It's Friday - May 3

[Nonny]

What did everyone read this week?  Is the weather starting to get nice where you are, and interrupt well intentioned reading plans (or moving your reading outside)?


QOTW:  Today is my 16th wedding anniversary, so tell me how you met your SO, or if you aren't currently in a relationship, your best "meet cute" or funny story about a crush.

[Nonny]

I finished All Our Wrong Todays last night, and surprisingly I finished The Italian Teacher late last Friday just in time for my book club.  I've started There There last night.

QOTW:
I met my H in college.  I was dating this guy who turned out to kind of be a creeper, but he helped me get a job at the school's computer labs where he worked, and my H was the one who trained me and who I worked with during my first couple of months there before we kinda sorta started thinking about dating (other guy and I had already split).

My H's version of this story is much better.  He remembers the exact day that he met me, when our boss introduced us, because he'd been exhausted from working on some school project and had just interviewed for his first internship (that he got).  He describes it as the day his future was set into motion, because that day he met his wife and climbed aboard the career track he's still on.

[sarahswim]

This week I finished:
Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets (JK Rowling)-moving right along through the series with my 9 yr old!;
Tear Me Apart (JT Ellison)-I liked the story but the end was too much for me;
Among the Brave (Margaret Peterson Haddix)-I am over this series but finishing it with some students in my class; and The Bad Guys (Aaron Blabey)-graphic novel that I bought for my classroom

My H and I met at a church festival. He was gambling $.25 bets and I was working the game. My friend said-this guy is hitting on you! And I said, no way, he's here with another girl! The other girl turned out to be my eventual sister in law (so, his brother's wife) and at the end of the night he said, "You took all my money; the least you can do is go out with me."
It was Sept 7, 2001, just a few days before 9/11, and I remember the first week or so of our relationship so vividly because of the timing.

[spedrunner]

This week I read:

Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier
4/5 stars!  I really enjoyed this book!

One of Us is Lying 
2/5 stars
Meh

Currently Reading:

Ghosted by Rosie Walsh - its ok so far, not really into it, hoping that changes
The Silent Patient - Loving so far!


I have been taking my reading outdoors!! My fave? Cafes! Sitting outside, drinking my iced coffee and reading

[ally]

I recently finished:
The Double Bind, Chris Bohjalian 3* - for IRL book club.  It was fine, a bit repetitive, a subject I don't like to read about (sexual violence).  Should be a good discussion.
A Darker Shade of Magic, VE Schwab 4* - I liked it, really dark at times, but I needed to know what would happen.  I expect I will read the next in the series.

I had 3 library holds/requests come in, so I will choose one for the weekend and hope to get the rest read before they go back:
Daisy Jones & the Six
The Last Romantics
Mrs.

QOTW: We met at a local small town bar.  It was not love at first sight!  Many months later he lost a bet (about a movie) that the loser had to buy dinner, that was our first date.  Still a slow start.  Then at a party a couple months later we actually hit it off and started dating. 

[wildrice]

It took me a whole month to finish my last book, because I just could not get into it. But this week I started reading Kamala Harris's autobiography. So far I'm enjoying learning more about her beliefs and accomplishments, but I agree with Vespasia that it reads like a campaign speech and not so much like a book about HER. I am only about 25% through though so I'm hoping to get more of her personal story too. I did go ahead and make a donation to her campaign yesterday though so I guess her book is getting through to me! I liked her before but felt like I didn't really know enough about her to say for certain if she's my favorite. Now I want to also read some of the other potential presidential candidates' books.

I also started reading "Origin" by Dan Brown, with my H (lol). We traveled on a plane last weekend and he lost interest in his book so he begged me to read one on my Kindle together. It's actually pretty engrossing so far but IDK when we'll get back to finishing it.

Weather has not affected my reading, though this time of year I wish we had a balcony or other outdoor space. I'd have to actually GO somewhere to read outside and I don't really see that happening frequently. We do live close to the harbor so I guess that's an idea for a weekend with nice weather. Unfortunately I don't think this weekend is it.

