The 27 January 2023 Friday Finds are here with a new Author of the Week, Book Recs, Delish Recipes, Crafts, & a Blog Roundup.
Hello, my friend & welcome to the 27 January 2023 Friday Finds.
Other than a bit of trouble at the dentist that laid me low for a day and an ongoing issue with our medical insurance…It’s been a great week. lol
I’m trying to stay on the bright side, but sometimes it’s just a wee bit difficult. Luckily, I have my books and blog to keep me sane and happy. What tricks do you use to boost your spirits when life is being a pain in the butt?
I find I turn to a cozy mystery or romantic comedy to lift me out of the doldrums. I also need to keep my hands busy, even when I’m reading, or I start stress eating. Luckily, I can knit while reading on my iPad, or I can weave while listening to an audiobook. I’m starting to enjoy audiobooks more than in the past. I don’t know if this is due to mood, age, or the high quality of narrators nowadays. (Scroll to the bottom to get a peek at my latest knitting project)
We had a snow day this week with very little snow to shovel! It snowed quite hard, and visibility was terrible. I judge by how far I can see out my front window. If I can’t see the road in front of the house…I don’t get out. The weather has been warmer than usual for January around here, so the ground was warm enough to keep the snow from piling up too much. It was a great day for playing outside for all the kiddos! I loved all the snowmen and sledding pictures they sent me.
I hope you enjoy this week’s post and be sure you leave a comment below to let me know how your week treated you.
Peace & Love
Note: I try to include a purchase banner with every book/item I recommend. They don’t always show up, so I’m including the purchase images at the bottom of the post. Every purchase made through my links helps to support this blog.
Friday Finds | 27 January 2023 | Author News
Do you have a new book releasing soon, a special promotion coming up, or any other news of your author life I can share with my readers?
The reported book and author news this week:
Hazel Hunter has a new Scottish Time-Travel series releasing soon. Check out Luthias (Immortal Highlander Clan MacRoss Book 1), available on February 7, 2023. Hazel writes the kind of quick, entertaining novels I adore.
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Seeley James is this week’s featured author. I love his weekly newsletter almost as much as I love his books. I enjoy the humor in both and am envious of his hiking adventures on Camelback Mountain. Please welcome Seeley to the website (on the sidebar & in this post) by reading my reviews and visiting his website. He is also this week’s featured author in my Bookshop.
Would you like to be featured as my Author/Blogger of the Week? Please drop me a comment below to let me know. That’s all it takes! If there are no volunteers, I love surprising one of the authors I work with on the blog.
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Friday Finds | 27 January 2023 | Books
These are a few of the books that caught my eye this week. Tell me what you think of them.
This first book is currently on pre-order, but the buzz in the publishing world is enormous.
1964: Eyes of the Storm by Paul McCartney & Jill Lepore
“Millions of eyes were suddenly upon us, creating a picture I will never forget.” —Paul McCartney
Taken with a 35mm camera by Paul McCartney, these largely unseen photographs capture the explosive period, from the end of 1963 through early 1964, in which The Beatles became an international sensation and changed the course of music history. Featuring 275 images from the six cities—Liverpool, London, Paris, New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami—of these legendary months, 1964: Eyes of the Storm also includes:
• A personal foreword in which McCartney recalls the pandemonium of British concert halls, followed by the hysteria that greeted the band on its first American visit
• Candid recollections preceding each city portfolio that form an autobiographical account of the period McCartney remembers as the “Eyes of the Storm,” plus a coda with subsequent events in 1964
• “Beatleland,” an essay by Harvard historian and New Yorker essayist Jill Lepore, describing how The Beatles became the first truly global mass culture phenomenon
Handsomely designed, 1964: Eyes of the Storm creates an intensely dramatic record of The Beatles’ first transatlantic trip, documenting the radical shift in youth culture that crystallized in 1964.
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Many of my book club friends are trying to add more diverse reading to their life. This is a great way to involve the entire family.
Put Your Shoes On & Get Ready! by Raphael G. Warnock
From Georgia’s first Black Senator, Raphael Warnock, comes an inspiring picture book about finding your dreams and making your mark in the world.
Before Raphael Warnock became a pastor and the first Black senator from Georgia, he was a little boy whose father told him to get up, get dressed, put on his shoes, and get ready! So that’s what he did along every step of his journey. From his work boots to his marching band shoes to his shiny lace-ups, Senator Reverend Warnock found the right shoes to fit his feet and to carry him toward his dreams.
This inspirational story, with bold, brilliant art by TeMika Grooms, follows Raphael Warnock’s journey from Savannah, Georgia, to the United States Senate and shows young readers that they, too, can find the power to be themselves and make a difference when they have the shoes that fit their feet.
