Hello. Happy September. I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend. Our dog Willow, pictured at left, was pleased to get another swim in at the river. Now summer is about over. And I’m a bit sorry to see it go but then again with all the smoke from wildfires it hasn’t been that great to breathe, so it’s time to cool things off and get ready for fall. And September is usually my favorite month of the year. It’s my birthday month and often very nice out.
Also the good news is my husband and I and various relatives will be going on an organized bicycle trip to Italy at the end month. We are very excited about this. We have not been overseas since 2018 and rarely get over there, so this is a big treat. And like Deb over at the blog Readerbuzz who is also in Italy this month, I’m hoping to read something with Italy at its heart. So I’m looking forward to reading Jhumpa Lahiri’s new book Roman: Stories, which comes out Oct. 10, but if I can get my hands on it sooner that would be even better.
Meanwhile there’s a slew of new novels coming out this month and ones by such notable authors as Lauren Groff, William Kent Krueger, Nathan Hill, Thrity Umrigar, Paulette Jiles, Stephen King, and Zadie Smith among others.
I still have Nathan Hill’s first long novel The Nix sitting patiently waiting unread on my shelves and now he has a new one called Wellness due out Sept. 19, which apparently is a moving and humorous exploration of a modern marriage, middle age, and the tech-obsessed health culture. I could use something a bit fun and whip-smart satirical like this, but at 624 pages it’s a bit long for me right now. Still I look forward to getting to Nathan Hill sometime.
There’s also three others I’m hoping to check out, particularly the much-hyped second novel Land of Milk and Honey (due out Sept. 26) by C Pam Zhang about a chef in Los Angeles who is trying to survive in the wake of an environmental catastrophe and takes a position cooking for investors at a secretive food research community on the mountainous Italian-French border who see their facility as the planet’s last hope.
I don’t know if this premise interests me right off, but the author is said to have immense talent and writes apparently sensually and viscerally in this novel about food and appetite like no other. I missed her debut How Much of These Hills Is Gold so I’d like to try her writing out in the near future.
Next is Ron Rash’s new novel The Caretaker (due out Sept. 26) about a polio scarred man in 1951 who takes a job caring for his small town’s cemetery in western North Carolina, which suits his withdrawn nature. But when his best friend is sent to the Korean War, he is tasked with taking care of his best friend’s pregnant wife, who his friend’s parents don’t like. It all comes to a head somehow in a shattering family feud.
It’s probably best not to reveal too much more about the plot other than it’s said to be about male friendship, rivalry, and familial bonds. And like Rash’s other novels it has a down to earth Appalachian setting. I haven’t read the author since his novel Serena in 2008, but this one comes with starred reviews.
Lastly in books, I’m curious to read Daniel Mason’s new novel North Woods (due out Sept. 19), which is said to be a sweeping novel about a single house in the woods of New England, told through the lives of those who inhabit it across the centuries. Apparently the house has seen quite a diverse ownership over the years, starting in the 1760s, and its history of protagonists seems dramatic.
The novel is said to be quite immersive with its characters, and the plot sounds a bit like a Geraldine Brooks kind of book, right? (I remember her doing something similar with People of the Book.) I have not read Daniel Mason before, but he is a six-time author and a physician who teaches at Stanford. His last book was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and this one is highly blurbed about by many well-known authors.
As for what to watch this month, fans of the British crime drama Unforgotten will be happy that Season 5 is starting up on PBS on Sept. 3. My husband and I have not followed the show (perhaps we should), but I know that actress Nicola Walker who was popular as DCI Cassie Stuart will not be there this season and instead Dublin-born Sinead Keenan is playing a new detective.
Gosh I remember Nicola Walker from the great MI5 series back around 2003-2011. She’s a terrific actress for these parts, but I think in Unforgotten she thought her role had run its course, so the new female DCI will be there for Season 5.
Also The Morning Show is back with Season 3 on AppleTV+ starting Sept. 13. Yay! The newsroom drama is decadent fun and has a pretty star-studded cast with Jennifer Aniston, Billy Crudup, Reese Witherspoon, Steve Carrell, Julianna Margulies, and now Jon Hamm is joining the cast as some corporate titan looking to buy the network.
