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I am so thrilled to have read so many books last month! I’m sure our weekend getaway helped — I read two, cover to cover, that weekend — but I just found more time to sneak reading in my daily life and it was so good to feel like my normal self again. We’ve been super busy this summer and I’ve hopefully wrapped up most of my bigger projects to accomplish before baby. In theory, that should give me more time to rest and read, but in reality it might just give me more time to nap. I’ve already wish-listed a few parenting / baby books that I want to read, but I have plenty of BOTM selections to catch up on, too. If you could recommend one novel for me to read between now and baby’s arrival, what would it be?
29. THE MOTHERS by Brit Bennett
★★★☆☆ | Contemporary Fiction / Debut
It is the last season of high school life for Nadia Turner, a rebellious, grief-stricken, seventeen-year-old beauty. Mourning her own mother’s recent suicide, she takes up with the local pastor’s son. Luke Sheppard is twenty-one, a former football star whose injury has reduced him to waiting tables at a diner. They are young; it’s not serious. But the pregnancy that results from this teen romance—and the subsequent cover-up—will have an impact that goes far beyond their youth. As Nadia hides her secret from everyone, including Aubrey, her God-fearing best friend, the years move quickly. Soon, Nadia, Luke, and Aubrey are full-fledged adults and still living in debt to the choices they made that one seaside summer, caught in a love triangle they must carefully maneuver, and dogged by the constant, nagging question: What if they had chosen differently? The possibilities of the road not taken are a relentless haunt.
This debut novel has been bouncing around my house for almost eighteen months. I’ve picked it up so many times, but I never got around to starting it. I think I might have finished this one in June, but then couldn’t find the book to take a picture and by the time I did find it, my post was already published, so let’s just pretend I read it in July. Mmmmkay? Let me start by saying that I loved how this book was written. You would never know this was Bennett’s debut novel — the prose was perfect, I loved the character development, and I was completely entranced with Nadia’s story. I actually had someone send me a DM while I was on vacation, asking how I felt about the book. She was disappointed and wondering what the point of the story even was. Honestly? I couldn’t relate at all because I was enjoying it so much. Fast forward to the final quarter of the book and I could see exactly what she was talking about. The characters all made me angry, the story started falling apart and I, too, couldn’t figure out why she was even telling me this story. I was very disappointed with the ending, mostly because it just ended. There wasn’t any resolution and by the time I finished the final chapter, I could no longer relate to any of the characters. These three stars are for the writing and character development in the first 75%, but those missing stars are for how the story fell apart in the end.
30. ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS by Jamie McGuire
★★☆☆☆ | YA Fiction
The first time Elliott Youngblood spots Catherine Calhoun, he’s just a boy with a camera, and he’s never seen a sadder and more beautiful sight. Both Elliott and Catherine feel like outcasts, yet they find an easy friendship with each other. But when Catherine needs him most, Elliott is forced to leave town. Elliott finally returns, but he and Catherine are now different people. He’s a star high school athlete, and she spends all her free time working at her mother’s mysterious bed-and-breakfast. Catherine hasn’t forgiven Elliott for abandoning her, but he’s determined to win back her friendship and her heart. Just when Catherine is ready to fully trust Elliott, he becomes the prime suspect in a local tragedy. Despite the town’s growing suspicions, Catherine clings to her love for Elliott. But a devastating secret that Catherine has buried could destroy whatever chance of happiness they have left.
I’m a little embarrassed to tell you that I read this — it was a total indulgence when I didn’t feel like thinking about anything. I went through a phase where I was ignoring the fact that I’m an actual adult, in favor of cheesy YA romance novels that I had no business reading. I actually loved McGuire’s first series (A Beautiful Mess) and when I saw she had a new book available on Audible, I downloaded it without giving it much thought. I was so disappointed in this one. The premise was good and it took me awhile to figure out what was going on with Catherine’s family home, but I was underwhelmed with the story and the characters were all whiny and got on my nerves. Maybe it just pregnancy, but maybe it’s just not a good book.
