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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

And another of a frog who’s name I forget but I call HypnoToad:

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Oh! I love frogs! Here’s a Houston Toad at the local zoo:

A photo of a Houston Toad at the Houston Zoo

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Halloween movie #4 was Evil Dead Burn. I liked it, which is apparently a somewhat controversial opinion? The newer Evil Dead films aren’t the originals but they don’t need to be.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I re-read I Capture the Castle for my final #RootRootRead square. I read it close to 20 years ago and loved it; upon a re-read I don’t know that I feel the same. Thanks as always to @itsallaboutde.bsky.social for doing this for us!

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Then we watched Backrooms. As someone that has motion sickness issues this movie can go to hell. Also if you find “backrooms” unsettling you’ve obviously never worked in a department store or on night shift.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Next up on the Halloween movie train was Happy Death Day 2U. I liked it, but this is a sci fi adventure comedy that has a small slasher section. It is in no way a horror movie.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Every October the husband and I binge on spooky/scary/Halloween themed movies and television shows. This year we kicked-off with Happy Death Day. I liked this one way more than I thought I would. Funny, with good characters. Not too scary but that’s okay.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Sousa and Walker throwing hissy fits. Meanwhile, Yordan:

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

After finishing Mansfield Park for #RootRootRead book by author named Jane, I have now read all of Jane Austen’s completed novels. It was a back and forth, but at the end of the day I liked it even though it might have my most disliked Austen character (Aunt Norris).

The Audible cover for Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

For #RootRootRead book with an orange cover, I read Blackbirds in the Sky, which is about the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and the history that led up to it. An informative, sobering read. Man’s inhumanity to man will never not cease to sink to even lower depths.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Trying really hard to wrap up #RootRootRead before the off-season starts (which, to be honest, will be next Monday). For book by an author whose last name starts with K I read K-Jane by Lydia Kang. Stories like these make me so glad I am not a teenager anymore.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I want back and finished Harlem Shuffle by @colsonwhitehead.com for #RootRootRead book you didn’t finish. I really liked it. It was funny but also anxiety inducing. I really liked the little bits of New York history that strewn throughout the book.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

For #RootRootRead book recommended by a librarian I read Wonder Woman/Conan by @gailsimone.bsky.social. As someone that likes the Conan the Barbarian stories but not the problematic elements come with them, I really liked this book. And Woman Woman is awesome as per usual.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

For #RootRootRead book set in Alaska I read The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon. I really wanted to like it as his The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is my all time favorite book, but this one tried to be too many things and I did not like it.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

I finished Dungeon Crawler Carl for #RootRootRead book recommendation from @itsallaboutde.bsky.social and it was a fuckin’ blast. Just so much fun. Looking forward to the sequels.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

I read For Whom the Bell Tolls for #RootRootRead book set in Spain and I truly hated it. This is my third go round with Hemingway and I think I’m done. I don’t get or enjoy his writing.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Luckily it was a movie theater employee screening and I paid no pennies to see it.

Movie Poster of the disaster that was Wild Wild West. It starred a bunch of people that knew better.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

For #RootRootRead book with “world” in the title, I read Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. He said he considered his book to better than 1984, but I would disagree and I didn’t even like 1984. This book was so incredibly dry and just straight up boring.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 12/07/2026

For book with an LGBT+ author I listened to The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. For some reason I am convinced it’s called Portrait of Dorian Gray. And that’s all I really have to say about it #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

I read Donna Tartt’s The Secret History for book by a Pulitzer Prize winning author. It wasn’t for me. I found it to be pretentious and its main characters boring and flat. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

I read New Kid by Jerry Craft for #RootRootRead graphic novel. The story of the kid trying to fit in at his new school while dealing with both being a new kid AND a POC at a (mostly) white school. It’s a good read that certain schools don’t want your kids to read.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

I read Slow Noodles for #RootRootRead book by an ethnicity different from mine. It was a memoir about the life of a Cambodian refugee and how food helped her preserve her memory of her mother.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Listened to The Hound of the Baskervilles for murder mystery. This may be unpopular, but I wasn’t wild about it. Just wasn’t for me. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Next for #RootRootRead was a Booker Prize winning book, so I read Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I’ve read a lot of Tudor history/historical fiction, but this was the first book that helped me understand Thomas Cromwell’s role in all of Henry VIII’s business. I really liked it.

Cover of Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, with a photo of Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

I’ve heard Goodwill has lost its mind when it came to pricing, but since I hadn’t been in awhile I got to see it with my own eyes today. What the hell, Goodwill?

