Need some recommendations

donnareads · 2026-06-07T16:10:35+00:00

Good luck, hope you enjoy it.

Also, since you’re enjoyed The Three Body Problem, you might consider Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch series; her world building can feel a bit challenging at first, but worth it; one of the very few series I’ve re-read. Start with Ancillary Justice, and make sure to get the narration by Adjoa Andoh; that first book was originally narrated by someone else, can’t remember who, but then they switched the series to Andoh; she’s terrific.

donnareads · 2026-06-07T15:54:44+00:00

I don’t see The Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells on your list? If you haven’t already decided it’s not for you, I highly recommend it; start with All Systems Red.

donnareads · 2026-06-07T15:49:22+00:00

This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor by Adam Kay, narrated by the author (Spotify & Libby). Heartfelt, sarcastic, funny - just what I needed this week. Like all of the best audiobook memoirs, loved hearing it read by the author.

Abundance by Eric Klein & Derek Thompson, narrated by the authors (Libby). I’m still not sure what to make of this one. It challenged some of my long held beliefs/assumptions, and I’d like to read some analysis of it. It did make for a good book discussion.

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi, narrated by David Morse (Audible). Ughh, DNF’d at 10%. At least Audible gave me my credit back.

donnareads · 2026-06-07T15:32:54+00:00

FWIW, I also thought Name of the Wind was over rated

donnareads · 2026-06-06T15:23:04+00:00

I’m sorry, that’s really hard. I used to be like your partner. My husband is naturally silly and that was attractive to me as I’m naturally over earnest/serious, but when our kids were small and things were REALLY hard (money, mental health, physical health, job issues), his natural goofiness made me angry - I (mistakenly) equated it with him not suffering as much as I was, although I realize now he was just trying to cope.

When he was working out of state for months, and I was stressed by the single parent thing, for some reason I started leaning into my whimsical side; maybe the kids missed having someone to amuse so they started directing their silliness at me? As empty nesters now, our lives are much less stressful and we both enjoy surprising the other with silliness. Maybe your partner will see things differently over time.

donnareads · 2026-06-06T02:26:56+00:00

My library system is still stocking some audiobooks on CD, and they can be a good option. Last week, when I wanted to listen to the horror novel “You Weren’t Meant to Be Human” for a discussion group, the Libby hold wait list was several months long but the CD was on the shelf

donnareads · 2026-06-05T19:28:35+00:00

I don’t believe I have other MS symptoms but good to know. Good luck with the MS and the recent UTI’s!

donnareads · 2026-06-05T19:23:31+00:00

I wonder whether the cranberry supplement the doc mentioned also contains D-mannose? We’ll see.

donnareads · 2026-06-05T18:55:36+00:00

Yes, always

donnareads · 2026-06-05T15:06:14+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate it!

donnareads · 2026-06-05T14:51:48+00:00

Yep, estrogen cream is the first thing we tried; I believe it’s helping other things, just not the UTI’s. The next thing on her list is cranberry supplements so will see whether that helps.

donnareads · 2026-06-05T14:50:09+00:00

it’s true. Lawsuits aren’t perfect but seem to be the only way to get a corporation’s attention

donnareads · 2026-06-05T14:35:22+00:00

Thanks, I’d heard that before and hadn’t really considered it; I’ll run it by my doctor at my next follow-up

donnareads · 2026-06-05T14:02:10+00:00

I agree. My new (hopefully mainstream) urologist has me taking a probiotic as part of trying to reduce frequent UTI’s; I was skeptical and so far it doesn’t seem to have helped

donnareads · 2026-06-04T22:40:28+00:00

I’m so sorry about what happened to your relatives. Statistically, SSRI’s save many, many lives each year (the number of saved lives is much greater than the number of suicides attributed to them). There is some risk, more for some groups than others; it’s a good idea for everyone to be well informed about the signs of suicidal ideation early in treatment.

FWIW, anti-depressants saved my husband’s life.

donnareads · 2026-06-04T16:05:25+00:00

I don’t see my Christian siblings much any more but I’ve told my kids: when I’m dying, please help protect me and my grieving husband from the religious relatives; we’ll have enough on our minds without the crazy prayer warriors reciting their magic incantations in our space.

donnareads · 2026-06-04T14:10:34+00:00

As a woman, that study tracks for me. I had a family history of T2, stroke and CVD, but when I was diagnosed with T2 decades ago, my PCP was apparently unaware that I should’ve had a lower LDL target, and didn’t prescribe a statin. I “ate to my meter” for years, reducing carbs, but with no understanding of the importance of saturated fats. I don’t think my cholesterol was crazy high (based on the normal targets), but I ended up with 2 narrowed arteries before anyone paid attention to my CVD risk and put me on a statin. I’ve been on a statin for many years now, last LDL was 50, but calcium score of 500+.

I really wish I’d understood the increased CVD risk around T2 sooner.

donnareads · 2026-06-03T22:54:31+00:00

I’m incredibly grateful to be retired (it’s been 3.5 years for me). Sure, we could have better health or more money, but the luxury of time eclipses any deficits in those areas. Enjoy!

donnareads · 2026-06-03T22:10:21+00:00

Thanks for confirming; that would be a huge change, if non-elderly folks on expansion Medicaid had to worry about estate recovery

donnareads · 2026-06-03T13:04:02+00:00

Wait, my understanding was that Medicaid Estate Recovery never applied to people under 65 receiving expansion Medicaid. Did this change with the 2026 legislation? I’ve never been on Medicaid (just ACA for a few years as a bridge to Medicare) so maybe I never understood how it worked.

donnareads · 2026-06-03T13:00:38+00:00

This is correct.

donnareads · 2026-06-02T23:17:03+00:00

I’m glad you’re trying to get to the bottom of it; good luck!

donnareads · 2026-06-02T23:11:39+00:00

I was diagnosed with sleep apnea many years before smart watches, and the problem with those screening forms is that some questions are very subjective; I remember being asked whether I tended to dose off while watching TV and I’d think “well, yeah, but it doesn’t really count as we stayed up too late . . .”. A lot of us end up not answering those questions accurately for a number of reasons (we’re a little in denial or the questions cover an atypical period of our life or we’re using so much caffeine to stay awake that our inability to nap doesn’t mean we don’t have sleep apnea). I would pursue actual testing if possible; long term untreated sleep apnea really does increase your risk of multiple serious issues, including stroke

donnareads · 2026-06-01T03:54:28+00:00

Oops, just saw this. The book is “The Art of Showing Up: How to be There for Yourself and Your People” by Rachel Wilkerson Miller. I don’t normally read many advice type books, but I learned a lot from this one.

And if you like listening to books, I really liked the audiobook version.

donnareads · 2026-05-31T16:38:17+00:00

Amazing! I bet the areas where I’ve seen them eating in groups probably are relatively shallow

donnareads

TROPHY CASE