QOTW: My H and I met online, on Plenty of Fish. Not much of a story there, other than that he was only the 3rd person I met in person. I feel like I got VERY lucky because I know it's really hard to meet quality people online, and I feel like if I really believed in soulmates, he'd be mine. Our marriage isn't perfect but we are super well matched and he's my very favorite person. I guess the only "meet cute" aspect of this is that we actually did end up with a few friends who knew each other, some of his classmates ended up working in the department I used to work in, etc. So it's possible we could have met socially on our own had we not met online. He actually had previously applied to a job where he would have reported to one of my good friends, but he didn't get the job so I didn't meet him then.

[travella]

I finished The Feather Thief and I started Jar of Hearts since it was so highly rated by UFCasey. I am about 3/4 of the way through the book and am enjoying it so far.

QOTW: I met my husband during grad school. My mom was concerned with my spending too much time in the library (gasp) so she bought me an EHarmony account for my birthday in hopes that I would have more "fun". I had no intention of meeting anyone on it, but something drew me to my husband. He is the only person I initially contacted and the only person I ever met from it. Our 11 year anniversary was this week.

[msmerymac]

I started My Life As a Goddess by Guy Branum on audio and it's GREAT. Still reading Belleweather, which is surprisingly a slog. I usually love Susanna Kearsley.

My H and I met at a mutual friend's birthday/Halloween party and talked for hours. Bonus - my now-H was visiting from New Zealand specifically to see this friend (who had been his grad school roommate).

[mrspez07]

I am reading The Wife Between Us for my iRL book club next week. Not going very fast because I haven’t had much time. Downloaded the audio in hopes of picking up the pace. I also have a work trip next week where I maybe could get some time in.
I’m also listening to Code Girls and am enjoying it so far.

DH and I met in Match.com in 2002/03. I met him and one other guy in person. The other guy was a good match on paper, but so not good in person.

I often think about New Year’s Eve that year. We hadn’t met yet in person but had been talking. I knew his plans and he was only a block away. I kept wondering whether we’d bump into one another that night, but we didn’t.

[meowmaps]

I finished The Hunting Party earlier this week.

I'm currently reading A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum.

QOTW: We met on a winter study abroad trip to Cuernavaca, Mexico. We didn't start dating until we got back home and discovered we had previously lived in the same dorm building and went to rival high schools.

[sassypants]

My library hold for Map of Days finally came in so I'm about a third of the way through that now. It's entertaining though slow.

QOTW: We met on Match.com. Our first date was a ghost tour in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta followed by dinner at a restaurant called Six Feet Under (yes, it was right next to the cemetery!). I had vetted him through a mutual friend, so I felt ok meeting him in an unorthodox setting. Plus he got bonus points for taking me to one of my absolute favorite places in the city without even knowing how much I loved it.

[Gato]

Happy anniversary!

I read Normal People by Sally Rooney and I loved it. She is a master of psychological observation. The main female character’s situation was upsetting for slightly too long—sort of how I felt reading Tara Westover, too—but overall it was my favorite read so far this year.

My H and I met in a laundromat in 2000. I was dating someone at the time, so gave H the cold shoulder. But then, two years later, we met again at a party. What was weird was that we’d made almost the same life decisions during that time, starting jobs at nonprofits only two blocks apart, and moving from the south side of Chicago eight miles north to again within a few blocks of each other. We talked all night and have rarely been apart since.

[minzy]

My older daughter and I finished Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Happy anniversary!

My husband and I met by sitting next to each other in a big class. He seemed nice and cute and I particularly liked his sense of humor all semester, but I was dating someone else (he was, too) so I didn’t think too much of it. I decided to ask him to study for the final with me, and the plan was to meet for about two hours in the library because I was running a race the next day a couple hours away. There was a freak snowstorm that day, so I didn’t go to the race; we instead spent 14 straight hours together, and I knew I was going to marry him at the end of it.

[monkeyfeet]

I’m reading Circe, started slow for me, but picking up now.

