Best of the Month: June 2023

I read The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis, that could have been in the USA as NY or the decades as the 50s. I really liked this book and it actually had some good twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.

My favorite read this month was definitely Stories from the Tenants Downstairs, which was a NY choice for the USA challenge.  I never would have heard of it if it wasn’t on the challenge list, so thank you for that!

it’s set in an apartment building in Harlem, and each chapter is in different tenant’s voice. They’re only tangentially related to each other.

I thought it was brilliant.

My favorite book read in June was Skyward by Brandon Sanderson.

My favorite for June was The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd.
I had to wait quite a while to get the e-book on loan from the library and was never certain that I really wanted to read it even though I really like her other books. But when it was finally my turn, I took the plunge and can say that I can appreciate the story for what it is.  It’s fiction but thought-provoking… probably a bit controversial if read as part of a book club.  Glad I decided to read it.

I read A Drop in the Ocean for Australia.  It didn’t have a discussion group unfortunately.

Wonderful read!!  The descriptions of the island and wildlife were so vivid. The author gave a very realistic picture of the lifestyle of the few island residents and the strong bonds between them.

But is was mainly a story of a woman’s personal growth and discovery as she faced some major changes and moved to a small Australian island to reevaluate her life.

I read some great books in June –  most of them recommendations from this group – but if I had to pick my favorites I’d say Lessons in Chemstry and Joanne Harris’s Broken Lights. Both highlight women finding their true identity in a male dominated world – and that is appealing to me in my current mindset.

I can’t stop thinking about or talking about A Man Called Ove. I read it for the Lifetime challenge. I thought the movie A Man Called Otto was really well done, too.

I finished 15 books in June and it’s hard to pick one favorite from them – there were a few great ones. My favorites were The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese, Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny, and A Collective Bargain by Jane McAlevey.

I just finished Demon Copperfield – and while Kingsolver did a great job with the voice of Demon and Angus/Angus and so many of her characters, just like the alluded to Dicken’s novel David Copperfield she went way too far and too long with this plot. I will admit, I skimmed many of the chapters with football and the crazy drug scenes at the end. Like David Copperfield, I really don’t like it, but made myself finish. I was horrified by some of what she said about so much being taken away from this generation – because in many ways its all that they are given and taking for granted that is a lot of the problem – that and the examples and availability of their parents, teachers, coaches, and, yes, health care providers. Her criticism of the social services is dead on – and I’m not quite sure how we can truly solve it – but there are limits to the Ms. Annes and Mr. Armstrongs and what we can do. It’s a tough novel, tough commentary on what’s out there and the choices kids are making. Give me Angus/Agnes, please! I am not ready for these challenges in my own teens – and they at least have a mom who is aware and there for them – though maybe not quite Momma June.

My favorite June book was Remarkably Bright Creatures. I listened to it as an audiobook and the narrator for Marcellus is amazing!