As is usually the case, summer is flying by more quickly than I’d like. But that’s part of the reason I love to document my days and activities. It reminds me what I’ve done with the time that I’ve had. And so, here’s a bit of an update from my reading journal since I wrote my Summer Book Basket post.
I read Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez which I didn’t like as much as I hoped I would. There were too many, very specific references to Puerto Rico and Puerto Rican culture so that, while I learned a lot, I’m sure I missed out on a lot of nuance in the story. It was too distracting to keep googling everything. And the same with details of specific NYC neighbourhoods. I did really love the main characters though, how they, and their relationships, were developed .
I read The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, a classic WWII love story. Four stars on Goodreads.
No on my original list, but I read Piranesi by Susanna Clarke which I loved. Five stars. Please read this book. The concept is unique and so well written. The metaphor is incredible. I’m sure I’ll read it again some day.
I’m slowly making my way through The Carbon Almanac. We have two copies in the house, and several of us are reading them, so I can’t always get me hands on one! I’m still so proud of what we created. It’s already sparked great conversations about climate, which is exactly the purpose of it.
When I’m not reading The Carbon Almanac I’m making my way through Keep Going by Austin Kleon. I’m reading with a pencil in hand, underlining and highlighting sections as I read. It’s the third of his books and I’ve read the first two. His second book Show Your Work is one of the reasons this blog exists.
I’m waiting for Station 11 by Emily St. John Mandel from the library. In the meantime, I have Goodbye to Budapest by Margarita Morris lined up. The subtitle is “A Novel of the Hungarian Uprising”, a subject about which I know very little.
And finally, my pre-ordered copy of In Isolation: Dispatches from Occupied Donbas has arrived. It looks fascinating: a combination of articles, historical timeline and photographs. But also obviously a very heavy subject matter. I’m going to leave it until the fall.
Stationery in the Photo
P.S. A good source for finding new reads. Read all the way through to the comments.
