October was a busy month, but the weather was beautiful and I got some good reading in.
What I read in October:
- Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliott
- Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune
- The Blue Trunk by Ann E. Lowry
- Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
- Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell
- Women and Children First by Alina Grabowski
- The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande
- Coming Home by Brittney Griner and Michelle Burford
- The Lost Princess of Oz by L. Frank Baum
My favorite reads:
I really liked the two nonfiction books I read this month, The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande and Coming Home by Brittney Griner. Griner’s story is a fascinating one, and I have quite a bit of admiration for how she handled everything she went through.
I expected to love Somewhere Beyond the Sea, and I wasn’t disappointed. I was surprised by how much I liked Slow Dance. I’ve generally been a fan of Rowell, but in this one I really appreciated the full character development and the slow burn romance. This isn’t one of those “why didn’t they just talk to each other” stories (although there’s some of that). It helped that I have a friend who retired from the Navy and I have some sense of what it entails to be a “Navy wife”. The storyline with Cary’s mother also resonated quite a bit with me.
The Lost Princess of Oz is one of my favorite Oz books. I’ll write about it soon.
Disappointing reads:
Women and Children First was recommended by my local bookstore, and I just didn’t love it. It’s one of those books where every chapter is a different narrator and the story is somewhat connected. Those kind of books are distracting for me, because it’s work to keep everyone straight and not enough time getting to know any of the characters.
On the blog:
I reviewed Love You a Latke, The Blue Trunk, and Somewhere Beyond the Sea. I also wrote about my 2024 challenges, ten books I was assigned in school, and wrote about my favorite genre, historical fiction, for Spell the Month in Books. I also kicked off Nonfiction November with a post about my year reading nonfiction (so far).
Books for challenges:
- Nonfiction: Coming Home, The Distance Between Us
- Rereads/Backlist/Ozathon: Uglies, The Lost Princess of Oz, The Distance Between Us
What I’m reading now:
I’m reading the fifth book in Tana French’s Dublin Murder series. I’m also reading Skin & Bones by Renee Watson (recommended by my bookstore and also Modern Mrs. Darcy).
What’s coming up:
I have one ARC, Shy Creatures by Clare Chambers. I hope to finish up the 52 Book Challenge by reading a Booker nominee, a closed door mystery, a book about a holiday I don’t celebrate, and a book set in a landlocked country. It’s also Nonfiction November, and I have a lot of great nonfiction sitting on my shelves that I hope to get to soon.
Added to my TBR:
I’ve already added a bunch of nonfiction from other Nonfiction November posts. I’ll do a wrap up at the end of the month of nonfiction I’ve added to my TBR.
That’s my October wrap-up. I hope you’re enjoying the fall and are reading something good.