Aniston says, Season 3 is “a good, juicy one,” she told People magazine. “Everybody’s getting in trouble. Everybody has a secret. And everyone’s just walking the line. It’s a lot more sensual this year.” Oh thank goodness, that’s good to hear. Now start it up and get going.
Also the new British drama series The Gold (starting Sept. 17 on Paramount+) looks pretty gripping. It follows a dramatization of the group involved in the 1983 Brink’s-Mat robbery near Heathrow Airport, which was the biggest robbery in history at the time, and what happened to the individuals in the decade thereafter.
The cast looks strong led by Jack Lowden from Slow Horses and Hugh Bonneville from Downton Abbey, and the show also manages to tell the story a bit about 1980s London. So the only thing is how to see it if you don’t get Paramount+. The show has already aired on BBC One so it’s also available on BBC iPlayer if you can access that.
Lastly in music for this month, there’s new albums by Ed Sheeran, Corinne Bailey Rae, Allison Russell, Wilco, Bahamas, and Tyler Childers among others. I’ll pick country singer Tyler Childers new album Rustin in the Rain (due out Sept. 8), which he says is inspired in part by Elvis Presley. Tyler hails from Kentucky and is the real deal. Here’s his new song In Your Love. Enjoy.
That’s all for now. What about you — which new releases are you looking forward to? Happy September.
I enjoyed the first season of Unforgotten and must remember to watch the other seasons. Thank you for the reminder.
A birthday and a trip to Italy all in one month? Sounds wonderful!
Thanks Helen. It should be a lot of fun in Italy. We have a group going. It’s a bucket list place right?!
I’d like to watch Unforgotten sometime too. Enjoy &
Have a great September.
If you haven’t watched the Unforgotten series I would suggest watching season 4 and Don’t read spoilers!! It’s amazing.
You have lots of books hughlighted which are on my to-read list as well. North Woods and Wellness aren’t at my library yet but I asm looking forward to them.
Hi Tina, thanks for the tip about Unforgotten. I’d like to start the whole series sometime. But you got me geared for Season 4.
Yeah I’m hoping these books mentioned will be great — I tried to cull down from the large amount coming out what I thought might be the best. We will see.
Happy reading. Hope you have a great month.
Your trip to Italy sounds amazing! And happy birthday this month. I hope it’s an excellent one. 😀
Thanks Lark. I’m getting old ha …. Italy should be a lot of fun and beautiful too. We are excited to go. Happy September to you.
The Nix was a 5-star read for me back in 2017. I got a chance to meet Nathan Hill at a FL book festival and have been eagerly awaiting his next book. Hope to read Wellness before the end of the year. Your bike trip in Italy sounds amazing!!
Thanks JoAnn. We are excited about our trip. A group of the family is going. And the sights should be wow. We have been biking to get ready.
And I’m so thrilled you met Nathan Hill — was he cool?! His books sound very good; I just need to make time for them since they are long. But I’m hoping Wellness will be fun. I still have the Nix … ! Not sure when I will get to either.
Happy reading.
Nathan Hill was great – very funny and obviously comfortable with the crowd. Pretty sure he (or someone in his family) has a home in SWFL – Naples, I think. It seemed like a homecoming of sorts. We also ran into him at a now-closed restaurant in Sanibel. Wonder if he’ll do local events for his new novel this winter.
Wow that’s awesome. He must like FLA.
fyi — I just checked his website — It says he lives with his wife in Naples! And he’ll be at a Fort Meyer event Sept. 21 and a Naples event Oct. 9. Will you be able to go?! You could see him again … I need to read one of his books.
Happy birthday month, and Italy, wow! I’m reading Wellness and Lauren Groff’s, but next month; I did some tweaking to accommodate Zadie Smith’s The Fraud towards the end of this month. I still have on my library How Much of These Hills is Gold unread, and now there’s a new one by the author. I spent the last two weeks of August watching Slow Horses and Tehran, I loved both shows. I like Ed Sheeran and Corinne Bailey Rae; I still listen to Put Your Record On from time to time, such a goodie.
Hi Carmen, I agree — that’s a great song! I will be curious of Bailey Rae’s new album. Yeah Slow Horses was good! — not sure if we watched the full Tehran but both addicting shows.
