I STILL have not quite figured out how best to write book review blog posts. Ideally, I would do one once a month and recap all the books I’ve read that month. And yet it seems like that just doesn’t happen. And if I wait two months, there are too many books to review! I certainly can’t do it quarterly/seasonally because then I have way too many books to review. I have thought about just reviewing my 5 star reads, but I don’t think that is fair to readers, because something that is a 2 star read for me may become your favorite book ever based on my review! I have also thought about doing multiple book posts a month with more concentrated review (memoir, romance, contemporary fiction, etc) buuuuut as you can guess there is no way I could keep up to with that! So…here we are. Recapping all my summer reads in just one blog post. If you love books, this one is for you. If you don’t love to read, skip on!
When I typically read, I read through my TBR alphabetically. You can read about that in my blog post here. But during the summer I tend to veer from this slightly and instead do more mood reading, or read the books that I’ve been wanting to read for a long time. I also love to get my hands on super new contemporary summer releases. At the beginning of this summer, Modern Mrs. Darcy published a summer reading TBR and I immediately set to work trying to read through it. I also love following Everyday Reading and get lots of great book ideas from her lists as well.
Modern Mrs. Darcy had 42 books on her summer reading guide. I had already read 2 of the books on the guide before the summer began. And there were a handful of books from the guide that I knew were not my style at all. But I ended up with a summer reading guide of 48 books. I knew I wasn’t going to read that many books, but I was happy to begin tackling the list! I did end up reading 33 books in June, July and August.
Here is a breakdown of the ones I loved, the ones I liked, and the ones that were just not for me.
LOVED
The Heir & The Crown
Ok, this series is so cheesy that I know a lot of people dislike it. I honestly loved it, although some books were better than others. I read the first three and disliked the ending of the third one, so completely forgot to pick up and read the last two until this summer. I really loved the last two and the character growth and arc, plus the realistic world building. It’s kind of like the bachelor (selection) meets The Hunger Games, but also clean and not overly dramatic.
Thank You For Listening
I am HERE for rom-coms that have depth and substance alongside the romance. LOVE IT. This is a new release about an audio book narrator who had grand dreams for her life until an accident changed it all. Now she does what she does well, but doesn’t feel like “herself”. She meets another audio book narrator who also grapples with his identity and together they work. It was sweet but also packed with deep and meaningful conversations. Loved it. Open door descriptions of the books that she reads, since she narrates romance audio books.
The Happy Ever After Playlist
See above- a rom-com with substance- I AM HERE FOR IT! This book had a similar vibe to “Thank You For Listening” except this time we meet a normal woman who has gone through a tragic loss. Through a dog, she meets and begins to fall in love with a man- but he’s not a normal man- he’s very, very famous. They grapple with how to make it work and it’s not all rainbows and butterflies for a long period of their relationship. Again, I just love how we have romance and we know it’s going to end happily ever after, but this book left me wondering HOW it was going to end up being ok. And I love that, because it felt more like real life than many other rom-coms I’ve read. Also has some open door scenes, but easy to skip.
The Day the World Came to Town
I’m a sucker for any book that is written around the events of 9/11. There is something about the stories of the people who witnessed and lived through that day that get to me every single time. So this book was a favorite of mine! Many planes were re-routed to New Foundland on 9/11 and the town with a tiny population took in these unexpected refugees for over a week. They grew together, bonded, and bent over backwards to help one another. This one is also a Broadway play and I have never been interested in seeing a Broadway play until now!
Bomb Shelter
This was a reflective memoir- the type of memoir that doesn’t really tell any kind of plot line story, but just lets us in on another human’s rambling thoughts through life. Sometimes these are hit or miss for me, depending on how much I have in common with the author, but this one was a direct hit. She begins the books by telling about the time that her teenage son unexpectedly started having seizures and was diagnosed with epilepsy, which is exactly how a year of my life went as a teen when my brother began having seizures and was diagnosed with epilepsy. I loved the perspective of this author who is a few years ahead of me in marriage and motherhood. As always, there were a few chapters that were boring and unrelateable, but overall I just loved this author’s thoughts.
Take My Hand
A FAVORITE OF THE SUMMER. This was a historical fiction novel based on a new article about two sisters who had been sterilized without their consent in the 1970s. This book was raw and powerful and touched on race, and class, and how we judge one another based on preconceived notions. In my opinion, this is a must read!
I Guess I Haven’t Learned that Yet
Another memoir that doesn’t have a plot, just reflections on the author’s life. The whole premise of this book is that Shauna Niequest reached a point in her life where things were falling apart, even after everything had been going nearly perfectly for decades. As she processed the pain and trauma, she began to teach herself to say “I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet”. This was so encouraging to me as someone who is constantly trying to achieve the “arrival” status of someone who has “learned that”. This did have a fair share of pandemic reflection, so beware if you aren’t ready for that yet.
