Memoir Monday... and This One Comes Naturally

Two Women Living Together by Kim Hana and Hwang Sunwoo... From Goodreads: The big-hearted, bestselling South Korean memoir co-written by two best friends flouting gender norms and societal expectations with their decision to grow old together under one roof.

When most of their peers were moving in with romantic partners and having children, Kim Hana and Hwang Sunwoo chose independence—savoring solitude, quiet mornings, and the unmitigated freedom of living alone. But in their forties, something shifted, and they were met with a new, unexpected loneliness. Refusing to settle for the outdated choice between marriage or isolation, Hana and Sunwoo made a radical decision: to buy a home and live together—not as lovers, not as roommates, but as chosen family.

Now a bustling household of two women and four cats, Hana and Sunwoo still value solitude, but can do so while sharing a life and its meaning with someone else. Together they navigate the challenges and comforts of cohabiting in midlife, the growing pains of interdependence and the unexpected rewards of compromise when you’ve grown set in your ways. From sick days to career wins to aging parents and beach-side retirement plans, they are redefining domestic bliss on their own terms, where love, partnership, and home are defined not by tradition, but by choice.

With warmth, wit, and sharp social insight, Hana and Sunwoo share their blueprint for building a life outside the scripts of marriage and society’s expectations for women. Two Women Living Together is a quiet revolution—a celebration of female friendship, community, and the many forms that love and family can take.

When we are young girls, we have sleepovers--with our girlfriends. When we go to college, we have roommates in college--that are women. But when we get married, we leave our girlfriends behind and build a life with our husbands. But if we find ourselves alone, why not embrace what we've done basically all of our lives, live with our girlfriends. Some may like to be alone, but we don't have to be alone. And Hana and Sunwoo chose not to be alone, and not to find a husband, but to find each other, and embrace female friendships. I am so fascinated with this book. On my wishlist!

First published in 2019, more recently in January 2026 by Ecco. 

P.S. This cover show is the UK cover, which I just love because of the cat tree!

 

11th Annual... First Book of the Year!

  It's that time of year again! Time to figure out what book you'll start your reading with for 2024! 

Every year, Sheila at Book Journey Reading Blog hosts the First Book of the Year event where book lovers and bloggers from all over submit a photo of themselves with the book they've chosen for their First Book of the Year. It's so much fun to see what everyone picks.

Want to join in on the fun? You can read all about it at Book Journey. And on January 1st I'll announce what my First Book of the Year for 2024 will be right here!

The Sunday Salon and Road Trip Reading

The month of July came and went with the blink of an eye. My reading in July was a bit sporadic... for two reasons. First, because I read a fantastic book that ruined my reading for a while. Do you know what I mean?! I was so into that story that when it was over nothing could hold my interest (The book was The Bone Tree by Greg Iles, and it is the second in a planned trilogy taking place in Natchez, Mississippi. And my review will be posted soon). And secondly, hubby and I went on a road trip to the lowcountry, to Charleston, SC...

Road trips are fun! For 2 weeks we drove the back roads, making our way to Charleston, SC from Connecticut and then making our way to other parts of the Carolina's and finally back to Connecticut. Charleston was beautiful! Heaped in history, beauty and culture, my reading changed from fiction to history. Plantations and beautiful gardens abound, but reminders of the War Between the States, or the Civil War as us Northerners refer to it, also dominate the culture of the city. In Charleston Harbor is Fort Sumter, site of the first shots fired in the war between the states, a war not over slavery, but of the South's independence and freedom from the high tariffs imposed by the federal government. Beautiful HUGE homes still line the streets of the historic section of Charleston, a reminder of the wealth generated by the cotton trade, as well as a section of homes painted in pastel colors referred to as Rainbow Row, that is rumored to have been painted that way so that drunken sailors could distinguish their home from others. Downtown, you can also find the Gullah making their beautiful
Sweetgrass baskets! Sweetgrass baskets are a traditional West African art form passed down from generation to generation for over 300 years. I was fortunate to be able to take one home with me, the sweet smell subtly filling my livingroom and reminding me of our trip.

