8.01.2017

Books I Read in July

Hum If You Don't Know the Words by Bianca Marais
You can read my review here!

A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams
Definitely a good pick for a summer read: a love triangle which predominantly takes place in a seaside community on Rhode Island. I did get a little infuriated with the main character's willful ignorance about the nefarious players in her life, and it was pretty easy to figure out the plot twist by at least halfway through. But, I didn't predict the wild and dramatic way it all came together in the end with the very real hurricane of 1938. Overall, it was a fun book - it read like Elin Hilderbrand decided to write a historical fiction novel.

The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
The story of two people who fall in love on the day of the 9/11 attacks drew me in immediately. As someone who was of a similar age at the time, and became engaged within a couple weeks after that fateful day, I could easily identify with their emotions. But... as the love triangle emerges, I became rather infuriated with main character's poor decision making on MANY LEVELS. It was one I wanted to throw across the room at the end for it's utterly un-redemptive qualities (I refrained, because it was from my beloved library). I won't put any spoilers here as to why, but I will on my Goodreads if you are so inclined!

The Shark Club by Ann Kidd Taylor
I am realizing now that I have read a trio of love triangle stories in July! Must be a common beach read theme... Of the three, I enjoyed this novel the most. Taylor's descriptive writing of Florida and the sea are just lovely. It felt reminiscent of the show Bloodline, with the setting and complex family drama. The main character is also flawed, but she comes to right the mistakes she has made in her life by the end - a wry and unexpectedly bittersweet treat. I also thought that the narrative of shark preservation was enmeshed well into the story, and eye opening.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
My Newberry pick for the month did not disappoint, just as it hadn't when I read it nearly thirty years ago! I had forgotten the gist of the story, and it was wonderful to rediscover such a great character in Kit. Not only does Speare create such a fantastic visual contrast between Kit's home of Barbados and Connecticut, but she takes on really heavy issues that are still so very relevant today: slavery, religious persecution, and feminism. Absolutely a classic for all ages.

Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
When it comes to historical fiction, I'm a sucker for the dual timeline narrative and this one did not disappoint. It is set in present day and 1921 in Tulsa, the latter leading up to the massacre and burning of the black neighborhood Greeenwood. Rowan, a young black girl finds a skeleton in the cottage house floor that her parents are renovating one summer. Then the story bounces back and forth in time as the clues come together to solve the mystery of the body. I furiously turned the pages and waffled on who I thought it was, hoping for it to be certain characters and not others. At the same time, it was a well told coming of age story as Rowan learns about the past, while dealing with an unforeseen tragedy in the present.



9 comments:

  1. I believe I've shared my feelings on A Hundred Summers with you many times! I read it every year! I really enjoyed The Shark Club too! Such a delightful summer read!

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    1. Excellent! Glad to hear you liked it, too :)

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  2. Glad you loved A Hundred Summers! I loved that hurricane ending as well!

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    1. Yes! I think I'd definitely read another of her books, for sure.

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  3. yay! Another good book blog! I just found yours via Modern Mrs Darcy. We are living opposite lives...I'm Seattle born/bred currently living in Chicago.

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    1. Haha! Excellent - I hope you're eating alllll the Portillos for me :)

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  4. Just discovered your blog and I'm going to bookmark it. We have similar tastes in books and I'm a modern mrs darcy fan too.

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  5. I really want to read Dreamland Burning!

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