Lessons in Chemistry
Pretty sure you have heard of this one by now! It’s about a woman chemist in the 1950s- who blows apart all stereotypes. This was quirky and thoughtful and although there were some things I didn’t love about the book (focused on atheism as a scientist) there was so much to see and take in here that I enjoyed reading such a unique book!
Becoming
I don’t necessarily politically align with the Obamas, so I thought maybe this book wouldn’t be for me but boy was I wrong! This was SUCH a great book. Michelle Obama is classy and an amazing woman who has done so much for her husband, family and our country. I loved this memoir and couldn’t put it down!
The Firekeepers Daughter
Although this book had some very tough themes to work through (how Native Americans are treated, rape, drugs, alcohol, kidnapping) it also managed to touch on so many of those in a realistic and lighthearted way. It showed that real people and real teenagers are going through this type of trauma AND YET there is still more to the Native American culture than drink and mistreatment. There is so much beauty in their traditions and their family ways. I really enjoyed this book, although I am cautious about who should read it just because it has so many heavy themes.
Where the Crawdads Sing
I think maybe this one has been a tad bit overhyped, but I still enjoyed it. It is the story of a marsh girl who is abandoned by her family for years in the marshes. She makes a life for herself and knows the marshes and it’s wildlife inside and out. She meets a boy who teaches her to read and their lives weave in and out from each other as they grow up. Inside this story of nature and trauma and healing is also a mystery of a young man who is murdered. I gasped out loud at the last page when the murderer was revealed. It’s such a masterful book because it doesn’t feel like a mystery or a thriller or a romance but when you close the last page you feel like you read all three.
These Happy Golden Years
This isn’t my favorite of the Little House Books, but the whole series are just some of my favorite books of all time, so they all get a spot in the “love it” category. Tera and I have been reading through these together for about two years now and we finally finished them all this summer!
LIKED
The Island of Sea Women
This was a fascinating historical fiction read about the divers of a South Korean island. I learned SO MUCH about the historical time period from a perspective that I had never read before. The only reason I didn’t love this one was because I felt like the fiction got lost in the history. It was a very sad story of much loss and trauma and overcoming and that made it a not enjoyable- albeit necessary- read.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian
This was such an interesting book, and I enjoyed reading about a young Native American man and his perspective of growing up and leaving a reservation. It was quirky and had lots of cartoon drawings (think Diary of a Wimpy Kid), but that also isn’t really my style. There was some crass content and I didn’t really enjoy that.
Fake It Till You Bake It
This was a cute rom-com, but so much like all the other rom-coms that I can’t quite remember the plot points. Snarky beautiful woman walks into a cupcake shop run by an NFL player and has nothing good to say. But then gets hired to work there and turns the place around while falling in love with hulky football player who runs a cupcake shop. Cute read for when you need something that requires zero brain work.
The Year of Magical Thinking
At first, I loved this book. The memoir of Joan losing her husband was so gripping, I felt like I was there with her. But as the book went on, it turned into a lot of famous people name-dropping and Joan chronicling the year that she dealt with her grief over suddenly losing her husband. The only problem is that the way that she dealt with her grief as a famous, rich person are ways that are completely unaccessible to the average person (like me).
The Cartographers
I like this one, but there were too many pieces that weren’t tied together that kind of bogged me down. It begins with a young Cartographer whose mother died when she is young and whose father has been estranged from her over some fight over a box of “junk”. She has just found out that her father unexpectedly passed away, and they begin to suspect foul play. As she digs into her parent’s pasts, she discovers secrets she has never known. I think where this book lost me was when we took a turn towards magical realism where the map can make things appear and disappear. It was just a lot for me to keep track of. Super interesting and unique premise, but just not my favorite.
100 Things We’ve Lost to the Internet
This was a cute and quirky little coffee table style book. The author talks about 100 things we’ve lost to the internet. I found myself laughing out loud and reminiscing a lot! I did find that sometimes it felt like the book was just repeat complaining about the way things used to be, but overall I did enjoy reading it.
The Namesake
This book popped up for me but as I read it I learned it is not my style. It is character based and not plot based, and follows a young man whose parents immigrated to the United States. He grapples with his culture and identity- and his name. I didn’t love this book, and I think that the only reason I liked it was because I could relate as a third culture kid (a kid who grew up in a different culture than my passport country).
