Monthly Wrap-Up | June 2019

Halfway through the year – who else is panicking about the books you haven’t read yet? 😬 Fortunately – and I hope this is true for you too – the books I have read so far have been wonderful, including the few I read in June.

It feels like I read way more than I did, but I know the reason for this is because Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott took me forever to get through; it had me feeling quite slumpy. My reading in July needs to be much more fruitful, and luckily I have a four day weekend coming up that will [hopefully] get me off to a good start.

Books I Read

1. Pickle’s Progress by Marcia Butler – I’ll be posting my review of this in July, so I’m quickly going to say that while I was completely transfixed by Marcia Butler’s writing, the story just didn’t go anywhere.
2. In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez – This was one of my picks for the #ReadCaribbean Challenge (hosted by Book of Cinz), and I HIGHLY recommend it. It’s a fictional account of the lives of the Mirabel sisters, Patria, Minerva, Maria Teresa, and Dedé, and “the everyday horrors of life under the Dominican dictator Trujillo” (from the back cover). Julia Alvarez’s writing is impossible to turn away from; the way she writes multiple perspectives is incredible. This book is heartbreaking with a touch of the heartwarming element present in most stories about family, and relays a specific point in history that resonates widely with humanity. I’m getting goosebumps all over again thinking about it.
   I started reading the library book, but on a trip to Quill Books & Beverage I found nearly fifteen of Julia Alvarez’s books, so I purchased a copy of In the Time of Butterflies as well as In the Name of Salomé, which I plan on reading in July.
3. Louisa May Alcott: Work, Eight Cousins, Rose in Bloom, Stories & Other Writings by The Library of America – Once again I checked out this book from the library for the Louisa May Alcott Reading Challenge. I read “Eight Cousins” last year, so this year I completed “Rose in Bloom” as well as the Stories & Other Writings section of this book. You can read my thoughts in my LMA Reading Challenge Wrap-Up.

Currently Reading

I started these books in June, and because I made considerable progress with them I’m going to mention them here.

1. Augustown by Kei Miller – I checked this out to read for the #ReadCaribbean Challenge, which obviously didn’t happen. Oh well, I’m certainly not going to stop reading it – Kei Miller’s writing is beautiful.
2. The Obelisk Gate (The Broken Earth #2) by N.K. Jemisin – I’m enjoying this series more and more. I’ll be requesting the third book, The Stone Sky, from my library today so I can start reading it immediately after I finish this.
3. Tinderbox: The Untold Story of The Up Stairs Lounge Fire and the Rise of Gay Liberation by Robert W. Fieseler – I’m not totally surprised I didn’t finish this in June, because I read nonfiction very slowly, especially nonfiction with a lot of dates, times, and specific facts like that. I’m about one third of the way through, and I would recommend it if you’re looking for [more] nonfiction reading on American and LGBTQ+ history and how society continued to fail this community after Stonewall.

In Other News…

There isn’t much to report here. I’m still slowly plugging away at updating my blog images from the April fiasco as well as playing around with post formatting, and sharing photos on Instagram.

How did June treat you? Do you have any book recommendations from the month, or disappointments you feel like talking about? Share your thoughts in a comment – I’d love to chat.

Until next year June,

Kelsey