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This is a clean & wholesome series that I think many readers will enjoy!
Nantucket Homes (A Beach Plum Cove Novel) by Pamela Kelley
It’s Fall on Nantucket–and change is in the air!
There’s a new arrival to the island. Kay Johnson, a widow, was a friend of Lisa’s mother and is like an aunt to Lisa. Kay is excited to relax and enjoy Nantucket—she’s already signed up for a Needlepoint class. She’s not at all looking for romance, but she is happy to make a new friend in neighbor Walter Sturgess, a widower.
When the story begins, Walter’s son Travis, CEO of a tech company he founded in Silicon Valley, and his four-year-old daughter, Sophie, are living with Walter until Travis’s new home is ready for them to move in.
That new home is being built by Chase Hodges, Lisa’s son, and is located on the ocean, next to the home where Victoria grew up–and is now living temporarily with her parents since she and Sean—her long-term boyfriend and fiancé, broke up.
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Put Your Shoes On & Get Rea...Shop on Amazon 
1964: Eyes of the StormShop on Amazon 
Luthias (Immortal Highlande...Shop on Amazon 
Nantucket Homes (Nantucket ...Shop on Amazon
Friday Finds | 27 January 2023 | Recipes
Easy Heart-Shaped Shortbread Cookies from FiveHeartHome
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Sweetheart Chicken Hand Pies from Lizzy T
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Red Velvet Cookie for Two from Annie’s Noms
Friday Finds | 27 January 2023 | Creative Projects
I’m sticking with the Valentine’s Day theme for crafts this week. It will be here before you know it.
DIY Valentine’s Day Gnome Painting Kit
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Friday Finds | 27 January 2023 | Gina’s Blog Roundup
What are some of your favorite blogs to visit each week? I love surfing through an eclectic mix of blogs. It’s a rabbit hole I fall into frequently!
Tracy is the queen of Simple Living & Homesteading. You should check her out.
I get asked for blogging tips a lot. Darren Rowse has the best advice, and most of it is free! I’m currently enjoying his What We Wish We Knew When We First Started Blogging series. No matter where you are in your journey, there are great tips here.
If you missed one of my reviews in the past week, here’s an easy link to find them all, or click on the image & links below. Be sure you check out the giveaways. There are some great prizes this week! But every book I reviewed this week was spectacular. I never need encouragement to read more. In fact, I rarely enter the giveaways, I feel like they are more for my readers than myself.
Mrs. Wiggles and the Numbers by Lisa Konkol | Children’s Book Review ~ 5-Stars
When We Come Back: More Stories by D.H. Schleicher | Book Review ~ 2 Hour Reads #ShortStories
Can You Spot the Leopard? by Karen B. Winnick | A Fun African Safari Children’s Book Review ~ 5-Star
The Dangers of Loving a Rogue by Jeri Black | Book Review ~ Excerpt ~ $75 Gift Card
The Low Road by Jo A. Hiestand (A McLaren Mystery) | Book Review ~ Excerpt ~ $25 Gift Card
Unanimity by Alexandra Almeida | Book Review ~ Hard Science Fiction | 4-Stars
Please share in the comments what you liked best about today’s Finds. Let’s get some discussion going this weekend.
Thanks for reading this week. Peace & Love!
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Sorry to hear about your trouble with the dentist. I hope you get the insurance stuff fixed.
Our week over here has been, well, not so great. Janelle’s YouTube channel got shut down out of the blue without any warning. It’s the channel where she posts cat videos, so what did the cat do wrong? The worst part is that since all of her channels are tied to one email, she has lost access to all of her channels and can’t post animation or art videos, which are for her homeschool art classes! We filed an appeal but it was denied! So others said to go to Twitter for help, so that’s what we’re doing and waiting to hear back. Dealing with a teenager who has lost her entire life’s work is not fun. Not fun at all! Luckily, she does have her videos saved, so if she has to start all over, she can, but still. It’s been so frustrating!
Oh no. That is terrible. Can she start over w a new email address?
Technically she probably could start over with a new email address, but she will have lost over a year’s worth of work on three different channels. We’re hoping to hear back that she’ll get her old accounts back.
Fingers crossed for her!
Oh, cannot wait for the McCartney book! Thanks Gina! Do hope life becomes a little sunnier soon.
I used to knit! I’ve probably forgotten how!
Hi Gina and happy Friday. Glad you’re doing great. Love the books featured here, especially 1964: Eyes of the storm. The heart shaped chicken pies look amazing.
Have a blessed weekend.
Chika