Let me know if you like the new Groff novel … I heard it needed more of a plot so I didn’t highlight it … I tried to cull what to talk about since there’s so much. I hope Wellness will be fun. But who knows when I will get to any of these. I’m behind with others at the moment. Stuck in summer reads and need to move to fall soon. You seem more organized on fitting things/books in. Happy reading.
Susan what a wonderful way to celebrate a birthday! I can’t wait to hear about your trip to Italy! We went several years ago but went during the summer and while I loved it, if I get the chance to go back I will definitely go when it’s off season. There are so many interesting books coming out this season and I had heard about Wellness but didn’t realize it was so long. And, you’ve reminded me about Unforgotten. I think I watched only one full season and meant to get back to it!
Hi Iliana, great to hear from you. Thanks, the birthday and going to Italy is like going to be fantastic. So excited to go.
I need to start Unforgotten sometime. So many good books this month but so little time, ha! Wellness looks a bit fun. I will need to stop by your site and see what’s up. I think you were away last. Happy reading.
I’m sorry to say goodbye to summer, too. We got so lucky with nice weather this year, but it still wasn’t quite as warm as I like. We’ll see how it goes in the next few weeks when we head up to Vancouver Island. Hoping it doesn’t rain the entire time…
I’m excited for you about your bike trip in Italy. You guys are going to have so much fun!
Like you, I still have The Nix sitting on a shelf… it’s in a stack of BIG books that I hope to tackle this fall/winter.
We’re holding off on watching the new season of Unforgotten until all episodes drop so we can watch them back-to-back each night. DO NOT watch this new season before watching the earlier seasons. Try not to even look at anything online about it or you might stumble on a big spoiler. BTW, I’m a huge fan of Nicola Walker. River is another good series with her, as is Annika.
Now that I’ve finished The Bear, maybe I’ll try The Morning Show. Great cast!
Hi Lesley. Gosh you’ll be on Van Island soon – hope you enjoy your time there. We are psyched about our upcoming trip but we have a lot of house stuff to do before. We are painting our large back deck … but the thunderstorms are interrupting us. It could take awhile. Then the car conked out … we’ll see tomorrow. Are you done with all your company? I need to check your site.
Nicola Walker is great right? We should start Unforgotten … Still finishing Happy Valley … and White Lotus which is crazy. Hope you all have some nice (warm) days left at the Cove.
Hi Susan, Have a great time in Italy and if you have read Donna Leon be sure to see Venice!
The book that interests me is North Woods about a house that has been around since the 1700’s located in the forest and the various people who live there over the centuries and who they were and what they experienced. I am putting it on my ever growing goodreads list.
Hi Kathy, yeah the North Woods novel has been highly hyped as being great — so I’m interested as well. So much to read right now I’m quite behind and still on my summer list. Oh well. Our TBR lists keep growing.
I have not read Donna Leon (thanks for the tip!) but for this trip we will be pretty far from Venice, more south in the Bari / Puglia area. So we are very excited. I don’t know much fiction from that area, but I will keep my eyes peeled in the shops. Happy September. & reading to you.
Yes, September is a good month, with birthdays and travel 😉 I like the sound of all the books you’ve mentioned and they are almost all new authors to me (I read The Nix last year — 4stars!).
Love the photo of Willow! xo
Hi Sarah, yeah it’s neat if I find a new-to-me author and I really like their book. These come highly touted … but we will see. I’m way behind these days with my reading — just too much other stuff to finish before the trip. We are really excited to go. Get your reading sorted for the plane! SW
Good luck getting through that very ambitions book list! And have a great birthday and a wonderful bike trip!
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Thanks Mae. We are excited about the trip. I don’t think I will get to these books right away but they are on my horizon. Happy September to you.
Land of Milk and Honey does sound like a delicious food read. I don’t normally read fantasy or sci fi or magic but if the writing is good, I’d try it.
Have a good week.
Thanks Harvee, yeah I agree, I typically do not read dystopian foody plots like Land of Milk and Honey but the author has had a lot of hype so I am curious how great a writer she is. Hmm. I plan to try it. Cheers! & Happy reading.
A bike trip sounds good to me, I’ve loved riding a bike since I was a little girl. I hope you have a great trip and a great birthday!
