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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel | Thoughts

   Published : 2021   ||    Format : print   ||    Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆   What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El

Can't Believe the Vacation is Over | This Week's Five

Well hello! It's been a while, hasn't it? I had to force myself to come back here today and post something. My November somehow got away from me - I was surprised to realize that it's almost December. How did that happen? Anyhoosie, that means I've failed at Nonfiction November second time in a row and I'm probably looking at more time off because life just got too busy over here. More on that in a later post. For now, this is what kept me occupied most of this month.

1. A week-long vacation

We spent much of last week in DC - one of my favorite places to visit. That's the main reason I've been absent here and very behind on visiting any blogs. Since we've already seen much of historical DC, we spent this vacation checking out some other lesser-known spots. That included the Smithsonian Zoo, the Frying Pan Farm, a Nespresso boutique (because I 💗 my Nespresso), Georgetown, the Politics and Prose bookstore (more on this below), and Arlington National Cemetery. We also did a LOT of shopping. Don't you just love these last two months of the year? Of course, don't you just hate the first few months of a year too? The way the holidays are scheduled in my company, my first holiday after New Year is Memorial Day - such a painful five-month wait for a long weekend. I always joke that the party starts in May because after that, there is usually one long weekend every month.


2. Politics and Prose

Soooo, I have been reading about the Politics and Prose bookstore in Shelf Awareness for a long time so it has been on my bucket list. It's too far away from where we usually stay in DC (actually northern VA) and besides, it always requires passing through heavy DC traffic no matter the time of day. This DC vacation was all about the things we don't usually do so P&P got on to my list fast. The traffic was a P@!N as was trying to find a parking spot but the bookstore more than made up for it (at least for me - can't say the same about the unenthusiastic folks in my group). They had a huge coffee shop in the basement and plenty of books (and a cozy nook) in their large store. I wish I had more time to browse there. If I were staying nearby, I'd probably find an excuse to stop by often. Sadly, I didn't take any pictures. The thought completely escaped my mind!


3. This naughty naughty babe

Oh my God, how do toddlers learn to be naughty? It's like they have a secret club on how to do mischievous things. Almost overnight, Shreya has become VERY naughty. We are trying very hard not to laugh, so as not to encourage but it's hard. Some of the things she does! For instance, today, she has been trying to put some chalk in her mouth. We are working on teaching her that pens/chalks/crayons are for writing, and not for tasting. But she tries to pop one in her mouth very nonchalantly. As soon as we say uh-uh, she moves the chalk away as if she was always trying to do something else with it and not eat it. I mean, how do 16-month-olds know to do this? LOL, this girl melts my heart. The husband has been journaling about her antics so I look forward to reading them years later.


4. 2016 Reading

When I started blogging in 2009, my reading was very structured. I had plans and lists of books to read. As soon as I read the first page of a new book, OCD-me opened Goodreads and properly marked the book as currently-reading. If Litsy was available then, I would have posted 3-5 posts per book and definitely one for when I start a book. I was too organized! This year, my reading has been all over the place. Sometimes, I don't even track it until days or weeks later. I won't remember what I thought of the book if I didn't review it right away. My review backlog is now in double digits (14!) I have been reading a lot of fast and light books. And my next to-read book is usually the most interesting book I heard about yesterday (usually on Litsy). I've also DNF'd a lot of books this year (and not felt bad about it at all!) And you know what? I don't mind this at all. It's keeping me blogging a little too infrequently but that's okay with me. For now. The more important thing is that it's keeping my reading very fun. Next month, I'll be celebrating 7 years of blogging. It will be a very interesting year to review.

5. Happy Holidays!

We have one more vacation planned for next month. This time, we will be heading to Boston. (I know, we visit the wrong places in the wrong season). This visit will be more about family and friends so I doubt we'll be outdoors much. We are also planning to take the train so that will be somewhat fun. How do you keep toddlers entertained in trains? Anyone have any good idea? But I'm looking forward to it. This week-plus vacation has me eager for more. I have no idea how I'm going to get to work tomorrow. It has been so nice sleeping in every day and not rushing to do stuff. The husband is also traveling for work tomorrow so that's going to be a bummer. But hey, the next holidays are just around the corner, woohoo!


How are you spending the holidays? Vacations? Reading? Spending time with family?

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