September TBR

This is a somewhat challenging TBR because I am having guests visit for a week and will be able to get little reading accomplished. However, these are the books I want/need to read so this is my TBR.

1. Under the Painted Sky by Stacey Lee
2. Almost Love by Louise O'Neill
3. The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa translated by Steven Snyder
4. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
5. The Wanderers by Chuck Wendig (an 800 page behemoth!)
6. The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
7. The Forest City Killer by Vanessa Brown
8. To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
9. The Chain by Adrian McKinty

August Wrap up #3

Since I've updated you, I've read three more books.

I picked up An Unrestored Woman by Shoba Rao which is a collection of paired short stories focusing on the partition of India and Pakistan. While I knew little about the historical event, I don't felt this shed much light on it. The stories were overall bleak but forgettable. I gave the collection 2 stars.

Then I listened to the audiobook of The Binding by Bridget Collins. This is a magical realism story about book bindings. People go to a book binder to remove unwanted memories and store them safely in a book. The book is about Emmett, who becomes a bookbinder apprentice and learns there's a book with his name on it. What did he choose to forget? It was gripping, beautifully written, with lovely and flawed characters. I really enjoyed it and know I'll want to reread in the future. I gave it 4.5 stars.

Lastly, I read Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell. This is a YA fantasy about Kellen who lives in a society where magic=power and he has very little. He uses trickery to enhance his small amount of magic. This was very fast paced and made me want to pick up the next in the series. I gave it 4 stars.

With only about a week left in the month, I'm unsure if I'll finish anything else before September.

Mid-Year Check In on Resoutions

I'm a bit late with this, but I thought I'd check in with my resolutions to let you know how it's going so far.

Goal 1: Complete 40 books for the Popsugar Challenge- I've completed 35 out of 40 challenges.

Goal 2: Complete 24 books for the Read Harder Challenge- I've completed 22 out of the 24 challenges.

Goal 3: Accept, read, and review at least 6 ARCS- I've accepted 6, but I still have 2 left to read and review.

Goal 4: Read at least 2 books from my owned TBR each month- I've read 23 so far which is definitely ahead of schedule.

Goal 5: Read at least 5 translated books- Knocked this out of the park. I've read 8 so far.

I'm kicking ass at my challenges even though I completely forgot about my fourth and fifth goals. I'm already thinking about goals for next year.

August Wrap Up Week #2

This past week I've read four books.

The first I finished was Nomadland by Jessica Bruder. This is a nonfiction book focusing on older and poor Americans who used to have stable jobs and homes but due to the Great Recession of 2008, they've have been forced into a nomadic lifestyle. These people sold their homes (usually at a great loss) or had them foreclosed. They then live in a van, RV, camper, or bus driving around finding temporary work which was grueling and usually provided little money and no insurance. While I found the topic fascinating, I took issue with how the author wrote about this sad phenomenon. She portrayed these individuals as adventurers embarking on a exciting prospect rather than rootless, destitute elderly people pushing themselves until they die because they can't afford retirement or a home. I gave the book 3 stars.


The next book I read was The Murmur of Bees by Sofia Segovia translated by Simon Bruni. This was a beautifully written, magical realism story about a family living in Mexico during the revolution and Spanish flu epidemic. The story follows a boy named Simonipio who can communicate with bees and see glimpses of the future. He tries to use this knowledge to keep his adopted family safe from the dangers around him. It was a lovely sweeping family saga and I gave it 4.5 stars.


Then I picked up a short story collection titled Dawn by Selahattin Demirtas translated by Amy Marie Spangler and Kate Ferguson. This was written by a Turkish political prisoner who currently has a sentence of 183 years. He wrote stories of things he knew to be true in the Middle East, especially with women having little freedoms. The first story called Sehar is horrifying and immediately wounded me as it is about a honor killing. Some of the other stories don't seem as well thought-out, almost more like a prompt than a complete story. I gave the collection 3 stars.

The last book I picked up was a graphic novel called As the Crow Flies by Melanie Gillman. This is a graphic novel about a dark-skinned girl who is questioning her sexuality at an all-white Christian camp. I think this could be powerful to other young girls who are struggling to find a way for religion and sexuality to harmoniously coincide, but as an adult, I felt the story was lacking an ending. I ended up giving the book 2 stars.

August Wrap Up Week 1

I've read 4 things this week. A short story, a manga, a biography, and a favorite of the year.

I picked up The Best Girls by Min Jin Lee on Amazon because I have prime so it was available to "check out" for free. It was 18 pages of the role of girls and women in an Asian society. It was marked as a horror but only became horrifying at the very end. I enjoyed the twist and the writing. I gave it 3.5 stars.

Then, after five months on my library holds list,  I listened to Becoming by Michelle Obama. I like that she narrated herself and found joy in some of the tidbits she shared, like Barack was always running late and never picked up his socks/mess. The first half was more enjoyable than the second as it felt more like a story in the beginning but devolved into a list of events. Overall, a good read. I gave it 4 stars.

Concurrently, I read Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton. This is one of my favorite books I've read this year. The story is about a young man growing up in Australia, his life immersed in a criminal drug ring. His babysitter is a ex-convict who was charged with murdering a taxi driver. His brother is mute and his parents sell heroin. This was zany, poignant, and just a wonderful coming of age story. I gave it 5 stars.

Lastly, I picked up Monster volume 2 by Naoki Urasawa. This is a manga following a doctor who chooses to save the life of a young boy instead of a politician. The little boy is a monster, a serial killer who repays the doctor by killing anyone the doctor has a problem with. However, it just looks like the doctor is the serial killer and the police suspect him. This continues on from the first volume. I gave it 3.5 stars.

ARC Review of The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

I received an ARC of The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri. This book is about a married couple, Nuri and Afra, who have lost their young child to the war in Syria and decide to flee to England. This book is told in two timelines, the present where they are living in England, applying for asylum, and the past journey of leaving Syria and all the hardships they faced. This novel examines the difficulties of fleeing a war-torn country and really gives refugees a voice. This story helps people in safe countries understand more about why refugees want to come to a new country--even with all the problems that arise.

This story was heartbreaking; examining PTSD and grief in a really palpable way. I really grew attached to the characters and wanted so badly for everything to work out. I will say the only thing I wish was different was it didn't include much background info about Syria or their civil war. I didn't know much about it and had to Google for some answers on reasons behind the fighting. I gave this book 4 stars.

This book will be published on August 27, 2019 and I encourage you to pick it up.