[DepositPhotos.com has the above photo in their “business argument” search.] I’m starting to think that the infinitive “to butt heads” and the plural noun “buttheads” aren’t all that different. In my new role as a class dean, I have a lot more contact with constituents who have strong opinions than I did in my role…
“Why”…Wednesdays
NetGalley Review of The Sweetheart List
title: The Sweetheart List author: Jill Shalvis publisher: Avon publication date: June 13, 2023 pages: 352 peppers: 2 (on this scale) warnings: dead parents, off page summary: Harper moves to Tahoe, the last place she remembers being truly happy, with the only male who’s ever been good to her, Ham the Bernese Mountain dog. She plans…
226. Why Love Venn
I had the idea for this post when I was listening to Kamala Harris’ guest appearance on We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle. The Vice President said, among other great lines, that she loves a good Venn diagram because it shows what we have in common. I stopped my stroll, sent myself the…
Book Review: Boyfriend Material
I am totally late to the party on this one, but I might as well write a quick review in case there are a few people out there who haven’t read it yet. title: Boyfriend Material author: Alexis Hall publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca publication date: July 7, 2020 pages: 432 peppers: 2 (on this scale) warnings: can’t…
225. Why Different is Better
Once again, the photo doesn’t have anything to do with the post, but isn’t Tuukka a beautiful pup? I was listening to a podcast recently (Short Wave: Humans Want to Make Everything Better, Jan 13, 2023) that reported on two scientists who asked people versions of the question, how could X be different? Before you…
224. Why Maggie Banks
I’ve read a lot of M/F, M/M, F/F, and even throuple romance novels. Shauna Robinson’s The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks offers the first F/R book I can remember. Yes, there’s a M/F relationship that develops through the story. That relationship has a meet cute, shows the characters learning to trust each other, and fills other…
223. Why FAIL
As much as I’d like to think that my brain works as I want it to at all times, in fact, I spend a lot of my energy in reframing. My first thoughts, before I massage them, sometimes lean toward the negative. Then, I remind myself that I control the lens through which I view…
NetGalley Review of In the Case of Heartbreak
title: In the Case of Heartbreak author: Courtney Kae publisher: Kensington publication date: July 25, 2023 pages: 320 peppers: 3 (on this scale) warnings: childhood trauma talked about a lot, drug use summary: narrator Ben runs a bakery that is competing, using a cinnamon roll recipe that mom adapted from absent/neglectful father’s recipe, on a baking…
222. Why Enter
If you’ve never read anything by Jennifer Weiner, you’re missing out. In fact, I’m a little embarrassed that with all the posts I’ve written about the magnificence of romance novels, I haven’t mentioned her until now. Her 2002 novel, Good in Bed, was one of the first rom-coms I read that convinced me I’d found my…
Book Review of While We Were Dating
title: While We Were Dating author: Jasmine Guillory publisher: Berkley publication date: July 13, 2021 pages: 384 peppers: 3 (on this scale) warnings: discussions of and on-page anxiety summary: Ben Stephens has to give the campaign pitch for his ad agency because the higher-level executives are stuck at LAX. Everyone in the room is surprised when…