When a new Harry Potter book was coming out each summer, I’d pick it up from the library and sit out back reading all day, with trips inside for snacks and drinks. I really missed that when the series ended! But I found my substitute for this year: Frances Hardinge’s The Lost Conspiracy. The culture clashes and dirty politics feel real, the plot keeps twisting, and there are 566 pages. (I’ve read about 200.) I’m so glad this year’s Battle of the Kids’ Books put it on my radar.

So that’s what I was reading out back in the sunshine today– it felt like the first day of summer. When I wasn’t reading, I fixed up our bikes so Sanguinity and I can go to the farmers market tomorrow if we want. I made potato salad and threw some otter pops in the freezer. The doors and windows were open, and there was always a lawnmower in earshot. Now I’m good and tired, and I didn’t even go running.