Does anyone even remember me anymore? I know I have been terrible about this. This post was initially entitled “Summer Reading.” Ha!
In the interest of getting this published, I’m putting just simple descriptions. No pictures; no excerpts; no links unless I’d already put them.
There were a few months during summer and early fall that I wasn’t reading much, but I’ve picked up my speed lately. I hope this is still good info for some of you.
2020 vs. 2021
My year-long total is 80 books! In 2020, I also read 80 books, but given there were a few non-reading months this year, I’d say I did ok. I also mostly read Fiction, which was a reversal from last year.
2020 SUMMARY: Fiction: 31 Nonfiction: 49 Total read: 80 books
2021 SUMMARY: Fiction: 51 Nonfiction: 29 Total read: 80 books
Latest reads
The Reading List: A Novel by Sara Nisha Adams
Cool concept… one list of 6 books and how they impact two primary characters and a few others. All about connections between people and surprisingly tender.
One Hundred Names by Cecilia Ahern
Sort of a mystery investigation to solve, uncovering people’s stories. 4 stars.
“Every single ordinary person has an extraordinary story. We might all think that we are unremarkable, that our lives are boring, just because we aren’t doing ground-breaking things or making headlines or winning awards. But the truth is we all do something that is fascinating, that is brave, that is something we should be proud of. Every day people do things that are not celebrated. That is what we should be writing about. The unsung heroes, the people that don’t believe they are heroes at all because they are just doing what they believe they have to do in their lives.’”
The Time of My Life by Cecilia Ahern
A real-live appointment with “Life,” who revamps most things about your current path. 3 stars.
“How else do you think life happens? A series of coincidences and occurrences have to happen somehow. Our lives all crash and collide and you think there’s no reason or rhyme to it? If there wasn’t any reason for it all, what would be the point? Why do you think anything happens at all? There is an outcome, repercussions and occurrences to everybody you meet and everything you say.”
59 Memory Lane by Celia Anderson
Told from various points of view, with likable characters and an interesting story. Enchanting story about growing older, finding love, and truly living. 3 stars.
The Personal Librarian: A Novel by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
I enjoyed this story of a young woman who passes as white, becomes J.P. Morgan’s personal librarian for his private art and manuscripts collection, supports her family, falls in and out of love, and ultimately determines what she finds most meaningful. I consider any Marie Benedict novel a treat and read this one in short bits to make it last longer! 4 stars.
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
Brilliant. How Doerr kept up with the characters and time periods I’ll always admire. 4 stars.
Eighty Days to Elsewhere by kc dyer
Interesting concept for a story and I liked that the main character was determined to succeed but allowed for discovery and romance.
Bring Your Baggage and Don’t Pack Light by Helen Ellis
Humorous essays about empty nest years, but sort of obvious, which annoyed me. 2 stars.
Middle School Matters: The 10 Key Skills Kids Need… by Phyllis Fagell
Lots of physical, social, emotional, intellectual, moral change during this time. How parents teach kids how to make good choices, regulate emotions, etc. 4 stars.
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler
Snippets of tales from Fowler’s past as she remember them, with love and loss along the way. Ultimately rather sad. 3 stars.
Your Second Life Begins When You Realize You Only Have One by Raphaelle Giordano
A French story that I listened to on Audible and enjoyed. All about self-discovery, one slow change at a time. Sounds like Mussar!
The Anthropocene Reviewed: Essays on a Human-Centered Planet by John Green
Excellent essays on our current geologic age. 4 stars.
“I think it is also hard for us to confront human-caused climate change because the most privileged among us, the people who consume the most energy, can separate ourselves from the weather. I am certainly one such person. I am insulated from the weather by my house and its conditioned air. I eat strawberries in January. When it is raining, I can go inside. When it is dark, I can turn on lights. It is easy for me to feel like climate is mostly an outside phenomenon, whereas I am mostly an inside phenomenon. But that’s all a misconception. I am utterly, wholly dependent on what I imagine as the outside world. I am contingent upon it. For humans, there is ultimately no way out of the obligations and limitations of nature. We are nature. And so, like history, the climate is both something that happens to us and something we make.”
The Beauty in Breaking: A Memoir by Michele Harper
Life lessons from an emergency room doctor. 4 stars.
“From childhood to now, I have been broken many times. I suspect most people have. In practicing the Japanese art of Kintsukuroi, one repairs broken pottery by filling in the cracks with gold, silver, or platinum. The choice to highlight the breaks with precious metals not only acknowledges them, but also pays tribute to the vessel that has been torn apart by the mutability of life. The previously broken object is considered more beautiful for its imperfections. In life, too, even greater brilliance can be found after the mending.”
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Girl and Boy best friends who fell in love and think they ruined everything. I felt their emotions while reading. 4 stars.
“I’ve put so much time and distance between myself and that lonely girl, and what does it matter? Here is a piece of my past, right in front of me, miles away from home. You can’t outrun yourself. Not your history, not your fears, not the parts of yourself you’re worried are wrong.”
Middle School Makeover by Michelle Icard
Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe by Laura Lynne Jackson
“The central principle of this book is that the universe brings the people, information, and events me most need into our paths. Powerful, guiding forces exist that steer us toward happier and more authentic lives.”
13 Little Blue Envelopes and The Last Little Blue Envelope – 2 YA Novels by Maureen Johnson
Listing these here because I read them by myself and really liked them! SG read them at school and I looked forward to catching up with her progress each day so we could talk about it.
