Staying in a Moment Forever: The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai

Staying in a Moment Forever: The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
Should you read “The Great Believers?” Short answer: Yes. Short, but longer answer: I cried ugly through the last 30 pages. My God, yes, read this. “The Great Believers” is above all else, a love story about the closest of friendships. At its core sits Fiona, a young, determined woman adopted as a sister by... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
December 2, 2018 at 6:24 pm • 

Short but So Sweet: Elevation by Stephen King

Short but So Sweet: Elevation by Stephen King
Sometimes, you just need a palate cleanser. A book that’s quick to read and leaves readers with bittersweet tears. The kind you buy a few copies of and hand out to friends. Thank you, Stephen King. “Elevation” may have been the last thing I expected to be rolling around in your brain after “The Outsider”... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
November 1, 2018 at 9:50 pm • 

You Keep Thinking It Won't Get Worse: The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis

You Keep Thinking It Won't Get Worse: The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis
Seriously, though — it can. Michael Lewis, author of popular reads like Moneyball and The Blind Side takes his turn with President Trump’s administration in “The Fifth Risk.” Of course, given my addiction to MSNBC and having already exhausted “Fire and Fury ” and “Fear,” I wasn’t sure how much more we could learn about the... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 30, 2018 at 4:24 pm • 
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Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Lincoln in The Bardo by George Saunders

Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Lincoln in The Bardo by George Saunders
It’s an upcoming author chat that forced my hand to lift a book off my perpetual TBR pile — last year’s Man Booker winner, “Lincoln in the Bardo,” by George Saunders. And now I am left wondering if he was listening to The Clash’s “Combat Rock” while he toiled away on this tale of President Lincoln’s... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 27, 2018 at 2:29 pm • 

Book Review: Educated by Dr. Tara Westover

Book Review: Educated by Dr. Tara Westover
Coming off 50 days of blogging about myself, I wasn’t sure a memoir was what the doctor ordered. But what a read. Educated by Tara Westover is more than just a “How I got off the mountain and into Cambridge” kind of story — it’s a tale so incredibly dramatic that just a third of... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 18, 2018 at 9:16 pm • 

50 Thoughts: What's Next

I’m here at the 40s finish line awaiting my a-ha moment. Waiting, waiting, waiting …. If I could hope for “what’s next” as some of life’s larger priority’s creep closer to the rear view mirror, it would be for me to let go of that always present sense of waiting. I’ve danced around the topic... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 6, 2018 at 3:02 pm • 
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50 Thoughts: The Books That Stuck Around

Anyone that’s come this far into my 50-day writing challenge knows that this blog started all because of books. I can’t tell you why I started sharing my annual book list with friends via email years and years ago. Mostly, I think, it was just a way to connect with old and new friends, to... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 5, 2018 at 11:40 am • 

50 Thoughts: Let It Go

And now comes the coulda woulda shoulda. I think I may have touched on my hesitancy toward regret — seems like wasted energy, right? But if I could hop in that Wayback Machine, there may be a few instances in which I would pull myself aside and offer some advice: To the high school me:... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 4, 2018 at 8:31 pm • 

50 Thoughts: The Best Part So Far

All these thoughts before 50 and the one thing I haven’t really talked about is the best part of my life up until now. These kids of mine. I mean, yeah, the ’80s were great and the music from that decade will forever be the soundtrack of my life. And I found myself a super... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 3, 2018 at 8:26 pm • 
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50 Thoughts: Ready (or not) for 50

With less than a week to go, I thought I’d peek at what the Interwebs have to say about 50. Color me nonchalant. A 2016 article from Prevention details a few of things I should expect next week. (Because I will wake up Sunday , be 50, and suddenly all these things will occur.) Thankfully,... Read more »
By Kelly Konrad,
October 2, 2018 at 9:07 pm •