Caroline Shearman
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amberrenarde.bsky.social
Caroline Shearman
@amberrenarde.bsky.social
54 followers 78 following 14 posts
Scottish creative, geek, and educationalist currently living in Oman. Neurospicy. PMDD. Tha Gàidhlig agam. Zoologist and science communicator. Armchair archaeologist and amateur historian. Suzuki Jimny fan. [She/Her] 🌈🌿🌙🪔✨
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amberrenarde.bsky.social
It's a slow starter as the threads of the story come together, but be prepared with tissues as this book will break your heart. Not for reasons you might think. In the end, it'll give you a big hug and put you back together again. Very well written. 🌸

#japanese #books #realism #cats
A pale white background featuring a black cat sat facing away from the viewer. The text above in teal blue lettering says, "The Travelling Cat Chronicles". Underneath it says in black script, "Hiro Arikawa", who is the author.
May 10, 2025 at 2:32 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
A feel good short-read following the personal growth of a high school boy when his grandfather passes away, leaving him his book shop. Why are books important? Why should we read? Come along for the adventure where things are never as they seem...
#japanese #books #magicalrealism #cats
A deep warm yellow background illuminated by a circular paper lamp suspended from the ceiling. Below it sits an orange tabby cat, perched atop a pile of books. Between the cat and the lamp above is the author's name - Sosuke Natsukawa, and the book's title - The Cat Who Saved Books.
April 6, 2025 at 2:36 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
The Wilderness Cure is a an inspiring journey through the wild year while trying to survive on only what #mowilde #monicawilde could gather or #forage. Definitely one for fellow environmentalists. #environment #ecofriendly #gaia #wildliving #pagan #archaeology #paleolithic #scotland #offthegrid
Pale cream book cover with a central circle split into five sections. Each section has a colour and different animals and plants representing the different seasons of the foraging year. Titled, 'The Wilderness Cure', written by Mo Wilde. Includes some text at the bottom - "Ancient wisdom in a modern world". This is such an incredible book that I've actually listened to it twice in the space of a month. I'm sure there'll be a third listen soon! 'The Wilderness Cure' is an inspirational touchstone on trying to live in harmony with nature, or at least leave a lighter footprint on this earth. Mo Wilde is a professional herbalist and forager who runs courses and her own clinic from her home. This book is her year of deciding to say 'fk it', one year on Black Friday, and put herself and her skills to the ultimate test. To live entirely on foraged food for a year. Mo, or Monica as she's also known, is such an easy to relate to voice of human connectedness to nature (Gaia). She's worldly wise, down to earth, and very relatably human. Through the year she finds that when it comes to it in her locality there are five seasons, not the traditional four. That the seasonal cycles of animals and plants causes her to work between land and coast to find food at different times. That seasonality for food isn't just eating strawberries in the summer but finds whole macros become seasonal such as carbs are a winter food and summer is more protein. She also finds herself walking in the footsteps of our paleolithic (stone age) ancestors as despite the eons of time between us and them, little has changed in nature and the same cycles that modern hunter-gatherers need to follow still dance on today. Bio excerpt from her latest book - Free Food: Wild Plants and How To Eat Them "Monica lives in a self-built wooden home on 4 acres in central Scotland that she shares with 259 species of plants, 83 of insects, 62 bird species, 51 fungi, 13 wild mammals, 3 ferrets, 2 humans and 1 elderly cat."
March 25, 2025 at 2:38 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
Latest read on #autism that I cannot recommend highly enough. It's a biography by the wonderful #melaniesykes. Add this #book to your TBR pile. "Illuminated"
Deep blue book cover with gold lettering. Titled, 'Illuminated', written by Melanie Sykes. Includes some text surrounded by a sun burst pattern - "Autism and all the things I've left unsaid". Melanie Sykes is a name I've grown up with. 'Knowing' her from shows like 'The Big Breakfast', 'Des and Mel', 'Shop Well For Less' and 'The Vault', to make but a few. Someone who was always glam looking as a pinup model splashed across the papers down at the newsagents.... ...but that's the thing. We don't 'know' celebrities. They're simply fellow humans with high profile jobs. This book grabbed my attention as soon as it popped up on Audible. I was shocked/surprised to see that she'd been diagnosed with autism. I immediately wanted to know more as I'm on my own journey at the moment. This book is a 'no holds barred' 'bare-all' biography. Melanie takes us back to the beginning and takes us through it all. Childhood comforts and struggles, her first footings in modelling; love, hurt, and loss, marriage and divorce, her children and her career. Trying to find herself amongst the cacophony of life in the eye of the media storm. Trying to make sense of who she is and why she does things. Why did things go wrong? Why were things harder for her than others? It's a helluva ride and extremely upsetting at times but I'm glad I went on this journey with her. Melanie gives us all hope for a future where we can find some peace and be more gentle and kind with ourselves.
March 25, 2025 at 2:28 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
Signal boost for my current favourite 'Oologies' episode: Volcanology.
www.alieward.com/ologies/volc... @volcanojess.com @ologies.bsky.social #volcanoes #volcanology #science
Black rock volcano with a grey smoggy sky above. Hot lava spurts out of the centre of the photo and flows towards the viewer. The lava river is red hot glowing between the cooler black crusts floating along. Young woman wearing a dark grey suit jacket. Medium long light brown hair flows over here left shoulder. She smiles. This is Jess Phoenix, a volcanologist. Logo of the 'Ologies' podcast. Pale yellow back ground with a selection of pencil sketched items representing various studies. A metal cog, a human skull, glass beaker, black beetle, anatomically correct heart,a bird egg, etc. A young fresh faced woman stands in front of green bushes. She wears a black and white stripey top. She has piercing blue eyes and full red lips in a smile. She has medium long warm red-brown hair falling over her right shoulder. This is Alie Ward, creator of the podcast 'Ologies'.
March 8, 2025 at 3:58 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
New podcasts! 👀 Well, to me at least.

