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It truly is the little things in life that matter.
That makes your mouth curve into a smile.
That opens your arms into a hug.
That makes you blush at a memory.
That makes you sigh in satisfaction.

Like riding with the top off to feel warm sunshine.
Like dancing to a song when no one is watching.
Like keeping a standing nails/pedi/hair appointment.
Like taking a nap daily to refresh your mind, body and spirit.
Like handwriting a love note instead of sending an emoji.
Like reading a brand new book only your fingers touched.
Like eating the last bite of a rich dessert.
Like booking a spontaneous trip just because you can.
Like self-indulging into a decadent meal on an ordinary day.
Like digging for gold with a Q-tip in your ear.
Like getting a full body and scalp aromatherapy massage.
Like treating yourself to an afternoon of whatever you fancy.
Like buying yourself a shiny new piece of jewelry.
Like finding a folded $20 bill in a pair of old jeans.
Like reading a post from your favorite blogger reminding you to appreciate the little things in life. ♠️♥️

  

An American Marriage

"But home isn't where you land; home is where you launch." ~ pg. 4

Newlyweds Roy and Celestial are living the New South American Dream. He is a young executive and she is an emerging artist. Neither could imagine that one argument would spiral their lives off course. Roy leaves to cool off, returns and makes up with his wife. Mere hours later, they are forced awake by authorities and Roy is arrested for a crime that Celestial knows for a fact he did not commit. Fast forward through our lovely justice system, he is sentenced to twelve years in prison.

Celestial moves forward in her career and takes comfort in the arms of her childhood friend and best man at their wedding. She struggles to hang on to the love she felt for her husband. Meanwhile, Roy's love continues to grow stronger while they are apart. After five years, Roy's conviction is overturned and he returns to Atlanta hoping to resume their life together.

It is not often I go above and beyond to spread the good word about a book. Tayari Jones' An American Marriage deserves every second of my praise. I documented my thoughts while reading through tweets and Goodreads updates. On Instagram, I posted a picture of me reading by the fire snuggled in my faux fur throw. I iMessaged my bestie in Houston and immediately recommended the book to my Chickadee, who in turn downloaded the audiobook and listened nonstop until the end. Alas, this is my official review to my bookhearts and newbies that may have missed all of my previous posts.

"Everything I do is a love letter addressed to you." ~ pg. 91

Never have I ever loved a book where I loathed the main character(s). It is usually a huge turnoff. Somehow, Tayari Jones wrote these fleshed out characters so well that my disgust for them took a backseat. I noticed a lot of people expressing dislike for Roy, the husband. I am alone in the corner because Roy was actually my favorite. I empathized with him the most. It was Celestial, the wife, that I could not stand. I wanted to spit at the pages! But hardcovers cost too much to damage intentionally.

Tayari Jones has a gift. The story of Silver Sparrow haunts me to this day and is one of my all-time favorite novels. The power of An American Marriage will linger on. It is not a book that will leave your memory easily. In fact, it could very well happen to you or another couple in real life. This is what makes the story so real and relevant. Circumstances are likely to enter any situation; it is how we handle it and how we treat others involved that helps us through. Bookhearts, find the time to read An American Marriage. I look forward to the many discussions to come. First up—talking about Roy and 'nem over good food and drinks with my Chickadee!

SIDE NOTE: Happy Anniversary to my brother and sis-in-law! You are one of my favorite Black American marriages and an example to many.♠️♥️

Title: An American Marriage
Author: Tayari Jones
Published: February 2018
Pages: 320
Edition: Hardcover
Challenge: Popsugar—My Favorite Prompt from the 2016 PRC (A Book from Oprah's Book Club)
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

 

Series Sunday: A Wrinkle in Time

(Time Quintet #1) 

Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Read an installment of a series.
• Share your review/recommendation below.
• Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is A Wrinkle in Time, the first book in the Time Quintet series by Madeleine L'Engle. Did you not realize this is a series? You're not the only one. This book begins with the famous line: It was a dark and stormy night. And so begins the classic.

Meg Murry is in her attic bedroom wide awake due to the storm. She walks down to the kitchen and joins her little brother, Charles Wallace, and their mother for a midnight snack and hot cocoa. They are disturbed by the arrival of an unearthly stranger dressed in odd getup of layered patterned scarves and water-filled boots. Perhaps this wouldn't have happened if Meg's father was around. He'd been experimenting with time travel when he mysteriously disappeared. With the help of her little brother and friend Calvin, Meg sets out to rescue her father on a journey through space. Three celestial beings (Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which) lead them on the adventure.

"Oh, we don't travel at the speed of anything. We tesser. Or you might say, we wrinkle." ~ pg. 70

First of all, the new movie tie-in edition is everything! It includes An Appreciation by Ava DuVernay, director of the film, highlighting her personal ties to author Madeleine L'Engle's work. Speaking of, the last interview with the author is included. I learned we share a taste for Cream of Wheat with butter and brown sugar...yum! She also tells how hard it was to get A Wrinkle in Time published. Who would've thought? There are eight pages of full color photos from the movie. What a colorful cast it is—Mindy Kaling, Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine and Storm Reid. The movie tie-in book cover is striking! I received quite a few nods of approval when reading it in public. L'Engle's Newberry Medal Acceptance Speech: The Expanding Universe ends the book.