Charleston is also the place of a horrible tragedy that happened June 17th when a 21 year old man, opened fired in Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, after attending a bible study, and killed 9 people. He admittedly was trying to ignite a race war, but instead launched a modern day debate on the flying of the confederate flag, which has been associated with certain hate groups, but is also a symbol of heritage for the descendents of the men and women who gave their lives during a war against tyranny.

My trip also included food! Southern fried chicken, grits and deep fried pickles! Our travels landed us at Mary Lou's Kitchen for some authentic lowcountry food, which consisted of the most delicious fried chicken I've ever eaten, gumbo, and cornbread. And I also found some absolutely to die for Shrimp & Grits at Tommy Condon's Irish Bar. Although I've always liked Southern made grits, I think Shrimp & grits is the new "it" food, because every restauraunt has a version. Tommy Condon's consisted of Shrimp & grits with a creamy tomato parmesan sauce.


So, my Road Trip Reading consisted of reading about the War Between the States, Antebellum homes and architecture, the history behind Sweetgrass baskets, the history of Fort Sumter, lowcountry cooking and Magnolia Cemetery (yes, we made a special trip to this historic cemetery, filled with incredible headstones, beautiful landscaping and wonderful genealogy!)! Oops, I forgot to mention I also was reading road maps because you need to if you want to travel "unconventional" roads.

What do you do on vacation? Do you have time to open a book? Do you immerse yourself in the history of the places you'll be visiting? What was your favorite vacation spot this year? I'd love to hear all about it!

On to more "conventional" reading next week! And of course some hot reading recommendations!

Happy reading... Suzanne

The Pleasures of Buying a Book… in a Brick & Mortar Store.

There's something special about picking up a book… To feel the heft of the book, to feel the texture of the pages, to crack the spine and read a sentence or two to get the feel for a book… That is what you get when you walk into a Brick & Mortar bookstore. That and more. Recently I read an article at Buzzfeed.com about 10 Lovable things about Brick-and-Mortar bookstores, and I couldn't agree more. Here is the list…

1. The Sense of Community... You have a common bond with the people in that book store. The owners remember what you read if you are part of that community.

2. Staff Picks… Yes, people who work at the bookstore share with you what they like! It's a great way to discover new books!

3. Author Events!… Have you ever met a favorite author at your online store? I guess not. I have met some great authors at these events! I remember meeting Mary Higgins Clark once and being thrilled because she was one of the first mystery writers I ever read.

4. The Cafe… Well, I can't say that I have a cafe at any of my indie bookstores, but I did use to enjoy sitting with a cup of hot cocoa at my local Borders and leafing through the pages of a book I was going to buy. But having a cafe is a wonderful way to relax with your books and other readers.

5. The Luxury of Browsing… I definitely love browsing books, and I've found some great books that way. I remember leafing through The Help by Kathryn Stockett because I liked the cover (the original cover).

6. Discoverability… I think this goes hand in hand with browsing and staff picks, but wandering a bookstore gives you the opportunity to discover things.

7. The Staff… Yes, most indie bookstores or "Brick & Mortar" have readers as staff. People who actually can recommend something based on your tastes.

8. The Nerdy Stuff that isn't books… If you're looking for a gift for a bookish person and want something other than a book, bookish totes, mugs, bookmarks etc. usually can be found in your local bookstore.

9. They are the Best Places to Spend Time… I use to hang out many a Saturday night at my local bookstore and loved it! Oh the hours…

10.That Bookstore Vibe… If you're a reader, this speaks for itself!

What other pleasures can YOU think of when you walk into your local Brick & Mortar bookstore? Besides supporting our communities, "Brick & Mortar Bookstores" support us and our love of reading!

Reading Resolutions & A Happy New Year

2012 was a year of transition for Chick with Books. Ok, maybe  just for the girl behind Chick with Books. I was here, I was there, but I still usually had a book in hand and never lost my love of talking about great books! 