31. SEINFELDIA by
★★★★☆ | Non-Fiction / Biography
Comedians Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld never thought anyone would watch their sitcom about a New York comedian sitting around talking to his friends. But against all odds, viewers did watch—first a few and then many, until nine years later nearly forty million Americans were tuning in weekly. Fussy Jerry, neurotic George, eccentric Kramer, and imperious Elaine—people embraced them with love. Seinfeldia, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong’s intimate history is full of gossipy details, show trivia, and insights into how famous episodes came to be. Armstrong celebrates the creators and fans of this American television phenomenon, bringing readers into the writers’ room and into a world of devotees for whom it never stopped being relevant. Seinfeld created a strange new reality, one where years after the show had ended the Soup Nazi still spends his days saying “No soup for you!”, Joe Davola gets questioned every day about his sanity, and Kenny Kramer makes his living giving tours of New York sites from the show.
I casually watched Seinfeld in high-school, but Josh was a HUGE fan and it wasn’t long before I had seen every episode, we owned the complete boxed set, and could casually quote most every episode. He was reading this book at the beach and constantly laughing out loud, so I picked it up early in July and was able to devour it in just a few days. There is tons of behind-the-scenes information that you’ll love if you are even a casual Seinfeld fan. I loved seeing how some of our favorite episodes came together and there were so many moments when a casual mention of something made me relive an entire episode in my head and be laughing about two different things at once. This is a great read!
32. LOVING OUR KIDS ON PURPOSE by Danny Silk
★★★★☆ | Spiritual Self-Help
Loving Our Kids on Purpose introduces paradigms, perceptions, skills, and ideas that will help parents reduce fear by eliminating the tool of punishment and strengthening the core character of their children by empowering their self-control and value for their relationship with their parents.
I’m not usually a fan of self-help and I don’t often read books in this genre, but my small group has been doing a video series on this same topic and since I missed a few weeks because of vacation, I decided to order the book to fill in the blanks. I’m at a weird place in life, given that I get to approach parenting a small child all over again. I don’t have many regrets, but I do welcome this as an opportunity to get more things right and change my parenting philosophy. I’m a yeller, by nature, and while I don’t physically punish the girls, I do sometimes let my attitude and my anger take over. After watching a few of the video lessons with my small group, I couldn’t believe how much I identified with Silk’s parenting philosophy. This is a great read if you’re looking to avoid corporal punishment in favor of teaching kids how to make wise choices and why we do the things we do.
** My non-fiction title for July’s prompt!
33. I’LL BE YOUR BLUE SKY by Marisa de los Santos
★★★★★ | Contemporary Fiction (audiobook)
On the weekend of her wedding, Clare Hobbes meets an elderly woman named Edith Herron. During the course of a single conversation, Edith gives Clare the courage to do what she should have done months earlier: break off her engagement to her charming—yet overly possessive—fiancé. Three weeks later, Clare learns that Edith has died—and has given her another gift. Nestled in crepe myrtle and hydrangea and perched at the marshy edge of a bay in a small seaside town in Delaware, Blue Sky House now belongs to Clare. Though the former guest house has been empty for years, Clare feels a deep connection to Edith inside its walls, which are decorated with old photographs taken by Edith and her beloved husband, Joseph. Exploring the house, Clare finds two mysterious ledgers hidden beneath the kitchen sink. Edith, it seems, was no ordinary woman—and Blue Sky House no ordinary place. With the help of her mother, Viviana, her surrogate mother, Cornelia Brown, and her former boyfriend and best friend, Dev Tremain, Clare begins to piece together the story of Blue Sky House—a decades-old mystery more complex and tangled than she could have imagined. As she peels back the layers of Edith’s life, Clare discovers a story of dark secrets, passionate love, heartbreaking sacrifice, and incredible courage. She also makes startling discoveries about herself: where she’s come from, where she’s going, and what—and who—she loves.
