Do you love the new SUYB logo? I do, and we have the supremely talented Tanya to thank for it (you’ll see the rest of her handiwork in a day or two). 

For those who are new, that’s me and Steph circa 1997, classily drinking what appears to be Boone’s Farms. We went to college together and have basically been friends ever since. It’s actually pretty cool. 

But you’re here for the books so let’s talk books instead walking down memory lane. I had a pretty decent reading month and by that I mean I read some fucking fantastic books that you too need to read. I’m actually quite impressed with me as I read TWO from my NetGalley queue and some new releases as well (and finished my Goodreads goal!). I plan to dig into the bowels of my TBR over the winter so let’s enjoy the new books while we can. 

As always, don’t forget to visit Steph and some of the other bloggers joining us. And we’ll be doing two in December. One is our regularly scheduled SUYB on December 12 and our annual Show Us Your Favorite Books of the Year on December 26. Please don’t feel obligated to join us for both; we know it’s a lot.

So, in no particular order, here’s my books from the last month. All reviews, as always, are copied directly from Litsy but I don’t recommend following me over there because I use it just for record keeping and not at all for what they intended.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. Simply put, this book is fucking amazing and I’m jealous of anyone reading it for the first time. Her writing is gorgeous in its simplicity and emotion. She handles sensitive issues in a non-preachy way and the plot unfolds like a mystery which it sort of is but also not and the storytelling is phenomenal and you legit can’t figure out where it’s going until it gets there. Easily one of the best books I’ve read this year and my shitty review doesn’t do it justice. 

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera. Reading this book in the middle of fresh grief wasn’t the smartest choice but the heartache mixed with optimism and a twist on carpe diem made it time well spent. It’s not easy, reading about dying teenagers, but it’s not supposed to be easy. There is so much tragedy and loss in the story that it hurts, physically, but there’s so much love, too. The sci-fi elements didn’t do it for me (they annoyed me, in fact) but you can suspend belief within the context of the bigger plot and message. 

Caroline by Sarah Miller. This book is written in the same tedious manner as the Little House books with numerous pages devoted to the most mundane details but not nearly as engaging. The book felt split in 2, with the first half being one long, continuous story and the second half as Kansas vignettes. But reading the Ingalls’ story from Ma’s perspective made me understand why she was such an asshole, and the sympathy for her is real and not simply because of Pa’s selfishness and stupidity (although that is a big part of it).

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green. It’s no secret around here that I have a major crush on John Green. So maybe take that with a grain of salt when reading my review but seriously, this book is spectacular. It’s probably one of the best, most accurate, honest, and carefully written books about mental health I’ve read. He touches on all aspects of it, from what it’s like living with OCD and anxiety to loving someone who deals with it. Aza didn’t need to be a teenager to make the story relevant but I’m happy for all the kids like her who have now have someone representing them in a book. Some of the typical YA parts irked me (but I’m 40 so really, that’s expected) and the plot is kind of a mess but I 100% recommend this book. 

Artemis by Andy Weir. I love his writing. It’s smart, sarcastic, and quick. He knows how to construct a hell of an engaging plot and excellent characters and I enjoyed how this one was a thriller with a western feel but in space and the main character was a badass woman. But something fell flat. The breaking of the 4th wall was unnecessary, he tried too hard with the sarcasm at times, and dude, we get it. You’re smart with science. Stop shoving it down our throats. Still, it was a quick, entertaining read even if it did have elements of blah. It’s going to make a great movie (we all know it’s bound to happen). ARC from NetGalley.

The Art of Hiding by Amanda Prowse. Meh. This book was a fine way to pass the time on a plane in in a waiting room. The characters felt underdeveloped and parts of the plot felt rushed and tropey but I liked the premise of Nina learning to care for herself and her boys after the unexpected death of her husband (a plot point that needed way more attention). There’s actually a ton of really good financial lessons tucked into the book so that was a nice surprise. ARC from NetGalley. 

The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne. This book gave me the biggest book hangover I have ever had. I genuinely don’t even know how to review it. It was big, beautifully written, story of a gay Irishman born to a teen mom, adopted by people who didn’t really like him, and who struggled his whole life to accept himself and find happiness. It’s friendship and love and tragedy and family and gay rights told over 70 years. It made me so angry and sad at times but filled with hope and smiles at others. If you’re going to read it, be prepared for the commitment. 

The Financial Diaries by Jonathan Murdoch and Rachel Schneider.  To be honest, this is not a book I expect most people to enjoy. I received it after completing an event at FinCon called FinX, (sponsored by the Center for Financial Services Innovation) where I spent the afternoon conducting financial transactions as an unbanked person. It was incredibly eye opening, but also completely in line with what I find interesting. The book focuses on how people manage their money but rather than reading like actual diaries or an ethnography, it was absolutely 100% a sociological study with TONS of academic research highlighted. It’s a well done book but for me, it wasn’t what I was looking for right now. Had I read it in college or grad school, I probably would have loved it, though. 

Currently reading Ghettoside by Jill Leovy with Lincoln in the Bardo and X up next. 

