Book Haul on a Binge: Midtown Reader

The irony that my first book haul post is a Binge doesn’t fall short on me.  Ever since the arrival of little ones and their requisite family budget, gone are the days of extravagant purchases.

That’s not to say we don’t all have our vices.  However, as my vice is of a literary propensity, it could be worse (yes, I am justifying my tendencies).  At this time, I shall refrain from mentioning my fondness of incorporating a smooth Cabernet while reading.

I can’t remember (yes I can) the last time I dropped a cool C-Note on books.  Let’s just say it’s certainly been a while.  Taking that in stride, I allowed myself a bit of a binge on a recent trip to Tallahassee when I visited a truly adorable little book shop called…

MIDTOWN READER

Midtown Reader is so cute.  I wish I could come up with a better word, but it’s just so darn cute.  It’s charm greets you before you enter as you pull into the parking lot.  The shop is conveniently situated off a country road in what appears to have once been a cottage.  Once in, the cavalcade begins.

One step over the threshold and I was whisked away to a book boutique filled with wonder and whimsy.  What it lacks in square footage, it makes up for with color and display. Share on X

VISUAL PLEASURE

Tall bookshelves move your eye upward, making the space seem larger.  I sent the owner a telepathic nod of conspiratorial accord when I noticed the first display dedicated to Florida.  Living in Florida these past 15 years has instilled a love for the state that usually requires a while for me to explain to nonresidents.   Unexpectedly, I spent a lot of time in this section and chose one of its inhabitants for purchase.

The store is brightly lit, the genres easy to locate and all throughout are little note cards filled with recommendations and employee reviews.  I know this is done at the big box stores, but it felt very personal at the Midtown Reader.

As I mentioned in my post on Tallahassee, the staff was friendly and knowledgeable, but I have to give a special shout-out to Tanya specifically.  Tanya was welcoming and attentive, without being pushy; sweet and informative, without presumption, and I stayed a good 30 minutes longer romanticizing with her about all things literary.

There’s a cozy sofa perfect for lengthy decision making.  I quickly made use of it carrying a 10-book shortlist.  I couldn’t possibly binge so lavishly.  Serious cuts had to be made ending with a respectable 3.

BOOK HAUL: THE CHOSEN ONES

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Sunshine State: Essays (nonfiction)
Sarah Gerard ~ Amazon ~ Kindle

I chose this book based on Tanya’s specific recommendation.  She saw me fingering a different book about life in Florida and immediately offered me to try this one instead.  She said “it’s an amazing read” and it must be from all the buzz I’ve read about it.  I’m very much looking forward to settling into this with reviews such as “unflinchingly candid memoir…A nuanced and subtly intimate mosaic… her writing, lucid yet atmospheric…”  — Jason Heller, NPR.org and,

“These large-hearted, meticulous essays offer an uncanny x-ray of our national psyche…”  — Garth Greenwell, author of What Belongs to You

Mr. Rochester
Sarah Shoemaker ~ Amazon ~ Kindle

I wouldn’t be able to tell you my age when I first read Jane Eyre, but I couldn’t have been more than 14.  Since then, Charlotte Bronte’s hauntingly beautiful novel has long been a favorite of mine.  Charlotte’s style and voice seems frustrating controlled on its slow burn toward exquisite heartbreak.

I must have read it a hundred times,#Book Fiend, and consider it a longtime BFF.  This is precisely why I hardly ever read retellings of the classics because I’m afraid of the author’s point of view marring my own emotional charged one.  I strayed for this one.

Edward Fairfax Rochester is such a mystifying character, a man of very few words, dark and brooding; a puzzle I never quite bothered to figure out, that I couldn’t resist a story from his point of view.

The Lost Art of Reading Nature’s Signs (nonfiction)
Tristan Gooley ~ Amazon ~ Kindle

Knee deep in the Information Age as we are, I am ripe for a book that teaches you to read nature’s signs, as they did for centuries, to detect and glean information from the world around you.   The Back of the Book states…

“When writer and navigator Tristan Gooley journeys outside, he sees a natural world filled with clues. The roots of a tree indicate the sun’s direction; the Big Dipper tells the time; a passing butterfly hints at the weather; a sand dune reveals prevailing wind; the scent of cinnamon suggests altitude; a budding flower points south. To help you understand nature as he does, Gooley shares more than 850 tips for forecasting, tracking, and more, gathered from decades spent walking the landscape around his home and around the world. Whether you’re walking in the country or city, along a coastline, or by night, this is the ultimate resource on what the land, sun, moon, stars, plants, animals, and clouds can reveal—if you only know how to look!”

If you’ve read any of these feel free to comment or chat me up on Goodreads.

Be Well!

Cynthia
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