Five Amazing Books You Should Read ( that also happen to have numbers in the title)

Happy Top Ten Tuesday! This week's posting prompt from host, That Artsy Reader Girl, is to find "Book Titles with Numbers In Them", so I have rounded up five books that I really enjoyed reading that also just so happen to have a number featured in the title. This prompt was way easier than I expected it to be, I guess I've just never realized how many books have numbers in the title. Keep reading to check out my picks!

The Great Believers - by Rebecca Makkai - Book Review

Time for a #60secondbookreview! And this week, we'll be discussing "The Great Believers" by Rebecca Makkai.

Five Things I Learned From - Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell

The Mars Room by Rachel Kusher - Book Review

#60secondbookreview aka reviewing books as quickly yet thoroughly as I can! And this week's review is for "The Mars Room" by Rachel Kushner.

"The Mars Room" by Rachel Kushner was a two-star read for me, and it's hard to not blame the description writer for some of that. Going into the book it really appealed to me, based on what I had read about it, I thought I would be reading about main character Romy Hall, a woman serving two life sentences in prison, and she is also a mother who is struggling with being away from her child. I'm not totally naive to the hype and also my own preconceived notions of what "female-centric prison stories" look like, I knew that this wouldn't measure up to Orange Is the New Black, for instance. But the reading experience is just SO incredibly different than the description because it leaves out the two other male perspectives that take up a good chunk of the book! Seems like a pretty important thing to include. At its best, for brief fleeting moments, this book did feel a bit like "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" where you had this behind the scenes look at the power trips, unfair treatment, and absurdity that runs amok in institutions like these, but then the perspective would change to the other characters that just added nothing for me to the novel. Overall, it was a pretty terrible reading experience.

Have you read "The Mars Room"? Comment down below and let me know what you thought of it! Was it as much of a reading struggle for you as it was for me? Or, drop a comment below with a female prison novel that you really enjoyed  - because I'm definitely open to trying others! Thanks for reading and watching! Have a great day : )

10 Favorites for 10 Years - Top Ten Tuesday

It wasn't until I was creating the graphic for this blog post that I realized just how drunk with power this Top Ten Tuesday prompt should have made me feel! - Favorite Books Released In the Last Ten Years. It was easy putting this list together, only because if I really had to think about it, it would be impossible! The bulk of my reading has been books from the last decade - how could I !? How !? So keep reading, check out the shamble of a list I pasted together and let me know - what do you think the best books have been in the last decade!?

Boy Erased by Garrard Conley - Book Review

#60secondbookreview aka reviewing books as quickly yet thoroughly as I can! And this week's review is for "Boy Erased" by Garrard Conley.

This book is a memoir Garrard wrote about his experiences as a gay teenager and adult, growing up in the bible belt - his dad is actually a preacher at their church. In college, Garrard was outed to his parents by a man who sexually assaulted and raped him. After finding out, his parents insisted that Garrard receive counseling at an organization called Love in Action - it was conversion therapy and Garrard initially willfully attended it because after living a life being told that his attraction to men was sinful, he sought out the help he felt he needed, too.

I had a really difficult time processing everything that happened to Garrard, and I truly appreciate the courage it took for him to share his story. The writing in this book is beautiful and he does such an amazing job really putting you into the story. The emotional toll this organization took on its attendees, it's quiet, and then it's loud, but it isn't necessarily the shock value some readers might expect - but still so harmful. It was hate, under the disguise of compassion and love.

My favorite parts of the book were when Garrard discussed his relationship with his parents - one that was otherwise happy and healthy, and how hard it is to respect and acknowledge that love when their attitude towards his sexuality was- and is - so negative. Side note, Garrard is hilarious, which thoughtfully does not come across in this book, but you should definitely check out interviews of his because they are charming and inspiring.

Let's chat books! What are you currently reading?  Have you read "Boy Erased"? Comment down below with your thoughts! 

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local library

Bookishly Unboxing - Little Women Theme

So many thank yous to the creative and brilliant ladies at Bookishly for sending this box to me in exchange for an honest review! Check out the video above for my thoughts on the items included, and then head over to their website https://www.bookishly.co.uk/ for adorable bookish merchandise. I love that Bookishly has adorable book boxes, but also merchandise that can be ordered individually, as well!

Snapped a picture of the adorable tote bag included in the box in my IG post. *so cute* right!? Comment below and let me know - what quote would you love to have on a bookish tote bag?!

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A Place for Us by Fatima Mirza - Book Review

Time for another - way longer than intended - I should probably change the name of this thing I do, but I am also committed to the project. help. #60secondbookreview of "A Place for Us" by Fatima Farheen Mirza - a book that felt like being wrapped up in a warm blanket - so cozy.

"A Place for Us" by Fatima Mirza is a *debut novel* ( holy moly how is this her first novel, it's so good!?) it follows an Indian American Muslim family. The book begins at the wedding of the eldest daughter, Hadia. Hadia has decided to invite her brother, Amar,  to her wedding even though he has been estranged from their family for the last three years.