Seed to Dust: A Gardener’s Story by Marc Kamer
I listened to audiobook and loved the poetry of the seasons, descriptions, and the self-awareness of the writer. 5 stars.
Out of the Depths by Israel Meir Lau
Former Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of Israel has quite a life story, beginning in Buchenwald. Very impressive book. 5 stars.
“We achieve this peace not through the highest echelons of authority, but rather through personal contact between individuals and with humanitarian gestures. This is the true power of influence—when relationships between people encourage leaders to meet together and reach mutual understanding, friendship, and eventually, real and lasting peace.”
The Opposite of Spoiled: Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous, and Smart About Money by Ron Lieber
I’d read this before but it seemed much more on-topic now that SG is older so I listened to it again on audiobook. Great practical suggestions!
The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin
Really enjoyed this story set in a WWII London bookshop, probably because I like rags to riches-type adventures. And books about bookstores. 3 stars.
On Being 40(ish): Fifteen Writers on the Prime of Their Lives by Lindsey Mead
“The grappling with adulthood, in all of its beauties and losses, is remarkably universal. We are all accepting that there are things that will never be, just as we look around and acknowledge what is. That acknowledgment runs the gamut from a full-on embrace to wholehearted rejection. There’s also a shadow over our days of what’s to come—mortality hovers around our experience now, and an awareness that the days ahead of us may not be longer than the days behind. Forty feels like we’ve come to the top of the Ferris wheel: the view is dazzling, in no small part because we know how quickly the descent will go.”
Hell of a Book: A Novel by Jason Mott
Winner of the 2021 National Book Award. A Black author sets out on a book tour, encountering possibly his younger self along the way, and various memories. Excellent exploration of recent racism, police brutality, etc.
“Anything worthwhile takes time. Maybe that’s what time is for: to give meaning to the things we do; to create a context in which we can linger in something until, finally, we have given it something invaluable, something that we can never get back: time. And once we’ve invested the most precious commodity that we will ever have, it suddenly has meaning and importance. So maybe time is just how we measure meaning.”
The Peacock Emporium: A Novel by Jojo Moyes – I’d read this before as well but it was a fun audiobook to hear again.
The Giver of Stars: A Novel by Jojo Moyes
Historical fiction of a woman who crosses the world because of an ill-decided marriage. Also interesting about the women who started up the first Kentucky mobile library during the US Depression. 3 stars.
Happy Campers: 9 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Kids Who Become Thriving Adults by Audrey Monke
Very helpful with transition to independent living, written by a camp director. 4 stars.
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
Weird but short read. Girl learns to do what’s best for herself, despite society’s expectations. 2 stars.
The Lost Apothecary – Sarah Penner
Quite predictable but a good story nonetheless. Current day woman with marriage issues finds a vial that belonged to someone who helped women kill their unfaithful husbands via poison. 2 stars.
Julia Quinn romances: 16 different audiobooks, including the entire Bridgerton series. Not my usual fare, but entertaining.
The Printed Letter Bookshop by Katherine Reay – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read this same plot… but I keep coming back to it! Woman inherits bookstore, overcomes struggles, makes friends and finds love. This one was surprisingly tender.
Park Avenue Summer – Renee Rosen
The Social Graces: A novel by Renée Rosen – Mrs. Alva Vanderbilt (new money) and Mrs. Caroline Astor’s (knickerbocker-old money) notorious battle for control of New York society during the Gilded Age. Really fun to read. 4 stars.
How To Get Away by Jon Staff & Pete Davis
Read this one at their “Getaway” cabins an hour from our house. All about pioneers of nature and why humans need much more time outside. They have a really cool vision of how to balance our lives.
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
Amazing. Still thinking about the characters and their disappointing beginnings. 5 stars.
“Wouldn’t it have been wonderful, thought Woolly, if everybody’s life was like a piece in a jigsaw puzzle. Then no one person’s life would ever be an inconvenience to anyone else’s. It would just fit snugly in its very own, specially designed spot, and in so doing, would enable the whole intricate picture to become complete.”
There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura
This girl takes quite random positions for three months or so and meets some interesting people. She ultimately learns a great deal about herself. 2 stars.
“Nobody’s life was untouched by loneliness; it was just a question of whether or not you were able to accept that loneliness for what it was. Put another way, everyone was lonely, and it was up to them whether they chose to bury that loneliness through relationships with other people, and if so, of what sort of intensity and depth.”
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Wow wow wow. Such a great story with lots of interesting science but also friendship. Highly recommend.
The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams
Female-related words and words from the lower-classes were omitted from the OED originally. Make it historical fiction and toss in some life lessons. 3 stars.
For school:
A Short History of the Jews by Michael Brenner: Excellent
Pirkei Avot: A Social Justice Commentary by Shmuly Yanklowitz: I’ve admired Rabbi Y for many years. This book is excellent descriptions of each mishnah.
Back to the Sources: Reading the Classic Jewish Texts by Barry Holtz
YA Reads:
Out of My Heart by Sharon Draper: This is a YA novel and a sequel to Out of My Mind. Worth waiting for! We also read Room to Dream by Kelly Yang (sequel to Front Desk and Three Keys), the Cassandra Jones set, several by Jessica Brody, Leslie Margolis, and Rachel Vail.
