Book Club October 2020- City of Girls

By: Elizabeth Gilbert
Published year: 2019
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Pages: 496

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): In 1940, nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris has just been kicked out of Vassar College, owing to her lackluster freshman-year performance. Her affluent parents send her to Manhattan to live with her Aunt Peg, who owns a flamboyant, crumbling midtown theater called the Lily Playhouse. There Vivian is introduced to an entire cosmos of unconventional and charismatic characters, from the fun-chasing showgirls to a sexy male actor, a grand-dame actress, a lady-killer writer, and no-nonsense stage manager. But when Vivian makes a personal mistake that results in professional scandal, it turns her new world upside down in ways that it will take her years to fully understand. Ultimately, though, it leads her to a new understanding of the kind of life she craves - and the kind of freedom it takes to pursue it. It will also lead to the love of her life, a love that stands out from all the rest.

Now ninety-five years old and telling her story at last, Vivian recalls how the events of those years altered the course of her life - and the gusto and autonomy with which she approached it. "At some point in a woman's life, she just gets tired of being ashamed all the time," she muses. "After that, she is free to become whoever she truly is." Written with a powerful wisdom about human desire and connection, City of Girls is a love story like no other.

What I thought

I remember seeing this book all over the place when it first came out. I love the cover and I do remember picking it up a few times to read the summary. However, there must have been something about it that didn’t jump out at me because I never picked it up.

Vivian receives a letter from Angela asking her what exactly her relationship with her father had been. As an answer to Angela’s letter, Vivian decides to write her a 500 page book, pretty much about her entire life. Vivian tells the story of her life when she moved to New York City at 19, which takes up the majority of the book, but then she does quickly move through the rest of her life in the last 200 pages or so.

I didn’t mind the style of the writing, which definitely kept the tone of it being a letter throughout the book. However, this is definitely the kind of book that doesn’t really seem to have a set plot point moving it along. It truly is about Vivian’s life and our lives don’t really have set plot points. Also, I was easily 300 pages in and still hadn’t (obviously at least) met Angela’s father. All I could think of was the fact that if I had been Angela reading this novel of a letter, by 300 pages I would have been irritated and annoyed. I wouldn’t have felt the need to know this woman’s entire life story.

There is a line in this story in which one character tells Vivian she is not an interesting woman and she will never be an interesting woman and, unfortunately, I feel like I have to agree. Looking back on the story, I feel like this book/letter is Vivian trying to convince one last person that she is an interesting woman when really she isn’t.

This is one of those odd books that, while I was reading it, I didn’t mind it and, in fact, enjoyed a decent amount of it. But, now that I’ve finished it and sat with it for a bit, I find more and more that I don’t like about it.

What Book Club Thought

Minus Stephanie, it seems as though everyone else liked the book a little more than I did. Denise and Stephanie both listened the audiobook. Interestingly, they both got stuck at a similar point. It lead to a good discussion about how this book is more interesting in the second half than the first. We did also discuss how much of the book could have been left out. A lot of the discussion made me realize that I liked portions of the book a lot more than I was giving it credit for.

It was a good book club book choice because it lead to a lot of good discussion. Denise also pointed out that one of the reasons she liked the book so much was because of how strong of a woman Vivian needed to be to be who she was during that time.  

Chasing Lucky

By: Jenn Bennett
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 416

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 I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Budding photographer Josie Saint-Martin has spent half her life with her single mother, moving from city to city. When they return to her historical New England hometown years later to run the family bookstore, Josie knows it’s not forever. Her dreams are on the opposite coast, and she has a plan to get there.

What she doesn’t plan for is a run-in with the town bad boy, Lucky Karras. Outsider, rebel…and her former childhood best friend. Lucky makes it clear he wants nothing to do with the newly returned Josie. But everything changes after a disastrous pool party, and a poorly executed act of revenge lands Josie in some big-time trouble—with Lucky unexpectedly taking the blame.

Determined to understand why Lucky was so quick to cover for her, Josie discovers that both of them have changed, and that the good boy she once knew now has a dark sense of humor and a smile that makes her heart race. And maybe, just maybe, he’s not quite the brooding bad boy everyone thinks he is…

First Impressions

Jenn Bennett has written some of my favorite recent contemporary YAs. I have loved Alex Approximately, Starry Eyes, and Serious Moonlight. With each of her novels I have loved her even more. Her covers are also the best. I didn’t even look twice at this book before deciding I needed to read it.

