I’ve been devouring books lately. A lot of work-related things have been weighing on me (ugh) and I find that reaching for a book at night is the best way to clear my head before falling asleep. No screens, just as many pages as I need. Some nights I get through ten pages and other nights it takes chapters and chapters to get my brain to calm down enough. (And sometimes I simply cannot put the book down!)
Don’t forget you can check in with my Goodreads account to see what I’m reading and what I want to read. (If you’re a reader and haven’t downloaded the app yet, you definitely should. It’s one of my favorites!)
Every Last Word | This book was a complete impulse buy at Target. I was looking for another book and while I couldn’t find it, it felt wrong to walk out without a book. (This is an overall problem I seem to have with Target… anyone else?) Anyway, I picked up Every Last Word without knowing much about it. It’s definitely a young adult/teen novel but I secretly like to read those every now and then! This book is about a high schooler who doesn’t seem to fit in with her friend group anymore while also struggling with a personal secret and ends up finding an underground poetry club. There are moments that are kind of cheesy, but if you’re looking for a relatively easy young adult book with a good story, pick it up!
The Orphan Train | Everyone has been recommending this since it came out and I finally bought it! The only thought I had…. WHY DID I WAIT SO LONG? This is an incredible story about a young girl who finds herself on an orphan train (real thing!) after a tragedy strikes her family. The book also parallels her story with that of a modern day teenager in the foster system. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in a long time.
I think I was also hooked on the book because my Grandma Betsy had a similar childhood. She was given up for adoption as were her older twin sisters during the Great Depression. I immediately called my mom and made her read it too. We both loved it. I almost read it too fast because I pretty much couldn’t put it down.
All the Light We Cannot See | This book. Oh…. this book. This also falls into the “why didn’t I listen to people sooner” category. It is a WWII story like you’ve never read before. The characters, the story. The descriptions. Definitely my favorite read of the year!!! I’m not even going to try to say anything about it because it won’t do it justice… just trust me and read it!
I’m currently reading Fates and Furies (great!) and next up is Eight Hundred Grapes is after that. What else should I add to my list?
xoxo
I'm always looking for new reading suggestions so I'm definitely going to mark these down to remember 🙂
xoxo, SS
The Southern Stylista
I am going to look into that first book, mostly because you mentioned poetry clubs! Your review of the second ALMOST convinced me to try that one too, but it's not really my kind of storyline. As for the last one…That was my favorite book of the year too! I read it earlier this year and I'm STILL telling people about it!
My favorite books of this fall have been:
The Trouble With The Truth by Edna Robinson. You MUST read this. It's short, it's quick, and the intro alone will make you cry!
The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. This is the first in her Tommy and Tuppence series (which I've also been watching on AcornTV). What can I say? You can never go wrong with Christie!!!
James Runcie's Grantchester series. I read the second one this fall (The Perils of the Night, might be the title) and it is PERFECT for fall reading.
There you go!!! 🙂
Even though I'm in college I still love searching through the YA books to find gems. There were a few I read recently that I just couldn't put down.
A Thousand Pieces of You by Clara Gray. I didn't know anything about this book when I picked it up, but I couldn't put it down once I started it. It was such an interesting storyline, nothing like I had ever read before.
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. I have taken to reading a lot of dystopian novels, because I find the fads that go through the YA genre really interesting. This one was a whole different take then I was used to and I did not see the ending coming.
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I had heard so much about this author based on Eleanor & Park (which I read after reading this) but it was such an interesting novel about a girls freshman year of college and the transition amongst the storyline.
Hope you like one!!
All The Light We Cannot See is still on my to read list!
I read Eight Hundred Grapes over the summer and really enjoyed it. Even though its a really quick, easy read I found it insightful.
I would recommend In Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid. It has two parallel storylines that stem from a decision the main character could have made one night.
Check out my blog for more recommendations, Hardbacks in Totebags
Wish I had more time to read what I wanted. College readings make it so hard 🙁
Check out my blog: http://emmajwhitaker.blogspot.com/
Thank you so much for these recommendations, I have definitely been looking for a new book to read. I'll def check these out. xx
-Mikayla
http://thetastetracker.com
If you haven't yet, you MUST read Light Between Oceans (film coming in January) and The Nightingale. Light Between Oceans has been the best book I've read in years! I also always recommend Gone With The Wind, it's not. Normal recommendation but such a great book.
I am currently in the middle of Orphan Train and LOVE IT. Am writing down your other recommendations for when I finish this one (which will probably be tonight, can't stop reading it!).
Orphan Train is sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read. I've heard good things about it and can't wait to read it now!
Fates and Furies is WONDERFUL! I am so happy the author is getting such strong attention for it.
Ohh I need to check these out!
Her Heartland Soul
http://herheartlandsoul.com
I am having trouble getting into "All of the Light…"
http://everythingisbetterpink3.blogspot.com/
I'm reading All the light right now and I honestly don't know why, but I don't like it. It's frustrating me so much!
I never read anything from that list but I was really interested of those books and would like to try. So thanks for sharing those reviews. I also found 5 professional development reads for teachers that are worth reading.
I'm currently reading "The Rules of Civility" by Amor Towles for my book club and I can't put it down. The novel takes place in NYC in 1938 and Towles' beautiful writing transports me right back there.
From one dog lover to another, "The Art or Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein is a must read. Just keep a box of tissues handy; I cried from page 1.
I always love your book recommendations! They're some of my favorite posts. I already had Fates and Furies and All the Light We Cannot See on my list and now I'm adding The Orphan Train!
Catherine
http://www.myinnerfabulous.com
I love memoirs by women I admire. Justice Sotomayor's "My Beloved World" is a great read — especially for anyone who has lived in NYC. I also loved Elsa Schiarparelli's Shocking Life, which I read a while back after the Prada- Schiarperelli exhibit at The Met.