Essays & Musings

What We’ve Been Thinking About

Thoughts on books, reading, culture, and the literary life.

the ask@AAR: What do we think about all that butt stuff?

the ask@AAR: What do we think about all that butt stuff?

March 11, 2022

OK, it’s a thing. I’ve just read my third contemporary romance in a row in which fingers find their way into what is often referred to the back door. This…

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How to support AAR via Amazon

How to support AAR via Amazon

March 9, 2022

Recently we ran into yet another problem with our affiliate links at Amazon, our main source of income. In the process of solving that problem, I got ACTUAL FACTS from…

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Are people ruder?

Are people ruder?

March 7, 2022

I’ve had two friends in the past week say they think people are becoming “more self-absorbed,” “ruder,” and “less empathetic.” A close family member said she feels like she needs…

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the ask@AAR: What’s your favorite love story?

the ask@AAR: What’s your favorite love story?

March 4, 2022

Have you seen Spielberg’s West Side Story? It’s good–a fairly faithful remake of the 1961 film–with gorgeous song and dance scenes and a heartbreaking finish.  I grew up with the…

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An apology for today’s the ask@AAR

An apology for today’s the ask@AAR

February 25, 2022

I am so sorry for the phenomenal insensitivity and stupidity of today’s Ask.  I had written it earlier in the week in a poorly thought out effort to connect romance to…

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the ask@AAR: How are you doing?

the ask@AAR: How are you doing?

February 18, 2022

Today I had one of those days that everything seemed harder than it should have. Home Depot, for the third time, didn’t show up to deliver my dishwasher so I…

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Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

February 14, 2022

It’s Valentine’s Day and tonight Dr. Feelgood and I plan to do…. nothing special. I didn’t get him a card and I bought flowers on Saturday at the Farmer’s Market…

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the ask@AAR: What was your favorite romance published in 2021?

the ask@AAR: What was your favorite romance published in 2021?

February 11, 2022

We want to hear from you. We’ve shared our top picks for 2021–now it’s your turn. If you’re looking for inspiration, we have two sources for you. Using our new…

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Has anyone watched any of the films nominated for Best Picture?

Has anyone watched any of the films nominated for Best Picture?

February 9, 2022

The Oscar 2022 Nominations for Best Picture are: Belfast CODA Don’t Look Up Drive My Car Dune King Richard Licorice Pizza Nightmare Alley The Power of the Dog West Side…

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the ask@AAR: Have you seen our new Power Search?

the ask@AAR: Have you seen our new Power Search?

February 4, 2022

We have a new Power Search. Have you tried it? It’s–in my opinion–amazing. You can find it under the Reviews tab.     For starters, you can now search by…

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the ask@AAR: Should we do the AAR Top 100 in 2023?

the ask@AAR: Should we do the AAR Top 100 in 2023?

January 28, 2022

We’ve done the AAR Top 100 poll regularly since 1998. The last one we did, in 2018, garnered so much fury that I swore we were done. And yet… I’m…

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The Best of 2021 – Dabney’s List

The Best of 2021 – Dabney’s List

January 26, 2022

According to Goodreads, I read eighty-two books (for the first time – my rereads would have put that number closer to 165) in 2021. I read across genres and glommed…

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What We’ve Been Thinking About

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