Well, these are the books I either read or listened to in the month of May.
What are you reading? Please comment and let me know.
Do you have any recommendations for my TBR (to be read) list? Comment and let me know. I’m always looking for a good read.
I listened to this one on Audio. Nameless is a series of novellas that follow the tragic story of the “nameless” protagonist and his mission to rid the world of evil. The audio was well done it only took me a couple of nights to get through it. There’s some disturbing and possibly triggering scenes so be warned. In Koontz style there’s a bit of an element of the super-natural.I LOVED this book. It is a Young Adult Contemporary fiction set in New York City. The story is unique and not all gooey and sweet. Real life issues are addressed and done well. The way this novel is written in vignettes made it so easy to read quickly and really see a lot of different points of view. Loved.This book has been on my TBR for years. I remember my son reading it in school and I simply never got around to it. Well, needless to say, I’m glad I finally sat down and read it. This is a Young Adult Dystopian book written in 1993. This book predates The Hunger Games. It is a simple and quick read. A lot of questions are left unanswered and therefore are spark for discussion. Good book. An adult contemporary book of suspense where a young woman is pulled into a game of fraud, identity theft, and revenge. For me the story was unique and a fast read. Some parts didn’t ring true or were glazed over too quickly (sorry but if someone emptied my bank account I’d be screaming and demanding it back…but that’s me…) Either way, if you can get over those details and focus more on the story as a whole and not question the character too much then you’re okay. Overall, I enjoyed it. This was a quick read. A contemporary thriller written in a Hitchcock-ian way. I enjoyed it. I didn’t have to work too hard and was still able to turn out the lights. Perhaps that’s because the author led us down a path that I willingly followed. A few twists and turns thrown in. Enjoyed it.
I currently reading The Book of Negros. It is simply amazing. Reminds me a bit of Roots by Alex Haley. Right now I’m only about half way through so I’ll let you know when I’m done.
I just realized that I forgot to include the short stories that I read through the month of May. I love short stories. They’re such a compact bit of life all under 7000k words.
This month the short stories I read included:
āBabes in the Woodsā Margaret Atwood
āThe Swimmerā by John Cheeverās
āThe Girls in Their Summer Dressesā by Irwin Shaw
āThe Bear Came Over the Mountainā by Alice Munro
āTown of Catsā by Haruki Murakami
āThe Paper Menagerieā by Ken Liu
āYou, Disappearingā by Alexandra Kleeman
“Birdsong” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
“The Husband Stitch” by Carmen Maria Machado
“A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor
“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
Happy Reading.
Remember, one of the best things you can do for your writing is to read… and then read some more.
Well, what did you order. Now I’m curious. I need to get a copy of Christines latest. So many good books to read. My TBR is growing…but it’s important to add to it, right? lol.
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
Nightwoods – Charles Frazier
The Lost Apothecary – Sarah Penner
America’s Joan of Arc – Matthew J. Gallman (non-fiction)
That Kind of Mother – Rumaan Alam
Devil in a Blue Dress – Walter Mosley
The Nightingale – Kristin Hannah
10 Days in a Madhouse – Nellie Bly (non-fiction)
The Agitators – Dorothy Wickenden (non-fiction)
My favourite was definitely Nightwoods! I highly recommend it. I’m currently reading “A Kind of Freedom” by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton, which is amazing so far… although I’m hoping for at least a somewhat happy ending…
Hmm. What did I read in May? ha! Quite a wide variety of things, actually:
Some reading from the Jewish Annotated New Testament (ed. Amy-Jill Levine), plus reading from both Old and New Testaments of the Bible and some reading from the Expositors Bible Commentary on Matthew)
The Shack Revisited (by C. Baxter Kruger)
Reading from many different blog/website articles about parent-child relationships, false memories, confabulation, dream/reality confusion, codependency and boundaries, etc.
Writing Life Stories (book by Bill Roorbach and Kristen Keckler)
Crafting the Personal Essay (book by Dinty W Moore)
Writing from Personal Experience (book by Nancy Davidoff Kelton)
Writing About Your Life (book by William Zinsser)
The French Baker’s War (new novel by BC writer Michael Watling)
Magazine articles from old issues of Harrowsmith, Mother Earth News, Organic Gardening … and reading from the new issue of WordWorks magazine (FBCW)
I also watched webinars on how to use the Microsoft Digital Paint 3D program, Top Five Power Point Mistakes to Avoid, plus lots of research on backing up your computer (on One Drive, external hard drives, etc.)
Oh! And reading research on aspects of physics and energy topics to prepare for tutoring those topics for one of my students.
And of course lots of blog reading, mostly related to writing topics … including your wonderful blogs! š
Yep, it’s been an interesting month … lots of tutoring and editing and writing, too! LOL!
That is FANTASTIC! What is often forgotten is that ALL types of reading can help us become better writers–it doesn’t have to be a novel or short story. You’re a busy lady to be sure. Sure hope you saved some of that time to get some writing done too. Almost time to start the write-ins again. soon….very soon. And thanks for your kind words Norma. Let’s connect soon. xoxo
Yay! Can’t wait for write-ins! 2nd shot coming up soon and then … I’m almost finished tutoring for this school year and looking forward to lots of writing time in the summer š
It is one of 2 in this series and I read the 2nd one first,not knowing. Hopefully sheāll write a 3rd. I many of her other books, historical fiction mostly about royalty. Didnāt know there was a Netflix series!
