Review: Matrix

Matrix
Matrix by Lauren Groff
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fantastically well-written and researched story of a woman who is forced to become the prioress of an impoverished abbey. This fierce woman and the way she turns that abbey around is a force to reckon with. Well done.

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Review: Beautiful World, Where Are You

Beautiful World, Where Are You
Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I had so many conflicting feelings about this book. It took me a long time to get into it and to warm up to the characters. I loved that they were all flawed and real but that also meant that they got on my nerves and I can’t say that I ended up liking them even by the end of the book. But they grew on me. And they were real so I found myself invested in their story.

I also usually hate books where the characters have intellectual conversations where it’s clear that the author is using them as a ploy to lecture the reader. It drives me mad and there was much of it in this book. So much of it.

In the end though, when I finished it, it felt like a good meal and I appreciated that I read it. And I did think about it long after.

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Review: Dark Roads

Dark Roads
Dark Roads by Chevy Stevens
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was really looking forward to reading this and it did not disappoint. I much prefer slow-burn and character-driven mystery novels and this was exactly that. there are still some surprises around corners but nothing that would be impossible to guess. i loved the characters and setting and really found myself immersed in the story. fantastic read.

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Review: Unconditional Confidence: Instructions for Meeting Any Experience with Trust and Courage

Unconditional Confidence: Instructions for Meeting Any Experience with Trust and Courage
Unconditional Confidence: Instructions for Meeting Any Experience with Trust and Courage by Pema Chödrön
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

you can’t go wrong with Pema Chodron.

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Review: The Heart Principle

The Heart Principle
The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Helen Hoang is a very talented writer. She knows how to create characters that are flawed and 3-dimensional and really lovable and real. You empathize with her characters, their struggle, and you feel their feelings alongside them. You cheer for them. This book is no exception. Outside of the beautiful romance, it also tackles caring for the elderly and how it can take its toll on you, asking for help, adult ASD diagnostic and how it can affect your life, depression and more.

can’t wait to read more of her.

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Review: Tin Camp Road

Tin Camp Road
Tin Camp Road by Ellen Airgood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars

This book is absolutely wonderful. It’s a quiet book about a single mom and her daughter as they struggle with poverty and homelessness while they work hard to make their way through the world. The force with which this mom loves her daughter and the genuine struggles of the choices she is faced with and trying to understand how to do what’s right by her daughter make for a meaningful read. I kept waiting for some insane twist or terrible disaster to befall them which is a sentiment to how over the top books have been lately. Sad things happen in this book but it’s not flashy, it’s not trying to mess with your emotions, it’s quiet and real and absolutely beautiful.

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Review: Mixed Media Color Studio: Explore Modern Color Theory to Create Unique Palettes and Find Your Creative Voice–Play with Acrylics, Pastels, Inks, Graphite, and More

Mixed Media Color Studio: Explore Modern Color Theory to Create Unique Palettes and Find Your Creative Voice--Play with Acrylics, Pastels, Inks, Graphite, and More
Mixed Media Color Studio: Explore Modern Color Theory to Create Unique Palettes and Find Your Creative Voice–Play with Acrylics, Pastels, Inks, Graphite, and More by Kellee Wynne Conrad
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

what a fantastic book this is!

I love color and really enjoy books that talk about color, so when I saw this book, I knew I would love it but, as it worked out, I had no idea how much I would love it.

I don’t know this artist and had never seen any of her work. This book contains sections on color theory and then some example step by step projects, many of which I really loved. As i read it, i felt really inspired to create and found myself filled with excitement and joy.

with gratitude to quarto books and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Drawing Is for Everyone: Simple Lessons to Make Your Creative Practice a Daily Habit – Explore Infinite Creative Possibilities in Graphite, Colored Pencil, and Ink

Drawing Is for Everyone: Simple Lessons to Make Your Creative Practice a Daily Habit - Explore Infinite Creative Possibilities in Graphite, Colored Pencil, and Ink
Drawing Is for Everyone: Simple Lessons to Make Your Creative Practice a Daily Habit – Explore Infinite Creative Possibilities in Graphite, Colored Pencil, and Ink by Kateri Ewing
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you’d like to start drawing but don’t know where to start or if you’re stuck in general, this is such a gentle book to help you get started. it has 21 lessons, with several different styles and drawing tools (graphite pencil, colored pencil, and ink)

It contains art by the author and by some of her students so you can see a variety and range.

I really enjoyed the encouraging voice of the book and would recommend it to anyone who is itching to get started.

with gratitude to edelweiss and Quarry Books – Quarto for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Get Messy Art: The No-Rules, No-Judgment, and No-Pressure Approach to Making Art – Create with Watercolor, Acrylic, Markers, Inks, and More

Get Messy Art: The No-Rules, No-Judgment, and No-Pressure Approach to Making Art - Create with Watercolor, Acrylic, Markers, Inks, and More
Get Messy Art: The No-Rules, No-Judgment, and No-Pressure Approach to Making Art – Create with Watercolor, Acrylic, Markers, Inks, and More by Caylee Grey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This lovely book is full of encouragement to let go of any of your preconceived rules and regulations around creating art. It encourages you to let loose, jump in with both feet and just have fun.

There is a great tutorial on binding your own art journal and then a lot of lovely ideas for art journal pages. These ideas vary in range and mediums they use but they are each filled with joy and relatively easy to get your creative juices flowing.

If you’ve wanted to start art journaling and didn’t know how, this book will be a fantastic start. If you’re stuck, if you need a good pep talk, if you want a friend cheering you on, this is the book for you!

with gratitude to quarry books and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: A Little Hope

A Little Hope
A Little Hope by Ethan Joella
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“She has learned from his dying that there is much she can do. She has also learned some things are unfixable. Which is this?”

This book takes place in the small town of Wharton, Connecticut and moves around different characters who are connected to each other, some loosely, some tightly. It tackles a lot of life events like cancer, addiction, suicide, loneliness, and more.

The characters are so real in this quiet and lovely book that it reminded me of both Anne Tyler’s novels and Olive Kitteridge. It’s a similar feeling of getting more and more attached these ordinary characters who are experiencing ordinary and tough life situations and they are so real that you can’t help but feel their feelings alongside them.

“Good for them, Freddie thinks. Good for them. She could write an essay about forgiving Greg for anything if it meant they could get to Alex and Kay’s age. She could get over any single thing—an affair, a gambling problem. Two affairs even. She never felt that way before, but now she knows, without hesitation, she could get past anything. She could forgive Greg for a whole list of things, except dying.”

I loved every single second I spent with this book. I cannot recommend it enough.

with gratitude to Scribner, netgalley and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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Review: To Sir, with Love

To Sir, with Love
To Sir, with Love by Lauren Layne
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an absolutely predictable, completely delightful read. Just the exact right thing when you want something sweet, uncomplicated, soft and tender. I loved it.

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Review: Zen Wisdom for the Anxious: Simple Advice from a Zen Buddhist Monk

Zen Wisdom for the Anxious: Simple Advice from a Zen Buddhist Monk
Zen Wisdom for the Anxious: Simple Advice from a Zen Buddhist Monk by Shinsuke Hosokawa
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

this little book packs in oodles of wisdom. it contains 52 aphorisms broken into seasons with beautiful illustrations and reminds the reader to focus on the present moment. these are the types of reminders we need again and again and it’s the kind of book you can grab and open up into any one section and quickly feel grounded. helpful for the anxious and all others.

with gratitude to tuttle publishing and edelweiss for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

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