I didn’t even read the description when I downloaded this one from Audible, but Rachel said it was fantastic (and her favorite novel of the year), so I added it to my cart immediately. It’s on the short side for audiobooks and I flew through it in just a few days. It is the sweetest story and you will love the interaction between Claire and Edith, even though it only lasts for a few chapters. I loved hearing their stories in alternating timelines (you know I love this!) and the characters are all so well-developed. What I didn’t realize until after I finished, is that this is the third book in a trilogy?! Thankfully, it reads as a stand alone novel, but I’m definitely back tracking to read the first two books in the series.
34. BEATRICE ZINKER (book one) by Shelley Johannes
★★★★★ | Children’s Fiction
Beatrice does her best thinking upside down. Hanging from trees by her knees, doing handstands . . . for Beatrice Zinker, upside down works every time. She was definitely upside down when she and her best friend, Lenny, agreed to wear matching ninja suits on the first day of third grade. But when Beatrice shows up at school dressed in black, Lenny arrives with a cool new outfit and a cool new friend. Even worse, she seems to have forgotten all about the top-secret operation they planned! Can Beatrice use her topsy-turvy way of thinking to save the mission, mend their friendship, and flip things sunny-side up?
I picked this book to review because the cover and book description reminded me so much of Sophie — I could not have been more right! We are big fans of female heroines around here and the quirkier, the better. Beatrice has a mind of her own and most definitely dances to the beat of her own drum. I love that she dresses like she wants, makes up fun games to play with friends, and never hesitates to go her own way. This is a perfect series (this is book one of two — you can pre-order the follow up book here) for girls ages 7-10 and I love that I can use it reinforce the message for my girls to be themselves, to go out of their way to make new friends, and that no matter what — sisters are the best!
** Thanks to the @kidlitexchange network for the review copy of this book – all opinions are my own.
BOOKS I ABANDONED IN JULY
LOVE WALKED IN by Marisa de los Santos
When Martin Grace enters the hip Philadelphia coffee shop Cornelia Brown manages, her life changes forever. But little does she know that her newfound love is only the harbinger of greater changes to come. Meanwhile, across town, Clare Hobbs—eleven years old and abandoned by her erratic mother—goes looking for her lost father. She crosses paths with Cornelia while meeting with him at the café, and the two women form an improbable friendship that carries them through the unpredictable currents of love and life.
I mentioned above that Blue Sky was a part of a series and since I had plenty of Audible credits this month, I downloaded the first book to listen to after our beach trip. I’m not sure if it’s because Blue Sky was THAT good or if it was a fluke or just not the right time for me, but I could not get into this one at all. It felt silly and forced and so juvenile compared to the content in the third book. Maybe I’ll try again if someone can convince me it gets better (it gets four stars on Amazon?!), but for now, I’m virtually shelving it and moving on with my life!
You know I didn’t set any numerical reading goals for this year, but I still plan to track my numbers, much like I did in 2017.
Total number of books in July: six
Number of fiction books in July: four
Number of nonfiction books in July: two
Number of Audible books in July: two
Books abandoned in July: one
Total number of books this year: thirty-four
Favorite book of 2018: The Book of Essie
Currently reading/listening to: The Girl Who Smiled Beads
Rachel and I are so excited for you to join us this month, for the fifth edition of the Book by Book Link Party! The first week of each month, we’ll share our reading recap from the previous month, along with a linky widget where you can share your own post(s). The widget will be open for the entire month, so feel free to add as many posts as you’d like until the next round begins. Share your reviews, reading roundup posts, gift guides for readers, or anything else book related. Share with your friends and tag us on Instagram — let’s grow another link up together this year.
Want bonus points for reading something outside of your comfort zone? Here is a list of Collaboreads-style reading prompts, just for you!
