𝔰𝔲𝔫𝔡𝔞𝔶 𝔠𝔞𝔣𝔢 ☕️
Keni
will byers stan first human second
Misplaced Lens Cap
dirt enthusiast

oozey mess
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Lint Roller? I Barely Know Her
RMH
One Nice Bug Per Day
AnasAbdin
almost home
art blog(derogatory)

blake kathryn
taylor price
noise dept.

Kiana Khansmith
No title available
Jules of Nature
Acquired Stardust
Peter Solarz

seen from Türkiye
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@frozenplums
𝔰𝔲𝔫𝔡𝔞𝔶 𝔠𝔞𝔣𝔢 ☕️
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | January | Day 5: January Joy >> books and cuddle buddies. #cat #kittens #cuddles #cuddlebuddy #catsofinstagram #book #bookstagram #bookphotography #bookworm #booklover #bookporn #booklover #blackandwhite #blackandwhitephotography (at Ijamsville, Maryland)
Review: The Little French Bistro
60-year old Marianne Messmann has decided to throw herself off the Pont Neuf Bridge in Paris. Most people come to Paris to fall in love; for Marianne, it’s the place she will escape from a loveless marriage forever. But when a good Samaritan pulls Marianne out of the Seine, she must find a new method of escape from her monstrous mister. Queue the road trip, a beautiful new seaside locale, a scenic little French bistro, and a bohemian cast of exotic new friends.
The Little French Bistro is the typical Journey to Self-Discovery story, and it was very much not the story for me. The fact that Marianne is in her sixties somehow sailed over my head when I read the synopsis for this book, and her age, marital status, and craven personality made her all but impossible for me to sympathize with. One of my biggest issues with Marianne has to do with her backstory: Why did she even marry Lothar in the first place? It seems he was never a good man, and I don’t get the impression she ever truly loved him. This troublesome marriage is the leaping off point (no pun intended) for the whole story, so my reluctance to buy into its genuineness biased my opinion of the rest of the story.
My next issue with the book was far more important, however: The Little French Bistro is not a plot-heavy book. And that’s fine. I find literary fiction and self-discovery stories tend to be more plot-light and character-driven. Unfortunately, I didn’t find that that method worked well in this novel. There is a sizeable cast full of side stories and dramas, but I didn’t feel that I spent enough time with those characters and their stories to be very sympathetic towards them either. I wanted more of their stories and more involvement in them from Marianne.
I also wanted this to be a novel set in a little French bistro – as the title would lead one to believe – but the bistro is very much the vanilla backdrop for this story. When Marianne arrives in Kerdruc, she’s mistaken for the new foreign chef the bistro is expecting (and whom interestingly never shows up), and she’s taken in and given rooms by the restaurant’s owner. A fair portion of the story does take place in/near/around the bistro and its seating out by the water, but it’s not done in a way that the bistro is a necessary part of the story. This story almost could have taken place anywhere, which is a problem if your setting is also your title. Perhaps that’s nitpicky, but the bistro could have been made a larger part of the story (give me more action in the kitchen, for example) and much more enchanting.
All in all, I struggled to get through this book. I would put it down for solid weeks at a time and only managed to convince myself to finish it so that I could move on to a new book. It is a quick read once you’re in it – the prose is not difficult, the plot does not require much thought, you’re not going to get stopped by serious moral issues, etc. – but it was difficult for me to get into.
I think this is definitely a book that will hold more weight with mature individuals who can identify with Marianne. I recommend this book to an older audience seeking a quick read. *
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | June | Day 16: Book Stack >> It's happened. I've run out of shelf space YET again. #bookstagram #bookphotography #bookshelf #bookshelfie #bookworm #book #booklover #bookporn #booklove #bookaholic #bookaddict #booknerd #decor (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | June | Day 14: Book Haul >> Wherein I have been a disciplined adult and refrained from frivolously spending money on all 46 of the books on my wishlist. #book #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #change #money #bookmoney #jar #bookshelf #bookshelfie #bookshelfporn #wood #flowers #office #homeoffice #officespace #workspace (at Odenton, Maryland)
Review: The Breakdown
Cass Anderson’s greatest fear is succumbing to dementia like her mother. But after Cass learns that she was the last person to see her new friend Jane Walters alive, Cass finds her short-term memory growing less and less reliable. Fearing that Jane’s murderer believes she knows his identity, Cass concludes that the silent phone calls she’s receiving could be from no one other than the murderer himself. Distraught over her newly diagnosed Early-Onset Dementia and terrified that Jane’s murderer is coming for her next, Cass finds herself at the end of her wits and spiraling out of control.
This is not a particularly in-depth, twisty turny plot, but despite that I flew through this book. The concept was compelling; unreliable narrators always make for interesting stories, and Cass’s dementia definitely adds another layer to the plot.
That being said, Cass kind of drove me crazy, which I suppose made it realistic – even her husband was growing weary of her – but good lord woman. It was borderline a deal breaker. Her lapses and paranoia began to feel too repetitive. I didn’t particularly like any of the characters. Cass felt like the only fleshed out character, and I no one else was dynamic enough to latch on to.
Without giving away the end of the story, I will say that the ending did feel a little premature. There were a few loose ends that felt lazily loose. Expounding on the loose ends could have made for some really interesting moments that further developed secondary characters.
All in all, this is a fast-paced, straightforward mystery. It’s by no means a Gone Girl, but it’s a fine mystery novel to fill an afternoon and cleanse your palate with.
