My Summer Reads

I love, love, love to read.  Seriously, I read a lot. There is almost nothing else I'd rather do than read. This summer I have been reading about a book every 2 days since there is nothing good on TV at night.  I even read during the boring parts of the Olympics.  Some have been really light summer books and some have been more substantial.  I got a lot of my books from the library so unfortunately I cannot remember them all.   I feel certain that I am forgetting some that I really loved!

I try not to tell you too much about the books below because I kind of like to be surprised in a book but I want to give you my opinion.  However, you can click on the little book images to read more reviews and summaries of each book.

Fiction:

Gone Girl {Gillian Flynn} - this started a tad slow for me but then it was SO good that I could not put it down.  A well written and cleverly crafted page turner.  4.5/5  A nook book.

The Art of Fielding {Chad Harbach}  This book is about baseball and it is one of my book club reads. I will admit, I was not looking forward to it BUT it was really good!  It is more literary than some of these lighter summer reads but it is very good.  It is a long one but a good one.  You really get to know the characters. 4/5

Where we Belong {Emily Giffin}  This was really good.   I read it in a day and half.  There is an adoption theme that really made me think about and read the book differently because of our adoption. 4/5

666 Park Avenue {Gabriella Pierce}-I read this at the beach.  It was good.  There is a witch element in it (that might bother some).  Looks like they are making a TV series of it this Fall. 4/5

Summer House {Nancy Thayer}  This would be a great beach read.  It is light and entertaining.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I really connected with the characters and missed them when the book ended. 4/5

Home Front {Kristin Hannah}  Another easy read.  It was really good.  It deals with a Mother serving in the military and made me ponder things that I had not considered before.  4/5

A Visit from the Goon Squad {Jennifer Egan}  I wanted to like this book.  It gets pretty good reviews  and it came recommended to me but I really did not connect with it at all. 2/5

The Irresistible Henry House {Lisa Grunwald}  I really liked this book a lot.  It is about a boy who is raised in a "practice house."  The practice houses in the 1940's used real babies for home economics.  This book was fascinating.  It is fiction but I did some research and this really did happen at that time.  I highly recommend this book! 4/5

Divergent and Insurgent {Veronica Roth}  This book/series is a little bit like the Hunger Games series so if you liked those, you'll like these.  I actually liked this series better.  As with all these series, the first book is the best.  These are page turners.  I think I read both in a matter of a weekend.  And if there is a 3rd (which I am pretty sure there will be, I will read it). 4/5

The American Heiress {Daisy Goodwin}  I really enjoyed this book a lot.  It was a nice long read.  I connected with the characters and could not wait to read more.  I hated to see it end.  4/5

The Fault in Our Stars {John Green}  I mentioned this one before but I must mention it again because it has been my favorite book of the year.  The writing is flawless and the dialogue very witty.  I LOVED this book.  I laughed and cried and not many boos do that to me. 5/5

Non-fiction:

Unbroken {Laura Hillenbrand}  One of the best books and stories I have ever read.  This is non-fiction but it reads like fiction.  I will admit that the first 100 pages were a little slow for me.  But then, I could not put it down.  I highly recommend this book.  It is well written and a truly amazing story.  Men love it too. 5/5

Bringing up Bebe {Pamela Druckerman}--being a parenting coach, I try to read all the new parenting type books.  I find this one fascinating as she compares the French method of "educating" their children to the American way of "disciplining."  I have not finished this book yet (I waited all summer for it from the library wait list) but I really think it is very good so far.  I totally agree with her assessment of the over-involved American parents.  Amazon gives it 4.5 stars.

7: An Experimental mutiny against excess {Jen Hatamker}--I think this book is a MUST READ!!!  It had a profound effect on me and I could do a whole series of posts on it.  The author looks at seven areas of excess and greed in her life and tries to make changes small and large in each area for one month.  I will admit that some months got a little boring to read (food) but the overall impact this book made on me was HUGE.  Dave is reading it now and Will is going to read it too.  This is a Christian based book (which I loved) but my non-Christian friends might not appreciate it. 5/5

Okay, now PLEASE share a book or two that you would recommend for me. I am always looking for new books.  (I am currently reading Paris Wife and Before I go to Sleep for my book clubs so no need to recommend them)

And just in case you were going to suggest 50 Shades of Grey.... I have NO desire to ever read those books.  I am not judging those who have read them but there are just so many other wonderful, well written books to read that are more my style.

Mary Ann, I hope you enjoy some of these;)  Okay, I am off to stick my nose back in a book!