Seasonal Reading: Fall 2018!
Well, it’s officially Fall, even though it doesn’t really feel like it in Texas. Even though we’re still having 90-degree days, I’m still in the mood to do some seasonal reading, and I feel like there are more to choose from this year than ever! I’ve been very drawn to re-reads and classic mysteries lately, and you’ll see those reflected in my lists below. I’m including cozy mysteries, spooky stories, and comforting, curl up with a blanket Fall reads! Hopefully you can find a few to add to your own seasonal reading list. Let me know if there are some I need to add to mine!
*Books marked with an asterisk were sent to me by the publisher! All opinions are my own!
Classic Re-Reads
I have been in such a mood to re-read lately, something I don’t do nearly as often as I would like. New books and a staggering nightstand stack (not to mention several shelves of unread books and an overflowing book cart) are what generally keep me from picking up a book I’ve read before, but I’m determined to read these 3 by the end of November. They are 3 of my very favorite classic books, and they each have a dark, foreboding tone that is perfect for Fall!
Rebecca
Rebecca is one of my favorite books, but I haven’t read it in years! Rebecca is swept off her feet by a handsome widow and taken away to Manderley, his mansion. When she gets there, she has to fight the presence of his dead wife, as well as the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers. This could also fit into the Spooky category, as it’s a classic gothic novel. If you haven’t read it, this is the year to do it! For a really spooky night, watch the Alfred Hitchcock movie version, followed by the classic film Gaslight. I promise you won’t be disappointed!
And Then There Were None
This is my favorite Agatha Christie mystery! I first read it in 8th grade, and was absolutely hooked. 10 strangers are invited to spend a night on a private by a mystery host. When the host is nowhere to be found, and the guests start turning up dead one by one, they have to figure out who among them is the murderer. It’s a great Christie book to start with if you haven’t read any, and not too long-perfect for a Fall evening! (If you’re like me and you can’t help but research background information of books, Google the history and controversy behind the title. This definitely isn’t the original title!)
The Handmaid’s Tale
I’m going to say something controversial and dividing. I haven’t watched The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu yet. I KNOW. But I want to. I don’t love everything Margaret Atwood has written, but I do love this book. It’s dystopian literature about what would happen if men were in charge and women were used as wives and procreators only, and it is so, so good. If you haven’t read Atwood before, or didn’t love some of her newer novels, try this one. I think anyone can enjoy it, and it will give you a lot to think about, especially in regard to who should have control over an individual’s body.
The Giver
Can we agree that Lois Lowry is one of the original queens of YA? I grew up reading her books, and The Giver has long been a favorite. Yes, this is a middle grade/YA novel, but I think it can be enjoyed by any age. If you have older kids, this would also be a great fall buddy read with them. This is another dystopian novel about a boy who lives in a seemingly perfect world. When he is given a job as the Receiver (of memories), he learns that the world he lives in might not be so perfect after all. This is still one of the best dystopian novels I’ve ever read, and is still highly relevant today.
Classics Re-Visited
A trend I’ve noticed quite a bit lately are bookish re-makes of classic stories. When done well, I love classic stories that are re-written in either a modern way or twisted around to make a completely new story. These are a few that are on my TBR list, and one (Wicked) that I want to re-read before I see the musical for the umpteenth time!
A Study In Scarlet Women (The Lady Sherlock Series)
A Study in Scarlet is considered the first Sherlock and Holmes novel, and Sherry Thomas has taken that series and twisted it around with a woman (Charlotte Holmes) as the main character. I AM HERE FOR THIS. Charlotte has never agreed with the London society norms of women remaining quiet and unobtrusive. When a string of unsolved murders hits the city, she sets out to find the killer, under the assumed name Sherlock Holmes, and prove that she doesn’t have to sit back and watch life pass her by. There are three books in this series so far, so if you’re looking for a good re-visited classic, this is the one to start with!
The Phantom’s Apprentice
The Phantom of the Opera is one of my favorite novels, and if you’re looking for a real creepy book, read that one. The Phantom’s Apprentice takes that story, of Christine the opera star, her lover Raoul, and the Phantom/Angel of Music and gives it even more depth, delving further in the minds and psyches of the main characters. I am SO excited to read this because while I love the original book (and musical, of course), it would be nice to get to know the characters better and understand why they make the choices they do. Plus, Katie at basicbsguide recommended it to me (and sent me my copy), so I know it’ll be fantastic!