I read The Giver years ago in school. I have to reread it. I honestly donāt remember the story but remember liking the book lol. The Woman in the Window looks like a great book! Thanks for sharing Faye!
Azilde! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, I too had read The Giver a zillion years ago. I had totally forgotten the whole thing. It’s a very quick read. Enjoy. Let me know what you’re reading. xo
Hi Faye! I will have to give it a read! I am reading a not so interesting book at the moment lol I am hoping to find a good book at the library this week now that it is finally open to go in and search for myself! Thanks for the book recommendations ā¤ļø
I just started a new one today that came highly recommended….called “The Push” by Ashley Audrain….psych thriller apparently. Right up my Twisted Writer Brain Alley! lol. xo
I would only be able to offer a list of books I ORDERED in May, not READ.
Well, what did you order. Now I’m curious. I need to get a copy of Christines latest. So many good books to read. My TBR is growing…but it’s important to add to it, right? lol.
This month, I read:
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
Nightwoods – Charles Frazier
The Lost Apothecary – Sarah Penner
America’s Joan of Arc – Matthew J. Gallman (non-fiction)
That Kind of Mother – Rumaan Alam
Devil in a Blue Dress – Walter Mosley
The Nightingale – Kristin Hannah
10 Days in a Madhouse – Nellie Bly (non-fiction)
The Agitators – Dorothy Wickenden (non-fiction)
My favourite was definitely Nightwoods! I highly recommend it. I’m currently reading “A Kind of Freedom” by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton, which is amazing so far… although I’m hoping for at least a somewhat happy ending…
Hey Zena. Great list though the only one I’ve read is The Nightengale. I’ll check out Nightwoods. Always looking for a great read. xo
The Nightingale was great!
Hmm. What did I read in May? ha! Quite a wide variety of things, actually:
Some reading from the Jewish Annotated New Testament (ed. Amy-Jill Levine), plus reading from both Old and New Testaments of the Bible and some reading from the Expositors Bible Commentary on Matthew)
The Shack Revisited (by C. Baxter Kruger)
Reading from many different blog/website articles about parent-child relationships, false memories, confabulation, dream/reality confusion, codependency and boundaries, etc.
Writing Life Stories (book by Bill Roorbach and Kristen Keckler)
Crafting the Personal Essay (book by Dinty W Moore)
Writing from Personal Experience (book by Nancy Davidoff Kelton)
Writing About Your Life (book by William Zinsser)
The French Baker’s War (new novel by BC writer Michael Watling)
Magazine articles from old issues of Harrowsmith, Mother Earth News, Organic Gardening … and reading from the new issue of WordWorks magazine (FBCW)
I also watched webinars on how to use the Microsoft Digital Paint 3D program, Top Five Power Point Mistakes to Avoid, plus lots of research on backing up your computer (on One Drive, external hard drives, etc.)
Oh! And reading research on aspects of physics and energy topics to prepare for tutoring those topics for one of my students.
And of course lots of blog reading, mostly related to writing topics … including your wonderful blogs! š
Yep, it’s been an interesting month … lots of tutoring and editing and writing, too! LOL!
That is FANTASTIC! What is often forgotten is that ALL types of reading can help us become better writers–it doesn’t have to be a novel or short story. You’re a busy lady to be sure. Sure hope you saved some of that time to get some writing done too. Almost time to start the write-ins again. soon….very soon. And thanks for your kind words Norma. Let’s connect soon. xoxo
Yay! Can’t wait for write-ins! 2nd shot coming up soon and then … I’m almost finished tutoring for this school year and looking forward to lots of writing time in the summer š
The Tidelands by Phillipa Gregory
Hi Beth. I just looked it up. Looks interesting. A series? and a Netflix too? Have you both read and watched?
It is one of 2 in this series and I read the 2nd one first,not knowing. Hopefully sheāll write a 3rd. I many of her other books, historical fiction mostly about royalty. Didnāt know there was a Netflix series!
Interesting. Will look for the first one. Always a good place to start. xo
Start with tidelands-itās the first
Thanks! I will. xo
I read The Giver years ago in school. I have to reread it. I honestly donāt remember the story but remember liking the book lol. The Woman in the Window looks like a great book! Thanks for sharing Faye!
Azilde! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, I too had read The Giver a zillion years ago. I had totally forgotten the whole thing. It’s a very quick read. Enjoy. Let me know what you’re reading. xo
Hi Faye! I will have to give it a read! I am reading a not so interesting book at the moment lol I am hoping to find a good book at the library this week now that it is finally open to go in and search for myself! Thanks for the book recommendations ā¤ļø
I just started a new one today that came highly recommended….called “The Push” by Ashley Audrain….psych thriller apparently. Right up my Twisted Writer Brain Alley! lol. xo
š let me know if you like it! š¤
You bet!!