Alison’s October Reads
We’ve entered my favorite time of the year to read (that’s a bold statement because I really just love to read everyday no matter what the season is)! Let me paint the picture for you… We have completed all of our homeschooling lessons for the day (tears through math and grumbling through the whole two pages of English lessons), lunch is cleaned up, laundry baskets are overflowing with clothes that need to be folded, the kids are outside playing tag, and I am cozied up in my favorite chair with a fresh cup of hot coffee and my book. The mess can wait - one chapter (or four) is more important on these fall afternoons when the living room is all aglow with the orangy-yellow from the leaves and sunshine pouring in through my picture window. It’s close to heavenly.
Despite my afternoon quiet time, life is still full and busy and I’m finding I can’t breeze through a book in two or three days anymore. Just means my life is full of other priorities, and I’m thankful that I can still find the time to slip away into a storyline! In October, I was able to finish four books, and I actually really loved and would recommend most of them!
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (4 stars). This book was gifted to me by a friend and has been sitting on my shelf for far too long! While I liked the storyline so much, especially the focus on familial relationships and characters (I love books that really develop strong characters), I didn’t quite see the hype that so many of my friends did. Don’t get me wrong, there were things I really loved about it, especially the setting on a Traverse City cherry farm, but it isn’t going to be added to my faves of all time list either.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (4 stars). This was another book that developed the characters and family relationships really well, although I almost feel like there were too many characters to properly keep track of! I think Ng did a great job painting a picture of Shaker Heights and the culture of not only that town, but America during that time period. I really loved this storyline and would recommend it to a wide range of readers! It was our book club read for the month and it fostered a lot of great discussion - and we got to roast yummy treats over fires too!
The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain by Hannah Brown (2 stars). So, if I’m honest, this book wasn’t great, but at the time I needed something fluffy after reading a string of heavier things and it definitely fulfilled that purpose. If you’re in the mood for romantic fluff though, I have a million others I could recommend before this one.
The Lost Vintage by Ann Mah (4 stars). This novel flip-flopped between present day and a journal from a long lost relative chronicling her time through WWII and I just really enjoyed it! Again, it was heavy on familial relationships, but I also loved being able to learn more about life in France during the occupation. I have read a few WWII books recently and it’s always interesting to me to see how they compare to one another. If you love wine, historical fiction, and romance, I think you’ll love this book!