I met my husband through work. We lived 6 hours apart, but had to talk frequently on the phone. I didn’t know this, but he didn’t like me (because I was doing my job and getting info from him!), but he said I was bossy! We met getting on a plane. He asked his friend who I was when he saw me, and was bummed because he didn’t like me. That night we went to a mutual friend’s house, and by the end of the trip, I told that friend I was going to marry him.

[Vespasia]

I have been reading A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3). It's fantastic but I have had very little time to read this week.

QOTW: MH and I met in a bar during a blizzard. He was supposed to call me the next day but ended up waiting 10 days and he text me rather than calling. I almost didn't respond!

My favorite random meeting story is my college roommate's. She met her now husband when we went to Barnes and Noble to buy a Scrabble dictionary. Dude kept trying to talk to her and I was so annoyed because I was ready to go!

[tacokick]

All the Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai
A Girl From Yamhill by Beverly Cleary

QOTW: my boyfriend at the time introduced us lol

[krystee]

I finished Shrill and just ached with recognition at all the stuff on weight. Four stars. It was so nice to feel not alone and like someone really gets it.

I looooooove this weather. I just put two rocking chairs and a side table in my Wayfair cart so I can read outside at night after the baby goes to bed. Or sit outside and chat with my H after both kids are in bed...seems like we never get to just hang out anymore.

[ssmjlm]

Finished: One Day in December
It was good, but I had a hard time b/c I guess I don't remember being that dumb in my 20s? Probably not since i got married at 26. I had to laugh b/c just like another book I read the main character marries the rebound guy, which we all know is not how books have happy endings. A rare 4* from me.

QOTW: DH and I met randomly because our 2 parties were sat next to each other at a restaurant. He was with his friend and wife and the wife spent the whole meal listening to me and my 2 friends talk. At the end, she came over with a napkin with DH's "stats" and said to call him. I called him the next day and well, we just celebrated 10 years of marriage last October.

[fernweh]

Currently reading Life Will Be The Death of Me by Chelsea Handler.

QOTW: H and I meet at the summer job I was working the summer before my senior year in college. I didn’t really talk to him because I thought he was a bit odd. I wasn’t interested. I had two weeks before I went back to school. A coworker had a party and we got a little toasted. There was some fooling around which I intended to be a one night stand... out 11th wedding anniversary is next week.

[ufcasey]

I only read two books last week so that's how you know I am in a reading slump.

What Happens in London by Julia Quinn - 3.5 stars/historical romance/cute how the couple initially meet and dislike each other

Transcendence by Shay Savage - 3 stars/romance/interesting that the main characters were a literal caveman and a modern woman who somehow ended up in prehistoric times. The guy never really speaks or understands language beyond about four words. Interesting, but not exactly thrilling to read about.

QOTW:
My husband and I met because we were both in the same co-ed business fraternity in college. Weirdly, it was the exact same college/co-ed fraternity where my sister and her husband met five years prior and it was jokingly brought up during my initiation into the fraternity whether or not I was just there to try to find a husband. It inadvertently turned out to be true though!

[wesleycrusher]

The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston- 4 I suck at drawing but illustration techniques and how it's changed over time is fascinating. It's not touched on in this book, but the many decades friendship between Frank and Ollie makes me smile.

There There by Tommy Orange- 4

Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Frederik Peeters (graphic memoir)- 4 I didn't love the style of animation (personal preference)

Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her by Rehak, Melanie- 3 interesting story but a bit dry

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe- 4. IRA history is always difficult for me to read about because there are so many names involved. This is a really good book that easily explains the history.

Modoc: The True Story of the Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived by Ralph Helfer- 2. I have seen this book in 2 different indie bookstores lately. It was not good. My goodreads review: I can't believe this was really non-fiction- I think I realized this by page 3. It read like a story from a 1920s pulp magazine, with a lot anachronistic dialog. I gave it 2 stars because I did make it through to the end to see how the (highly unbelievable) story turned out.

QOTW: DH and I started in orchestra in school together in 6th grade, but didn't become friends til high school and began dating senior year.