Somehow it is more than halfway through June, I’m officially done teaching for the school year (what a WEIRD end to my first-year of teaching), and I am ready to play catch-up…starting with my wrap-up from last month!
May was a busy month for reads: I read nine books I hadn’t read before and two that I have already read. I won’t be going through them all here today because some are *special* and will get their own posts.
Up first: Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi
Okay…I truly don’t know what to say for this one. I have gone back and forth about what I think about it…so here goes. If you are looking for a book that has a clear, simple narrative, this is not that book. However, if you are looking for something different, with elements of the fantastic and characters who grow as they learn about themselves, their pasts, and each other…give this a try. I will be honest: I was confused most of the time when reading this book. I kept sending messages to my friends saying that I felt dumb because I couldn’t figure it out. However, I also could not stop reading this book. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. After I finished it, I continued to think and wonder about it, and I think those facts are a sign right there. Perhaps this is one that I need to read a second time. I will say this: despite being confused throughout a lot of this story, I enjoyed the characters and I felt incredibly satisfied with the ending.
Messenger of Truth by Jacqueline Winspear
This is the fourth book in Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs series and I loved it. Eventually I might actually physically read a book in this series, but I so love narrator Orlaugh Cassidy’s work with these that I might just stick with the audiobook. After experiencing a traumatic event in the third book, Maisie Dobbs, investigator and psychologist, is back and facing a new challenging case. In addition to the facing the case, Maisie also faces self-doubt, an ending, and a heartbreaking loss. What I love about this series is how much depth the characters and the plot have. The character development throughout these books is thorough and not rushed. Well done, all the way through.
City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
I read this book as part of a long-distance book club with two of my friends and I ADORED it. Elizabeth Gilbert is a wizard for creating such a rich, full, voluptuous story. In it we meet Vivian Morris, and the story follows her as a young woman through old age. She is a triumph. Without giving away too much detail (I am not a fan of spoilers), Vivian’s story starts in the 1940s after she has flunked out of Vassar college. She gets sent to live with her Aunt Peg, who runs an old theatre in New York and it’s there that her life seemingly begins…and falls apart. At least for a while. This is beautiful story about women: their triumphs, trials, heartaches, redemptions…throughout a few decades. HIGHLY recommend.
A Bone to Pick by Charlaine Harris
I forgot to take my own picture of the book’s cover before I had to return the ebook version to the library, but the photo on the right is a still from the Hallmark movie version. 🙂 Clicking on the photo will take you to the Hallmark website! This is the second book in the Aurora Teagarden mystery series, and it takes place about a year after the previous story ends. Unlike the end of the first book, when Aurora finds herself with two potential romantic partners, she starts off this book with neither of them. The mystery starts after an elderly member of her true crime club passes away (of natural causes) and leaves Aurora her entire estate–including a house. What Roe finds in the house leads her on a hunt for the identity of a murder victim…and the identity of the killer. Once again, I enjoyed this one like I did the first in the series, but I’m still trying to find my groove with it. Sometimes I found myself totally immersed, and other times I was taken out of the story by awkward dialogue. I will continue to read more in the series because I enjoy the Hallmark versions so much, and I love to compare them to the books. 🙂 If you want a cozy mystery to get into this summer, you would probably enjoy this series!
I have not stopped reading for my 2020 reading challenge or stopped writing daily haikus…I am just behind on posting. 🙂
I’m always on the lookout for book recommendations…and I now have even more time on my hands to read. Share with me any books you have loved!
Until next time!
The Bookish Bird 