What I thought

Josie is moving back to the town where she grew up and where her mother grew up. They haven’t been back in 5 years and she is not looking forward to it. Until she runs into her old friend Lucky, who has changed from the boy she remembers being best friends with.

I was so disappointed in this book. I don’t know why, but I couldn’t connect with it at all. I didn’t care for Josie, I found her to be very whiney, and I didn’t feel the love between her and Lucky. I started reading this at the beginning of March thinking it was going to be a quick read. Instead, I put it aside and read four other books before I finally finished it.

The story was fine. Josie is dealing with her relationship with her mom and her absent dad. Lucky is dealing with abandonment issues. There was a lot going on that seemed very repetitive. I felt like Josie was naiive, which, fine, she’s a teenager, but it just didn’t come off well to me. Maybe if I was younger I would’ve liked this one more?

I’m not one to write long reviews on books I didn’t like, so I’m not going to say much more. Maybe this book will be better for you than me, but I would recommend picking one of Bennett’s other books over this one. It’s not going to stop me from picking up more of her books in the future, but this one just wasn’t the one for me.

Henna Artist

By: Alka Joshi
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Harlequin

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. There she becomes the most highly requested henna artist—and confidante—to the wealthy women of the upper class. But trusted with the secrets of the wealthy, she can never reveal her own…

Known for her original designs and sage advice, Lakshmi must tread carefully to avoid the jealous gossips who could ruin her reputation and her livelihood. As she pursues her dream of an independent life, she is startled one day when she is confronted by her husband, who has tracked her down these many years later with a high-spirited young girl in tow—a sister Lakshmi never knew she had. Suddenly the caution that she has carefully cultivated as protection is threatened. Still she perseveres, applying her talents and lifting up those that surround her as she does.

First Impressions

I found out about this book from Reese’s book club. I realized I hadn’t checked the books on her list in a while and when I did, this was the month’s pick. I like historical fiction and I loved the cover, so I decided to add it to my to-read list.

What I thought

Since I’ve been taking so many walks during the pandemic and the libraries were all closed, I decided to listen to this as an audiobook. Also, because of this, please excuse any misspellings as I didn’t get to read the names, only listen to them.

Lakshmi travels to the city of Jaipur in the 1950s to be rid of her husband and start her own life. After years there establishing herself as a henna artist, as well as a side business of providing women with herbal medicines, an unknown sister shows up at her door. All of a sudden, she is in charge of caring for Radha at 12 years old while trying to further her own place in life by working for women of status and even the palace.

Before I talk about the story itself, I want to talk about listening to it as an audiobook. I did like the voice of the narrator, but she spoke n a slow and soothing voice. I found myself tuning out sometimes when she was talking and, therefore, not being as engaged in the story as I probably should have. One of my coworkers reminded me that you can speed up audiobooks, so I increased the speed to 1.25 and found that I was more engaged and less likely to space out. I have to say, I don’t think I’m really an audiobook person. I’ve listened to a handful and rarely have I found myself as interested in the book as I am with physical books.

The story itself was very interesting. I have never read a historical fiction that takes place in India. I found the cultural and class differences to be fascinating. I had never thought about the fact that rich women would hire henna artists as henna is not a part of my culture. What really intrigued me though was the way that Lakshmi used herbal remedies for a variety of ailments. She was even questioned by a doctor for her herbs, but even he ended up coming around to her ways in the end.

I wasn’t crazy about the storylines with Radha. She is very immature, as should be expected by a young girl who lived out in the country, but I wanted to smack her upside the head. She was nothing but trouble from the moment she entered and I wanted Lakshmi to ship her off somewhere and never deal with her again. I wish that the story had focused more on Lakshmi and her trying to climb the social ladder and less on Radha and all of the destruction she brought.

Overall, this was an interesting read. I liked learning about the history and culture of India in the 1950s. There are a lot of class similarities as in other countries so it was interesting to see how that played out in the Indian culture. I can’t say for sure if I would’ve enjoyed this more if I had read it instead of listening to it, but I never found myself thinking about this book after listening to it. if you’re looking for something different, I definitely recommend checking it out.

