Incidental Bibliotherapy with The Frozen River, My Third Book & Water Marbling
Weekly Literate Love: May 2, 2025
Happy Friday!
If you know me, you know I love Gretchen Rubin and one of the practices I’ve adopted from her is to give myself and others gold stars for something I’m appreciative of (and yes, sometimes those demerits sneak in, too).
This week, I’m sending a gold star to my youngest son. He’s a senior in high-school and for his entire school career, has played and loved football. As the senior football season ended, he surprised us all and joined the track team to keep in shape and increase his speed.
This week, he participated in his third meet and took first place in all three of his events: the 100 meter sprint, the 200 meter sprint and the team relay. As I celebrated with and for him, I couldn’t help but marvel at how unexpected this was and how he pivoted so quickly and easily to try something new and work at it.
He deserves a gold star. 🌟
And the best thing about gold stars? They spread. Seeing someone else start something new and work at it with a new passion is contagious and he’s making me think that I could pivot, too.
What gold star could you give to yourself or someone in your life this week?
Keep reading for your weekly dose of literate love and click the button below to share with a bookish friend!
Happy reading & writing!
Stephanie
P.S: I revealed my new one-word theme for May and would love to get your take on it: FLORILEGIA!
What I'm Reading:
The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick
I love when the right book finds you at just the right time and I'm forever grateful that Arthur Pepper came into my reading world when he did. A kind man deeply entrenched in his routines, Arthur is grieving the loss of his wife and struggling with his current, rather isolated, reality. When he finds his late wife's secret charm bracelet, he's swept back into the past and a life he never knew she lived. And while it was difficult to learn the secrets of her former life, they might be just what he needs to jumpstart his own future. Oh, this book has my heart and will stay there for a while.
The Reading Cure: How Books Restored My Appetite by Laura Freeman
This book is a beautiful, lyrical emotional journey through one woman's recovery through an eating disorder and the books that helped her heal. Part memoir, part personal transformation, this book will deeply resonate with anyone connected to disorders and anyone who believes in the power of books to heal.
Mothers and Sons by Adam Haslett
Technically, I’ve already started this one this week and it’s a good one. Deep, intense, thoughtful. Here’s the summary:
At forty, Peter, an asylum lawyer in New York City, is overworked and isolated. He spends his days immersed in the struggles of his clients only to return to an empty apartment and occasional hook-ups with a man who wants more than Peter can give. But when the asylum case of a young gay man pierces Peter's numbness, the event that he has avoided for twenty years returns to haunt him.
Ann, his mother, who runs a women's retreat center she founded after leaving his father, is wounded by the estrangement from Peter but cherishes the world she has built. She long ago banished from her mind the decision that divided her from her son. But as Peter’s case plunges him further into the memory of his first love and the night of violence that changed his life forever, he and his mother must confront the secret that tore them apart.
This family saga goes DEEP in all the things.
What I'm Writing:
Well, I started writing my third nonfiction book. Eek! My first two books (Literacy Coaching and Leading Literate Lives) were published through Heinemann Publishing and written especially for educators. As my work and passions have shifted and grown, I’ve finally decided to give it a go and write a third book for READERS & WRITERS of all kinds.
I’ve been brainstorming, making lists, creating potential Table of Contents outlines, pulling transcripts from podcast episodes and going deep into my own practices, too . It’s exciting and terrifying at the same time.
I felt safe in my cocoon of writing for educators alone, but writing for everyone is slightly terrifying. So, I’m borrowing a technique I learned from Dan Martell on the Abundant Ever After podcast:
List 25 people who need your book and write for and to them.
That takes the stress and pressure off and makes it seem much more personal and authentic. Stay tuned!
What I'm Learning:
I learned a boring, yet important face this week: the REAL ID change is actually true this time. =) Starting on May 7, a REAL ID or another acceptable form of identification, like a passport, will be required to board domestic flights and access certain federal facilities.
I currently do not have one, so I need one.
Do you?
What I'm Loving:
Rachel Linden is one of my FAVORITE authors and she shared a collection of her favorite recipes from her childhood. Take a peek!
Notebook Therapy released their free May printables!
This artist specializes in the traditional Chinese art of water marbling and I could watch it for hours. See for yourself!
Here are ten ways to master your to-do list. Which one could work for you?
Keep scrolling for my latest podcast posts and updates!
Podcast Highlights From the Last Week:
Incidental Bibliotherapy with The Frozen River
Normally, my podcast episodes focus on the what, why and how of restorative reading and writing, bibliotherapy and notebooking. But today, I’m interrupting my own podcast calendar with a step-by-step description of my own process of bibliotherapy with a book that you MUST read.
We’ll talk about what bibliotherapy and restorative reading is, how some of the best books are INCIDENTAL forms of bibliotherapy and the personal reflections I had while reading this book.
From My Private Substack Community…
Every Sunday, I post additional content for my private Substack community to bring even more literate love to our lives. Here’s what I shared this week:
Be sure to subscribe and add them to your TBR stack. Click the button below to subscribe. It’s just $5 per month!
Let’s Work Together!
I love to connect with others around our shared love of reading and writing.
Here are some ways we can work together to create a life you love where restorative reading and writing is at the center of it all:
🩷 Join my private Substack community for themed book calendars, bonus posts, book clubs and events each month!
📚 Connect 1:1 for personalized coaching to unlock the transformative power of your reading and writing life.
Literate love is multiplied when it’s shared! 🩷
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🩷 Like and comment on this post so we can connect!
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Excited for your new book! After listening to this week's episode, I'm interested in reading The Frozen River -- you had me hooked when you read the passage about herbs! And, the marbling artist -- wow! I want to try this with paper.
Congratulations on starting your non-fiction book for all readers and writers -- I am greatly looking forward to it, and I think you have a lot of valuable things to share! Think of me as one of your 25 if you need to! I'm cheering you on!