M. Suzanne Terry

With an hour to spare

My 24in48 weekend was a success! I mean, it was a weekend of reading, so success was a given. Even if I hadn’t reached the 24-hour mark, it would still have been a great weekend.

I finished a few books (that’s right, Goodreads. THREE AHEAD OF SCHEDULE) and got a good start on a few more.

The ones I had already started before and finished during the weekend:

1. Faithful by Alice Hoffman – I am a sucker for misfit characters (not telling you which ones, because spoilers) who slowly, awkwardly find their way, so this was an easy story to enjoy.
2. Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon (audiobook) – I love Nicola Yoon. This is the second book I’ve devoured of hers. Things I learned/remembered as I read it:
   * Love can kill you, but it’s worth the risk.
   * “Love makes you crazy. Loss of love makes you crazy.”
3. You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero – 2 stars, and barely that. It gets a second star because she made me laugh a couple of times. Let me save you the trouble of reading it: Love yourself. Believe in yourself. Then take opportunities as the universe presents them to you. Oh, and all you need to get over depression is to just think happy thoughts instead of sad ones. Just…don’t be depressed. Therapists throughout the world will be so relieved to know that it’s just that easy. No need for all that pesky training and knowledge. Just tell clients to turn their frowns upside down.

The ones I started and finished this weekend:

1. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery – After Everything, Everything, I had to make my yearly-ish re-read of The Little Prince this weekend. I really do get something new out of it every time, no matter how many times I read it.
2. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi – Loved. It. There were moments when the tension was so high I almost cried because I just couldn’t read fast enough. I would never survive an audiobook version. But once again, I have foolishly started a great series when the next one is nowhere near out yet.

The ones I started this weekend but haven’t quite finished yet:

1. Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe (audiobook – do yourself a favor and listen to it – I’m not even tempted to increase the speed on this one) – He’s a great storyteller, and hearing his stories reminds me a lot of my teen years (not that they were similar to his but that his face was plastered on my walls for the majority of mine). Also, he makes me want to re-watch The West Wing.
2. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami – I’m only about halfway through because I’m taking it slowly and decadently. Even in translation, Murakami’s prose is exquisite. Also, he has an encyclopedic knowledge of music. I recommend playing the songs mentioned in the background as you read. And buy lemon drops before you start; you’ll soon be craving them.
3. A Rule Against Murder by Louise Penny (audiobook) – The next book in my quest to catch up before my church book club reads the newest in the series in June.

I didn’t even touch most of the books in this stack, but I’m so glad to have read/started the ones I did. Hope your weekend was as fun as mine!