Show Us Your Books! What I Read in November

Link up your posts about the book(s) you've read recently with Jana of Jana Says and me!

Also, every time I type that title I almost type boobs instead of books. 

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<a href="http://www.lifeaccordingtosteph.com/" title="Life According to Steph"><img src="http://i1290.photobucket.com/albums/b536/lifeaccordingtosteph1/bookbuttonlinkup_zps01365b43.jpg" alt="Life According to Steph" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

The Mockingbird Next Door: Life with Harper Lee by Marja Mills - I only read nonfiction if the subject is intensely interesting to me. Harper Lee, novelist of one of the most important books in American literature? Sign me up. I was delighted for about half the book, then that wore off as the book appeared to become more about the author and her life versus Harper Lee and hers. Mills said 40983498 times that Lee agreed to the book, and now I know why - Lee issued a statement when the book came out saying she didn't voluntarily participate in it. Still, I could've rolled with that if it was more about the life and hometown of Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird and less about Mills.

Everything I never Told You by Celeste Ng - I wanted to send everyone in this family a letter containing one word - COMMUNICATE. I struggled through this book not because the writing was poor but because I felt profoundly sad or disappointed for every character in this book. 

Reunion by Hannah Pittard - I think Pittard could've gotten more depth out of the relationships she began to flesh out in this book, but they were superficially satisfactory. In the beginning I felt like I should've known some of the back story, like this was the second book in a series or something. But overall it was enjoyable and I breezed through this book so it was worth the read in 24 hours.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs - The premise of this book is really interesting. It reads like childhood fiction at times, but that's because it sort of is. There's something in it for adults too though. It was a nice imaginative romp. I'll probably go on to read other books in the series. If it had ended here with no books to follow, I would've been really freaking annoyed by the ending.

Yes Please by Amy Poehler - I'd love to have Amy Poehler as a friend. Her generosity of spirit and love for the people in her life is evident in her gracious storytelling. If you're looking for an in depth life study, a play by play of her climb to the top, or a tell all, this is not that book. She skims her life, and it's an enjoyable ride. Still doesn't top my BFF Tina Fey's Bossypants  though.

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta - This is a young adult novel, and it comes with all the urgency young adult books centered on females do. But there are legitimately serious issues in here too. But for me neither of those things was what made me love this book hard - it was the writing, particularly the dialogue. The scenes on the bus took me back to my teens. I loved the cast of characters surrounding Francesca. A really quick read that pulled on my memories and made me happy that she found good friends.

The Blessings by Elise Juska - I love reading books that are set in my town, it adds a familiarity that is hard to resist. Told from many different POVs in a sprawling family and spawning many years, it's successful without being disjointed. There are a million little strings that tie us to our families. Juska works them like a Chinese jump rope. And the few pages describing the ride to OCNJ and how things were different at the shore are fabulous.  

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Haikuesday

Cozumel beach day.

Book is libro in Spanish.

Lesson concluded.

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Link up your posts about the book(s) you've read recently with  Jana of Jana Says and me!

This link up will happen the second Tuesday of every month. 

The next one is Tuesday, January 13.
Since I'm on vacation this week, expect to see me comment on the post you link up here when I return!

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