This month, I read a total of 7 books. A total of 2,323 pages. For an average of 77.5 pages per day. Let's get into what I read, shall we?
Before We Were Strangers by Renee Carlino (302 pages). Fifteen years ago, Matt moved in next to Grace in the senior dorms at NYU. And for one year, they fell in love. With each other and with New York. And now, fifteen years later, Matt is back in New York, divorced and stuck (despite being a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer). So, when he sees Grace on a subway platform, he tries everything to track her down. Because when you meet your once in a lifetime love and lose them over a misunderstanding, you make sure you don't lose them for a second time. This was a sweet story about what was and what could be. I finished in 2 days.
Dear Evan Hanson by Val Emmich with Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (358 pages). Oddly, this book was inspired by the musical and NOT the other way around! I loved the musical (although the movie version left a lot to be desired, thank you Ben Platt for being too old to play your Tony winning role). And honestly, I was a little worried if I'd like the book. Spoiler alert- I did. The book actually gave even more of what was going on in Evan's head (and in Connor's as well). I finished in 3 days.
The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand (343 pages). Madeline King, a novelist, and Grace Pancik, a gardener extraordinaire, have been best friends for years. But one summer changes everything. Madeline is experiencing writer's block. Until she gets inspired by something that should remain hidden. And Grace is infatuated with her newly designed garden. And the landscape architect who is helping her design it. Nantucket is a small island. Where rumors abound and truths will always come out. Hilderbrand is a master of this genre. And I always like to give her a read in September, when I start feeling the pull of New England. I finished in 4 days.
Wonder by RJ Palacio (313 pages). This was a reread for my book club. And I cannot say enough good things about this book. I loved it as much the second time as I did the first! Auggie Pullman is going into fifth grade. And will be going to an actual school for the first time ever. Because Auggie is different than the other kids. He's got a severe craniofacial condition that has left his face looking, as one kid said, like it melted. He's used to people staring. But he's not used to kids his own age. His experiences his first year are hard to read and also beautiful to read. He sees the mean and the kind. It's a wonderful story of learning to see people with your heart and not just your eyes. Beaucse Auggie is an amazing little man who is smart and funny and loving. He and I also share a birthday, which means he's extra special! The book is from several different POVs, including Auggie, his sister and several of their friends. This book should be required reading for every elementary school because it teaches kids to look past differences. Honestly, it should be required reading for every human being! It was a good reminder of the quote from The Little Prince that is referenced in the book- "it is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." I think this might become a reread every few years as a reminder of life and goodness. The movie is also really good, for those who don't love to read. Although if you don't love to read, why are you reading my blog about books?! I finished in 3 days.
West of Wicked by Nikki St Crowe (306 pages). A darker (and more adult) reimagining of The Wizard of Oz. Dorothy is in her twenties when a cyclone plops her and Toto down in Oz. On her journey down the Yellow Brick Road, she meets Rook, a man who's been beaten and hung like a scarecrow in a field. They are pursued by the mercenary without a heart, the Tin Woodman. The Witch of the West hired him to find Dorothy and the magic slippers. In this Oz, the witches and the Wizard in are cahoots. And the whole land is very dark. Dorothy has always wondered about who left her on Henry and Em's doorstep when she was just a child (in this version, Henry and Em aren't her real uncle and aunt). And maybe Oz holds some answers. I finished in 3 days.
The Maid's Secret by Shari J Ryan (377 pages). Y'all know I love WWII historical fiction! It's 1938 in Czechoslovakia. Mila Leon is a seventeen-year-old Romani gypsy. Benedikt Bohdan is an eighteen-year-old Jewish boy from an aristocratic family. When Mila becomes a maid on the Bohdan estate, they fall in love. Neither of them is a "desirable" in Hitler's Europe. But they have no idea what hell they will have to live through during the ensuing years of war that ravage Europe. I didn't know too much about how Czechoslovakia fared during the War. So, this was an interesting read. I also didn't know too much about the gypsies during the War, other than they too were annihilated. I finished in 5 days.
Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister (324 pages). Cam has a wonderful life- a husband she loves, a job where she thrives and a baby girl who's just off to daycare so that Cam can return to work. But on Cam's first morning back, a hostage situation breaks out. And when the police arrive, she learns that her husband Luke isn't one of the hostages, he's the one holding three people hostage! Hostage negotiator Niall realizes there is more to this situation than meets the eye but can't put it all together before shots ring out. Seven years later, Cam is still trying to wrap her mind around the events of that day. She just can't reconcile the man she loved with a murderer and a fugitive. Slowly, she finds herself drawn into a new search for Luke. And eventually, the truth will come out. As it always does. This one was not what I expected and I really enjoyed it! Lots of good twists. I finished in 6 days.
This month's favorite was......Famous Last Words (only because I felt like I shouldn't pick Wonder. It's not a monthly favorite- it's a full-on, all-time favorite!)
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