I finished 3 books last week…which is a ton for me! And, I was rewarded with STILL being 3 books behind schedule for my Goodreads goal. I shouldn’t care about that, but I do…just because it’s there. The way I feel about this is making me lean towards not setting a Goodreads goal next year. Hmm…
I shared my October 2018 Books to Read (and Skip) on Friday…and have one more October book coming this Thursday with its very own review!
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I finished reading…
A Well-Behaved Woman by Therese Anne Fowler (October 16, 2018)
I liked this one, but it was a decidedly lukewarm like. It definitely didn’t fill Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald‘s very large shoes. Check out my review for more thoughts.
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From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein (July 10, 2018) – AUDIOBOOK
This quarter life crisis memoir set in the world of politics might be my favorite audiobook of the year! It’s like listening to your fun friend who happens to have a job (stenographer) in the White House with access to the President give you all the very best anecdotes (plus, a good dose of her love life) over a glass of wine! Great pick if you loved Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? by Alyssa Mastronmonaco or The Hopefuls by Jennifer Close.
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Waiting for Eden by Elliot Ackerman (September 25, 2018)
Y’all, this book. It’s rare to find an author that can tell such a powerful, immersive story in so few pages, but Ackerman did. The first chapter absolutely gutted me…and I was gutted many more times after that. This one is definitely an emotional read, but worth it…it’ll absolutely make my Best Books of 2018 list come December! Mini review to come.
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I’m currently reading…
Sadie by Courtney Summers (September 4, 2018)
I needed something easy after Waiting for Eden and this YA novel told partially via a Serial-esque podcast transcript is doing the job quite nicely. I’m about halfway through and do wish the entire novel was being told in a podcast transcript format, but it’s still working for me overall.
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I tried, but wasn’t feeling…
Virgil Wander by Leif Enger (October 2, 2018)
I liked the writing, but I kept zoning out and there were just too many characters. It could also have fallen prey to following Waiting for Eden. I shared my thoughts in Friday’s October 2018 Books to Read (and Skip) post.
Upcoming reading plans…
A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne (November 13, 2018)
John Boyne (author of The Heart’s Invisible Furies) goes super dark with a “psychodrama” about a man with psychopathic tendencies who pursues fame at all costs. Y’all, this may be one of my most anticipated books of this entire year! I’m terrified it’s not going to live up to my expectations.
I was reading…
One Year Ago: I was reading one of last year’s critical darlings that didn’t work for me at all.
Two Years Ago: I’d just finished one of the more controversial novels of last year.
How was your reading week?
Ooh, I didn’t know John Boyne has a new book!
I’m almost finished with it and its’ GOOD. Darker and more messed up than HIF…dislikable characters, but I’m engrossed.
I loved From the Corner of the Oval and The Hopefuls, both millenial DC tales that were not irksome to me the way some millenial stories can be. They were chatty and fun with some inside scoops on how DC runs.
Waiting for Eden just took my breath away. It was so realistic to me. Check out Eleven Days by Lea Carpenter if you haven’t read it. It’s similar to Waiting for Eden.
I agree on both counts and added Eleven Days to my TBR – thank you!
I agree. Waiting for Eden is an easy pick for Best Books of 2018. That’s one we’ll definitely both have. I think I’m liking A Well-Behaved Woman a little more than you did, but still not as much as Z. Excited to hear how the Boyne book goes!
I still plan on reading the Vanderbilt book — or at least giving it a try. I have the Boyne book on my radar, but I have no idea when I’ll really get to it.
I think you should! I know a lot of people will like it more than I did! But, I did like it…just not nearly as much as Z.
A Ladder to the Sky is great! A whole different tone from The Heart’s Invisible Furies, but very enjoyable. If you’ve read/seen the movie of Patricia Highsmith’s Ripley books, it’s kind of like that.
I’m almost finished with it and LOVING it! You’re right…different (much darker), but his writing style is there.
I really want to read Sadie, although I know it’s going to be a tough book.
My Roundup
Sadie is coming up on my stack. I have heard so many good things about it. I hope your son picks up the reading bug soon. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
I’ve been eyeing Sadie…and From the Corner of the Oval.
