What I've Been Reading Lately
I missed my monthly "Show Us Your Books" Round up with +Stephanie Mellor Doyle and +Jana Lynch and I was super sad, but I still wanted to talk about the books I've read lately because there are so many great ones!
First up, one of my @BookoftheMonthClub picks for January:
As if I already didn't think the charm of NYC was magical, Lillian Boxfish made sure that I always would feel that way.
It's NYE, 1984 and Lillian, spry and sharp even in her mid-eighties, is determinedly walking the streets of New York City in order to have her annual NYE dinner at her favorite restaurant.
The books is simple in its intent: to show you the life and times of a woman who blazed the trail for females in a male-dominated industry in the late 1920s and early 1930s. But where it is simple in plot, the story also is filled with a magical tapestry of times gone by...of Lillian's life in its various stages and her dreams-the ones that came true and the ones that did not.
As a successful advertiser for R.H. Macy's, a poet and an author, Lillian is somewhat of a celebrity but as she has grown old, generations of gone on without her. The book finds her reminiscent, but not in a sad way, more of a prideful and accepting way that reassures the reader that Lillian is happy.
I loved Lillian's story telling- it's straight and to the point and very honest and observant. I love the landmarks and hidden gems she introduces as she walks through NYC...it's a wonderful read especially if you've been to the city and can recall the sounds of the honking taxis and the warmth of the cement sidewalk under your feet.
This book is a gem.
This is another @BookoftheMonthClub read and I love the premise: 3 twenty-somethings, all with various burdens to bare, decide to "get back to health" and live disconnected from the rest of the world in the middle of no where. They live off the land, create as little waste as possible and things get a little..weird. I started to think it was going to be a little like "The Girls" but I actually haven't finished it yet as I write this- I am about 3/4s the way through. I'll let you know how it turns out. So far, nothing crazy has happened but I am still obsessed about the characters. One girl fled to the house to get over an ex- she literally quit her job without telling anyone and disappeared. In the months that she was hiding out, her friend starting a relationship with her ex-boyfriend and now they've both shown up at the house as well. Things just can't go well after that, so we will see!
PS If you want to try Book of the Month Club-Click here for a 3 Month Trial for only $9.99 a month PLUS a free tote! It's a great subscription type box because you get to pick your books and if you don't want any of the choices you can skip a month and then pick right back up the next. Easy! And I love the different choices of genres and BOTM always includes an extra gift in the box, they are the best!
I think I talked about this a little bit in my best reads of 2016 but only because I finished it just in the nick of time. It's the best psychological thriller I've read in quite a while and I really liked it. The point-of-view, the twists, the screwed up characters...it's just a juicy story that I couldn't put down. It's the first book I have read in such a short amount of time. Since I took a week off work after Christmas, I read it all in just 2 days! I even passed it over to the Hubs after I finished it and he hasn't put it down either.
I am always reading a hardback, an e-book and an audiobook so here's my ebook of the month:
Sweet Girl by Travis Mulhauser - Drug dealers, snow and a lost baby. I'm hooked.
I'm also listening to The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and I am loving this. It's just the kick-in-the-pants attitude adjustment I need right now.
What are you reading right now?