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
You’ve probably all at least heard of Wicked the musical, but I’m not sure how many people have actually read the book it’s based on. In case you’re not familiar, it’s the story of the Wicked Witch of the West/The Wizard of Oz as imagined by Gregory Maguire. And she’s not exactly the villain everyone knows her as! If you’ve never read any of Maguire’s books (they’re all twisted fairy tales) this is a good one to start with. Some of them can be a little strange, but Wicked is great. I love when villains get their own story! This is also my in real life book club’s pick this month, and I can’t wait to discuss it with them.
The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein
This is a new YA novel, but it seems perfect for adults who like twisted classics. This is a re-telling of Frankenstein from the perspective of Elizabeth Lavenza, a ward of the Frankensteins. She is tasked with taking care of Victor Frankenstein. When he leaves for his studies, Elizabeth worries that she no longer has a future without him to take care. She goes on a search for him, and what she discovers is thrilling and horrifying. Reader confession: I have never read Frankenstein, but now I want to just so that I can read this and fully enjoy it! (Although I have seen Young Frankenstein. Does that count?) This book sounds amazing, and a wonderful twist on the traditional story.
Macbeth
I probably don’t need to offer a lot of explanation for this one, except that I REALLY want to read it. It’s a re-telling of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, in modern times (the 1970s), set against a police crime backdrop. Macbeth is an Inspector, Hecate is a drug lord, and Lady is, yes, Macbeth’s one true love. Jo Nesbo is a genius when it comes to writing thrillers, and this seems like a perfect fit. Truly, Shakespeare’s plays are set up so wonderfully for re-tellings, and the dark background of this novel is especially fitting for Fall.
Spooky Stories
It’s finally October, my favorite time of year, and while I don’t generally read horror books (with the exception of Final Girls by Riley Sager), I do enjoy a good, spooky book when the weather starts cooling down and it gets darker earlier. These are a few that fit that category, and are more spooky than creepy.
*Force of Nature
Force of Nature is a gently spooky novel by the author of The Dry, and I loved this one even more! A group of women head into a forest for a company retreat, and one of them doesn’t come back. You can check out my review of Force of Nature HERE! I absolutely love the idea of reading this book in the Fall. Any story involving a forest is usually spooky, there’s a mystery to solve, but it’s not going to scare you so much that you need to leave ALL the lights on.
The Thirteenth Tale
A gothic tale about a reclusive author, her stories, and secrets for all the characters involved? Yes, please! I am here for a slightly spooky book that makes me want to keep reading one more chapter to see if I can find out something else about the characters. Madeleine at Top Shelf Text recommended this book, and I blindly trust her opinion on books like this! I plan to read this before the end of October for sure! Setterfield has a new book coming out in December called Once Upon a River
Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft
This is another YA book that I think will be perfect for adults looking for a spooky story they can read quickly. This is a book of 15 short stories about witchy women in the past, present, and future, so you can pick it up and get your spooky Fall reading in in short doses along with whatever other book (Books?) you’re reading. I picked this up at Barnes & Noble and almost sat down to read the entire thing right there.
Abigale Hall
If you want a truly creepy book that’s reminiscent of Rebecca (this would make a great companion read), Abigale Hall is a great choice. I read this last year and couldn’t put it down once I started. (You can read my review of it HERE!) It’s about two sisters, Eliza and Rebecca, who have lost their parents in WWII and are sent to live in a crumbling old mansion in Wales. The owner is never seen and Mrs. Pollard, the housekeeper, is more than a little odd. When Eliza discovers a book covered in blood, she decides to find out what’s going on in the house, and why none of the other girls who have worked there have survived. Y’all, if you only pick one spooky book to read this Fall, please make it this one! It is so good, and fantastic gothic fiction for people who don’t want the complete gore of a horror book.
Cozy Books
Let’s be honest. It’s still 90 degrees in Texas some days. I don’t care. It’s officially Fall, I have my glittery pumpkins out, and all I want to do is curl up with a soft blanket and pretend it’s 60 degrees outside. These are a few books I’m planning to do that with in the next couple of months!
*I’d Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life
If you haven’t heard of Anne Bogel yet (her blog is Modern Mrs. Darcy and her amazing podcast is I’d Rather Be Reading), then please let this book introduce you to her. She is a wonderful writer and book-recommender, and this book is full of short essays about the reading life. They’re quick to read and perfect for curling up under a comfy blanket and reading about the life of a fellow reader.
