JULY
Books Bought:
Orange is the New Black: My year in a Women's Prison- by Piper Kerman
Books Read:
The Goldfinch- by Donna Tartt
Orphan Train- by Christina Baker Kline
The Lowland- by Jhumpa Lahiri
Add More Ing to Your Life: A Hip Guide to Happiness- by Gabrielle Bernstein
How We Are Hungry- by Dave Eggers
Rosie Dunne- by Cecelia Ahern
Wow! What a month! The combination of it being too hot to move and being extremely broke led to some pretty intense reading sessions! I'm not going to lie, I read some of the best books I've read in a long time this past month!
As for the one book I bought, I've been hesitating to read this one because I like the show so much... but I've joined a few book clubs in Boulder and one of them is doing this one so I figured I'll give it a go next month (as in August).
Books read, I won't go into detail here about The Goldfinch since I already had a post about it, but I'll just re-iterate that it is reminiscent of Salinger and I freaking love it.
Orphan Train was a quick read and I was exposed to a part of our history that I've never been aware of, that being that with orphan children in the big eastern cities in the early 20th century, the government decided to put them all on trains and send them out west. Some children found good homes, but many children were adopted so that they could be used for labour. The story itself is fictional, and flipped flopped between an older story of one girl, and then a girl in the modern day who is an acquaintance of an older woman (who coincidentally is the girl from the older story). The writing is pretty elementary so the reading is quick, and the story is gripping enough that this makes for a book that can be easily finished in one sitting.
Jhumpa Lahiri, I have long wanted to read. Why I started with her most recent book? After reading Donna Tartt's masterpiece, I was craving another Pulitzer Prize winner and this one was sitting on the "Lucky Day" cart at the library! How could I resist? It did not disappoint! The story takes place in India and Rhode Island pre-dominantly. It is the story of two brothers, one obsessed with Revolution and Rebellion, and the other who goes off to America and dedicates his life to learning and later to the care of those his brother leaves behind. It is a beautiful book, and I have a strong desire to learn more about the history of India than I ever have before. I will DEFINITELY be reading more books written by this enchanting author!
Gabby Bernstein, the meditation guru for a new generation. I'm not sure completely that I'm drinking the Kool-aid yet. The jury's still out on this one. But I definitely will listen to some more podcasts and read a couple more of her books. Even if I'm not completely sold, it doesn't hurt to be reminded to move more, to sit in silence with myself, to practice breathing, and to be more mindful with my thoughts and my intentions.
Eggers, my boyfriend, the love affair continues. I had been told by another Eggers fan that this is a MUST read, and so I FINALLY took it off my shelf, dusted it off and gave it a go! Of course, it did not disappoint! How can one man be so brilliant?!?! This book is a bunch of short stories, some of course were way better than others. I love this man's scope. I love how in one second I'm with a woman who is climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and letting go of some pretty heavy shit, and the next moment I'm in Nicaragua with a girl scheming to sleep with one of her oldest friends. Some stories I could do without, but the ones that I love more than make up for the others that were not my favorites.
Cecilia Ahern, I'm not going to lie, I loved the movie P.S. I Love You, but I'm not sure that I love the author as much. Maybe it was just this book. It's my first I've read by her, and it was very teenager-ish. I already have Emily Giffin and Candace Bushnell to fill this void in my life, not sure I'm looking to add another author to this list, not when there are so many brilliant books out there to read before I die. The nice thing about books like this is they take a day and a half or less to get through, so they don't waste too much time.
I'll ask, as I always do, what have you read lately? Anything that you loved?
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