I’m sharing a few of my favorite things today on the blog.
Another week is over and done. I’m looking forward to spending some time outside over the next few day’s. It’s supposed to be warm and sunny for the entire weekend so I’m excited about that. While I’ll still be spending my time at home since we’re only in phase one of reopening here in Calgary, I plan on taking in all the sunshine in the backyard. Do you have any fun plans for the weekend?
Barbecue season
If officially feels like summer is here now that I’m able to barbecue more often. I barbecued twice this week – I made hot dogs and hamburgers. There’s something so good about food that’s been prepared on the barbecue rather than on the stove.
It’s really nice to also not have to worry about cleaning up as much. Barbecuing means not dirtying the stove or pans. Being able to spend time outside while cooking is also pretty nice. The sun feels so good these days!
Little Fires Everywhere
I read Little Fires Everywhere (affiliate link) by Celeste Ng a few years ago and really liked it. When I heard that the TV adaptation was coming to Prime here in Canada I was so excited! It was released a week ago today. I should probably be embarrassed to admit this, but it took me less than a week to watch all 8 episodes.
Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon were both amazing in it. They were perfect for the characters of Mia and Elena. I was curious to see how the teen characters would be casted, but they were all great actors too. I was so impressed.
And of course the story by Celeste was a great basis for the TV show. Without the book there wouldn’t be a show. If you’re looking for a good book to read, make sure you check out Little Fires Everywhere. You definitely don’t need to read the book before you watch the show, but I was really happy that I read it before watching it. I’ve also read Everything I Never Told (affiliate link) you by Celeste and I really liked that one too.
The Gown
I know I mentioned this book in my weekend highlights post on Monday but I wanted to mention it again because I’m really enjoying it still. I have about a quarter of the book to go and I still can’t put it down.
The Gown (affiliate link) by Jennifer Robson follows the story of two of the embroiderers who worked on then Princess Elizabeth’s wedding dress back in the 40’s and one of their granddaughters. It’s a historical fiction book which is one of my favorite genres. It’s no surprise then that I’m loving it so much. Here’s the synopsis from Good Reads:
London, 1947: Besieged by the harshest winter in living memory, burdened by onerous shortages and rationing, the people of postwar Britain are enduring lives of quiet desperation despite their nation’s recent victory. Among them are Ann Hughes and Miriam Dassin, embroiderers at the famed Mayfair fashion house of Norman Hartnell. Together they forge an unlikely friendship, but their nascent hopes for a brighter future are tested when they are chosen for a once-in-a-lifetime honor: taking part in the creation of Princess Elizabeth’s wedding gown.
Toronto, 2016: More than half a century later, Heather Mackenzie seeks to unravel the mystery of a set of embroidered flowers, a legacy from her late grandmother. How did her beloved Nan, a woman who never spoke of her old life in Britain, come to possess the priceless embroideries that so closely resemble the motifs on the stunning gown worn by Queen Elizabeth II at her wedding almost seventy years before? And what was her Nan’s connection to the celebrated textile artist and holocaust survivor Miriam Dassin?
With The Gown, Jennifer Robson takes us inside the workrooms where one of the most famous wedding gowns in history was created. Balancing behind-the-scenes details with a sweeping portrait of a society left reeling by the calamitous costs of victory, she introduces readers to three unforgettable heroines, their points of view alternating and intersecting throughout its pages, whose lives are woven together by the pain of survival, the bonds of friendship, and the redemptive power of love.
Have you barbecued much yet? How will you be spending your weekend?
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