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux

By: Samantha Verant
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this book.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A disgraced chef rediscovers her passion for food and her roots in this stunning novel rich in culture and full of delectable recipes.

French-born American chef Sophie Valroux had one dream: to be part of the 1% of female chefs running a Michelin-starred restaurant. From spending summers with her grandmother, who taught her the power of cooking and food, to attending the Culinary Institute of America, Sophie finds herself on the cusp of getting everything she's dreamed of.

Until her career goes up in flames.

Sabotaged by a fellow chef, Sophie is fired, leaving her reputation ruined and confidence shaken. To add fuel to the fire, Sophie learns that her grandmother has suffered a stroke and takes the red-eye to France. There, Sophie discovers the simple home she remembers from her childhood is now a luxurious château, complete with two restaurants and a vineyard. As Sophie tries to reestablish herself in the kitchen, she comes to understand the lengths people will go to for success and love, and how dreams can change.

First Impressions

This cover makes me want to jump inside and live in it. Her dress, the sky, the chateau. Even the font of the title jut drew me in. I’m also a bit of a sucker for books about chefs (see my previous review about A Sweet Mess) so I was immediately drawn into a book that also occurred over seas.

What I thought

I wanted to really like this book, but it just didn’t work for me.

Sophie starts off as a chef in a 2 star Michelin restaurant waiting to get its 3rd star. When the restaurant loses a star, she gets thrown under the bus for intentionally sabotaging the restaurant. With her life falling apart, she learns that her Grandmother in France is ill. After falling into a depression because her career is over as she knows it, she decides to go visit her grandmother and make sure she is healthy.

The beginning of the book made me feel uncomfortable just because I was so angry at the fact that she got thrown under the bus. Once she got to France I started to enjoy the book a little more. I wanted to see how she pulled herself back together while also reconnecting with her past.

I loved all of the characters at the chateaux. I wish that there had been even more of them than there was. When she reconnected with Remi, her crush from her childhood summers in France, I was excited for a slow burn, but instead received an instant declaration of love on his part. I really appreciated that Sophie told him that she needed time and that she wasn’t in a space for that kind of relationship, rather than getting swept up.

My real issues with this book started at about 70% of the way through. I felt like the book could’ve been finished at that point and I struggled to get through the rest of the book because I didn’t understand what more could happen. There was a lot that got resolved at 70%, so the rest of the book felt unnecessary. Even though this was never quite a book that I didn’t feel like I couldn’t put down, I looked forward to picking it back up. Once I hit that final quarter, I no longer felt like I needed to read this book.

The story was cute and the writing was good. I just felt like this book was too long for its own good. If there had been more drawn out in the middle and then the final 30% was about the final 15%, I think that would have made it much more enjoyable.

A Sweet Mess

By: Jayci Lee
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Pages: 320

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this book.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Aubrey Choi loves living in her small town nestled in the foothills of California, running her highly successful bakery away from the watch of her strict Korean parents. When a cake mix-up and a harsh review threaten all of her hard work and her livelihood, she never thought the jaded food critic would turn out to be her one-night stand. And she sure as hell never thought she’d see her gorgeous Korean unicorn again. But when Landon Kim waltzes into her bakery trying to clean up the mess he had a huge hand in making, Aubrey is torn between throwing and hearing him out.

When she hears his plan to help save her business, Aubrey knows that spending three weeks in California wine country working with Landon is a sure recipe for disaster. Her head is telling her to take the chance to save her bakery while her heart—and her hormones—are at war on whether to give him a second chance. And it just so happens that Landon’s meddling friends want them to spend those three weeks as close as possible...by sharing a villa.

When things start heating up, both in and out of the kitchen, Aubrey will have to make a choice—to stick it out or risk her heart. 

First Impressions

I was sent this book to review and was immediately drawn in by the cute cover of this book. When I read he summary I had a feeling it would be right up my alley. I also have been trying to diversify the authors that I read, so that definitely made this book appeal to me a little bit more.

What I thought

Woah! There is a lot to unpack here.

Aubrey own a bakery in a small town in California. Landon is a famous food critic. When he stumbles into her bakery, he accidentally buys a cake made for a 6 year old, stuffed with gummy worms. Later that night, he meets Aubrey at a bar. Neither of them knows who the other one is until Landon’s negative review about Aubrey’s bakery comes out, threatening the livelihood of her business.

