Reading Lately – Winter Edition

My reading is off to a decent start for 2021. I’m never going to log hundreds of books in a year but if I can stick with an average of two per month I feel pretty good about myself. Listening to books has also given me a way to log some “reads” in a different way but so far I have only enjoyed more non fiction listens. Here is what I’ve been reading lately.

Amazon: Meet Eleanor Oliphant: She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding social interactions, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy. 

But everything changes when Eleanor meets Raymond, the bumbling and deeply unhygienic IT guy from her office. When she and Raymond together save Sammy, an elderly gentleman who has fallen on the sidewalk, the three become the kinds of friends who rescue one another from the lives of isolation they have each been living. And it is Raymond’s big heart that will ultimately help Eleanor find the way to repair her own profoundly damaged one.

My thoughts: At the beginning of this book I wasn’t sure I was going to love it but it didn’t take long before I was flipping the pages quickly. I fell in love with Eleanor and Raymond and was cheering for her in such a big way. I know I was late to the game reading this one but I’m so glad it found it’s way onto my kindle!

Amazon: Needing to escape her abusive marriage, Hadley flees with her two kids, knowing it might be her only chance. A woman who can’t even kill a spider, Hadley soon finds herself pushed to the limits as she fights to protect her family. Grace, new mother of baby Miles, desperately wants to put her rough past behind her for good, but she finds it impossible when her path crosses with Hadley’s, and her quest for a new start quickly spirals out of control and turns into a terrifying flight for survival.

Stronger together than apart, the two find their fates inextricably entwined, and as the danger closes in, each must decide how much she is willing to risk for the other.

My thoughts: This was a free download as part of the Amazon first reads program and currently can be dowloaded for free on Kindle unlimited as well. It was a Thelma & Louise kind of story with a sweet little ending. While the entire book wasn’t a page turner it was worth the free read!

Amazon: Austin Channing Brown’s first encounter with a racialized America came at age seven, when she discovered her parents named her Austin to deceive future employers into thinking she was a white man. Growing up in majority-white schools and churches, Austin writes, “I had to learn what it means to love blackness,” a journey that led to a lifetime spent navigating America’s racial divide as a writer, speaker, and expert helping organizations practice genuine inclusion. In a time when nearly every institution (schools, churches, universities, businesses) claims to value diversity in its mission statement, Austin writes in breathtaking detail about her journey to self-worth and the pitfalls that kill our attempts at racial justice.

My thoughts: I listened to Austin read this book on Audible and I could not listen fast enough. This book is an honest account of the experiences Austin has had living as a black woman in America. This is not a book written to shame but to educate and bring awareness and really make you think about how your words and actions can hurt others even when your intentions are not malicious. It definitely opened my eyes.

Amazon: Rachel White is the consummate good girl. A hard-working attorney at a large Manhattan law firm and a diligent maid of honor to her charmed best friend Darcy, Rachel has always played by all the rules. Since grade school, she has watched Darcy shine, quietly accepting the sidekick role in their lopsided friendship. But that suddenly changes the night of her thirtieth birthday when Rachel finally confesses her feelings to Darcy’s fiance, and is both horrified and thrilled to discover that he feels the same way. As the wedding date draws near, events spiral out of control, and Rachel knows she must make a choice between her heart and conscience. In so doing, she discovers that the lines between right and wrong can be blurry, endings aren’t always neat, and sometimes you have to risk everything to be true to yourself.

My thoughts: Emily Giffin books are always easy reads and this was no different. I wouldn’t necessarily consider it a page turner but it was entertaining enough especially for free with Kindle Unlimited. Of course now I have to decide if I want to buy the second book, Something Blue to finish up the story between these two friends.

I haven’t actually read this book yet but heard about it while listening to an interview with Zibby Owens on the 10 Things to Tell You podcast. Here we are one year into a pandemic and I think it’s the perfect read and all proceeds are going to Covid-19 vaccine research as Zibby lost two loved ones to Covid. Zibby brought together multiple authors to share essays of short stories about things moms don’t have time to do.

This book would make a great gift for a friend too!

So what are you reading lately? I’m looking for my next page turner.