Miscellany #12
in which I actually check in two weeks in a row...dare we hope?
Hello again,
I come to you fresh from a week of traveling! I have all six kids back under my normal house roof, am not renovating anything, and don’t plan to travel again for a long time. Let the reading commence! Well actually I should probably say, “let the homeschool planning commence” or something like that! But in reality it is probably closer to a “back to the pool we go!”
My kids have been at what my parents call “Camp Nana” for the past 6 weeks in some iteration (one or both parents have been around for 3ish of those weeks, but in three different locations). So at any one point I have been with half of my kids OR all of them and multiple other adults. So, you (or really I) would assume that I have been reading SO much, because of course it is the kids that slow me down. But you (or I) would be wrong. I have been in the biggest reading slump.
I think I’m going to officially name this The Yearly Summer Reading Slump because I am surprised by it every single year. Here’s what I think happens….
Summer starts, no homeschooling (yes I know I said we were doing summer school, but it didn’t happen….again….I know, I am so consistently inconsistent), the pool opens, there is so much time to read.
I maybe fly through a book or two and also plan 30 more to read (which should be hilarious but I truly think I’m going to read them)
We renovate something (no reading happens)
We travel (maybe 50 pages of reading happens….of the 10 books I brought)
We have a few weeks with no or fewer kids with a weird routine (a tiny bit of reading happens but I keep starting new books instead of finishing ones I’ve started)
We travel again (even less reading happens)
We get home and back to normal and I think the reading slump will never end (but then I read at normal times throughout the day and start reading a fairly normal amount)
School starts back up and everything returns to normal and I actually like it that way
So alas, we’re at the second to last step so I’m sure I’ll come out of it. The funny part is that The Book Slump (TBS? Can I abbreviate this Meredith Hinds? Or TSBS…The Summer Book Slump?) is part reality and part feeling. The reality part is that I might be reading slightly less, and I have to remind myself that it is okay! Life happens in non-linear progression all of the time. Also, I am listening to audiobooks, reading some non-fiction slowly, reading aloud to kids….and even physically reading fiction most days. The feeling part of it comes from the fact that I have started more books than I could ever truly be reading and not finishing much. Sometimes I even wonder if I go back and forth between feeling like I am reading a ton and not reading at all based on if I am starting, finishing, or in the middle of lots of books at the same time. But alas, I think the answer is to just keep reading and remembering that it is not a race. Enjoying the books IS the point!
I would LOVE to hear about if this is a universal phenomenon or just a me thing. Also what I should read (that I already own…which is a lot) to get me out of it!
What’s New(ish) Around Here
Alright….onto the Reading Revisited Announcements…..
Book Drop Day
Are you going to be reading with us for the 2026-2027 Reading Year? If so make sure that you give yourself Proper Bookish Peer Pressure by joining or starting a Reading Revisited Book Club! There are new ones popping up EVERYWHERE (a map to find them is in the works…and by “the works” I mean that I think I will start thinking about making one). In the meantime, message me and I will help you find your people!
On the Podcast
This Week- ep. 119: Joseph Pearce & Reading for Truth, Goodness, and Beauty
GUYS…we got to talk to THE Joseph Pearce…and he was just as lovely (actually more lovely) than I thought he would be. You truly will not want to miss this episode! Also, you can find out what our favorite book we own is…we all leaned in for the old and beautiful books on our shelf! Here’s my 1930’s copy of Pride and Prejudice that is somehow the sturdiest book I have AND fits in my pocket (if I am wearing a dress with big pockets)….
Last Year- ep. 67: Women of the Catholic Imagination w/ Haley Stewart
I cannot believe this conversation was a whole year ago! We got to chat with THE Haley Stewart about the book she edited about Catholic Lady Authors. Grab the book, listen to the conversation, and get ready for your TBR to get out of control!
Coming Up- This coming week we will be releasing another conversation with THE Eleanor Bourg Nicholson (guys…we’ve had some really great guests on the podcast lately!) about Mansfield Park and why you MIGHT need to reorient your view of Fanny Price, Sir Thomas, and the novel itself! (Grab a copy of her article from the St. Austin Review in the https://open.substack.com/pub/readingrevisited/p/ep-120-mansfield-park-chat-w-eleanor?r=1p9yw&utm_medium=ios!)