The start of a new year is always exciting to me. Fresh starts, new ideas, and plenty of great reading on the horizon. I always look forward to my favorite authors writing wonderful new books, discovering new authors whose words wrap themselves around my reading soul, and finding books that transport me to places I've never been. Chick with books is coming back Sundays with The Sunday Salon, where I'll be highlighting some great books wrapped around a theme, or covering bookish happenings from around the world. I'll be reviewing some great new books, but also some books that we might have missed when they were first published, a.k.a."oldies but goodies". If you enjoyed my coverage of memoirs, Memoir Mondays will pop up monthly, covering memoirs and maybe some great nonfiction thrown in too. I haven't forgotten about the new way we read either... eReaders! There are some great reading bargains to be had, but also plenty of new ways to get those new ebooks and we'll talk about  what's new in the electronic world of the printed page (and I'm so tempted by a certain HD reader we'll be talking about that too!) Author interviews, bookish news, and some great giveaways are all on the Chick with Books reading horizon! 

Talk is cheap, so what's a reader to do in 2013 besides chatting about books? How about joining a reading challenge?! Join a group of people virtually and challenge yourself to get reading! What kind of books do you like to read? Classics, fantasy, or historical fiction? Dystopian, romance, or YA? How about Banned Books? There's a challenge for you! And not only does a reading challenge encourage you to read books you like, it also can challenge you to read books in a genre you would never normally crack the spine on... here are some of my challenges....

Japanese Literature! One genre I started to read and absolute love is Japanese literature. There are many authors, Haruki Murakami being one of the more popular, but they all share the same beautiful and yet simple writing. Every year, Dolce  Bellezza hosts The Japanese Literature Challenge, with great reading suggestions I enjoy joining in on this one. The 2012 will be wrapping up the end of January, and I'll be looking forward to joining in on the next (7th Year!) challenge. Generally the challenge starts in the summer, but that doesn't mean I can't start reading sooner than that!

Dystopian fiction! In 2009 I joined the Books on The Nightstand Dystopian YA challenge (or DystopYA challenge) I had never really read Dystopian fiction, or "fiction about a world that is attempting to be perfect but contains a fatal flaw. It's the opposite of a utopia. This can take the form of a fascist government, a failing environment, corporate rule - anything. In it, life is miserable and people have to strive to rise above.", but once I did, I was hooked. I still can't recommend The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist enough! (click on the title to read my review) There are plenty of other books in this genre that are captivating, challenging and well worth your time! (The Hunger Games falls in this category too!) More details to follow about where to sign up for this challenge. 



Graphic Novels! This was a reading challenge that was really out of the box for me when I first started participating. Graphic novels are often overlooked by readers who have never read one. Sometimes I hear, "Oh, you mean comic books". No, graphic novels have grown up. Now I admit, I don't like all graphic novels. I look for certain things... beautiful artwork... a good story. Basically what I'd look for in a good literary book with the addition of visuals. I might also mention that a graphic novel actual won a Pulitzer Prize! (Maus by Art Spiegelman in 1992). I'll be challenging myself to find some more great Graphic Novels and joining in on The Graphic Novel Challenge hosted by Nicola of Back to Books hosts . BTW, I just finished a great graphic novel called Sailor Twain by Mark Siegel,  look for my review coming soon, and my official post about this reading challenge!

I'll be reading plenty of other genre's of books through out the year, but these challenges kind of nudge me to make sure I take time to read from books I don't normally find myself reading. I might be nudging my book club to take up a few of these challenges too!

Are you challenging yourself to read outside your comfort zone? Or joining a reading challenge to get some of those books gathering dust on your shelf to be cleaned off? (Off the Shelf reading challenge).  How about just planning some great reading for 2013? Share your reading plans for 2013! Maybe it will inspire someone to open a book!

Happy New Year! and Happy Reading.... Suzanne