Nora worried about her neck. Or so I heard.I read about her. I didn’t actually read what she wrote.Honestly I’ve been worried about mine ever since.Then, I was at the peak of womanhood.Or so I thought.Now, am I?I read an article. Then another. Maybe four more.Felt good. Felt bad. Felt indifferent.Hard to keep track.Lots of…
Author: L.M. Beatty
Artist & Author. Passionate Believer. Addicted to coffee, sunshine & laughter.
Inspired to find & share about the remarkable things that make life extraordinary.
Book Review: One Hundred Years of Solitude
I almost decided not to write a review on Gabriel García Márquez’s Nobel Prize Award-winning novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude. Not because I hated it or couldn’t finish reading—neither was true. More because I wasn’t sure what I would say about it or to whom I would recommend the book. I’m not sure I…
Florence, Italy | 2025
After the mesmerizing beauty of Venice, my family traveled (again by train) back southward to Florence. I was looking forward to Firenze, having been told that I would “love it” given my interest in art. The museums on our to-do list looked interesting and I had found (via Instagram) a list of sandwich shops that…
Venice, Italy | 2025
For most of my life, Venice held a sort of magical mysticism in my mind—based, of course, primarily on what I had seen on film and read about in books. The first time I remember really encountering the city was in the 2003 movie The Italian Job. I won’t spoil it for you, but the…
Rome, Italy | 2025
When in Rome… I’m not sure any of us actually used that phrase during our time in Italy, but we certainly tried to do as the Romans do in terms of eating, drinking and generally enjoying life during our time en Italia. We arrived on our direct flight from Chicago O’Hare to Roma Fiumicino early…
Cadence of Fall Part II: Making a Joyful Noise
From a young age, I aspired to be an “accomplished woman” like the heroines of 19th century European literature who managed to excel at many disparate talents and interests. I sought to be as well-rounded as humanly possible with as many activities as could fit in a day. I honestly didn’t care about perfection so…
Cadence of Fall | Part I: Cacophony of Sound
Have you ever heard an orchestral melee as the players practice on their own before coordinated tuning? The instrumentalists are probably all playing portions of the same set of music, but at different tempos and times, just trying to hone in on their individual parts. It’s chaotic and nonsense and not particularly pleasant to listen…
Book Review: Mrs. Dalloway
With this review of Mrs. Dalloway (Virginia Woolf), I have finally completed the pile of books I picked up a few years ago from The Winding Stair bookshop in Dublin (with the exception of a puzzle book). One of the other titles, How Should One Read a Book, also by Woolf, was a great little…
Book Review: The Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Thief
On my trip to New York City this spring, I picked up a pocket-sized edition of Maurice Leblanc’s seminal work, The Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Thief, in the gift shop of the New York Public Library. I was thrilled to find a copy in English because to my own dismay, I have yet been able…
Niagara & Toronto, Canada | 2025
Third time’s the charm is the adage that perfectly sums up my spring 2025 travel to Canada. For having been around the world a few times, I somewhat surprisingly had never crossed the northern border of the U.S. to visit our good-natured neighbors, even though it’s closer than other regular road trips I take with…
L.M.Beatty 