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The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

 

 

The Sunday Post #275

 

 

 

 

On The Blog Recently

 

• I talked about upcoming adult book releases for the rest of 2021.
• Also, young adult book releases for the rest of 2021.
• I freaked out about all the books I’ve read this year (and all the books I still need to read).
• I listed the 10 best books I’ve read in 2021 (so far).

 

 

 

 

In My Reading Life

 

I haven’t written a Sunday Post in a month. Oops. You all know I’m lazy! Napping always seems like a better option than blogging. Since I haven’t been writing Sunday Posts, I have a lot of books to tell you about. Prepare your scrolling fingers.

First, I finished The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab. I loved it, though if the author described the character’s magic color-changing eyes one more time, I was going to chuck the book out the window. Seriously. Enough! The book is set in 1700s France, where Addie makes a deal with a mischievous god (whose color-change eyes you’ll read about until you’re tempted to gouge out your boring single-color eyes). Addie wants absolute freedom. The god gives her immortality, but she’s cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. I love how the author examines the upsides and downsides of freedom. Addie can do whatever she wants because she can’t die. There are no consequences for her actions because people forget her as soon as she leaves their sight. Sounds awesome, right? The author also captures Addie’s crushing loneliness and her struggle to survive. She can’t make meaningful connections with people. She can’t keep a job or own a house. It’s a fascinating and thought-provoking novel that will make you question what you really want from life.

 

Then I read The Night Country by Melissa Albert. This is the second book in The Hazel Wood series. After loving the first book, I was slightly disappointed with this one. It’s still twisted, creepy, and entertaining, but it’s not what I wanted. I guess that’s my fault and not the book’s fault? The series is about two teens, Alice and Finch, who find their way through a portal and into a disturbing fairytale land called The Hazel Wood. I was hoping for more of Finch’s adventures in The Hazel Wood, but the book mostly focuses on Alice’s adventures in the real world. There’s a slightly predictable murder mystery. It just wasn’t what I wanted. I didn’t find Alice as compelling as Finch. If you loved Alice in the first book, then definitely read the sequel!

Up next was Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge. Reviewing this book goes against the point of the book. The author says that whenever she talks to white people about race, the focus of the conversation shifts, and the conversation becomes about white people’s feelings. That frustrates her because she’s trying to talk about race. If I review this book, it’ll take the focus off the book’s message (understanding modern racism), and put it on my (a white person’s) feelings about the book. So, I won’t review the book. I’ll just say three things. Thing one: I learned the most from the chapters on British history and feminism. Thing two: The book’s title is click bait. I expected a Twitter hot take, but it’s actually well-researched. Thing three: You should read it.

 

Then I read Glass Town: The Imaginary World Of The Brontës by Isabel Greenberg. I didn’t love this one, probably because I was comparing it to the author’s other graphic novel, which I completely adored. Glass Town is the imaginary world that the real-life Brontë siblings created when they were children. Isabel Greenberg’s graphic novel shows how Glass Town gave the siblings an imaginative way to escape from the stresses of their real life, but at the same time, it also drove them apart. The graphic novel isn’t long, but it feels long. I don’t think the author had enough material to make an entire novel. It’s meandering and predictable. If you love the Brontës, then it’s worth reading, but I prefer Isabel Greenberg’s other books.

Next was Tales From The Hinterland by Melissa Albert. Yep, another Hazel Wood book. This one is my favorite in the series! It’s a collection of dark fairytales where bad things happen and evil usually wins. Some of the tales appear in The Hazel Wood or The Night Country, but a few of them are brand new. They’re all exceedingly creepy. Best of all, this book can be read as a standalone! If you’re not interested in the novels but enjoy fairytales, then this book is for you.

 

My next read was vastly different from the previous one. It was What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera. It’s a young adult romance. I know. I’m also shocked that I finished an entire romance novel. I listened to the audiobook at work and laughed a lot. I’m glad I work alone so no one can hear me laughing at the stuff inside my headphones. The story stars two teen boys who accidentally meet at a post office in New York City. They’re attracted to each other, but before they can exchange names and phone numbers, they’re separated by hilarious circumstances. They’re both determined to find each other again. This book is adorable. Five stars for the first half. The characters are relatable and awkward and have distinct personalities. I love them. Once the story shifts from a mystery to a romance, I found my attention wandering. I’m just not interested in people’s love lives. I kept waiting for something else to happen. That’s a “me” problem, though. If you like romance, check this one out. It’ll brighten your day. (Well, until the end. The ending might be controversial.)

Speaking of lovable characters with big personalities, I read Insignificant Events In The Life Of A Cactus by Dusti Bowling. This is a cute middlegrade novel about Aven, a middle schooler with no arms. When her parents accept jobs as managers of a theme park, she’s forced to move across the country and start over at a new school. Like many middlegrade novels, this one pushes the boundaries of believability, but it’s a fun read. I think a lot of kids will relate to Aven’s band of misfit friends. The characters each have their own struggles and insecurities. This book tackles a lot of issues, but the author does it with kindness and humor, so it’s never depressing. Since I’m an adult reader, I thought the author included too many issues and didn’t have time to explore them all in depth, but I guess that’s why there’s a sequel. I will happily read it someday.

 

Okay, final book! (Congratulations on making it this far through the blog post. Gold star for you.) The book was Sapiens: A Brief History Of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. If you took everything that interests me about humans and crammed it into one book, you’d come up with this one. It’s fascinating! It’s a nonfiction book that delivers exactly what it promises in the title. It starts by talking about six different species of human-like creatures and then follows Homo Sapiens through the cognitive revolution, the agricultural revolution, and the scientific revolution. It’s provocative and thought-provoking. I didn’t always agree with the author’s conclusions (especially about the agricultural revolution), but he argues his points well enough that I can see where he’s coming from. I’m surprised at how quickly I flew through this book. It’s massive and more academic than what I usually read, but I couldn’t put it down because the writing style is engaging, and the author asks interesting questions. I love that the book focuses on humanity as a whole and not on individual humans. I need to find more history books like this one. Recommendations, please.

 

 

 

 

In The Rest Of My Life

 

Five things that made me happy recently:

 

1. If you’re in the US, I hope you had a wonderful July 4^th! Baby Brooklyn and I ate hot dogs and set off safe, legal, boring fireworks. It was awesome.
2. I’m still doing daily yoga. I’ve now done yoga every single day for 539 days.
3. I mailed my Christmas in July gift to my Secret Santa partner. I had fun shopping for her. I hope she likes everything.
4. Creative boat names. I work at a lake, and people come up with the best names for their boats. I saw “Canoe Reeves” and “A Boat Has No Name.” <-- Of course this name was painted in Game of Thrones font.
5. I climbed a mountain! Well, actually it was just a really big hill. It was a lung-burning climb because the air was smoky from the wildfires out west. The top of the mountain gave me a hazy view of . . . the lake where I work. I just can’t escape from that place.

 

If you squint through the wildfire smoke, you can see my day job. (Unfortunately, it's not my day job that's on fire.)

 

 

Please love me

 

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Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other. See you around the blogosphere!