Well it's May - already! April seems to have flown by, despite us all being at home all the time. Birthdays passed by, celebrations halted, and "school" life is very different. But that all means there's more time for other things - or at least there is for some. Over the last few weeks I've finished reading one book and started another, started listening to a new podcast, and am still watching my favourite shows with the Hubby. If you're looking for recommendations you've come to the right place.
Reading
About a week or so ago I finished reading The Talented Mr Ripley by Patricia Highsmith. It's one of those books I've always wanted to read but put off because I'd seen the movie. When I try to read books when I've seen the movie first it's not usually a good fit, I tend to remember the movie and not finish the book. But it's been a long time since I last watched The Talented Mr Ripley and thought I'd give it a go. I've got a review coming up on the blog for it soon but until then I can say I enjoyed reading. It's a good book and I can see why it was made into a movie. If you haven't read it, you should.
Since finishing The Talented Mr Ripley I've started reading Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay. I'm about half way through so far and enjoying it. The style of the writing is quite different and the chapters are short so it's great for a quick read while I'm cooking dinner or getting through a few chapters before going to sleep. Last night I intended reading one chapter and read three!
As it's Children's Book Week this week I thought I'd share with you some recommendations from my youngest son. He's 11 years old and an avid reader and he's gone through many books, including a few Tom Gates, Percy Jackson, and The Hobbit but his favourite is The Trials of Apollo - The Burning Maze (Percy Jackson). He can easily get through a two books per week because he reads almost every night, often late into the night, and is always asking for recommendations. If you have any good recommendations for 11 year old boys do let me know.
Listening
I haven't spent as much time as I'd like listening to podcasts this week. I started listening to a couple of different podcasts while exercising in a morning, the first of which is 7 Good Minutes by Clyde Lee Dennis. It's mostly an uplifting listen of a short podcast that makes you think and usually smile. It's a good thing to listen to if you have only have a few minutes.
After 7 Good Minutes I listen to The Office Ladies Podcast. Now if you know anything at all about me you'll know I love The Office (US), the Hubby and I have watched it hundreds of times, quote it almost every day, and every time we finish watching I want to start all over again. It makes me smile, laugh, and cry, and I wish it was still showing on TV. So as you can imagine when I heard there was a The Office Ladies podcast I started listening. In the podcasts Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey (who played Pam and Angela in the show) talk about each episode of the show, give listeners background stories and secrets from filming, as well as hearing the two women chat about their own lives. In the show Pam and Angela were not really friends - more like frenemies (ugh I hate that non-word!) but in the podcast it really comes across that Jenna and Angela are best friends. It's a great listen and I urge you to check it out if you liked The Office (US).
Watching
The Hubby and I are continuing with our Grey's Anatomy marathon and we're now on Season 14 - we've only seen this season once and then we'll have to buy the next season because it's only just become available in the UK (as far as I know). I am looking forward to Season 16 which is showing on TV currently but we won't be able to buy that one for a while.
Since the last Reading, Listening, Watching, we have also started watching Black Mirror season 4 and 5 on Netflix. It's a really interesting series that makes you question technology as well as your own thoughts on varying subjects. I think I've mentioned before that's it's different to anything else I'm aware of.
As I've got my youngest working in my office with me during the week I've also been half-watching Walt Disney Animation Studios #DrawWithDisneyAnimation where you can learn how to draw characters like Olaf and Elsa from Frozen as well as others. My youngest has enjoyed watching a couple of videos so far and loves the results he's come up with. If your kids are bored and need something new to do check it out!
If you have any recommendations, be it TV shows, movies, books, music, or podcasts, do let me know. I'm always looking for new things to do!
No comments
Post a Comment