August Books

In August, I was able to crush my reading goals, and I am extremely proud of myself. Last month, I started Weyward by Emilia Hart, but it got set aside because all of my holds from the library came through at the same time. It’s why I started with Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren, which technically was an August read but was discussed in my July post. 

Afterwards, I jumped into Just for the Cameras by Meghan Quinn. As with her style, I found a lot of humor in the writing. My favorite part was the “Gladdy Daddies” group chat between the three men who are forced into doing the PR for their teams. It really makes me excited to read the other two stories in the series because they were so goofy. It brought levity to the overall tone of the story. Graydon is an ASSHOLE, and he self-sabatoges things, and it’s annoying. (Also, what kind of name is Graydon?) However, once he realizes he fucks up, he has emotional vulnerability, and it truly is redemptive. I hope he continues to develop through the other stories. I am invested in the series.

The next read was Rules for the Summer which is also by Meghan Quinn. This story reminds me of the episode of Charmed when the British witch comes to marry Paige. Theo pursues Renley with the same energy, and it makes the story comical. My favorite part of the story was the friendship between Rupert and Theo, and they eventually add another friend in Lamar because he becomes their driver and gets invested in the drama. I clearly love male friendships being a central part of a story. We need more male friendships that are emotionally vulnerable. Additionally, I ADORE that Renley is a Jackie of all trades! (Again, I love women doing handiwork!) Finally, I loved that Theo showed up for Renley when she was very open about having to carry the burden of being the reliable one. He does everything he can to make sure he is reliable for her because he knows that she hasn't had that. 

Afterwards, I started The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer. There is a big anti-book ban vibe for the story that I liked. While reading, I enjoyed the Duke of Chicago. He is charming, and obviously a wonderful book boyfriend because he is a fictional character within a fictional world. However, I was unsettled by the story when Rainy tumbles into the world of Alice and Wonderland and then the story turns very meta. That meta vibe of the story took me out of it, and I ended up disliking the overall story. Carrying on the Charmed connections, this reminds me of the Cross Double Cross episode as well as the Drake storyline. If you enjoyed those, you may enjoy this as well. If you enjoyed this story, the tv show The Librarians might also be for you. Overall, not my favorite book. It's cozy, but it feels like there's a force field around the story for some reason, and I didn't feel connected to it. 

Then, I read Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy. It was our book club pick for the month. While reading, I kept wanting to look ahead and felt impatient to know all the secrets of the characters. I liked that Rowan's criticism and skepticism of having children and impacting the planet is in contrast to what she learns through the Salt family and getting close to them. The world is hard and painful, and when we try to protect ourselves by keeping people away, we add to the pain and heartbreak. Through letting people in and allowing yourself to love and be loved is how the world is beautiful and life is worth living. Ultimately, this book is sad. There is a looming darkness over the pages as the story unfolds.

Afterwards, I decided to read 60 Songs That Explain the 90s by Rob Harvilla because I was close to getting the badges for the Goodreads challenge, and this felt like an easy read for the 90s category. Truth be told, I did not read every word of this book. At the beginning of each song category was a list of the songs mentioned in the upcoming chapter, so I would Google the songs and listen to the ones I wasn't sure if I knew. Some I did, and others I didn’t. As a result, I would skip over the songs I didn't know or really enjoy. Since I was born in the 90s, I don't think I am the target audience of the book. This might be more enjoyable to those who were in high school/college during that decade. There are some things that I did chuckle at, and one of them was “misinterpret these lyrics” with the song “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails. The lyrics are so crass and brazen and raunchy that there is no misinterpreting them. (Side note: I fucking love that song, and it makes me chuckle because it’s not like me to enjoy something so crude.)

Afterwards, I read Junglekeepers by Paul Rosalie. This was the choice reading for our upcoming school year. Since I am never thrilled by assigned reading (a truth that has held true for all my years of schooling. Ironic, I know, since I am an English teacher myself), I needed to incentivize myself, so I decided to read a chapter and then read an equivalent amount in a choice book. What I found was that the experience heightened my enjoyment for both books. The Someday Garden by Ashley Poston was slow to start, so it helped make the slowness feel like it was a part of the pausing to swap stories. Junglekeeper was a memoir that shares the adventure of a man who knew his calling in life and the pauses helped me to reflect on his experiences and mull over the lessons. 

Some notes about Junglekeeper - I love that Paul talks about how he had a strong calling and that a lot of people didn't get it until he started to find success in it. If we all did what others thought we should do, we would have boring lives that didn't align with our actual skills, talents, passions, or desires. I respect that he knew himself and what mattered to him because the people who aligned with him found him and helped him. Not everyone will understand you, but the ones who do are special. Overall, this was a lovely read, and I do think his story is interesting, and I respect his desire to save the Amazon rainforest. 

As for The Someday Garden, the book was very sad. There's a lot of grief in it, and it made me cry multiple times because the grief and love that exists within her friendship was heartbreaking and beautiful. I genuinely think the love story is among the friendships rather than the romantic couple. There is a magical element, which I think is Ashley Poston's thing, and it was whimsical. Like I said previously, it was slow to start, but it picks up and is very sweet. You obviously have to suspend your disbelief to fully love the story because the timeline, if real, gives me stress. Again, I will allow my belief in the fictional magic to erase my qualms. I remember really enjoying The Seven Year Slip by the same author, so if you already read The Someday Garden, that would be something you might also enjoy. 

It feels fitting that this was one of the final books before the school year begins, and I stayed up until 3 in the morning to read it because the first book of summer had me up until 3 as well. I have to admit that this is something I haven't done in years, and yet I did it repeatedly throughout the summer. It is fun to be lost in a story and another world, and I think it is part of myself seeping back into my childhood and holding on to the parts that feel mischievous. The joy and excitement of consuming a book has been reclaimed, and I am going to do all I can to keep it in my grasp as the school year comes barreling towards me. 

Finally, I was able to finish Weyward by Emilia Hart. I started reading the physical book, but I moved into listening to the audio. I liked the audio a lot for the book, even though all the women sounded similar. All the men in the story (aside from Graham) were trash, but I really was glad that the subtle magic was able to be reclaimed to protect them from the damage of men. At one point I was chanting for the women to murder the men because they are terrible. Since I was listening, I was able to be an unhinged reader and talk out loud to the book. 

Overall, I am extremely proud of myself because I ended up achieving the Goodreads challenge for this quarter, and I earned all 11 badges. I don’t think I have ever done that before, and I didn’t think I would be able to focus enough to get that accomplishment. As we head back into the school year, I don’t know if this level of reading will be sustained, but I am optimistic that this is my year of hobbies and holding on to myself outside of my job. Wish me luck!