Lovely Summer’s Day

I am looking at a sunny 29C degree today and a weekend with no plans. I am getting through a couple of books this week and a couple of social events. I hit the gym a couple of times too. It is so much easier to get some exercise when the weather is nice.

In my last post I randomly picked the Ladies Motorcycle and Flying club book to read. I got into it a bit but it turned out I am releasing it to the wild as it is just too silly. I lost interest very quickly. I thought the audible might work better but listening to the sample narrator I gave that away. It is read but the author who does not have a great reading voice. Why do authors all think they have the voice to read on audible. Get an actor and just spend time writing.

I am moving on to our book group read, Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson. Our book group met a couple of weeks ago to discuss Praiseworthy by Alexis Wright. Fullers has 5 book groups that meet monthly, consisting of a total of 100 members spread across several different meeting times. Of the 100, we were told only 16 could finish this book. An interesting discussion began as to who is the intended reader for this book if only 16% of serious readers could get through it. The ones who did manage to finish it seemed to enjoy it and one member said it is the kind of book you need to just read and don’t ask questions as you go and it seemed to eventually fall into place.

Instead I turned my attention to Australian/American Geraldine Brook’s latest book, Memorial Days. In 2019 her husband, Tony died suddenly in Washington DC. His death occurred while she was in the middle of writing her successful book Horse. His death was a shock to many and this book tells how she coped with it. She struggled with the financial side of things as that was mainly his domain. She detailed what she had to do after his death. It prevented her from really grieving at the time. In 2023, after Horse was finished, she finally took time out to properly spend time alone and grieve while renting a remote shack on Flinders Island. For those of you who are not Australian, Flinders Island is a small, remote island between Tasmania and mainland Australia in Bass Strait. She and her husband had vacationed there previously and she walked through many memories. Geraldine is an Australian, American and still gets great comfort from being back in Australia. The chapters of the book alternate between the aftermath of his death and the time spent on Flinders. I found it interesting and quite gentle , especially on the island. I have met Geraldine twice on her visits to Hobart and like her so much. So I was really interested in hearing her voice again in this book.

i also finished a book I had started last year by Markus Zusak, Three Wild Dogs and the Truth. I attended the launch of this book at Fullers book shop last year, got started with it, put it down due to distraction and finally finished it. He discusses life with these dogs who are untrained and quite dangerous. Being fairly strict with dogs over my lifetime, I found his irresponsibility quite disturbing. The dogs killed his family cat after living successfully with it for several years, climbed a tree to kill a possum and bit the piano teacher of one of his children, requiring two stitches. They don’t come when called, knock people over at the dog park, yet his love for these animals is so incredibly strong he just can’t see through it.

The reader feels torn between the love of these dogs Markus has and the dogs for him, yet the irresponsibility is really irritating. At least it was for me. Read this at your own risk, if you are a devoted animal lover. I could see both sides.

I am also doing a group read of sorts with my sister and two of my good friends. We are laughing our way through Mel Robbins, a social influencer on Tik Tok and Instagram and author of the best selling American and Australian book, The Let Them Method. it has been flying off the shelves. In Tasmania, Fullers and Dymocks could not keep it in stock.

The blurb-

The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can’t Stop Talking About” is a groundbreaking book by New York Times bestselling author Mel Robbins. This transformative guide empowers readers to reclaim their lives by focusing on what they can control and releasing the rest. With two simple words—“Let Them”—Robbins offers a path to free oneself from the exhausting cycle of managing others’ opinions, drama, and judgments. Through relatable stories and science-backed strategies, she provides the tools to prioritize personal happiness, pursue meaningful goals, and build authentic relationships. This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to unlock their full potential and create a life they love. 

A few of us are laughing our way through this as we see people discussing or trying to control others in several situations as we keep saying, Let Them! Just let them.

Her examples are, you find out you didn’t get invited to something- Let them…attend. A spouse wants to attend to a task you disagree with his/her method? Let them. Then it goes further to say, Let Me. Let those events you can’t control go to “Let Them!’ then you go to part 2 , which is ‘Let Me’. Just move past it and go your own way. There has been much humour in my circle of friends and family and it really does help letting go of small stuff you can’t control.

Of course, one can’t let them do some of the big things. If you know your partner wants to move your mother in law 3000 miles and pay for it, you might draw the line. But I find it is generally the small stuff that gets your goat!

Well, on that note I will move on a bit. What is something that made you laugh this week?

What makes you laugh?