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It’s finally April, and it is gorgeous here in Colorado with 60-70 degree days all week! I’ve been hanging as much as I can in the sunshine, soaking it up like a sponge. I noticed that the warmer and sunnier it is outside, the better my overall mood. Â
Sunshine = Happiness
It is a little too early to start planting here (unlike Jane’s Garden) but I am getting my new raised beds ready this weekend for some plant babies! I learned a harsh lesson my first year gardening here that we can get snowstorms as late as early JUNE, and it killed all my tomato and pepper plants two years ago. Â
Well, we have some exciting news here at Alchemy:Â
ANNE QUIT HER DAY JOB!Â
We have been keeping the news on the DL for the last several weeks, but her LAST DAY chained to her desk was April 2nd. She is now a free woman!
Mental health has been on the forefront of our minds these past few months. Lately, our Alchemy Zoom meetings have delved deep into the concepts of what truly makes us happy and content as humans. Â
Getting rid of negatives in our lives (like Anne’s workplace) and focusing on creative and fulfilling endeavors (like… Alchemy!) is the strategy we are leaning into right now.
We are ECSTATIC to celebrate in person with Anne during our first annual Alchemy Bookshop retreat at the end of the month as we have all received our COVID vaccines! Â
It has been a full year and a half since the three of us have sat down in the same room together, and I am so thankful that we can finally read books and drink wine in the same place 😀
On the blog in March, we released our Introduction to Science Fiction Novels Guide! If you want to tip your toes in the vast world of Sci-Fi, but don’t know where to start, check out this guide!
We are planning future genre guides including getting started with modern poetry. Let us know if there is a particular genre that needs some love and attention, and we will love to include it in future genre guides!
I put together a list of my favorite personal finance books for young adults that have helped expand my financial knowledge from zilch to now-I-know-what-an-IRA-is. 😀
These books (and their blogger authors) have dramatically changed my views on money from this scary concept that only financial advisors can understand to providing the confidence to successful save money and invest.
Becky Chambers
I read this book right before my Introduction to Sci-Fi Guide was released, and it solidified why Sci-Fi is my new favorite genre.
Becky Chambers wrote a beautiful, character-driven novel about a diverse crew on the spaceship, Wayfarers, as they travel around the galaxy to create tunnels for faster-than-light-speed travel.Â
This is not an action-packed space opera, instead, it is a quieter novel focusing on exploring the different planets and cultures of the intelligent species in the galaxy.
The book feels like the perfect mashup of The Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews and the TV show, Firefly.
Already reading the next book in the series: A Closed and Common Orbit!
This may be the most game-changing book I read this year. I listen to the audiobook version and have already purchased the physical copy to reference. Small, consistent habits add up to huge changes over time!
A memoir about a couple’s 4000-mile human powdered journey from Bellingham, WA to the top of Alaska. A fascinating conversation about bird biology, adventure, and deciding what truly makes us happy as individuals.
Fredrik Backman
Let’s face it, we’re all in need of a good comedy right now AND THIS BOOK DELIVERS. A darkly amusing tale of a bank robbery gone wrong.
The bank robber flees into an apartment showing- where each character (unlikeable in their own way) becomes involved in the crime, like it or not.
I don’t know how I can better describe this without giving some things away, so I’d rather not. I cannot recommend this one highly enough!
Erik Larson
Oh man, this one took me forever to get started. I’m not one of those people who are like, ‘neat, new Winston Churchill biography!’ But here it is and it is indeed, neat.
This biography goes a little deeper and looks into the diaries of several different people who were around Churchill during WWII (and some who weren’t, but still gave context to the time period) giving us a more complete look of the man and all of his eccentricities.
This book is focused mainly on the part of the War before America was involved and goes into the Battle of Britain in great detail. I would highly recommend this to any history buffs and to anyone curious about that time and about Churchill himself.
Want a fun thriller? Look no further- though, must add the caveat that this is CREEPY.
It weaves several narratives together- with one timeline detailing a woman’s search for her missing fiance, and one timeline detailing a mother’s trouble with her daughter who seems to have some sociopathic tendencies. How are they related? More importantly, will everyone still be alive by the end?
This was a cute read about a woman named Caroline who, after finding her husband had been cheating, goes on their anniversary trip alone to London.
While there, she uncovers a mysterious bottle and tries to track down its’ origin. Juxtaposed with that, we get the backstory of Nella, who runs an apothecary in Victorian London- one that serves only women… for any means.
Rivers Solomon
A friend of mine sent me The Deep along with the cutest little gift box. She’s been wanting me to read it, and I obviously am reading this book through the lens of a white woman, but it still really impacted me.
The themes of generational trauma, and the questions of who should hold the collective histories of a people packed a punch.
At first, I resented Yetu for not being strong enough to hold their people’s pain but then began to resent their people for making them carry this burden alone.
This book is complex and nuanced, just like our lived experiences. The themes are heavy so it’s not a light read, but it’s well worth your time.
Atomic Habits for me as well! I raved about it so much that Alice picked it up too!
This was great for some motivation to make small changes that would add up over time.
What was the best book you read in MARCH?
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-Alice
I live in Colorado, too! It’s hard to have a vegetable garden here. Sometimes the snow kills stuff before it has a chance to grow. That’s what happened to my poor watermelons one year. RIP, watermelons. I hope you have a great April!
That’s awesome!! I love finding fellow Coloradans:D Last year was the first year I successfully grew tomatos, peppers and basil, but I’m on a mission to figure how to grow cilantro. That durn stuff just keeps dying on me!
I’m so happy you ladies get to sit down and enjoy each other’s presence. Congratulations to Anne for quitting her job and working towards what makes her happy!
I know, I’m so happy about it too. I literally am constantly counting down to our beach trip! We all need it so bad, I can’t wait to just be together with my best friends for AN ENTIRE WEEK! And thank you 🙂