June Reading Recap
Greetings, fellow readers! I don’t know about you, but my summer reading has been off to a great start. June was a great month of books with several 4+ star ratings. It’s so fun to go back and look at the books I’ve read and remember where I read them and what I was doing during that time. Do you keep a book journal? Comment below!
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
Quick Synopsis: After William’s sister died when they were both children, William’s family and life fell apart. After he discovers his love for basketball, everything seems okay for William, which leads to a scholarship to college. Here he meets the strong, wild Julia and falls for her and her loving family. Soon, William’s dark past starts to cloud his mind, leading to family cracks that might never mend.
Strong Points: Napolitano is a whiz at creating characters. Hello Beautiful was unique in that there wasn't a "good" or "bad" character. Each character was developed and rich enough for the reader to understand their flaws and how they would react the way they did. This story was at times devastating, yet it felt so real. Also, if you haven't read her other book, Dear Edward, I highly recommend it as well.
Weak Points: While the book was a little on the longer side, the ending wrapped up in just a few pages made it seem cheesy and a tad bit unsatisfying. With such complex characters and storylines, it didn’t seem like the ending fit the rest of the book.
Writing Style: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 4.5/5
Flow/Pacing: 4.5/5
Overall Rating: 4.5/5
Highly Recommend
It's Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution, and Future of HBO by Felix Gillette & John Koblin
Quick Synopsis: The history of HBO from its humble beginning to the powerhouse it is now.
Strong Points: If you’re interested in the history of HBO, this book is for you. It’s obvious the authors have done their research, yet it was still easy to read.
Weak Points: This wasn't the most compelling non-fiction book ever written. Unlike its shows, HBO history isn’t all that interesting. The first half of the book was a little slow. It is by no means a 300 page, page-turner.
Writing Style: 3.5/5
Plot: 4/5
Flow/Pacing: 3/5
Overall Rating: 3/5
Recommend
The Daddy Diaries: The Year I Grew by Andy Cohen
Quick Synopsis: Ever wonder what Andy Cohen does every day for a year? Well, now you can find out! Cohen journals a year of his chaotic, busy life.
Strong Points: There's something about diaries and reading a person’s innermost thoughts that I love. Even re-reading some of my old journals is so fun, even though I lived through the times I'm reading about. I was happy to see Cohen formatting the book as actual diary entries. This made it easy to read as well.
Weak Points: A year in someone’s life (even Andy Cohen’s) can only be so interesting. While I found myself excited to pick it up to read, I found it a little repetitive. It's still a fun book, though.
Writing Style: 4.5/5
Plot: 4/5
Flow/Pacing: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4/5
Recommend
Undaunted: How Women Changed American Journalism by Brooke Kroeger
Quick Synopsis: The history of the evolution of American women in the field of journalism.
Strong Points: This is an incredibly well-researched book. Kroeger is a journalist and professor at NYU, and it shows. It was clear that this topic is something she is very passionate about. It was fascinating, albeit frustrating, to see the progression of women in journalism, from Ida Tarbell to Barbra Walters. Oh, how women in journalism have come a long way.
Weak Points: I am not familiar with the history of journalism at all, so I was excited to pick this book up and learn more. But man, oh man, were parts of this almost 600-page book dry. As it turns out, journalism spanning from the 1820s to the present can get a little boring after a while, no matter how much the author spruces up the story. With the long list of women journalists, names would be mentioned, and I found myself 100 pages later forgetting who they were. I do have to say I learned a lot but retained very little of it.
Writing Style: 4/5
Plot: 3/5
Flow/Pacing: 3/5
Overall Rating: 3/5
Recommend
The Trackers by Charles Frazier
Quick Synopsis: In the Depression Era of America, Val, an artist, travels west to a small town in Wyoming, where he's commissioned to paint a mural at the local post office. While on the job, a wealthy couple, Long and Eve, take Val in. One night, Eve takes off to escape the drab town, and Long sends Val after her, tracking her all over the west.
Strong Points: This was my first Charles Frazier book, and it’s safe to say I will be adding more of his books to my list. The plot was interesting, but I was mostly drawn to the mood and setting of the book. I found myself wanting to return to this world as soon as I put the book down. The story unfolded in a beautiful way as well.
Weak Points: Some of the parts when Val is tracking down Eve got to be a little long and felt disjointed from the rest of the book.
Writing Style: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 4.5/5
Flow/Pacing: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4.5/5
Highly Recommend
Anaximander: And the Birth of Science by Carlo Rovelli
Quick Synopsis: Little is known about the great Anaximander, but we can see his influence on how we view the world today. There was a time when science replaced what people gave the gods credit for. It took Anaximander to push back on these gods being the blanket answer for everything. Rovelli does a deep dive into how Anaximander paved the way for naturalistic thinking and modern science.
Strong Points: I love when an author can deliver a non-fiction book in under 200 pages and the reader doesn’t feel they could have used more information. Rovelli has such clean and tight writing. Each sentence has a purpose and adds to the idea. He also has a way of challenging the reader to think about things in different ways. For example, when I think of science, I think about how science is finding answers to questions about the world around us. Science really is about humans being curious, exploring what we don’t know, and asking questions, but not always finding the correct answer and building upon that. It was touched on briefly how dangerous it is to look at science for absolute answers to questions. That’s where the anti-science movement comes in. If we don’t have the precise answer for something, people find that uncertainty hard to tolerate and become untrusting. It made me reflect and look at how far we have come as a society of curious human beings.
Weak Points: Nothing that I can think of
Writing Style: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Flow/Pacing: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4.5/5
Highly Recommend
The Last Animal by Ramona Ausubel
Quick Synopsis: Two teenage sisters, Eve and Vera, follow their mom, a biologist, around the globe on her research expeditions. After the girls stumble upon a baby mammoth, perfectly frozen and preserved, their lives change forever. With the help of a mysterious couple in Italy, a present-day mammoth-like creature is brought to life.
Strong Points: This was a fun read! The story was unique, and the characters, especially the sisters, were well developed. The sisterly bond between Eve and Vera was one of my favorite parts of the book. They relied on each other for support and stability in their unusual lives.
Weak Points: In certain parts, there was unnecessary detail that didn’t add to the story or develop the characters. I wasn't the biggest fan of those parts. They didn't feel like a natural part of telling the story.
Writing Style: 3.5/5
Characters: 4/5
Plot: 4/5
Flow/Pacing: 3.5/5
Overall Rating: 4/5
Recommend
The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder by David Grann
Quick Synopsis: In 1742, His Majesty’s Ship the Wager set off from England to fight in the Spanish War. After crashing off the coast of Patagonia, the already starving and sea-stricken crew members start to turn on each other. And well, you can guess the rest. Mutiny and murder
Strong Points: I had been eyeing this book for a while, and it did not disappoint. This had me at the edge of my seat for the whole book. The event itself is entertaining, but to keep the reader engaged for even the duller parts is a feat. I really enjoyed the way Grann didn’t highlight one character or paint a group of characters as the heroes or rebels of the crew. Because, let's get real, I think all of us, even almost 300 years later, would turn on each other in an event like being marooned on an island. It was very well done. I couldn’t recommend this more.
Weak Points: Nada
Writing Style: 5/5
Plot: 5/5
Flow/Pacing: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5/5
Highly Recommend
"We all impose some coherence—some meaning—on the chaotic events of our existence." - The Wager by David Grann
