Hello 2019! It’s hard to believe we are already one month into the year! I am still hoping to keep up with my book reviews here this year, because it is something I enjoy doing and talking with you about! I feel like I have a pretty good line up for this month, so let’s get into it!
I actually finished “Everything I Never Told You” at the tail end of December, but just thought I would review it here since I already did a December book review post. I really liked this book. It was sad, very sad at times, but it drove home the point of knowing your kids for who they are and seeing each one of them and their individual dreams. Celeste Ng writes about a couple, a white woman and Asian man, and their story of how they grew up, met and married during a time period where “that just wasn’t so.” They have children, one of whom is their favorite and the mother’s prospect to fulfill all of her dreams in life that she feels she missed out on. Eventually she suffocated her daughter to the point of her becoming a recluse and her life ending in tragedy, all because they didn’t let her vocalize who she was and who she wanted to be. It was an interesting story, but very sad for the most part.
“The Map Thief” was an interesting book. The story of a man who dealt in the buying and selling of maps, and how he got to a point in life where he resorted to stealing them. How he was caught, his trial and prosecution, as well as his change of heart were told. This was a very different story than what I’m used to reading, but very interesting nonetheless. I learned a lot about maps over the centuries, their importance and production, as well as their influence. This book was very historical, and well done I think.
Friends, who all has read Elizabeth Smart’s “My Story?” I could not put this book down. I was literally reading every spare minute I had because I just wanted to see how her story ended. Elizabeth was kidnapped from her bedroom when she was fourteen years old, and was with her captures for nine months. What she lived through during her abduction and her perspective about her situation was incredible. At times I felt like I couldn’t continue reading, but then I thought, “No. This girl lived through these horrors, the least I can do is read her story and support her, and thank God with her for seeing her through.” Start out your year with a huge dose of perspective and what we have to be grateful for and go read her story.
I feel like “Girl Wash Your Face” was one of the trendier books to read this past year if that makes sense…I kept seeing it so thought I’d give it a try. Overall I liked this book, I liked the way it was laid out, with each chapter posing a different lie we women may believe, and then her experiences with that lie and what helped her get past it or turn it around. With these kinds of books, I feel like you never 100% agree with everything the author says, whether it is conflicting spiritual beliefs or just different personal opinions about things, which is why I always offer disclaimers when recommending books like this. There is a lot to learn and take away from this book, but there are also a LOT of personal opinions being expressed, which at times were a little loud hehe. If I say much more, I’ll be opening the floor to massive political and feministic debates haha!!! So when you read this one, keep your head on straight and think for yourself but there is a LOT to learn from this one about your perspective on life and being in control of your own happiness. 👍🏻
I always enjoy a little Nancy Thayer every now and then. Her books are so light and easy, so “The Guest Cottage” was a great little book to break up my month. Two families both rent out the same house in Nantucket for the summer on accident, so because it is big enough they both choose to share it for their summer vacation. One man is recovering from the loss of his wife with his young son, and a woman with her two kids is recovering from her husband having an affair and wanting a divorce, so you can probably guess where that leads hehe. Cute quick read. 👍🏻
I was sooo excited when “Legendary” became available on my library app. I had read “Caraval” last year, and really enjoyed it, so I couldn’t wait to see where she took the story in her sequel. A second Caraval game is played in this book, so that Scarlett and her sister can try and rescue their long lost mother, only it turns out to be more of a reality than pretend…this book had more of an Alice and Wonderland feel to it, lots of magic and weird descriptions that I had to reread at times to keep up with everything! But also lots of romance and stories of friendship throughout. Definitely enjoyed it and am looking forward to her finale coming out in May.
I am slowly getting through more of Kristin Hannah’s books, and “Firefly Lane” was available so I downloaded it this month to read. This is a long book I felt like…a long story of friendship between two girls who met on Firefly Lane. The story follows their life together, throughout high school, college, young adults, marriage and kids and on and on. I enjoyed the read, but there was more language in it than I’d prefer, and there were times when I couldn’t understand why they did some of the things they did or didn’t do/say (I don’t know if that makes sense hah!) but overall I enjoyed their story and it had me crying throughout the end. A story of love and friendship, taking care of each other “no matter what.”
Ok friends! That is January! Hope you found something that interested you, as there was a wide variety to choose from! Happy reading everyone!