June 2021 Reading Wrap Up
Hey, friends! Long time, no talk. Life has been really crazy lately (I will do a life update blog very soon!), so I haven’t been blogging very much. Now that things are starting to settle down a bit, I’m looking forward to getting back into the blogging groove.
I have remained fairly active on my YouTube channel, where I primarily talk about the books I’ve been reading, but that’s pretty much all I’ve had time for. I thought my first order of business on the blog would be to update you on some of the reading I’ve been doing lately. I didn’t get a lot of reading accomplished in June (it was a very busy month!), but I did manage to complete 6 books (and start a few others).
I’m also hosting a Summer Book Bingo (I’ve mentioned it on my YouTube Channel, but you can find the full details here. For everyone that would like to join in, every bingo will give you an entry into a giveaway ($20 to the online bookseller of your choice!). Some of the books I read this month were to fill some of my bingo prompts.
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What I've Been Reading Lately
I have been enjoying reading more Russian classics lately and this book is no exception. It’s one of Tolstoy’s novellas, but despite it’s size (around 50 pages), it really packs an emotional punch. The story of Ivan Ilyich, this novella examines a man who appears to have it all. But when he realizes he is dying, he takes time to reflect on what truly is a life well lived. There is a lot of emotional and spiritual depth here that I absolutely loved. When I finished this book, I stared at the wall for a while afterwards. It was profound in ways I was not expecting. If you’ve been interested in reading any Russian classics, but the size intimidates you, try this one out!
Shadow and Bone is a book that’s been popular for quite some time, but it’s seen a recent resurgence of popularity with a Netflix adaptation. I saw a copy sitting on my library’s shelf and decided to give it a try. YA is a genre I don’t pick up frequently. It often contains well worn tropes and more angst than I prefer. However, Shadow and Bone surprised me! Due to all the hype, I was bracing myself for disappointment. Yes, it had tropes and it had angst, but the author did a great job of turning some worn out tropes on their head and creating depth of characters. The fantasy world was really interesting – and even had Russian culture interwoven into it, which is a huge bonus for me!
It’s the story of a young girl, Alina, who discovers she has the power to control light. She is quickly whisked away by the Darkling, the man in charge of all Grisha (people who have magical abilities). As Alina comes into her powers and new role, she also grapples with what she has left behind and feels drawn to the Darkling, despite his less than pleasant demeanor.
Siege and Storm (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy, 2)
Siege and Storm is the sequel to Shadow and Bone, so I can’t tell you much about the plot without revealing massive spoilers for the first book. It continues to follow Alina and Co, and introduces some new characters that are really fun. This book was slower paced than the first book and certainly examines the political climate of Ravka. It also contains some growing pains in Alina’s romantic relationship that I felt were really well fleshed out. As Alina grows into her power, she is seeking to find where she truly belongs and if that means she has to leave behind everything she thought she was. Since the book is written in first person, we definitely spend a lot of time in Alina’s head with her inner struggles. For some that may make them feel like Alina is a whiny protagonist, but I felt that she was relatable and not a “perfect” heroine, which I appreciated.
Sci fi isn’t my favorite genre, but I love Brandon Sanderson’s writing, so I decided to give this book a try. Boy am I glad that I did! It’s the story of Spensa, a girl who has always dreamed of being able to fly fighter planes in her planet’s fight against the Krell. But her father’s mistakes haunt her every step and threaten to destroy the future she dreams of. This book was a ton of fun, filled with both laughter and tears. It wasn’t a perfect book, but still tons of fun and I look forward to reading the sequel very soon!
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
I have picked up quick a few books from this series at thrift stores or little free libraries over the past few years, but hadn’t gotten around to reading any of them. Billed as a mystery series, this follows Precious Ramotswe, the first lady detective in Africa! I loved the culture and setting of Botswana and the characters were quite endearing. However, the mystery aspect of this book really let me down. I was expecting an interesting, continuous mystery similar to Agatha Christie with clues to follow. Unfortunately, this book was more like vignettes of mysteries. Each chapter was a separate and not-so-interesting mystery. Precious would solve it quickly and we were on to the next one. However, the book was fun enough that I will likely continue the series.
Eugene Onegin: Translation By Douglas R. Hofstadter
Two Russian classics in one month! Technically, I started this book in May, but I didn’t finish it until the end of June, so that’s the month I’m counting it. This was my first Pushkin. The entire novel is written in verse, in a stanza style unique to Pushkin. While parts of it were beautifully written, it was difficult for me to follow an entire novel (albeit a short one) written entirely in verse. I felt like I had to read it slowly to get the rhythm and beauty of the poetry. I don’t typically read a lot of poetry, so perhaps a compilation of shorter Pushkin poems would have been a better starting point for me.
There’s also the issue of the translator. I didn’t even think to research the translations before I chose one to read, but apparently Hofstadter was very invested in keeping the same stanza and syllable structure. While that is quite an admirable feat, apparently he did that at the cost of losing more accurately/beautifully translated lines. I would be very interested in reading Eugene Onegin in a different translation to see which one seems to capture the feel of Pushkin’s work better.
What Claire's Been Reading
Claire really loved this book and asked if she could write the description for this book, so here is what she wrote:
This book is about eleven year old Rose when she moves to her grandmother’s house in Indianapolis. She finds that in her grandmother Roselinda’s greenhouse, she can go back in time. She travels to the time of Hatfield House, the home of princess Elizabeth, the daughter of King Henry VIII. she is listed as a maid to the princess. But when she leaves, nobody misses her…
Razzle Dazzle Unicorn: Another Phoebe and Her Unicorn Adventure (Volume 4)
Claire has really been enjoying these silly comic style books about a girl named Phoebe who finds a unicorn. Marigold the unicorn is graceful, beautiful … and also hilariously conceited. Our library has a ton of them and they always make Claire giggle.
Unfortunately, we didn’t finish any read alouds during the month of June (though we are working our way through a few), so I have nothing to add on that count. Claire also read a lot more books, but many of them were rereads of books I had already mentioned on the blog, so I figured I would just highlight a few new favorites. Due to our busy schedule, there was definitely a lot less reading this month, but July is already shaping up to be a better month.
What books have you or your kiddos been reading lately? We always love getting more book recommendations!
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What We’ve Been Reading Lately – May 2020 Edition
What We’ve Been Reading Lately – June 2020 Edition
