Wow, it has been unbearably hot since the last weekend miscellany. UK houses weren’t built for heat – none of us have aircon – and even my thick-stoned flat only stayed cool for a couple of days. But the rains are coming tomorrow, and that’ll give us something else to complain about. The stereotypes are true: Brits can talk about weather for hours. The exciting thing on my horizon this weekend is my second Covid vaccine! I do have to drive an hour from my house, but it’s worth it – I’ll certainly be feeling safer getting out and about. Wherever you are, I really hope things are improving with vaccine roll-out and cases.
1.) The book – I don’t read a lot of medical books of any variety, but I do when they’re by my friends! Monty Lyman’s The Remarkable Life of the Skin was fascinating, and I’m pleased that he has another one out. The Painful Truth is all about the science of pain and it’s currently on its way to me from Blackwells…
2.) The link – I loved this Guardian article on a woman who decided, in her 60s, to open up her own secondhand bookshop – largely with her own lifetime of collected books. And it’s in Somerset, not far from where my parents lived. How have I not been yet??
3.) The blog post – Perhaps I’ll never get over the excitement of seeing people review British Library Women Writers books, especially when the novel was scarce beforehand and it was unlikely that anybody would ever read it. And I enjoyed Julia’s take on Mary Essex’s Tea Is So Intoxicating – hope you do too.
That Guardian article is wonderful – she’s living the dream!
Isn’t she!
Good to know that Monty Lyman has a new book — I’ll look out for it. The weather has broken here and we’ve finally been able to cool the house down. I hope the same is true where you are (we’re only in Berkshire, so I expect you’re getting the same cooler, showery Saturday). And I just got my second shot yesterday morning, though I was very lucky and only had to walk 10 minutes into town to the mall.
I am impatiently waiting for Blackwells to deliver it! And, er, a couple of others.
Congrats on that second shot! Like you, I had to drive about an hour away when I received mine, but the feelling of safety afterwards was wonderful. Thanks for the link — I love reading about people who decide, regardless of their age, to carve out their own path!
A drop in one came 15 mins away the next day, ha! Oh well, worth it.
Thank you so much for the mention! I had my second vaccine today which was fine, and I hope yours goes smoothly too.
Thanks Julia! Yes, v minor side effects but I seem to have got off easy.
I’m glad you get excited when you see everyone’s reviews! And hooray for your second shot – we felt so much better two weeks after ours, knowing we were at least a lot more protected than we had been.
It never abates! Especially as almost all have been very positive reviews.
I think owning a book shop is every book lover’s secret fantasy. But I would have a hard time selling my own books I think!
Yes, I’d want it to be like a pet adoption place, where they proved their suitability!
Oooh, your book recommendation reminded me of one of mine, Empire Of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe – the story of the family behind the Oxycontin empire. Not normally my kind of thing, either, but holy heck! That book blew me away, and it’s one of my best reads of 2021.
And I’m saving that Guardian link! I can definitely see that becoming my ghost of Christmas Future 😅🥰