Four Aunties and a Wedding
This book is a sequel in a series, but could be read stand-alone. It was absolutely ridiculous. The plot involves a young lady who is about to be married and her 3 aunties + Mom who seem intent on ruining her perfect wedding day. It turns out that they actually save the day. This book made me feel like I was watching an episode of The Three Stooges meets Crazy Rich Asians! Absolutely ridiculous and you have to suspend belief to enjoy this one.
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter
This was a beautiful and haunting story of a doctor who delivers his own twins- one is nuerotypical, and one has Down’s syndrome. His wife is unconscious during the delivery of the twin and only the doctor and the attending nurse know about her and her condition. She is asked to dispose of the baby but secretly runs and decides to keep her instead. The book then follows the parallel lives of the twins and their families and what secrets and lies and grief can do. It was powerful, but also very sad.
Love Lettering
Another cute rom-com about a woman who works at a stationary shop and can see things about her clients. She then designs their stationery with hidden messages inside. She ruined one wedding this way, and when the groom shows back up in her shop they strike up an unlikely friendship and get into all sorts of romance and trouble together. It was cute, but also had to put aside some eye rolling.
The Kindest Lie
This is a powerful story about race, climbing the ladder of success, keeping family secrets, and still going back to your roots. I thought it was a powerful story but for reason it felt too disjointed for me to really be pulled into it. Hopefully other people felt differently, because I think it could be an excellent book and make for some great discussions!
WASN’T FOR ME
The Lazy Genius Kitchen
I am SO SAD to write this review, because I loved Kendra’s first book! It all made so much sense to me and had so much valuable information. This one was SO overwhelming. There are principles and then there are guidelines and then there is a recipe but it’s not a cookbook. And then there are guides to doing this and that but it didn’t really feel like I was told what to do. Basically, this book was not for me. I’ve heard great review from plenty of other people, so hopefully someone out there got something from this book!
Made in China
This is the memoir of a young girl who is brought to the United States at age 7 to live with her immigrant mother and new step family. She is abused and mistreated from day 1, and is even forced to work in her mother’s garment factory. She continues the memoir through adulthood and begins to touch on how she has chosen to walk through healing. This book didn’t work for me because it felt like there was so much left hanging and even as we got to her adult life I didn’t feel any type of closure. The book itself skipped around in the timeline a lot, so it was frequently hard to follow where we were at in her life.
The Glass Hotel
Pretty sure I picked this up thinking it was a different book, and it was not. The title makes it seem like this is about a hotel, but the hotel only briefly appears in the story. This is really the story of two step siblings who experienced trauma growing up and are now trying to become functional adults but haven’t really succeeded. It was so sad and I just didn’t think there was any plot to hold up the sadness. Not for me.
French Braid
You know if you have to google the book synopsis to remember what it was about, that this wasn’t the book for you? Yep. That’s me right now. This is the story of a family with three kids who go through life. That’s all I got from the synopsis and I STILL don’t remember what I was reading about in this book. Clearly not for me.
The Divorce Colony
Admittedly, I skimmed most of this book because it was very repetitive. It is about a group of women who made their way to South Dakota, gain residency and divorce their husbands through a loophole law in South Dakota. This loophole law attracted hundreds of women who wanted to divorce their husbands, but couldn’t do it legally in their home state- creating a colony of women seeking divorces. Obviously, some people loved this (great for business) and some people hated having this colony. This book missed the mark for me, though, because while the concept is SO interesting, the entire book just focused on four women and went into great historical depth about their stories without really addressing the whole situation of the colony. I found each story incredibly repetitive and not very interesting, to be honest. I am fascinated by this concept, but think I would rather read an article about it than this book.
The Unschooling Handbook
hI ad this on my shelf for a long time and finally read through it. Interesting information about unschooling, but not for me.
Olympus, Texas
I HATED this book. It’s about dysfunctional family who just mistreats each other. Cheats on each other’s wives. Then beats each other up. Have illegitimate children, who have some kind of relationship with one another. Leave town. Come back. Try to make amends but make it worse. That’s it. That’s the whole plot. Why do people love and recommend this book? I don’t know.
Happy Go Lucky
Another book of essays- some I enjoyed, but most I wasn’t a big fan of.
Empire of Pain
This book is HUGE lately and I think the content is fascinating- about how the Sackler family created a drug that takes away pain and spent years advertising that there are no side effects. When it finally became clear that it caused serious addiction problems, they were already too wealthy and powerful to bear any responsibility. It is a jaw-dropping, fascinating story, but this book was SO LONG and detailed and way too drawn out to keep my interest. I wish that there was an abridged version because then I would be recommending it to many more people!
And that is a wrap! If you made it all the way to the end of that post, you deserve a medal!! What books from this list have you read? Did you add any to your TBR from this list? I would love to hear what you are reading now!