And that’s all only within the first 20% of the book!

So much happens in this book. It has so many romance novel tropes all rolled into one and I enjoyed every minute of it.

I loved Aubrey. She was strong and independent and determined to make her own way in the world. I also liked Landon, and their chemistry leapt off the page. There was a big pull of will they/won’t they that kept me intrigued from page one. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to them and how they would ultimately end up together.

There were also some side characters, specifically Tara, Aubrey’s best friend, who I really hope get a spin off novel. I would love to read more about the town and Tara. There were also some delicious sounding recipes in this book. I think there was only one that was given in the back, but it definitely had me craving some baked goods.

If you are a fan of romance novels, I highly recommend checking this one out. There is so much that happens and it kind of breaks the typical pace. Every time I thought I knew what was going to happen another surprise was thrown in. It brought a smile to my face every time I picked up this book and I look forward to reading more by Lee in the future.

Book Club August 2020- Where the Crawdad Sings

By: Delia Owens
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: G.P Putnam & Sons
Pages: 384

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life–until the unthinkable happens.

Perfect for fans of Barbara Kingsolver and Karen Russell, Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.

What I thought

I’m not going to do a summary on this book because, well, if you don’t know what it’s about or haven’t heard about it you’ve probably been living under a rock.

Nobody in our book club had read this book, even with all of the hype. We haven’t had the greatest luck with books that have topped the best seller lists, so I think that made all of us hesitant to pick this one up. Add in the fact that when reading the description it doesn’t exactly sound like something I would be into and I easily passed this one over a few times.

I’m so glad that Meghan finally picked it and forced us to read it. It was funny because one of the book club members had tried to read/listen to it a while ago and couldn’t get into it so she quit. She wasn’t very happy initially about having to re-start it but in the end was thankful that she was forced to give it a second chance because she enjoyed it much more the second time around and was happy to finish it.

Have you ever read a book that you can feel is going to be an immediate classic? There is something about it that reminds me a bit of To Kill a Mockingbird and I can easily pictures this book being taught in schools for years to come.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this story. There were definitely parts that made me angry. For example, Kya being abandoned by all of her family members at the age of 6, in addition to the way she was treated by the townspeople. There was a lot of prejudice and it was interesting to read about how different people dealt with it.

I enjoyed that the book flipped between the past and the “present” (meaning 1969). In the present chapters, the story was a murder mystery. I was intrigued because I love a good mystery and it was also fascinating to see how the past story was going to catch up to present day.

This book was a wonderful book club choice because there were so many points of discussion. One fun thing that I want to point out (thanks Stephanie!) is that there is a map at the beginning of the book. The only book club member that noticed it was Stephanie, so it was really fun to look at when we were all together.

Shockingly, this book does live up to the hype. The writing I beautiful and it is the first book in a very long time that I was unable to put down. I actually stayed up until 11:30 reading this book because I wanted to see how everything turned out. I haven’t had a book that has sucked me in like that in quite a long time. There is nothing that I could pick out from this book that I would complain about.

This is My America

By: Kim Johnson
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 416

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.

Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Every week, seventeen-year-old Tracy Beaumont writes letters to Innocence X, asking the organization to help her father, an innocent Black man on death row. After seven years, Tracy is running out of time—her dad has only 267 days left. Then the unthinkable happens. The police arrive in the night, and Tracy’s older brother, Jamal, goes from being a bright, promising track star to a “thug” on the run, accused of killing a white girl. Determined to save her brother, Tracy investigates what really happened between Jamal and Angela down at the Pike. But will Tracy and her family survive the uncovering of the skeletons of their Texas town’s racist history that still haunt the present?

First Impressions

I first hear about this book through Twitter right before the most recent wave of the Black Lives Matter movement. It sounded interesting but, I’ll be honest, I was nervous to read it because I knew it was going to make me angry and uncomfortable. After the May/June movement started I came to terms with the fact that I needed to make myself uncomfortable and not only added it to my to-read list, but requested a copy for review on Netgalley. The cover is beautiful and was definitely what initially caught my eye.

What I thought

Wow. This book is so good. I have not read a debut this good in a very long time.