The Brutal Telling: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel
Guys. Have you been to Three Pines? If you haven’t, please, please, please make this the year you start the Inspector Gamache series. Louise Penny has created a mysterious, well-developed world in Three Pines, Canada, and each book gets better and better. You do need to read them in order, starting with Still Life (my review of that is HERE), but this is the book that I’m on. I am so happy to be back in Penny’s world of mystery, murder, and Gamache’s cleverness.
Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World
If you’re wishing you could be traveling this Fall instead of . . . not, this is a wonderful book to get away in. Anthony Doerr wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning All the Light We Cannot See, and this short book is the story of how he wrote it. When Doerr won the Rome Prize (basically a paid-for year in Rome to live and write), he moved his wife and newborn twins to Rome to write All the Light We Cannot See. This book tells the story of that year and what life was like in Rome. With twins. Doerr is a talented writer, but I really love behind the scenes stories, and this is a great one!
The Witch Elm
I haven’t read Tana French before, but I’m going to start with this book. She does have a series, but The Witch Elm is a standalone, and it sounds PERFECT for Fall. Toby, recovering at his family home after a run-in with burglars, finds a skull in an elm tree trunk in the backyard. To find out who the skull belongs to may require Toby to acknowledge that his family’s past may not be what he thought it was. It sounds so, so good, and I know French is a skilled writer. (She is an Anne Bogel recommendation, and I trust her!) I’ll definitely be fitting this in soon.
Anne of Green Gables
And finally, I can’t have a Fall book list without Anne of Green Gables on it. I love this series so much, and it’s perfectly cozy for Fall. Yes, they are considered children’s books, but every time I read them I get even more out of them. If you haven’t read Anne, or haven’t read her in a long time, I highly recommend doing so this year! I’m going to be re-reading Anne of Avonlea soon if anyone would like to read along with me!
Review: Moloka’i
I’ve come to believe that how we choose to live with pain, or injustice, or death . . . is the true measure of the Divine within us.
Sometimes a book comes to you at just the right time, even if you don’t realize it’s the right book. Moloka’i
Rachel Kalama has a wonderful life with her family on the island of Oahu. She is a typical 7-year-old girl, playing, going to school, and idolizing her dad. When a rosy spot appears on her skin and doesn’t go away, she is diagnosed with leprosy and her life, and childhood, change forever. She is sent to the island of Moloka’i, a designated leprosy colony, to live separately from the rest of Hawaiian society. She will either get better and be released . . . or not. She learns how to live a full life even when facing death (in her friends, family, herself) every day.
This is a fictional novel, but the setting is real. Moloka’i was home to a large leprosy colony from 1866-1969. Rachel’s experience in the novel is representative of many people who did go through being separated from their families and sent to this small island to live out the rest of their days after being diagnosed with leprosy. When I started reading Moloka’i, I knew nothing about this part of Hawaiian history, and I found it heart-breaking, intriguing, and something I still want to learn more about. I absolutely loved Rachel and her father, Henry. Really I loved all of the characters. They all felt very real and fully formed, and I was invested in the book as much for the plot as I was for the well-being of the characters. I was rooting for Rachel and the journey she was on throughout the whole book, and I felt like I got a very good sense of what it would have been like to live in Hawaii, and on Moloka’i, in that time period.
If you like historical fiction and want something a little different (I’ve read nothing about Hawaii’s history and now I want more), please pick up Moloka’i
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
EXTRA!
There’s a sequel!!! Daughter of Moloka’i
(And yes, I did take this book all the way to Hawaii to photograph on the beaches of Oahu!)
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What My Kids Are Reading: September 21, 2018
Ghosts
It’s been a very long time since I’ve posted about what my kids are reading, and that’s mainly because they’ve been reading longer chapter books. I don’t want to post the same books week after week! But they’ve now made it through enough that I can start recommending books that they’ve loved again! Instead of separating this post by age, I’m just going to get right into the books!
My 9-year-old read this one and loved it so much that he re-read it again and again and asked if I could buy him ALL of Raina Telgemeier’s books! Ghosts is a graphic novel about a girl named Catrina, who has just moved to Northern California, and her younger sister, Maya. Catrina isn’t thrilled about being in a new town, but the weather is supposed to be better for her sister’s health: Maya has cystic fibrosis. When a neighbor reveals that their town is haunted by ghosts, Maya wants to meet one, and Cat has to decide what she will put first: her sister or her fear of ghosts. This is a wonderful story, and I am so happy that a character with CF features prominently! CF is an often misunderstood disorder, and I love that this book has made it accessible for kids. I highly recommend this for strong elementary readers or middle schoolers.
