Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

That’s seriously what I’m trying to kick–some congestion but mainly a throat that HURTS when I swallow. (But no fever or other strep symptoms, so there’s that.) Plus I had a deal of trouble falling asleep Sunday and Monday night, and I woke up horribly early Monday morning and couldn’t fall BACK asleep. On the other hand, I slept better last night and this morning my throat hurts less than it did, so I’m going to take that.

I also FINALLY managed to finish listening to/reading M.T. Anderson’s Elf Dog & Owl Head last night, which was an interesting journey. Not really my thing, to be honest with you, and yet it’s good enough that I enjoyed the read regardless; I even liked the majority of Junyi Wu’s illustrations, even though her style isn’t really my thing either. (I recognize the power of it, though.) I went into it thinking it was simply set during Covid, but it didn’t take long to realize that Anderson was more using the idea of Covid and Quarantine as a jumping off point. The forest and mountain by Clay’s house had a Vermont/New Hampshire feel for me, and the other worlds concept made me think of Susan Cooper’s ‘Dark is Rising’ sequence. DiRossi’s character development amused me, and I absolutely loved the sweater sheep.

These, however, are just random observations. The book follows a regular human boy’s experiences when he finds a dog that got caught in his world, and the story is filled with the unexpected. Both of his sisters get involved, if in entirely different ways, but ultimately, everything that happens can be tied to Elphinore. If you want an original and oddly powerful read for the summer, this one is definitely worth a try.

In the meantime, I’m sorry I missed Monday–feeling under the weather at the same time that we’re trying to find our summer routine is problematic. Here’s hoping for steady improvement for the rest of the week!