Top Ten Tuesday for December 18, 2018!

                                              

    Here are previous Smoke & Mirrors Top Ten Tuesday posts.

This meme was created by The Broke and the Bookish and hosted by that site 
until January 2018 when That Artsy Reader Girl took on the hosting duties!

Today's theme is Winter 2018 TBR!

Oh, so many! I currently have 6833 books on my Goodreads "Want to Read" shelf!
Of those, here are some I am most anticipating reading this winter...


Becoming, Michelle Obama's autobiography, 
is a definite read for me 
during this winter. 

She and Barack are 
two people for whom 
I have the utmost respect. 

I also really want to finally read his two books:

Dreams From My Father: 
A Story of Race and Inheritance 
and 
The Audacity of Hope: 
Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream


I just feel the need to remind myself that there will be a return to 

decency, compassion, and intellect among those occupying 

the main leadership positions of this country... Those changes cannot arrive too quickly!

The January 2019 

read for the face-to-face book club 

I facilitate is 

We Are Okay 

by Nina LaCour. 

And then there is The Dry by Jane Harper for the Second Flight Books Backlist Book Club in January. I have a feeling I will immediately want to follow this with Force of Nature. These are book #1 and #2 in her Aaron Falk series.

But...before any of these 

I am currently finishing 

Life's Work: A Moral Argument for Choice 

by Dr. Willie Parker.

I have found this to be even more interesting 

and informative than I at first imagined 

it might be. I am enjoying his writing 

as well as the details of his life.

Immediately following that is 

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks 

by Rebecca Skloot.

I selected both of these books for Nonfiction November, a reading event 

 cohosted by the following five bloggers: 

Sarah of Sarah's Book Shelves, Katie of Doing Dewey, Kim of Sophisticated Dorkiness,
Rennie of What's Nonfiction, Julz of JulzReads

And although November has come and gone, I am determined to complete these books before 2019 arrives! (Better late than never!) I have anxiously anticipated reading both of these books for sooooooo long!  :)

Sometime during January, I will read and review 
They Were Sisters by Dorothy Whipple 
for the February 4, 2019, 
Literary Wives review posting. 
This is a Persephone reprint 
so I'll definitely be ordering a copy!
It sounds rather intense!

Also in January I will be 
reading and reviewing 
James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room 
for the Classics Club Spin #19! 
I was totally enthralled by his book
Go Tell It on the Mountain.

The Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge group 
is hosting a group read of 
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle 
by Stuart Turton 
for January 2019.
I am intrigued by this book for many reasons. 
It would fulfill quite a few prompts 
for the Popsugar 2019 and ATY 2019 challenges as well.
Both of these challenges are on Goodreads.
 If you're interested, look for them in "groups" on Goodreads.

And then? I have so many more I want to read...
How about you? What is on your Winter 2018 to-read listing?

Happy reading!
--Lynn

Nonfiction November 2018!

Whoo! Whoo! Look what I found!!

This event is being cohosted by the following five bloggers: 

Sarah of Sarah's Book Shelves

Katie of Doing Dewey

Kim of Sophisticated Dorkiness

Rennie of What's Nonfiction

Julz of JulzReads

Before I give you their November schedule, 

I reviewed the listing of nonfiction books I read since 2016...and it was pitiful! 

(At least in my opinion!)

Week 1 (October 29-November 2): Your Year in Nonfiction 

(Kim of Sophisticated Dorkiness)

Take a look back at your year of nonfiction and reflect on the following questions:

What was your favorite nonfiction read of the year?

Do you have a particular topic you've been attracted to more this year?

What nonfiction book have you recommended the most?

What is one topic or type of nonfiction you haven't read enough of yet?

What are you hoping to get out of participating in Nonfiction November?

Week 2 (November 5-9): Fiction/Nonfiction Book Pairing

(Sarah of Sarah's Book Shelves)

Pair up a nonfiction book with a fiction title.

It can be a "If you loved this book, read this!"

or just two titles you think would go well together. 

Maybe it's a historical novel and you'd like to get the real history 

by reading a nonfiction version of the story.

Week 3 (November 12-16): Be the Expert/Ask the Expert/Become the Expert

(Julz of JulzReads)

There are three ways to participate this week!

You can share three or more books on a single topic 

that you have read and can recommend--BE THE EXPERT

OR

You can put the call out for good nonfiction on a specific topic 

that you have been dying to learn more about--ASK THE EXPERT

OR

You can create your own list of books you would like to read that discuss a topic about which you would like to learn more--BECOME THE EXPERT

Week 4 (November 19-23): Reads Like Fiction

(Rennie of What's Nonfiction)

Nonfiction books are often praised for how they stack up to fiction. 

Does it matter to you whether nonfiction reads like a novel?

If it does, what gives it that fiction-like feeling?

Does it depend on the topic, the writing, the use of certain literary elements and techniques?

What are your favorite nonfiction recommendations that read like fiction?

And if your nonfiction picks could never be mistaken for novels, 

what do you love about the differences?

Week 5 (November 26-30): New to My TBR

(Katie of Doing Dewey)

By now, it has been a month full of amazing nonfiction books!

Which ones have made it onto your TBR listing?

(Be sure to link back to the original blogger who posted about that book!)

So, now I need to dig out at least two nonfiction books 

that are NOT memoirs to read in November!

Here are two I know I own:

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

(Huh. There was a TV movie released in 2017.)

and

Life's Work: A Moral Argument for Choice by Dr. Willie Parker

Happy reading!!

--Lynn