Through the next 400 plus pages, you get a very close look at the interpersonal relationships of this family. The novel moves forward and back in time and shows the reader how the parents met, how the siblings have interacted with each other, and also each of the characters individual lives, and possibly most important, how the parents interact with their children. And after all of that depth, the reader gets a very good sense of why Amar is estranged from his family and just how complicated his return will be for all of the characters.

I really enjoyed reading "A Place for Us", and I think one of the reasons it works so well is the author's ability to make you feel like you are a part of this family - by the end of the novel you know all of their in's and out's - and because of that it is also does an excellent job of exploring identity. How family and religion can aide but also complicate that process. One you think you've found that, once you feel like you know yourself, your families fight against that image can be a misguided attempt at showing their love, but it can also be one of the most harmful things you experience. 

I did struggle a bit to get into this book, it's a common criticism of the book, so it's nice not to feel alone in that - the hurdle for me was that the book jumps around quite a bit in the timeline of this family, and also between different characters. But, once I was all in, I was all in, and also really want this book to be adapted to film, really rooting for this to happen!

Have you read "A Place for Us"? What were your experiences while reading the novel, which characters did you connect with most? Comment down below and let's chat about it!

Tin Man by Sarah Winman - Book Review

#60secondbookreview time, and this is a good one, readers! "Tin Man" by Sarah Winman is the story of two boys, Michael and Ellis, who become the best of friends, fall in love - and then everything that happens after that. Sometimes a book hits you in one or two emotional soft spots - this book hit me in at least six. It's impossible for me to tell you what those are without just epic, novel ruining spoilers, but just know, lots of tissues, so many tissues. A huge part of that is Sarah Winman's writing, it is breath taking and haunting, and this entire book review could just be me listing off quotes from this book I loved, like -  

"there's something about first love, it's untouchable to those that played no part in it, but it is the measure of all that follows."

"he clung to every word as if they were hand holds up a cliff face."

This little book, it is under 200 pages, but it packs a disproportionately large emotional gut punch. If like me, you enjoyed "The Hearts Invisible Furies", you will likely love this book. My only struggle reading "Tin Man" was that there is no punctuation for dialogue. It made sense as an author choice considering the events in the book, but it definitely made the book harder for me to read and pulled me out of the story at times, which is pretty remarkable because this is definitely a story I did not want to be pulled out of. 

Have you read "Tin Man" by Sarah Winman? Comment down below and let me know what you thought of it!

The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker - Book Review

"The Dreamers" by Karen Thompson Walker 

Book Review and Discussion

#60secondbookreview of "The Dreamers" by Karen Thompson Walker - a book it  felt like everyone read last month. A bit of an exaggeration, but it has super popular, for sure! This book follows an isolated college town in California, where one day a girl falls asleep in the dorms and she can not be woken up. This "sleeping sickness" ( try saying that five times fast) spreads and soon the town is caught up in a paranoia, and also legitimate fear, of an illness that no one understands, and also grappling with the realities of treating hundreds of sick patients. The things that scare us the most are also at times the most compelling to read about. If this scenario were playing out in real life, I'd be hiding in the fetal position somewhere. I gave "The Dreamers" three stars - I enjoyed big chunks of this book - but - the parts that I enjoyed were for the author's beautiful writing, not for plotting. And the further I got into the book, the less those poignant quotes were holding my attention. The book's depiction of what an illness like this would look like, what the experience would be, as well as the characters and feelings evoked by the book - now that I am two weeks out from finishing it, just haven't stuck with me.

Have you read "The Dreamers"? Comment down below and let me know what you thought of it!

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid - Book Review

#60secondbookreview of "Daisy Jones and The Six" by Youtube, Instagram, just general Internet and life winner - Taylor Jenkins Reid. 

This book is about a fictional band from the 1970's called "Daisy Jones and the Six", who broke up at the height of their fame. It is structured as a novelization of a rock documentary and looks like a script. The band members are being interviewed individually, but their answers bounce off of each other, and as you go through you get a sense of where things might've gone wrong. Even though it hasn't released yet ( many thanks to the publisher for allowing me to read it before publication, as well ; ) this book already has rave reviews on Goodreads - and I can completely see why! SUPER strong pacing, it sidestepped a lot of the tropes I expected going into the book. And the themes it focuses on instead are excellent - individuality, the struggle and joy of creating art, and what you have ( or are seen as ) sacrificing, particularly if you are a woman, in order to participate. And also how substance abuse, addiction, and depression, play a role, as well. This novel was important and more powerful than expected. I wouldn't recommend "Daisy Jones and the Six" to all adult fiction readers, but if you are looking for something lighter that also manages to have a lot of depth at the same time, I think this is a great one to pick up! 

Comment down below and let me know your thoughts about "Daisy Jones and the Six" or let me know your favorite Taylor Jenkins Reid novel, it's 'Evelyn Hugo", isn't it?!