News
Why (and what) Stacey Abrams Loves to Read
Before Stacey Abrams was a kick-ass vote wrangler, a not-on-my-watch Minority Leader in the Georgia State House and an indefatigable campaigner, she was a reader.
When we met onstage for Talking Volumes in September, she described how she graduated from Trixie Belden books (I read them!) to Harlequin Romances (I read those too!) and beyond.
Stacey and her sisters would each send away for the four-packs that Harlequin mailed out each month and share them until the books were dog-eared and well-read.
Books taught Abrams about friendship, compassion, determination and tenacity.
When I asked her, toward the end of the evening, about the book she turns to, again and again, for solace when the world feels most chaotic....she shared the most....unexpected choice!
Listen to find out what she said....and more.
https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2025/09/12/talking-volumes-stacey-abrams-and-her-new-novel-coded-justice
Salty, Spicy, Sweet & Scrumptious
Fresh fish sweetly basted with tamarind butter. Bahn xeo filled with savory pork and vegetables and herbs. Lemongrass perfuming a bubbling broth of beef and noodles.
Prepare for a kaleidoscope of flavors as we adventure together to Vietnam and Cambodia in November, 2026.
We'll meet young chefs and revered cooks. We'll be invited into homes and welcomed for traditional meals.
And we'll learn how some of the region's most innovative cuisine is created.
Each day is a mosaic of surprise & delight!
https://www.sirensojourns.com/vietnam
A Retreat of Pure Restoration
Through 8 autumn weeks of lively town halls, delightful Talking Volumes, a special event in Red Wing and a fundraiser for a favorite cause, I had my eye on the prize.
A lovely, restorative weekend with a group of Siren Sojourns book-lovers at the Wild Rice Retreat on Lake Superior near Bayfield.
And Readers, it was everything and more than I expected.
Long lake-front strolls on wooded trails, deliciously deep book conversations, nourishing food and the warmest, most hospitable welcome I could imagine from the team at Wild Rice.
It goes without saying that I'm eager to spend more time there next fall in the company of enthusiastic readers. If that describes you, drop me a line at SirenSojourns@gmail.com.
Headed to Antarctica?
Have I got a novel for you! You'll never see the seventh continent quite the same:) Here's a look at what makes Quan Barry's "The Unveiling" so compelling and downright creepy!
On the Good Ship Yegorov, bad omens abound on this Christmas Eve in Antarctica. But they are not enough to dissuade 13 adventurous souls from a kayaking expedition to a distant island.
As the group disembarks from the cruise ship and paddles past monumental icebergs into the “icy unknown”, it isn’t long before a sense of unease gives way to the constant drumbeat of dread.
In our interview, Barry chuckled when I said that. She worried that the book wasn't scary enough.
We talked about why Antarctica is often experienced as a land of illusion.
And Barry said she had been trying to figure out how to tell the story of Antarctica since she traveled there more than two decades ago. This novel has been a long time coming.
Books for the Ears About America
In January, we the good people of this nation will embark on a year of recognition and celebration of our Semi-quincentenial–America’s 250th birthday. Expect an avalanche of books about it.
So, I’m here with three terrific audiobooks to put you in the mood.
I’m listening to historian Rick Atkinson’s 30 hour and 24 minute book, “The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780.” The narration by Grover Gardner is excellent and even though I know how it all turns out, Atkinson’s prose is suspenseful, fluid and enlivened with delicious details.
If you’ve had enough Revolutionary history, turn to one of my all-time favorite historians, David Blight, and listen to “Frederick Douglass, Prophet of Freedom” narrated by Prentice Onayemi. Marvel over Douglass’s vision, brilliance and humanity.
Finally, if you have somehow missed Annette Gordon-Reed’s sensational book, “The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family,” let this excellent audiobook, narrated by Karen White, accompany you as you go about your fall chores.
Bookstore Radar
When a new bookstore takes the plunge and throws open their doors, it's a cause for celebration.
Here's a great little interview that ran in the Los Angeles Times about Book Jewel. I just love that name!:
"The Book Jewel is a welcome addition to the neighborhood of Westchester, an expansive bookstore with an excellent selection of fiction and nonfiction titles for locals, or those who might stop by there before catching their flight at nearby LAX. We talked with general manager Joseph Paulsen about the store.
Your store is serving a community that hasn’t had a general interest bookstore in quite some time.
The Book Jewel opened smack-dab in the middle of the global COVID-19 pandemic in August of 2020. Our Westchester community has supported us from Day 1, and we recently celebrated our fifth anniversary. We are the only bookstore in Westchester, and we are locally owned and independent. I live here in Westchester and have raised both of my sons here.
What’s selling right now?
Right now we’re selling tons of children’s literature and graphic novels (“InvestiGators,” Dav Pilkey, etc.). Of course, the ABA Independent Bestsellers. Lots of romantasy.
You are pretty close to LAX. Do you sell a lot of books to travelers?
The travelers give themselves away with their roller bags, and we catch ’em heading out of Los Angeles on the reg! They like long books for long flights. Lots of souvenirs too! We have some unique, local non-book items as well and offer a better vibe than the international terminal.
The Book Jewel is located at 6259 W. 87th St, Los Angeles, CA."