Tracy has been writing to Innocence X to take her father’s case for years. Her dad is in jail, sentenced to the death penalty for a murder he did not commit. He has less than a year left when her brother is accused by the police of murdering one of his white female classmates. With Jamal on the run and time running out on her father’s time in jail, Tracey takes it upon herself to find out what really happened.

I’ll say it again. This book is so good. The way that Johnson writes about the injustices in our police system within the black community is heartbreakingly beautiful. There is a chapter in which Tracey is giving a presentation on knowing your rights which covers what to do if you are stopped by a police officer. There were so many facts that she shared that I had never even thought about and definitely never had been taught. It opened my eyes to all of the stupid little things that a black person needs to worry about that I don’t as a white woman.

I loved Tracey. Even though we are different people from different situations, I was able to relate to her easily. I enjoyed her two male friends, but do wish that her female friend (sorry, I’m blanking on names) had been in it a bit more. It felt like she was going to be more central in the beginning but then she kind of disappeared. I mean, this isn’t a story about friendship so I get it, I just would have been curious to have her around a little more.

This book made me uncomfortable, just as I expected, but I needed it. there were a few moments where I wanted to put the book down because I hated to hear about what was happening, but I know that it happens in real life and people don’t have the luxury of putting down their life and walking away.

I honestly don’t have anything negative to say about this book. It’s beautifully written and will make you uncomfortable but you will learn from it. I think this is a great book for anyone and everyone to read even though it is YA. It gave me perspective into parts of life I have not seen or experienced before. I look forward to reading more by Johnson in the future and pushing this book on everybody I know.

Time of Our Lives

By: Emily Wibberly and Austin-Sigemund Broka
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Pages: 384

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Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A boy desperate to hold on, a girl ready to let go.

Fitz Holton waits in fear for the day his single mother's early-onset Alzheimer's starts stealing her memory. He's vowed to stay close to home to care for her in the years to come--never mind the ridiculous college tour she's forcing him on to visit schools where he knows he'll never go. Juniper Ramirez is counting down the days until she can leave home, a home crowded with five younger siblings and zero privacy. Against the wishes of her tight-knit family, Juniper plans her own college tour of the East Coast with one goal: get out.

When Fitz and Juniper cross paths on their first college tour in Boston, they're at odds from the moment they meet-- while Juniper's dying to start a new life apart for her family, Fitz faces the sacrifices he must make for his. Their relationship sparks a deep connection--in each other's eyes, they glimpse alternate possibilities regarding the first big decision of their adult lives.

First Impressions

I loved the debut novel of this adorable married writing duo and it cemented them as an automatic read. I was excited that they had a new book coming out and love the cover. I don’t like it as much as their other books, but I was still very excited.

What I thought

I don’t know if it was the anticipation or what, but this book I just didn’t connect with this book as much as their previous novels.

Juniper and Fitz are on their own separate college visit trips when they run into each other and form an immediate connection. Each is dealing with their own conflicts about leaving for college. Juniper wants to get as far away as possible from her family whereas Fitz wants to stay close to home and is only going on this trip to appease his mom.

I liked a lot of aspects of this book. I think it has a lot of realistic elements. Nothing is wrapped up in a neat little bow and Juniper and Fitz both have huge life issues that are left unresolved in this book. There also was a fun cameo from characters from the last book, which I always appreciate.

I don’t know if I’m going to be able to pinpoint why exactly this book didn’t work for me, but I could tell from the beginning that I didn’t get immediately sucked in. It took be about a week to get through, which isn’t typical for me with YA when I’m really enjoying it. Maybe it was because I knew there wasn’t a way things were going to end all tied up, or maybe because I had just recently read a different (very different) college trip story that I loved.

The characters were enjoyable on their own. I liked Fitz and his affinity for words and I loved Juniper and her desire to find herself. Together, I didn’t quite get them. I wasn’t rooting against them by any means, but it definitely seemed a bit like a relationship of circumstance and maybe that was the point. They were both there for each other pushing them in the ways they needed at that exact time of their lives.

This book was fine. I didn’t dislike it and I didn’t find it hard to read or pick up, but it didn’t grab me. Maybe it’s a YA that will connect more with young adults and there’s nothing wrong with that. I still look forward to reading this duo’s next book, and I hope that it catches me in the same way their other two books have.