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Listened to Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell on my walk today. I finished it later in the day and while I am glad I experienced it (and recognized a lot quotes) I was happy when it was over. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

After owning Bridget Jones’ Diary for years, I finally read it for book from the Nineties. It was okay, the movie is FAR superior. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Then I read Finding My Way by Malala Yousafzai for #RootRootRead memoir. I enjoyed it. Not as harrowing as her first book but it was intriguing to see how she adapted to adulthood and having a somewhat normal life.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

For #RootRootRead book made into a movie I read Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. This was really good and I liked it a lot. Made me cry multiple times and had some interesting storytelling choices.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Time to catch on some #RootRootRead. For book borrowed from the library I read Normal People by Sally Rooney. It was alright but the characters drove me insane. Just tell each other how you feel already, geeze.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Finished All In Her Head by Dr. Elizabeth Comen for the reading uninterrupted for 30 min. square. It’s a history of the bullshit way women have been treated by medical profession when they were seeking help. It will make you very ragey. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Now’s as good a time as any to start the new #RootRootRead, so for book less than 200 pages I read the mess that is We Hold Our Breath, which is kind of about Houston and Hurricane Harvey but mostly not.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

And Orbital by Samantha Harvey finishes up off-season #RootRootRead. A Booker Prize winner, this little book about astronauts in space was thoughtful and beautiful. Thanks so much @itsallaboutde.bsky.social! Looking forward to the next one!

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Next was book by author whose last name starts with S so I listened to Arnold Schwarzenegger read his book Be Useful. I enjoyed his Hollywood stories more than the advice. #RootRootRead.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Cramming in last minute off-season #RootRootReading with The Stolen Book of Evelyn Aubrey, for book recommended by @itsallaboutde.bsky.social. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator had a hilariously bad American accent, which found delightful.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

For #RootRootRead book by a Nobel Prize winner, I read Beloved by Toni Morrison. This was quite a read. I’m not smart enough to say anything remotely intelligent about it but it’s a great, if devastating read.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

I finished Chita: A Memoir by Chita Rivera for #RootRootRead memoir. I respect and admire Rivera’s legacy but man she comes off as pretty catty here.

Cover of Chita! A memoir by Chita Rivera. Rivera is pictured in a purple dress with purple heels in a dance pose from West Side Story (original broadway cast).

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Next up was book in translation. For that I read Heidi, a book about a little girl that lives in the Alps. It was entertaining enough, but got really Jesus-sy towards the middle and never really let up. #RootRootRead

Book cover of Illustrated Junior Library edition of Heidi by Johanna Spyri. Features a little girl with short black curly hair wearing a dress with a little shepherd boy in the background.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Read The Wilderness for book by an author of a different race than me and my book club, and I am currently annoyed that over half the club hadn’t finished it so we couldn’t talk about the ending 😡. I liked the book, though. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Listened to China Dolls for book about WWII. It was entertaining and kept me listening, but it had too many secrets to keep track of. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Finally read The Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks for #RootRootRead graphic novel. It’s a story about the real-life WW1 unit comprised of Black Americans who fought heroically and exceptionally while facing difficulties that other soldiers couldn’t imagine.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

For #RootRootRead book by an LGBT+ author, I continued my Star Wars journey with The Crystal Crown by Tessa Gratton. I really wanted to like this book as I loved the characters in The Acolyte, but it was so boring. I’m also getting bored with the “lovable rake” trope that permeates SW books now.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

For #RootRootRead book by an author named James, I read The Heaven and Earth Grocery store by James McBride. I really liked this tale of a small neighborhood and the people that live in it. It was funny, moving, heartbreaking and had a nice dash of comeuppance.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Did you know that It by Stephen King is banned in Russia? It was my “banned book” #RootRootRead. For the most part I really liked it but there some parts where it was…..pretty out there.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

Then for book over 100 years old I read So Big by Edna Ferber. I liked this one so much, especially its heroine Selina. Plucky, resourceful, and just a wonderful person always able to see the beauty of seemingly ordinary things. #RootRootRead

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

For #RootRootRead book that takes place on an island, I read Siracusa by Delia Ephron. Well written and entertaining book in the genre of “rich white people problems.” Just a book about four awful people.

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Today was about as cold as it’s gonna get in Houston this year, so I engaged in my favorite coldest day of the year activity-watching The Thing

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Applescruff1981 @applescruff1981.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

As someone who reads A Christmas Carol every year, I want everyone to know the most faithful film/television adaptation I’ve ever seen of it is the 1999 version with Patrick Stewart. #RootRootRead holiday themed book.

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