Now it’s your turn! Show us your books! Nonbloggers, leave a comment with what you’ve read recently that you’d recommend (or one that’s a hard pass)

This was a bizarre month for reading. In the beginning, I read a whole bunch of books very quickly. Then I started A Brief History of Seven Killings and it all went to shit because that book is killing ME. It’s so, so good but so, so dense and each chapter is like 4 pages and written in a different character’s voice and there’s about 97 characters (literally. There’s a cast of characters at the beginning to help you keep track) and it hurts my brain to read. I tried to quit 3 times but it keeps sucking me back in because I HAVE TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS. But also I can’t take it. I’m really torn about what to do. Usually I can DNF a book without thinking but I can’t let this one go. WHAT’S A BOOKWORM TO DO?

I guess while I continue to wrestle with that, we can review all the books I did read this month. As always, my reviews are copied and sometimes embellished from my Litsy reviews

Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy. Whenever an author or band or actor produces something spectacular, it’s hard to imagine what the follow up will be like and it’s hard not to compare it to the previous work (did that make sense?). So it was hard to read this one, the one after Dumplin’, which is AMAZING, with no expectations but it lived up to all of them. Her take on sexuality, class, family, and obligations hit me in all the places and gave me the gamut of feels. You hate some characters, you love others, and you root for Ramona the whole time. Julie Murphy is an incredible storyteller and I love how she makes teenagers real, complex people rather than caricatures. I wish so hard her books existed when I was a teenager. They would have made such a difference to me. 

We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Every idea, every anecdote, every thought is bigger than the 47 pages allow for and it is such an amazing conversation started around the ideas of feminism, culture, and gender roles that it should be required reading for everyone. It takes about 30 minutes to read but you will be thinking about it for hours afterwards. 

The GrownUp by Gillian Flynn. The fuck did I read? This book (does it even qualify as a book?) is simultaneously fucked up and not horrifying at all. I liked the progression of the story from normalish weird to REALLY BIZARRE and it MESSES with your head but I loathed and detested the ending. I would have read this as a full length novel, so there’s that. And it’s short so it’s hard to say not to read it but just know that the ending is a cop out. A big steaming cop out.

Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler. So. This book is probably one of the saddest, most depressing books I have ever read (it gave The Story of Edgar Sawtelle a run for its money and if you’ve read that one, you know it’s a HIGH HIGH bar) but it was also beautiful in its own way. The story of a man’s promising future marred by loss, penance, and familial obligation, it’s told over multiple decades that’s confusing to follow at first but you get used to it. The religious overtones were a bit much but necessary to the overall plot and in the end, they become background noise to the rest of the story. 

August Snow by Stephen Mack Jones. The thriller portion of this book is average, standard, and mostly predictable. What makes this book above average is the writing. It’s gorgeous and poetic and his descriptions of setting make you feel like you’re there. Like, I legit smelled Mexican food the entire time I read this book. I loved how he made Detroit a character as much as the people (like The Wire did with Baltimore) and he address class and racism and gentrification in a way that makes a point without being preachy.

The Half-Life of Remorse by Grant Jarrett. This was an ARC from NetGalley I finally got around to. This book about choices and trying to make things right when you’ve really fucked them up and how actions have bigger consequences than we imagine and loss and the tragic effect of one incident on multiple people is perfectly sad in all the right ways. The alternating POVs didn’t even get on my nerves! and when they all converged into one story, my heart broke. His storytelling is excellent and the simple yet huge plot made for a great read. 

Made for Love by Alissa Nutting. I adore Alissa Nutting as a writer (and independent of her marriage to Dean Bakopoulos because they are two separate and distinct people). She is smart and funny and engaging about topics that are unpleasant and taboo. She has such a way with words that you can’t stop reading. And this book is funny, sad, dark, and social commentary all at once. It was also WEIRD AS FUCK. Like “am I really reading this shit” weird. But good. However, if sex in books bothers you, don’t read it. If it doesn’t then this one is a keeper and a definite add to ye old TBR.

In progress: Ill Will by Dan Chaon 

TL; DR: Ramona Blue, Made for Love, and We Should All Be Feminists are must-adds. August Snow and The Half-Life of Remorse are also good choices but if you prefer lighter reading over the summer, save them for the fall and winter. The others I don’t not recommend but I don’t think they’re high priority reading either. 

Now it’s your turn! Link up or let me know in the comments what you’ve read lately. Don’t forget to visit my co-host, Steph, and some of the other bloggers joining us. Next one is September 12 and in October we’ll be celebrating THREE YEARS of Show Us Your Books!

 

Guys. I am doing this post from my phone because I somehow got locked out of my blog on my laptop and until I can get somewhere with a different IP address and unlock myself, I have no access. And since that will not happen before I have a chance to post, I’m pretty much fucked. 

That said, I apologize if anything is screwy or unclear and I won’t be able to link the books to Goodreads until I get this shit fixed. 

Now. Books. There were 10 this month which is high even for me. Not really sure what happened. I don’t even think I had a DNF even if two came close. 

