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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 #370

On The Blog Recently

• Best Books Of 2024 (So Far)
• Mid-Year Reading Check-In
• Best July - December 2024 Young Adult Book Releases
• Books To Read In Summer
• Recent Additions To My Must-Read List

In My Reading Life

Long time, no Sunday Post! I think my last one was over a month ago. Oops. It's because I've barely been reading, and the books I did read were "meh." Or maybe the books are fine, and I'm too exhausted to enjoy them? I don't know. Here's what I read in June.

I read Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. It's a western. I never thought I'd read a western, but I gave it a try, and it was much better than I expected. It's about a big group of cowboys who are herding cows from Texas to Montana. Danger and death ensue. It's very episodic, like reading a mini-series.

I really struggled to get interested in this book. There are a lot of characters, and they spend 100s of pages stealing, whoring, and yapping. You can tell that this novel was written by a man for a male target audience. There wasn't much in it to capture my attention.

Then the action picked up, and I was suddenly hooked. I don't even know what hooked me! Maybe I was just happy that the plot finally started? Or there was more time for character development once the men got away from the whores? Who knows. I enjoyed the ending. It's funny and sad. The friendships between the men are believable. You really get the sense that these people have known each other for decades, and this is going to be their final adventure. The friendships make the book worth reading.

Then I read The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë. I can see why this book caused a scandal when it was first published in the mid-1800s. It feels more straightforward and honest than other books from the time period. It's about alcoholism (gasp!) and debauchery (double gasp!) and a woman leaving an unhappy marriage (triple gasp!)

It's written as a series of letters from a dude named Gilbert to his friend. One day, Gilbert is walking his dog when he meets his new neighbors. They're Helen—a young, sexy widow—and her son. Gilbert falls in insta-love with Helen, but she friend zones him and insists she has deep, dark secrets. Helen and Gilbert can never be together! Then there's a bunch of angst and misunderstandings while Gilbert tries to earn Helen's trust.

It's all a bit melodramatic and preachy for my tastes, but I appreciate this book. It's cool to see early feminist literature. I bet a lot of readers could relate to Helen and her desperation to escape from her abusive husband. I hope this book gave female readers in the 1800s the courage to save themselves.

Continuing with the classics, I read Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. I haven't read all of Jane Austen's books yet, but this one is my least-favorite so far. It's about two love triangles. Two! And all the people involved are horrible or bland.

Fanny's parents have too many dang kids, so they send teenage Fanny to live with wealthy family members. The family treats Fanny like garbage because they don't want her to think she's equal to their children. That doesn't stop Fanny from falling in love with her cousin, Edmund. Unfortunately, Edmund is in love with the (slightly awful) Mary Crawford. Then Mary's (completely insufferable) brother, Henry, develops a crush on Fanny.

Every character in this book is either passive or irritating. I guess that makes sense. Fanny was raised to keep her opinions to herself and take care of others. Mary and Henry are upper-class people who are used to getting whatever they want, so they just steamroll everybody. It's commentary on society's class system and how the upper class uses the lower classes. The characters make sense, but their love drama is tedious! I had a hard time staying interested.

In The Rest Of My Life

Five things that made me happy recently:

1. I survived the 4th of July! I worked a 12.5-hour shift, and it was absolute chaos. I spent the 5th of July cleaning up trash. So much trash.
2. Anne @ Books Of My Heart gifted me a box of healthy food. I'm chubby and lazy, so it was massively appreciated.
3. Even though I'm barely reading, I hit my Goodreads goal.
4. I got accepted to EMT school and registered for classes. Now I'm trying to figure out how to get tons of different vaccines into my body so I can work with sick people. I've spent my whole life with bad health insurance or no health insurance. All my healthcare is DIY. I got my COVID shots because those were free. The other vaccines . . . nope. Can I just go to a walk-in clinic and ask for one of everything?
5. Here are the animals that visited my yard:

Find Out What Happens When I Get Every Vaccine (I'm Hoping For Superpowers)

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