I pre-ordered A Well-Behaved Woman, and I’m keeping my expectations in check.
Enjoy your week, and thanks for sharing. Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
I know lots of people will love Well-Behaved Woman. I just got frustrated with all the society stuff…I just didn’t care.
Waiting for Eden is next on my list! And how did I not know that there was a new John Boyne on the horizon?! I’m so excited!!
OK – I’m almost done with the Boyne and it’s fantastic! Diff from HIF…super dark and messed up, but totally engrossing.
I think I’m going to read the Boyne after I try that Alafair Burke book. And I may squeeze in Waiting for Eden if I’m in the mood for it. I’m on the library waitlist for Sadie
Let me know how the Burke goes! I haven’t been able to get it on Edelweiss or NG yet!
I made it through Virgil Wander because I had it for review, but it was most definitely a slow burn and not terribly exciting. I wanted more from it for sure.
Good to hear. I think I would’ve had more patience with it if I wasn’t coming off a 5 star book.
My reading week was busy but I also got some art time in. My weekly updates
I’m hoping to read From the Corner of the Oval during Nonfiction November!
I loved A Well Behaved Woman!
I’m the same with Goodreads! I always seem to be 2 books behind, no matter how much I read. I hope you like Sadie. Everybody seems to be reading that one right now. Have a great week.
Ooo I’m interested to see what you thought of Sadie. I have it on my shelf waiting for me. I also read a book this month with a podcast angle- I cant say that it brought much to the story, but it was interesting!
I’m reading Waiting for Eden right now, I was gutted by that first chapter too. Sadie is on my list and A Well-Behaved Woman is on my NG bookshelf!
I really enjoyed A Ladder to the Sky. I hope you do too!
Now I just need more time to read 🙂
Maybe you could do a post on reading goals? I would love to know more on your thoughts as well as your awesome readers! A few years ago, I set a goal to read 100 books a year, which I thought was a stretch since I have 2 elementary school kids and work full time. I was able to hit the goal because I focused so much on reading and less on social media and TV, and I really had fun with it. So for subsequent years, I decided I would work on increasing my totals each year. That was fine until this year, when I have had some great projects at work plus I am volunteering more at the school. Both are fulfilling, but now I feel like I am failing at my book goal. It’s like I am competing against myself and feeling like a loser, when reading is supposed to be a fun hobby! Anyway, I would love to know how you and other readers feel on reading goals!
I read the blurb for A Well Behaved Woman and thought it might be meh. Glad I didn’t try it. Now I’m thinking on reading Waiting for Eden–since you and Susie endorse it. I’ll be reading (fingers crossed!) The Heart Invisible Furies next year, and if you endorse the new, maybe I can accommodate it too. I look forward to your thoughts on A Ladder…
I am just wanting to yell this from the rooftops!! I am reading a memoir by Julie Heldman. A world class tennis champion, beat all the greats back in the 60’s. Her story is called Driven. By far the best book I have read this year. Her mother, will remind you a little of Tonya Harding’s mom. But Julie’s story is amazing, mental illness related to how hard she pushed herself. What an incredible story.
OMG – I have that sitting on my Kindle right this very second!! I love tennis, played in high school and play Suburban now, and watch a ton of it on TV. I’ve been saving it for Nonfiction November and am actually planning to pick it up when I finish my current book.
So glad to hear it’s awesome…those under the radar sports memoirs can go either way!
Sorry,Sarah,thought Waiting for Eden a cold,ugly little book.Only sympathetic character the dying man but found little to celebrate except for the book’s shortness,perhaps.
DID make me want to explore Locked.In Syndrome.
It was definitely bleak and emotionally tough to read, but I don’t need a book to be happy or have sympathetic characters to like it. I love something that makes me feel…something. And this certainly made me feel…gut-punched. My mom always asks me why I like such dark books!
I feel so similarly about by Goodreads goal. Maybe I set my target too high? I know I would feel awesome if I were actually meeting the goal, but it seems like I’m always just a few books shy of on target no matter how many I finish.
Haha – I feel ya! I set mine to be 100 b/c I read around 105-110 last year, but not happening this year!