Apparently I just can’t get off of the WW2 historical fiction train. These books just flock to me at this point. Even books that I start reading that I think aren’t related to World War 2, end up having some kind of association with that horrific war. So, what that tells me, is one, this is a popular genre right now, and two, the atrocities that went on during this war have shaped the lives of generations to come. And I think it’s good that we don’t forget what one man was capable of doing, because once we forget, things have a strange way of repeating themselves. Not to mention that the lives lost should retain our utmost respect and memorial always!
So what have I read this month?
“Life After Life” by Kate Atkinson was an interesting read. I saw a friend add it to her want to read list on Goodreads, so I checked to see if our library had it available. So basically this book is about what the title says it’s about. A girl lived her life over and over again… starting from her birth and ending in demise… which sounds morbid, right? At times it was. But what was interesting is that she has faint recollections of her past lives, and learns from mistakes along the way, so each time she starts over she makes it a little farther down the way. A book about reincarnation I suppose you could say, but only she comes back as herself and not as a cat haha… This book was placed during the 1930-40 time era so her lives cross through times of the war. Overall it was an interesting read, but it got to a point where I wondered when it would end haha, because it could have gone on forever. Seriously. Forever.
I read Ruta Sepetys’ novel “Salt to the Sea” last year and enjoyed it, so when I saw this one I was interested to see what it was about. She likes to write about obscure historical events, which I appreciate and have learned from! “Between Shades of Gray” is about a Lithuanian family and how they were removed from their home by force of Stalin’s NKVD, and put into forced labor camps after a grueling train ride. The story follows them as they are relocated to the coldest, most remote place possible on Earth to continue forced labor in horrific conditions. It’s incredible to me what people can survive and what people do to each other at times. A young girl sketches her experiences the whole way through, sharing her perspectives through artistic shades of gray. Another great read by Sepetys.
I really liked “The Silent Woman” by Terry Lynn Thomas! Again, set in the WW2 time period, really right before the war, a woman finds herself involved in a situation where she is spying on her and exchanging important documents to aid the English in their efforts to gather information again against the Germans. So many interesting personal stories at play throughout the book, it was just good the whole way through! I was so excited to see that Thomas has a sequel coming out in May! So hopefully will be reading that sometime this summer!
I waited for the longest time on “The Dinner List” to become available at my library, so maybe my expectations were a little high going into it, but I wasn’t super impressed with this. It was a cute story, the main character chose who she’d want to have a dinner with, one person being Audrey Hepburn, who I love, but it kind of squashed the reality aspect of this book for me. The book goes back and forth between the “dinner” and her own love story, which gives her the opportunity to work through some issues and conflict she has about things in her life. Overall it was a cute book, worth the read, just different than I expected.
I read “America’s First Daughter” a year or two ago and enjoyed it, so when I saw “My Dear Hamilton” come out last year, I added it to my wait list. This book is long, but SO well done. I learned SO much about Alexander Hamilton, his wife, Eliza Schuyler, and family, and about the history of our country. I just kept reading and reading, I never felt bored by any of it hah! Their lives were amazing, what they stood for and fought for, their necessary presence in cultivating a new country during rivalrous times…it was all incredible. I had no idea the influence Hamilton had on our nation. What I also enjoyed about this book was how she tied in experiences with the characters between this book and “America’s First Daughter,” so you could see how the time periods overlapped and the characters worked together. Really enjoyed this read.
So that’s February!! Hope you found something that interested you! Tell me what you have been reading lately too, I’m always looking for good recommendations!
If you’d like to see my reads for January, click below! Book reviews from last year and years before can be found under my book tab in the navigation menu!