**
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 23 | Audiobook >> I Hate Myselfie by internet celeb Shane Dawson. Such a great, quick listen. Reminiscent of the YouTube videos that made him famous, but a little more somber, real, and honest. #bookstagram #bookphotography #booklover #bookworm #books #audiobook #shanedawson #ihatemyselfie #selfie #kindlefire #shelfie #life #honest #real #realshit #fame #celebrity #growingup (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 12: Did Not Finish >> The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie. Yes that Hugh Laurie of House fame. It's still on my shelf to give another go some day. But today is not that day. #books #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #booklover #bookphotography #thegunseller #hughlaurie #house #british #dnf #didnotfinish #kindlefire #ereader #nature #naturephotography #rain #rainydays (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 9: Otherworldly >> Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure & Coloring Book by Johanna Basford. Totes a real book. Highly interactive. . . . #adultcoloringbook #book #bookstagram #bookphotography #coloring #coloringbook #adult #adulting #ocean #aquatics #fish #johannabasford #shelfie #bookshelf #scales #treasure #rootbeer #flowers #ship #gallerywall (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 8: New Release >> ft. The Great Passage by Shion Miura, coming to a retail bookshelf near you June 1, 2017. . . . #bookphotography #bookstagram #books #reading #japan #japanese #author #writer #powerofwords #linguistics #passion #love #friendship #bonds #humanity #spirit #kindredspirits #romance #dedication #life #calling #ereader #tea #greentea #flowers #cherryblossom #desk #workspace (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 6: e-reader >> I started a new job about a month ago, and as a Way To Go, Sweetie! my incredibly sweet and thoughtful fiancé bought me a new kindle and case of Starbucks Doubleshots. He knows me so well ❤️ . . . #bookphotography #reading #bookstagrammer #bookstagram #starbucks #ereader #kindle #goodreads #doubleshot #energy #energydrink #vanilla #coffee #espresso #protein #seriously #morning #goodmorning (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 4: Favorite Series >> Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastard series is not something I would have picked up on my own, but there was such an explosion of praise online that I decided to pick the first one up on the cheap. Dying over here waiting on the next installment. #bookphotography #bookstagram #booklover #gentlemanbastard #lockelamora #jeantannen #theliesoflockelamora #redseasunderredskies #therepublicofthieves #fantasy #magic #steampunk #butnotreally #scottlynch #thieves #thief #priest #religion #conman #gold #booze #orphan #mafia #desk #workspace #starbucks #coffee #coffeemug #latte #icedlatte #marimo #deskpet (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 3: LGBTQ Character >> Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. Required reading by one of my favorite former professors. Equal parts fun and serious. This is a great starter to ease you in if LGBTQ books aren't your typical thing. #lgbt #lgbtq #gay #lesbian #sex #gender #identity #genderidentity #love #family #acceptance #selfacceptance #happiness #community #literature #comics #tragedy #marriage #socialnorms #book #novel #mug #tea #home #bookstagram #bookphotography (at Odenton, Maryland)
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | May | Day 1: Goals for May >> Let's be honest for a minute. Adulting really gets in the way of reading. It blows major suckage. So my May goal is to diligently read for 30 minutes every day after I come home from work. Baby steps to reclaiming my reading life. #bookstagram #goals #reading #readinggoals #adulting #adultlife #bookoutapp #iphone #starbucks #work #reclaimyourlife
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | April | Day 26: Outdoors >> Who knew firs turn such a lovely shade of orange if you keep them four months past Christmas? #bookphotography #bookstagram #reading #whoops #orange #dead #books #spinster #hardcover #nonfiction #katebolick #nature #naturephotography #fir #tree #christmas #christmastree #relationships #culture #adulting (at Odenton, Maryland)
Review: Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov
Awe and exhilaration--along with heartbreak and mordant wit--abound in Lolita, Nabokov's most famous and controversial novel, which tells the story of the aging Humbert Humbert's obsessive, devouring, and doomed passion for the nymphet Dolores Haze. Lolita is also the story of a hypercivilized European colliding with the cheerful barbarism of postwar America. Most of all, it is a meditation on love--love as outrage and hallucination, madness and transformation. (Goodreads)
Alright. I finished this book a month ago, and I’ve been putting off writing a review because I hated it so much. I really wanted to love this book – LOVE this book. And I do understand why it’s such a popular piece of the canon. And also why it’s been a beloved banned book. But geez I had a heck of a time slogging through it.
The concept was great: European expat Humbert Humbert relocates to the states, where he rents a room from a woman with a prepubescent daughter named Lolita. A longtime pedophile, Humbert quickly grows infatuated with Lolita, and he marries her mother in order to remain close to her. Shortly after, the new Mrs. Humbert is killed in a freak accident, and Humbert kidnaps Lolita and takes her on a road trip across the country, during which his pedophiliac ways take hold and a long “relationship” of sexual abuse blossoms.
It’s enthralling and completely heartbreaking. Lolita is 12 at the novel’s start. Despite experiencing the story through Humbert Humbert’s eyes, you can see bits and pieces of the effects the abuse has on Lolita. I would be more interested in seeing this story through her eyes. The pedophile attempting to purify his “love” for children is an old story. That’s essentially what this was.
Humbert Humbert is an interesting character. I’ll grant that much. But he is not a likable one or an understandable one, and I hated his voice. The novel becomes very stream-of-conscious after Humbert kidnaps Lolita, and that was so painful to read. It was tedious and hard to follow, and I got bored and annoyed with it very quickly.
I enjoyed the beginning, but frankly I’m impressed with myself just for finishing the book. If you don’t have to read it for class, I don’t recommend picking it up at all.
*
#booksandcupcakes #bookphotochallenge | April | Day 12 >> Fiction or Nonfiction >> Almost always fiction, so I've added "Read more nonfiction" to my Read Harder Challenge! #bookphotography #bookstagram #nonfiction #plants #airplants #terrarium #moss #decor #coffeetablebooks #reading #readingnook #chevron #cozy (at Odenton, Maryland)