nomadreader

The basics: NPR edited together stories about first ladies over the years, including interviews with the more modern ones. My thoughts: American Wife , a fictionalization of Laura Bush's life, is my favorite novel, and I'm fascinated by the unlikely journeys we take in life. I think the journey to first lady (or first gentleman, one day) is one of those that is the biggest leap, and is the most fascinating. When I saw this one available at my library, I eagerly downloaded it. It wasn't quite what I expected, but I enjoyed it. For such a short audiobook, I feel as though I learned a lot, but it was somewhat uneven. I wished for more first ladies to be featured, but because NPR was pulling from their archives, they're somewhat limited. The early first ladies were featured in interviews with their biographers, and I was eagerly adding to my TBR as I listened. As we move through history, I was glad I opted for audio, as some news stories featured historic recordings of ...

My NPR Books podcast subscription continues to delight. I've picked up new titles because of it, but this week, I've felt ahead of the time as they interviewed two authors whose books I read this month: Elisa Albert and G. Willow Wilson. Last week I raved about After Birth by Elisa Albert , and I've been enjoying how much press the book is getting. Yesterday, Elisa Albert was on All Things Considered , and it's a really great interview. G. Willow Wilson was also on NPR talking about the new all-female Marvel Universe . Although I'm not traditionally a superhero comic book fan, I recently read Ms. Marvel , which G. Willow wrote (review coming soon!) She's one of the keynote speakers at the ACRL conference next month, and I'm even more excited to see her after this interview. Give it a listen too. As an affiliate, I receive a small commission when you make a purchase through any of the above links. Thank you for helping to support my book habits ...

I listen to a lot more audiobooks than I used to. In January, audiobooks comprised half of my reading. A lot of this change is due to the nomadbaby. I don't have as much time to read as I used to, so I've consciously transitioned most of the time I used to spend listening to music or NPR and now listen to audiobooks. I listen while I'm feeding him. I listen while I'm cleaning. I listen while I'm driving (and sometimes driving is an activity we'll spend an hour doing just for fun--and the opportunity to listen to an audiobook.) Perhaps because the nomadbaby has only known a life in which his mom is often listening to audiobooks, he enjoys them. He is a very verbal child, which is no surprise given who his parents are. And while I feel like I talk to him all the time, I noticed early on that I had very little to narrate while feeding him, washing dishes, etc. When we're walking around the house, I talk to him. But the rest of the time, I like to think it...

My favorite freelance writer has started blogging again ! Definitely check out her celebrity sighting post from March 30 - David Canary, Tyne Daly, Joan Didion & David Hare. Then go immediately to her hysterical take on her sexual fantasies about NPR personalities .

Morning Edition had this fascinating story about the new challenge of preserving digital contemporary art. It's worth a listen.

Two of my favorite things are coming together: This American Life and television! I hope it works. Unfortunately, it will air on Showtime, which I don't subscribe to. This new development may push me over the edge, as I'm already tempted by The Tudors . Showtime is quickly catching up to HBO with their original series. As an added temptation, Showtime has also placed the first two episodes of The Tudors online. I wish HBO would start placing shows online instead of OnDemand; DirectTV doesn't carry OnDemand. http://www.thislife.org/ has three television trailers of This American Life available to view online and episode one online at http://www.sho.com/site/thisamericanlife/video.do?source=blogs (thanks to my fabulous roommate for the episode link) This American Life (the tv show) premieres Thursday, March 22 at 10:30 p.m. Eastern on Showtime.