{"id":11167,"date":"2026-09-23T22:14:31","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T05:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lisahistory.net\/wordpress\/?page_id=11167"},"modified":"2026-09-23T22:14:31","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T05:14:31","slug":"september-2026-books-tv-movies-and-more","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lisahistory.net\/wordpress\/september-2026-books-tv-movies-and-more\/","title":{"rendered":"September 2026: Books, TV movies, and more"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this issue: books of the months, into the blogosphere, TV and movies, and writing or waffling.<\/em><\/p>\n

Books of the months<\/h2>\n

Since I skipped August, I get to post two<\/em> favorite books this month, which is good since I’ve been reading quite a bit. I’m enjoying a lot of Ann Patchett before I read her latest, so the first is hers.<\/p>\n

\"Bel<\/div>\n


Bel Canto<\/em> is from 2001 and it won the PEN\/Faulkner Award for Fiction. Here’s my brief review from LibraryThing<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Surprisingly absorbing story of a group of VIPs held hostage in the Vice President’s house in an unnamed Latin American city. Character development makes you care. The terrorists themselves, the opera diva, the Japanese businessman, the translator, all become known to the reader without back story, just through the actions they take during the imprisonment. Didn’t like the ending, but it fit.<\/div>\n

I also read a novel by another favorite, Julian Barnes, who has announced that the recently published Departure(s)<\/em> <\/a>will be his last book. There is courage in announcing one’s final book<\/a>, and although he has talked about running out of ideas, I think it is possible to simply be done<\/em> without running out of anything in particular.<\/p>\n

In keeping with his announcement, I read Nothing to be Frightened Of: A Memoir<\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>from 2008.\u00a0Partly a memoir, partly an extended argument with his brother over the meanings of death, it is beautifully written and a delight to read. It felt good to get to know Barnes better as he lives well past the decisions made here about how to think about dying.<\/p>\n

Into the blogosphere<\/h2>\n

These days, my writing in the online world is typically divided into two layers. One is my author website<\/a>, wherein I have my books detailed for any readers who might be interested. I also post copies of my newsletters there as pages.<\/p>\n

The other layer, dearer to my heart, is my Lisahistory\u00a0blog<\/a>, where my posts may be about writing or they may not. Many are\u00a0about history and historical research. Some may be political, and for many years most\u00a0were very much caught up in the world of educational technology and pedagogy.<\/p>\n

<\/code>Accordingly,\u00a0I have two lists of subscribers. If you are reading this in your email, you are on my MailerLite<\/a> readers list, where I can carry 250 subscribers without paying. You got on it, perhaps, by downloading one of my free short stories, or joining a promotion at BookFunnel.<\/p>\n

My Lisahistory blog has a separate subscription simply to be notified of new posts. My friends are here, and colleagues, people I’ve worked with for years, sometimes decades. But newbies are always welcome. The post announcements are sent out by Jetpack, a plugin for WordPress (my blogging platform). Interestingly, I now can also have only 250 people there without paying.<\/p>\n

Recent posts on my blog:<\/p>\n