Category: books

• My September Reads

  Another busy month, heavy on writing and light on reading. We have also been streaming more than usual which I may have to cut back on, but there’s a lot of good content across the streaming platforms! I have a wonderful stack of books on deck for October, starting with Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid,…

  michardillo

  October 11, 2025

  books

  A Good Hard Look, A Marriage at Sea, Ann Napolitano, book-review, books, Buckeye, Chris Pavone, Florence Knapp, Geraldine Brooks, Goodreads, Jenna Bush Book Club, Kindle, Libby, library, literature, Marlow Murder Club, Memorial Days, NetGalley, nonfiction, novel, Patrick Ryan, reading, Richard Osman, Robert Thorogood, Sophie Elmhirst, Steven Rowley, The Correspondent, The Dogs of Venice, The Doorman, The Impossible Fortune, The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts, The Names, The Thursday Murder Club, Virginia Evans, writing

• Book Review: Food for Thought by Alton Brown

  I’ve been watching Alton Brown cooking shows since way back when Good Eats first came on the air. I loved the combination of science and food, and how Alton made the how and why as important as the taste of the final dish. My younger daughter and I watched many an episode together, loving his…

  michardillo

  October 9, 2025

  books

  Alton Brown, book-review, books, cookbook, cooking, essays, food, Food for Thought, Gallery Books, Good Eats, Iron Chef America, reading, social media, Southern, writing

• Book Review: The Accidental Rewrite by Milly Johnson

  First of all, since this was an offering on NetGalley I assumed this was a brand new, yet to be published book, perhaps by a debut author. Silly me, wrong on all accounts. The Accidental Rewrite was first published in February of 2024 in the UK under the title The Happiest Ever After. And, Milly…

  michardillo

  September 12, 2025

  books

  ARC, author, BBC, book-review, book-reviews, books, Britain, British, cat, debut novel, England, fiction, Fredrik Backman, Goodreads, Harper Muse, literature, Milly Johnson, My Friends, NetGalley, novel, PBS, publishing, reading, The Accidental Rewrite, The Daily Trumpet, The Happiest Ever After, UK, writer, writing, Yorkshire Cat Rescue

• Book Review—Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy by Christopher White

  As an American and a Catholic, did I ever, in my wildest dreams, imagine an American pope? Absolutely not. But, on Thursday, May 8, 2025, that is exactly what happened. My husband and I were both home (freshly retired) and were having lunch at our kitchen counter. After we finished eating, my husband was cleaning…

  michardillo

  September 5, 2025

  books

  book-review, books, Catholic, Catholic Church, Catholic school, Christopher White, Conclave, Confirmation, Councils, Italy, Jesuits, Kindle, Loyola Press, Mass, NetGalley, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis, Pope John Paul II, Pope John XXIII, Pope Leo XIV, social media, Society of Jesus, St. Monica, Synod, Vatican, Vatican II, writer, writing

• My August Reads!

  Another month with travel which meant fewer books read. But I did a lot of writing: 17 essays and/or book reviews! Onward to September! No travel, so I hope to read a lot more!

  michardillo

  August 31, 2025

  books

  book-review, books, reading, writing

• Book Review: Just One Gift by Linda Sue Park

  I was browsing new titles on NetGalley recently and saw a title listed that immediately caught my attention. The book was Just One Gift (HarperCollins/Clarion Books, April 2026) by Linda Sue Park. I didn’t know Linda Sue Park at all until late summer 2017 when I found out that I would be teaching one section…

  michardillo

  August 28, 2025

  books

  12th century, A Single Shard, Ancient Korea, Asian art, Asian pottery, book-review, books, Clarion, family, fiction, Freer Gallery, HarperCollins Publishers, Just One Gift, language arts, Linda Sue Park, literature, middle school, NetGalley, Newbery Medal, Peacock Room, pottery, reading, Smithsonian, teacher, teaching

• Book Review: Food Around the World by Ellen Lawrence

  I love to travel and I love to eat, so this new title jumped out for me in the listings of new books on NetGalley! Thank you NetGalley, Ruby Tuesday Books, and Ellen Lawrence for the opportunity to read this new book! First of all, the photography in this book is great. The scenes are…

  michardillo

  August 22, 2025

  books

  book-review, books, children’s book, Ellen Lawrence, food, Food Around the World, literature, middle school, NetGalley, nonfiction, photography, reading, Ruby Tuesday Books, teaching

• Book Review — Revenge, Served Royal: A Mystery (Lady Petra Inquires #3) by Celeste Connally

  

  First of all, I am a devoted fan of the Great British Bake Off show and have watched each season many times. I love a good cooking show, and I’ve watched the cooking shows made by previous winners of the GBBO, like Nadiya Hussain, the 2015 winner. I also love all things British, all things…

  michardillo

  August 22, 2025

  books

  Act Like a Lady Think Like a Lord, Agatha Award, Agatha Christie, baking, book-review, books, Bridgerton, British, Celeste Connally, cooking, cozy mystery, England, English, fiction, food, GBBO, George III, George IV, Great British Bake Off, Lady Petra Inquires, London, Minotaur, mystery, Nadiya Hussain, Netflix, NetGalley, novel, Prince Regent, reading, Regency Era, Revenge Served Royal, St. Martin’s Press, Windsor Castle

• My July Reads

  July was a busy month for me with travel, home projects, and more writing than reading. But, still a great reading month with these four books, one library book and three ARCs I read on my Kindle! Check out my reviews for all of these on my newly redesigned website http://www.michelleardillo.com! 📕 📚 #findthejoy #reading…

  michardillo

  August 4, 2025

  books

• Book Review: Salt in His Shoes by Deloris Jordan and Roslyn M. Jordan, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

  It would be hard to find someone on this planet who has not heard of the famous NBA superstar Michael Jeffrey Jordan. Even without knowing his basketball stats, Nike made MJ a household name and his Air Jordans the envy of every kid with a basketball and a dream. However, there are things about Michael…

  michardillo

  August 2, 2025

  books

  basketball, book-review, books, Caldecott, children’s literature, children’s book, coming of age, Deloris Jordan, determination, hope, Kadir Nelson, Kwame Alexander, Michael Jordan, NBA, Newbery, perseverance, picture book, reading, Rebound, Roslyn Jordan, salt, Salt in His Shoes, Scholastic, The Crossover, The Undefeated