As always, my reviews are mostly copied from Litsy. Books from NetGalley are designated otherwise I borrowed from the library. 

Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison. This is not an easy book to read. At all. It wasn’t as violent or graphic as I had expected based on some descriptions, which was nice, but those scenes were incredibly difficult to get through especially once you remember how old Bone actually is (I kept thinking she was WAY older). There’s some nonsense and parts I skimmed a bit but overall, it’s a powerful story about choices, abuse, poverty, desperation, family, love, survival, and humanity. Also, if anyone can find the movie version of this, please let me know. I can’t find it anywhere that’s not purchasing it. NOT EVEN THE LIBRARY.

In the Shadow of Alabama by Judy Reene Singer. I wanted to like this book. I did. It tells an important story about family, race, war, and how we’re all haunted by something or someone. But OMG was it boring. The writing didn’t do it for me and I really don’t like horses so those parts were an absolute waste. This would have been a DNF but since it’s based on a real story I kept going mostly to fill in some gaps in the way the narrative was told. Others may like this book but it wasn’t for me.

Since We Fell by Dennis Lehane. I like his storytelling and way with words but this felt like 2 different stories smashed into one. The second half was intense and action packed and thrillery while the first felt more like something I can’t quite describe but definitely not a thriller. While I liked the book and characters, it didn’t turn out at all like it was set up at the beginning, which is fine, but it felt unnatural. Like I was conned. Which is oddly relevant to the plot.

The You I’ve Never Known by Ellen Hopkins. I love Ellen Hopkins and her ability to write a story and characters you can’t put down, even when the size of the book starts to hurt your hands. Her rawness, her emotions, and her willingness to share her life, even in a fictitious way, makes me admire her bravery even if the poetry thing is old. I did like how she wove prose into this book, and her opinions on Planned Parenthood and Scientology were also a bit unusual for her but very welcomed. And thanks to whomever first mentioned her books. I found her through this linkup and I’m now a huge fan.

The Long Haul: A Trucker’s Tale of Life on the Road by Finn Murphy. This book reminded me of Hillbilly Elegy in the sense of it being a sociological study but with the lens of a memoir. It combines trucking history, personal stories, and industry information, touches on some modern issues like sprawl and racism and our accumulation of cheap stuff, and overall, is just a good book. Even if you don’t have truckers in your family, it makes for a fascinating read. Fun fact: my husband read this right after I did and finished it in 4 days. He NEVER reads books that quickly.

Small Hours by Jennifer Kitses. I received this as an ARC from NetGalley. This is a perfectly fine book that passes the time just fine. The writing is good, the plot is strong, the characters are horrible in a likable way even when you want to punch them in the face. I liked the concept of parallel stories about secrets and lies taking place over a single day and told from alternating POV but the ending stunk. Cliffhangers have their place. This was not one of them. 

The Dinner by Herman Koch. I did not like this book at all. I didn’t find it amusing or smartly satirical or a commentary on anything other than a shitty plot with horrible characters. It reveled in the mundane and useless and skimmed over and rushed through the few parts that were actually enjoyable and kept it from being a big fat DNF. The ending sucked, too, which was disappointing because I was hoping for some sort of big payoff for the rest of the crap I read.

Penance by Kanae Minato. While this book wasn’t quite as good as Confessions, it was still an excellent, dark book about murder and choices and actions and consequences and responsibility and the effects of trauma and words on children and adults. I loved the way each chapter built on the one before and how she wove each girl’s story into the others’. The narrative felt natural and progressive and I read it in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down.

Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon. It feels like I’m the last person to read this. It reminded me of a lighter, quirkier The Fault in Our Stars. Similar premise but definitely its own book. I definitely had feels even when I figured out what exactly was going on so that’s telling and her storytelling was unique and made the book fun to read. However, it felt like a typical YA book and there could have been some more developed parts that were glossed over instead. Still, I recommend. 

Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin. Her ideas and theories about habits are fascinating to me and I loved reading through the book with an idea (I took the quiz) of my Tendency (Rebel with Questioner leanings. This should not be a surprise to anyone who knows me). It put so much into perspective and thinking about how I approach habit changes is different now. That said, this is not a book to be read once and absorb everything. To fully get what you need, this is one that requires several rereads or a binge of her blog because there is so much information. Also, and if I’m being completely honest, I feel like if I knew her in person, I wouldn’t like her. She is not any fun. Like, at all and I definitely read the book with that in mind. But to her credit, she owns it. OH! And did anyone else get RAGE-INDUCING ANNOYED with how often she mentioned her sister is a TV writer? WE GET IT, GRETCHEN. 

TL; DR. Penance, Since We Fell, The You I’ve Never Known are all must reads for me. I’d say the Gretchen Rubin book but I’m like the last person to read it so no need. Avoid The Dinner because the place has rats and will give you food poisoning. 

Currently reading: A Brief History of Seven Killings. On the list for the next month: Ramona Blue, August Snow, Saint Maybe, and some NetGalley books before NetGalley disowns me.

Now it’s your turn! Let me know what you’ve read and make sure you visit Steph and some other bloggers. And brace your Goodreads TBR.