Sunday Coffee: Sweet November

November brings a slight respite from deadlines and the ceaseless grind toward the end of the first quarter. Of course, right this minute I am staring at a towering stack of ungraded papers, but I feel optimistic that I will at least make a dent in this stack by the end of this evening. I'm finally feeling better after spending about two weeks feeling sick (a weird combo virus, that starts in the stomach and ends in the head and the throat--ugh). Once again, I've shown very little self-control. Each pay period I allow myself one book purchase, but, to be perfectly honest, I've gone a little overboard recently.

First, there is my Lynda Barry obsession. She's my hero! She is brilliant. My creative writing students and I use Barry's 4-minute diary writing exercise each day, as demonstrated here:

Barry is currently teaching at University of Wisconsin, Madison. She combines an interest in writing, the visual image, and the brain. I've added two Barry books to my personal library:
What It Is
Picture This

Other recent purchases:

When Women Were Birds: Fifty-Four Variations on Voice by Terry Tempest Williams

Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, PhD

Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell

I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

Now all I need is time!

Have you bought any books lately? What are you reading, when you find the time?