Wow, May! I had a couple really fun, out-of-the-normal-routine blog things going on, which hampered my reading a bit, but were totally worth it! I posted my annual Summer Reading List, which is one of my favorite things to put together every year. I joined the ladies at The Socratic Salon for their discussion of Herman Koch’s The Dinner, which I loved. I attended BEA for the first time. And…
Anne Tollett (my awesome design site friend) and I are still feverishly working on decorating (Anne) and curating (me) a gorgeous virtual library for Anne Tollett Home. A few weeks back I shared this post where you could vote on the wallpaper color and…the winner was green! So, we will be debuting a gorgeous green library with bookshelves stocked to the hilt in late June!
Best Book of the Month
Beneath the Bonfire: Stories by Nickolas Butler (May 5, 2015)
Fiction – Short Stories, 271 Pages
My Review
Affiliate Link: Buy from Amazon
Other May Reviews
Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave
Mosquitoland by David Arnold
Radiant Angel by Nelson DeMille
The Shore by Sara Taylor (a close runner-up for best book of the month)
Upcoming Reviews
Boo by Neil Smith
Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller
Top 5 Non-Review Books on my “To Be Read” List
Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead
Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith
In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume
Saint Mazie by Jami Attenberg
Summerlong by Dean Bakopoulos
June Releases I’m Excited About
The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows (June 7)
Love May Fail by Matthew Quick (June 16)
The Truth and Other Lies by Sascha Arango (June 23)
Tiny Little Thing by Beatriz Williams (June 23)
Top Ten Tuesdays
Ten Authors I Want to Meet
Ten Books I’ll Probably Never Read
Ten Summer 2015 Books I’m Excited About
May Weekend Cooking Posts
Grilled Wahoo with Tomato Sauce
Grouper with Spicy Hoisin & Ginger
Spiced Yogurt Marinated Tilefish
Special Posts
2015 Summer Reading List
Bloggers vs. Non-Bloggers: Do They Love Similar Books?
My Maiden Voyage to BEA
Favorite Posts by Fellow Book Bloggers
- Leah at Books Speak Volumes single-handedly made my first visit to BEA easy and helped me make the most out of only one day at the event. Her post on Preparing for BEA is a must read for anyone attending next year for the first time!
- Shannon at River City Reading shared her nonfiction book club picks and got me thinking with her discussion about what a book review is worth.
- May was a big Summer Reading List month! Here are a couple from other bloggers: Traveling with T, Mary Kay Andrews’ Favorite Beach Reads on My Novel Opinion, Kathy Reads’ Most Anticipated June Releases, Chronicles of an Avid Reader, and Books Speak Volumes.
It sounds like your design project was a fun one – looking forward to seeing the finished product!
Me too!
Sounds like you had a great May Shannon. I am off to check out the synopsis for each of your June books, they all look good. Happy June!
I’m so intrigued by Beneath the Bonfire! I’ll have to go check it out from the library! I will definitely be reading The Truth and Other Lies later this month!!!
Did you read Shotgun Lovesongs, his debut novel? Bonfire has the same feel, except it’s short stories.
I have not read it, but actually just picked up a copy from the used bookstore, so I’m hoping to get to it soonish. I’ve just heard so many good things lately about both books!
While you may not have read as much as usual, it sounds like you had a really fun month, Sarah; not to mention that you’re also training for a race – woo hoo! I think I’m going to start Love May Fail today…either that, or Summerlong; I can’t decide – GAH! Hope you have a great day!
Very true – race is on Saturday. I’m really enjoying Love May Fail…absolutely loved Part 1 and Part 2 a little less, but still really enjoyed it. I just started Part 3. The writing is great and it’s really made me want to read Silver Linings Playbook. I don’t have an ARC of Summerlong…SO, read it and tell me if I should spring for it! I’m planning to read it as of now, just couldn’t get an ARC.
GAH! The pressure! I may have to read Summerlong first, then – ha!
Try Summerlong…Love May Fail is going downhill. I’m about 60% in and getting frustrated. Hopefully things will turn around 🙂
I FINALLY pushed The Shore closer to the top of my TBR shelf. Summerlong is one I’ll be adding to my list to read. Good luck on the new design project, too. How exciting!
So glad you could attend BEA. I hope to do that some day. And, I’d love to discuss The Dinner with others; what a fascinating novel. I kept thinking about it for days after I finished it, about two years ago, and I keep pondering the effect that parenting has. (Or, a lack thereof.)
Stop by The Socratic Salon if you haven’t already – there was a great discussion about The Dinner on there!
Yay, I’m excited for you to read Saint Mazie!
I downloaded the sample yesterday! Am almost finished my current book and then am going to check it out.
There are so many books I have to add to my TBR list 🙂 Thanks for sharing. My book club is always looking for new bloggers to follow and you have become one of our favorites. I am trying to tell all book lovers to check out OpenBooks.com (http://openbooks.com). You find a book you want to read, download it, share it (if you want) and then you pay what you think it’s worth. It is such a FANTASTIC idea and I am surprised it hasn’t been around for years. E-Books and hardcovers can be so expensive and I think this new method of purchasing books is a GAME changer. I really hope you and your followers will check it out!
Thanks so much – I’m flattered! And – I hadn’t heard about this new site…what a concept! Let the market work it’s wonders, I suppose. I’ll check it out.
Hope June is as much fun for you as May was. Looking forward to the library unveiling…