We read this book together after Sarah from Read Aloud Revival recommended it on her podcast. What a creative, fun book! Henry Penwhistle draws pictures all the time, including on his bedroom door, which is a giant chalkboard. One day those chalk drawings all come to life and follow him to school, wreaking lots of havoc along the way. I love that this book is so imaginative and encourages kids to create all kinds of art, not just coloring inside the lines. It also gently addresses important issues around friendships, adults who won’t listen, and how to be yourself when people don’t always understand why. Plus, Henry’s town is named Squashbuckle. Please read it, if only for that!
Hilo Book 4: Waking the Monsters
An alien robot boy crashes to Earth and befriends two earthlings. That’s probably all you need to know that this series is a HUGE hit with kids, especially my boys. They both (7 and 9) love this graphic novel series about Hilo (the alien robot) and his friends, DJ and Gina. In between Hilo learning how things work on Earth, they battle monsters, aliens, and the occasional monster alien robot combo. This is a fantastic, funny series that I think would work well for a lot of ages, as well as for reluctant readers!
[Top]Review: An Ocean of Minutes
You cannot put life on hold to have a moment of grief, so every second, half the people in the world are split in two. This is what they mean by life goes on, and the worst is that you go on along with it too.
Have you ever been delayed in an airport without a book and no way of getting one? I have. Luckily, when my flight in San Francisco had a 5-hour delay, I remembered passing a bookstore in the terminal earlier, and immediately headed over. Compass Books not only had a bookstore in the terminal, it had a FANTASTIC bookstore. Old books, brand new releases, and everything in between. I spent a good 30 minutes browsing and trying not to buy everything. One of the books I settled on was An Ocean of Minutes
This story is about Frank and Polly, a couple in the middle of a flu epidemic in America. Time travel has been invented in the future, and when Frank catches the flu, Polly decides to time travel to the future in order to secure health insurance for Frank and to meet him in the future after the epidemic has passed. They agree on a time and place to meet in Galveston, 12 years in the future, and she heads off. However, Polly is sent an additional 5 years into the future with no way of going back, no money, and no way of finding Frank. She has to navigate her new life in a new America and try to find Frank, if he’s even still waiting for her.
I thought this was a really interesting story and plot (I love post-apocalyptic settings), and I definitely understand why it’s compared to Station Eleven. Lim’s writing is beautiful, almost poetic (just look at that beautiful quote above), and she put a bit of a twist on the flu epidemic story. However, I didn’t love it as much as I expected. Some of the chapters seemed to start in the middle of a story, and I had to flip back to remind myself of what was going on. And while I truly appreciate what the author was trying to do, a lot of spots in the book felt like she was trying to do too much. It felt like Lim was trying to write higher brow literary fiction, and instead she might have embraced just writing a fun, well-written time travel book with a great story. It felt a bit too cerebral in parts, and I just wanted to be on the adventure with Polly.
That being said, while I didn’t love this book, I did think it was well-written, and Lim clearly has a lot of talent. I think this is a good book that just happened to not be for me. If you enjoy post-apocalyptic books that really take a good look at humanity and how people respond in catastrophic situations, definitely give An Ocean of Minutes
⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Blog Tour: Eraser
Thank you to Blue Slip Media and Two Lions for the free copy of Eraser! All opinions are my own!
I love books in which inanimate objects come to life and have their own personalities. (Such as The Day the Crayons Quit!) Even better? When they have a great message for kids. Eraser
Eraser tells the story of an eraser who doesn’t feel as important as her colleagues. Pencil is so sharp, and everyone thinks he’s the coolest. Crayons? They make beautiful art. Even tape and glue help hold things together. All eraser does is clean up after others. She’s ready to do more. When she goes on a journey to try and be something she isn’t, eraser discovers how important she really is, and everyone around her appreciates what she brings to the table. Literally.
This is a really fun book, and the illustrations are super cute and detailed. Kids will find all kinds of silly situations in them. But what I really love about it is the (not so subtle) message of acceptance, both of yourself and by others. Eraser wants to be like other school supplies, and refuses to see how much talent and skill she actually has. When she starts to believe in herself and realizes her own self-worth, all the others do too, and she decides not to let her particular skill be lessened ever again. I realize I’m talking about an eraser’s self-worth, but I think that self-worth and self-respect are issues with kids today that are only getting bigger, and this story breaks it down in a simple, fun way.
Eraser
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️