and strength. Take care to all.

Happy Friday!! All the days are blended together these day...

I am about 1/2 way through Fall of Giants and am enjoying it. Took a break and finished Bloom by Kenneth Oppel. He was one of my son's favourite authors as a kid, so when his new book came out, I gave it a try and quite enjoyed it. Also finished A Woman Makes a Plan: Advice for a Lifetime of Adventure, Beauty, and Success by Maye Musk. Elon Musk's mother has a very interesting and fulfilling life, despite enduring a very violent marriage. Loved her South African accent narrating this audiobook.
Wishing everyone a safe and healthy weekend!!

Wanda, I really feel for your daughter...and for you. You must be worried for her. I'm sending along all my strongest hopes for her health and gratitude for her work.

My nephew works at a small indie grocery and he is so stressed by the end of each day. While we all appreciate the vital service he and his colleagues are providing, he has an underlying health condition that puts him in a higher risk category and I have to wonder if it's worth risking his life for a job that barely pays more than minimum wage.

@Storyheart- I'm grateful for your kindness- thank you!

Just finished and loved A Saint in Swindon. My review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This little novella is currently available on NetGalley if anyone is interested.

Hi everyone!
My reading has been on the back burner lately. i have need to have better boundaries when working from home and have a team of front line nurses so this has been keeping me busy! On top of that, i have been having trouble focusing on books and have been playing more games at home, and scrabble on my phone.

Yesterday, I finished Life in the Fasting Lane: The Essential Guide to Making Intermittent Fasting Simple, Sustainable, and Enjoyable which was a repeat of Fung's other books and disappointing. I am still slowly reading Still Life but it is not that engaging (Petra, i am determined for finish and try another one of her books if the series gets better).

@Allison Hikes - i bought a box set including Sapiens in a boxing day sale and have not yet dug into them.

@Sarah - i enjoyed The Home for Unwanted Girls and it was a part of history that i wasn't aware of.

@Ellie - maybe I should see if i can find Crossing to Safety after our challenging trip to Cape Breton last summer.

@Susan - Caught has been on my shelves forever too!

@Petra - i have heard lots of good feedback about Braiding Sweetgrass.

@Susan, Petra and Story - we have designated one person for shopping so my hubby is collecting groceries for us, my son and my parents. We are trying to go every 10-14 days but that is hard with the kids... especially when i find them using our supper ingredients for their lunch... lol! i wish we had 24 chocolate bars but they would not last long... that and i need to start eating better as my daughter has been baking most days.

@Wanda - i hope your daughter (and Story's nephew) stays safe and one positive is that people are appreciating grocery workers, truckers, healthcare and first responders these days!

@May - it is always nice to read the same books as our kids have enjoyed!

Susan, the first book of the Inspector Gamache series was lame. I watched the TV movie, too, and it was just as lame.

Cooking is different nowadays. We don't plan a menu by what sounds good today but by what in the fridge needs to be used first today. LOL.
When I shop, I buy "soft" fruits & veggies (those that will wilt quickly) for the first half of the week, and "hard" fruits and veggies (those that will keep) for the second half. LOL.
It's a new game, that's for sure.

Susan, keeping foods in the house when there are kids present is a challenge. A fridge can't hold 10 days of food when kids are around. LOL.

Petra, do you have a Kins Farm Market near you? I just did an online order and was able to pick it up 4 hours later. Super easy! I was in, paid and out within 3 minutes.

Storyheart, we do! I go to Kins every week for produce. I will check this out. Thank you!

Glad i am not the only one that isn't loving Still Life!

it is great to see all the local farm markets thriving!

Hi, everyone . . . I’m reading like mad, and also walking a lot more than usual. We live at the edge of the wilderness so I’m more worried about spring bears than covid19! However, we now know someone personally who died of the illness in Saskatchewan, so the threat feels very real.
I’m not a book blogger, but I did write a blog post this week titled Comfort Reading in a Crisis and suggested 15 of my favourite books. If anyone is interested, you can see the list here: www.elinorflorence.com/blog/comfort-r...

Lovely list, Elinor. Many of my fav. comfort reads are the same as yours :)

I was on a Zoom call with my choir yesterday when one of our members got a text that a family member had just died of COVID. So yes, the threat is very real.

@ Elinor - great blog and suggestions. Loved that you displayed large-sized covers of the suggested books. The colour, diversity and often whimsy were amazing. Just looking at all those pops of yellow brightened my day. Thank you. Your daughter has obviously inherited your gift of creativity. Take care, MJ

Story❤ wrote: "Lovely list, Elinor. Many of my fav. comfort reads are the same as yours :)

I was on a Zoom call with my choir yesterday when one of our members got a text that a family member had just died of CO..."

Thanks, Storyheart!

Mj wrote: "@ Elinor - great blog and suggestions. Loved that you displayed large-sized covers of the suggested books. The colour, diversity and often whimsy were amazing. Just looking at all those pops of yel..."

Glad you enjoyed it, MJ. I love looking at book covers, too.

@ Elinor ~Thank you for the link to your blog. Some books are my favourites, and there were some that I have added as they are new to me. I love the book covers, too. All the best, Kathleen

@Elinor thanks for your blog link! I like your list, I’ll be adding some to mine.