Five on Friday - May 15, 2020

Here we are - another Friday!  I'm so glad we have a weekend ahead of us.  Our week has been a good one, filled with Zoom chats and lazy evenings.  But still, I'm glad we have a few days to unwind.

Hope you enjoy my five for today ~

1.  The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Remember a few years ago with Hunger Games was the big thing?  Well, it's back!  Like way back - this is a prequel book to The Hunger Games trilogy.  Suzanne Collins's new book, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, jumps back to events that occurred 64 years prior to the trilogy.  Here's the summary from Amazon ~

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined - every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute . . . and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

The book releases on Tuesday, so get yours preordered today!

2.  #Graduation2020

How many of us can say Oprah Winfrey spoke at our commencement?  The entire class of 2020 can!  Oprah, and several other celebrities, are sharing some love with the Class of 2020 today as she delivers a virtual commencement speech on Facebook.  As an added bonus Miley Cyrus will be singing a live version of her big hit "The Climb".  Tune in today on Facebook Watch starting at 11:00 am PST / 2:00 pm EST to catch all the words of wisdom from Oprah and dozens of her friends.  I'm not graduating from anything this year, but I'm still excited to hear what inspiration she will be sharing.

                        

3.  Magnetic Bookmarks

Are you reading a lot more these days?  Need some new bookmarks?  I absolutely love magnetic bookmarks.  They hold your spot and you don't have to worry about them falling out and losing your place.  Since I've been trying to do a book review every now and then, I've also started using my magnetic bookmarks to mark a page where I want to return to a quote or phrase.  This set of 36 would be great for that!  They would also be great to divide up and send with a note to a friend.  Click HERE to get a set for yourself!

                         

4.  The New Corner Office Podcast

When the pandemic hit and many people started working from home, we quickly found out that it wasn't always as glorious as we had thought it would be.  Laura Vanderkam has a podcast that can help you conquer your new working environment!  Give her just a few minutes to listen and she will share strategies for thriving in this new world of work.  A new episode is released every weekday morning and features a quick topic or an answer to a listener's question.  I love it!  Have you heard about it?

5.  I'm growing....

Have a great weekend!  I'm visiting a wedding venue for an August wedding tomorrow morning.  Can't wait to see it in person!  We've been delayed in planting our flowers because of the weather, so I'm hoping that we'll have everything in the ground by the end of the day on Sunday.  Eric and I are going to have an in-home date night tonight and watch a movie.  Pop in next week to see how things went!

Linking up with:

Erika at Little Bit of Everything

Simply Sweet Home
High Five for Friday