A Wrinkle in Time is a bit different from other Disney movies in regards to roles of mothers. Think about it. The characters either lost a mother or there is no mention at all. Why? Because Walt Disney's mother died in an accident that haunted Walt with grief for the rest of his life. He blamed himself for contributing to his mother's tragic death. But in A Wrinkle in Time, Meg's mother makes an appearance within the first fifty or so pages, sticking around longer than the usual Disney story.

"It's a frightening as well as an exciting thing to discover that matter and energy are the same thing, that size is an illusion, and that time is a material substance." ~ pg. 185

Re-reading classics usually bring on the nostalgia. But I didn't remember any tidbit about this book. Perhaps because I read it so long ago that the story did not stick. Or maybe because I did not have a movie to associate with it, like most classics. So my plan was to re-read the book then go see it on the big screen. I was all geeked after watching the official trailer above. However, lots of trusted reviews claimed the movie was not so good. The visual effects seem to be overpowering the story in movie adaptation. So I'll eventually watch the movie and judge for myself but no rush. What matters is I enjoyed reading A Wrinkle in Time the second time around and will most likely continue the series.

A Wrinkle in Time is a mix of fiction, science and fantasy. The story is a classic of children's literature intended for ages 8-10. I look forward to reading it for a third time with my niece. May I suggest to all bookhearts that you share this story with the youngins in your life. It is indeed magical!

Title: A Wrinkle in Time

Author: Madeleine L'Engle

Published: November 2017

Pages: 256

Edition: Movie Tie-In Paperback
Challenge: Popsugar—A Book About Time Travel

Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

   

First Lines Friday

First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Grab your current read(s).
• Share the first line(s).
• Include the title and author.

"As Scandal's creator, head writer and executive producer, Shonda Rhimes is the series' driving force—just as she's been with another monster hit, Grey's Anatomy. Now the Hollywood powerhouse reflects on the end of the Olivia Pope saga."

~ Special Edition People Magazine: All Seven Seasons of Scandal
So Long to the Intrigue, Lust, Plot Twists, Popcorn & Olivia Pope

 

Closer Than You Know

"And all I had for protection were my own desperate prayers." ~ pg. 390

Melanie Barrick is a 31-year-old trucking company dispatcher living an ordinary life with a newborn baby and Professor-to-be-husband. Easy life, right? She should have listened when someone told her disaster is closer than you know. Her whole world flipped when she goes to pick her baby up from childcare only to discover he's been removed by Social Services. The nightmare grows when she gets home to see her house raided by sheriff's deputies, who found half a kilo of cocaine and drug paraphernalia stashed in the nursery. The very place her sweet baby sleeps! Melanie insists upon her innocence; she is not the "Coke Mom" the media and police make her out to be.

Meanwhile, assistant attorney Amy Kaye has been assigned Melanie's case along with coming close to solving a cold case: a serial rapist who has avoided getting caught by wearing a mask and whispering commands. He has victimized dozens of women, including Melanie.

"You know, for such a smart girl, you're kind of dumb sometimes. I think it's pretty obvious." ~ pg. 106

Have you ever read a book that keeps you reading late into the night, falling asleep in the middle of turning the page, waking up with it still in your hands? Then you turn on a light and keep reading as if the alarm clock isn't going off in a few hours? This is what I experienced in Brad Parks' Closer Than You Know. 

The only domestic disputes I get involved in are through fiction. This mystery unfolded in such a timely manner that every clue meant something. No filler. No unnecessary words. Not even a chapter to be scrapped in its 400+ pages. Despite the title, the suspense thriller was not easy to figure out right away. There is no exaggeration that this book was nearby for two days straight until I finished. Yes, that good! Where is the lie?

Title: Closer Than You Know
Author: Brad Parks
Published: March 2018
Pages: 402
Edition: Hardcover
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

   

Let's Talk About Love

Meet Alice: college student, great job, fun friends and secretly asexual. She swears off relationships for good after a breakup. Why can't a girl find love without sex? Must the two go hand-in-hand? Then she experiences instant attraction to a co-worker that makes him worth the risk of heartache.

Don't judge a book by its cover. We all know the cliché. Let's Talk About Love is an example. I was instantly drawn to this book because of the stunning cover: a beautiful black woman with natural hair 'fro captured in the middle of a happy moment. Perhaps snapping her fingers to a tune. Even her dress looks fab. The title is eye-catching in big purple font. Overall one of the best book covers of the year.

...Also the first book in 2018 to be shelved DNF (did not finish). I am all about fair representation so the main character's asexuality/biromance was not a big deal. But when the narrator is uber annoying? That is when I tap out. 

Title: Let's Talk About Love
Author: Claire Kann
Published: January 2018
Pages: 288
Edition: Hardcover
Rating: 🖤DNF