On the go since 2017, both are popular science communication podcasts by Alie Ward. Featuring interviews with experts in their fields, of all sorts of "ologies".... zoology, climatology, cardiology, speleology...

#ologieswithalieward #sciencecommunication
March 3, 2025 at 4:50 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
An extremely 'easy to read' (well researched) and entertaining guide to autism from autistic comedian, Pierre Novellie.

Frankly, this should be essential reading for all, ND and NT alike.

The whole book felt richly relevent to me.

#autism #neurodivergence #pierrenovellie #knowthyself
Book titled, "Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things?" by Pierre Novellie. Cover shows the author, a dark haired neat-bearded man wearing an open collar white shirt and a relaxed dark velvet jacket. He holds a childish little cake in his hand with a single, lit, gold candle atop it. His face is blank. He merely stares at the cake.
March 2, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Reposted by Caroline Shearman
cowboycatranch.org
Hello #booksky!

We'll be hosting a free, online Cat Book Club!

The first book that we'll be talking about is We'll Prescribe You a Cat. #cat #cats #catsofBluesky

For more information have a look at www.cowboycatranch.org/cat-book-club.
Cowboy Cat Ranch - cat book club
We read a book (or watch a movie) about cats, and we meet and talk about it. Everyone is welcome to join! It's a free, online event, once every season. During one of our weekly science meetings to dis...
www.cowboycatranch.org
February 21, 2025 at 7:15 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
'The Full Moon Coffee Shop' is a magical place to visit. A coffee shop run by cats, that appears in different locations on the night of the full moon. Cats that aren't what they seem to be at first glance...

I love the whimsy of looking up and imagining. 🌸🌙

#japanesecatbooks #magicalrealism #cats
Front cover for the book called, "The Full Moon Coffee Shop", by Mai Mochizuki. The top banner shows the phases of the moon, the bottom banner shows the astrological symbols of the planets. In the centre cats play across a night sky and a full moon showing the symbols of the zodiac signs.
February 23, 2025 at 8:06 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
"A cat a day keeps the doctor away..."

A collection of loosely connected short stories I found to be utterly charming. The next volume is due in September.

I don't wish to 'let the cat out of the bag', but prepare yourself for poignant tears at the end. 🌸

#japanesecatbooks #magicalrealism #cats
Cover art for the book called 'We'll Prescribe You A Cat', Syou Ishida. Cover is a pale pastel mint showing an open orange prescription medication bottle in the top left hand side. Out of the open bottle there tumbles five cats of assorted colours and types.
February 23, 2025 at 7:54 PM
amberrenarde.bsky.social
Seen the train pull up and climbed aboard, hello Bluesky! 🦋

Fan of original Twitter before it became a bigots plaything. Now completely disillusioned with the Faceache app of adverts, too. So let's give this a try.

Please be better than clickbaity Threads...?
November 15, 2024 at 3:51 AM