Thanks Vicki, I appreciate it … and agree with you: bike riding is one of my favorite hobbies and has been for quite a long while. It should be a fun trip.
Have a great September! (I’m glad Hurricane Lee is looking like it will miss FLA)
My book club (including me) really liked How Much of These Hills is Gold. The new book sounds very different — except there is an environmental theme running through both.
Thanks Joy, for letting me know this. And I appreciate you stopping by. I might go back and also read Zhang’s first novel too. Her books seem to have wild plots but interesting in a different kind of way. She seems a big talent. I will try her writing. thx & Happy September!
I’m scribbling down all these titles, Susan, so I can look for books and shows when I return home. I’m especially interested in Land of Milk and Honey, The Caretaker, and North Woods. I went into reading C Pam Zhang’s first novel thinking it was a middle-grade book. I set it aside for now as the children’s novel I’m working on has similar treasure-hunting themes, and I felt like I needed a little space from Zhang’s book.
My husband and I greatly enjoyed Unforgotten. I’m not sure what I will think about another lead detective, but we will see.
I’m happy that this month is your birthday month, and that you are planning a big bicycle trip to Italy. I haven’t had time to write about our trip on my blog, but I will tell you, in brief, that the weather here is near perfection, and the food has been universally exceptional. We are in the Piedmont region and it is delightfully quiet. I wonder where your bike tour will take place.
Hi Deb, Wow, the Piedmont area must be gorgeous and sounds amazing! We have not been to the northern part of Italy yet. For this trip, we’ll be in the south east part (Puglia region) along the Adriatic Sea. The biking shouldn’t be as many hills as Tuscany where we’ve been before. We’ll see. We go there at the end of Sept.
It sounds like you’re walking a ton and getting a lot of steps in … and wine tasting. Have a great time and don’t worry too much blogging until your return. Cheers!
We are going to Puglia next! Perhaps we will pass in the airport. We leave Italy on Sept. 21.
Yay!! Enjoy. We will be there the week after you get home. Can’t wait!
Yay for a trip to Italy! How long will you be there? We went a few years back for a long weekend, but it was awesome!
Hi Cindy, I think we will be there for 12 days. It’s so far to go … that I’m glad it will be over a week. We are very excited. Have a great week.
I am soooo happy it is September too. Summer was just weird this year. North Woods sounds amazing!! I love Geraldine Brooks so that comparison really got my attention.
Hi Erin, thanks much for stopping by. Yeah summer was a bit harsh here this year … but hopefully fall will be perfect. Glad you are looking at North Woods. I think it looks good. Have a great week.
A bicycle trip in Italy!!!! Amazing!!!
No, no, no do NOT let me add any of these books to my TBR!!!
I’m so behind with Morning Show! I’ve only seen Season 1 so far!
Enjoy your birthday month!!!
Thanks Jinjer. We will bike into the sunset … in Italy hopefully, ha.
I’m flooded with reads so not sure when I’ll ever get to these but they are on the radar at least. Season 1 is the best season of The Morning Show; we didn’t like Season 2 as much. But what about Season 3?! Maybe it could be good.
Birthdays are going backwards now. Yay. Happy September to you.
I hope you have a great birthday month! It’s my birthday month too. A family bicycle ride in Italy sounds like a dream. I hope you have a great time.
We enjoyed the first two seasons of The Morning Show. We aren’t subscribed to Apple+ at the moment, but I’m sure another deal will come along someday we can’t refuse and perhaps we can catch up then.
I hope you enjoy your reading this month! Have a great September, Susan!
Thanks LF. Our Italy trip is definitely bucket list material. We are excited.
I hear you about Apple+ … right now we don’t have Netflix so we are missing a few good shows on there. But sometime we’ll get it for a month and then let it go.
Hope all is great there. Busy I’m sure. Happy September.
Wellness sounds intriguing.
With your birthday and a trip to Italy coming up, have a great month!
Wishing you a wonderful reading week
Thanks Shelleyrae, I appreciate it. It’s going to be a good month it seems.
Wellness … I’m still looking forward to reading this author Nathan Hill … he writes long though. Sometime! See what you think. Happy September to you.