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My favorite book in June was Beartown by Fredrik Backman. I have been talking about this, but I never took the time to check out this author. This month I plan on reading next two books in the series and then at least one of his other books. The responses that I got when I said I was interested in reading this very positive, and I could say that I was definitely pleased.
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I would have to say that my favorite book of May would be My Name is Barbra by Barbra Streisand. I listened to her narration of her memoir. It was a 48 hour audiobook (1040 pages). My Bookly app shows that I broke it up in 13 reading sessions. That is a bit less than 4 hours a session, at about 2.5x. Honestly, if I didn’t have such a massive TBR, I could have easily read it for longer hours per session.
She recounts her life in exquisite detail. This includes how she became a star - her years on Broadway, then film, her early and continued singing career, her marriage to Elliot Gould and then to James Brolin, and the many romantic liaisons in the years between those marriages. It felt like a conversation with her and the hours flew by.
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My favorite read for April was Keeper of Lost Children by Sadeqa Johnson. I read this book because it is an upcoming group read. First I had a long hold at Libby, and almost let that borrow expire. So glad that I didn’t, as I read it and found it to be very, very good. I learned about “Brown Babies” - mixed-raced children who were abandoned or ended up in orphanages in Germany after the war. It is a dual-timeline story as it also goes to the mid-1950s. Three central characters - Ethel Gathers, Ozzie Phillips and Sophia Clark whose stories eventually converge.
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My favorite read for March was When I First Met You by Lori Foster. This was an early March read for me, and it was also an early ARC since it’s set to be released in mid-July. The story revolves around Glory and Kam, two individuals who have both overcome tragic pasts. Despite their hardships, they’ve managed to build stable lives. However, Glory is facing harassment from a man she briefly dated.
The two characters connect through their shared pasts and a strong emotional pull towards each other. Lori Foster’s writing has a knack for evoking a wide range of emotions. In this case, like her upcoming book in May, The Lake House, this novel goes beyond romance. It delves into some serious themes but is wrapped in love, tenderness, and showcases the inherent kindness of the characters.
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Kin by Tayari Jones was my favorite book in February. Kin is an amazing book where two friends who were cradle mates went their separate ways around the age of 18. One never got over her mother‘s abandonment, and the other moved on with life, even though her father had killed her mother. At some point, they made a reconnection and started to share letters with one another and rebuilt what was lost. The book was haunting, tragic, heartbreaking, but also had a keen sense of healing. It is a book I will think of for a long time to come.
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For January, my favorite read was This Book Made Me Think of You by Lizzy Page. This is a story that is about love, loss and healing. Tilly was grieving the loss of her husband just over the past year and was reminded of him in a very sentimental way. When her husband Joe knew that he was dying, he crafted a very specific gift for Tilly, a book that she would only receive once a month for the next 12 months. Not only was each book carefully chosen for Tilly, they also opened up doors of opportunity that she might not have taken otherwise.
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