August Book Club Book
We are still in Austen month! So, don’t worry, you haven’t missed it yet! Make sure to listen to the podcasts coming up in the next two weeks and read the Resource Roundup to be all up to date on the Mansfield Park happenings around here!
And don’t forget to attend your local book club or hop onto our Virtual Meeting after you read!
Up Next
September
Reread- Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
October
American Classic- The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
Everything Paradise Lost
For our Reading Revisited Society Members, we will be recording for Paradise Lost Book 7 this week and have that episode to you soon! Our next Society Only Virtual Book Club mid-late September on Books 6-8 so keep an eye out for that date soon!
Introduction to Paradise Lost (free for everyone)
Book One (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Book Two (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Book Three (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Book Four (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Book Five (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Book Six (for Reading Revisited Society Members)
Random Things I’m Enjoying
I’ve been reading Meredith Hinds’ Momoir this week (as part of my Summer Reading Slump Scrolling on Substack Plan…SRSSSP?) and seriously, it is worth your $5 subscription to get lots of Meredith all at one time. You will feel known and laugh and it will be great! And here is Meredith’s explanation of The Momoir and how to access it!
Emily Stimpson Chapman’s answer to someone’s questions about Mary not having labor pain….This is a question/complaint I have had since becoming Catholic and Emily’s treatment of it is thorough and, as always, enjoyable to read!
This piece by Helen Roy about tired mom’s treating themselves like they have ADHD….interesting concept and lots of solutions to think through! It is now behind the paywall because I never link to things quickly enough, but I really enjoyed it last week!
Apparently it is NFP week and I really loved this article by Emily Hess about what Catholic marriage prep misses when teaching NFP….Hint: It is actually hard!
NFP drama is going around Substack this week and I’m not going to get pulled into it (I say as I’ve read a lot of posts)! But I really enjoyed Jenny Uebbing’s response to it! She also wrote a whole article, but I haven’t read the whole thing yet. Also this from Jenny on 90’s Summers and (crappy) appliances!
And speaking of Drama….Did you know The Odyssey Movie came out? And EVERYONE is talking about it. I have yet to see it (but I plan to and I WILL love it…don’t worry), but I’ve been reading lots of takes. Here are my favorites…
Annie Crawford for Logres Institute wrote Watching Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey with C.S. Lewis: Part I, Part II, and Part III (I haven’t read the second or third installment yet because I am JUST learning that they came out!)…Even if you don’t care about The Odyssey Discourse, you should be reminded of how C.S. Lewis tells us to read well!
Griffin Gooch wrote Life Is The Odyssey in which he relates The Odyssey to The Christian Life!
And don’t worry, we at Reading Revisited will have a Podcast out soon where we bring ALL the husbands and chat about The Odyssey movie (in preparation for our Illiad and Odyssey Read Along!)
Alright, I could keep going as I am apparently feeling chatty this morning, but alas I should go and print out some more Substack articles to read and grab another cup of coffee. Actually I have just heard rumors that my children have opened a Tea Shop in the New Kitchen so maybe I will order a Cup of Tea! I wish you a beautiful Saturday or much Non-Angsty Summer Reading!
Till next time,
Kelsie Hartley
Until next time, keep revisiting the good books that enrich your life and nourish your soul.
What We’re Reading Now:
August
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Reading Revisited Society Read-Along
Paradise Lost by John Milton
A Few Reminders:
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I have been thoroughly enjoying immersing myself in your Mansfield Park resources, so many thanks for supplying all those excellent links. I do know the storyline of Mansfield Park, without having read it, so there was no fear of spoilers but so much to help me focus my reading!
Could you clarify for me how your featured book months work though? I’m used to reading throughout the month or period of online readalongs with discussions at the end of each week’s reading. Do yours actually work as assuming we’ve read the book before the month comes?
I sympathize with your summer reading difficulties. I, too, love the return to school starting and then (somehow even with much more to do!) I am able to get more reading in. Long live routines!