

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
So many books about the Nazi occupation easily come across as haunting, lyrical, poignant. It's a staple of the genre. And while All the Light We Cannot See mastered those elements, there was one major difference between this book and most stories you read about every day people trying to survive WWII. This was the first story that inspired empathy in me for a member of the Nazi party. I admittedly have never given much thought to the actual people behind the swastika... o


The Polysyllabic Spree by Nick Hornby
Over the past two years, my reading has become very structured. There's always a queue running and a fluid prioritization of the books I'm reading based on various factors... what's up next in my challenge, what just came out, any books I've received from publishers for review that are coming up on their publication date. It isn't an exact science, and Lord knows there's no formula involved (let's just say that I was a Senior in Pre-Algebra with all Freshmen, mkay?)... but


God Help the Child by Toni Morrison
I remember when I was first introduced to The Magic of ToMo. I read The Bluest Eye in an AP Lit class and instantly fell in love with the gritty yet poetic way she writes. Her characters are so beautifully flawed and there is just something about her stories that makes you feel that they're a part of your own history, your own tale. Toni Morrison is one of the few authors who I auto buy without a question. Book Riot could tell me she's publishing her grocery list and I'd b


A new chapter
Hardy, har, har. I love myself a corny-ass blog post title. But really. I'm sure some of you (and by "you", I mean the 3 people who are bored enough to pay any attention to my blog) noticed that I've been a bit remiss in posting new content. I have an explanation, I swear... I got a new job. This was my first week so I've been spending my time trying to settle in instead of writing blog posts during my lunch hour as I had previously been doing. I've been spending my time do


Home by Marilynne Robinson
After being so captivated by the writing and characters so generously gifted to us by Robinson in Gilead, I was soooo looking forward to moving on to Home. It didn't quite deliver what I was initially looking for (or readalong partner for that matter. She couldn't even bring herself to finish). But it gave me a few things I didn't even realize I wanted. I loved getting more insight into the motivations of a character that had so emotionally tormented the narrator in Gilea


The Turner House by Angela Flournoy
The minute I was made aware of this book's release, I knew I needed it in my hot little hands. So I found the library closest to me that was in-processing it and managed to grab the first hold spot. And then I ran out of audiobooks and knew I was getting dangerously close to the 14 day lending timeframe my library has for new books... so I ended up listening to it on audio instead. I still ended up owing the library 15 cents for it... because, I'm me. This book hit so close

Falling in love with Anne Shirley as an adult
[This is a loose response to this Book Riot post: Fan(ne)girl] Sometimes it’s amazing to me the books that somehow passed me by during my childhood. Books that seemingly everyone remembers fondly, books that shaped who they are and that warmly color the memories they have of growing up. I don’t know how I looked over Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, but I now know I was worse off because of it. About a year ago, I noticed that Anne of Green Gables was available on a