Reading as escape is a real thing, isn’t it?
There are many days in the past month where I’ve truly felt that reading a good book was the perfect way to salvage the day - or to just see some good in the world that sometimes is difficult to see (especially if you turn on the news!).
In last month’s recap, I talked to you about reading widely and well. I’m always striving for that… I hope you see some of that this month.
This month’s selections were fueled by a need for fun summer reading, some research for the SQUILT music curriculum, reading aloud to my 15-year-old, and also a need to know about some personal and family stories I’d been hearing about.
June 2020 Books
Each book this month received a 4 or 5-star rating from me.
There was one book I put into the DNF stack this month - The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennet. It just wasn’t for me, and I could tell that after approximately 75 pages. I have learned that life is too short to hold out to see if books I don’t initially like will get better - so I am feeling less and less guilt about just setting them aside.
Highlights from the month:
Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment: I read this because we are studying J.S. Bach in July in SQUILT LIVE!. I couldn’t have asked for a better biography about Bach and his contemporary (and total opposite!) Frederick the Great.
This pulled together a lot of history and gave me a true picture of how Bach influenced the ENTIRE course of Western music. VERY interesting!
Lovely War: I had no idea this was a YA book until after I had finished it and was watching the author, Julie Berry, on an author chat with Modern Mrs. Darcy. This book was just READABLE - it even incorporated some mythology (which doesn’t usually interest me) and I loved it! It is a work of historical fiction taking place during WWI.
I ordered The Passion of Dolssa (another book by Berry) when I finished this one. These are great books for your high school girls!
Hidden Valley Road: This is the true story of a family from Colorado. Twelve children are born into the family, and when it is all said and done SIX of them are diagnosed with Schizophrenia. If you are easily triggered by mental illness, suicide, physical and sexual abuse, or abuse at the hands of a Catholic priest, you might want to steer away from this one.
I found it a fascinating look at mental illness and the strides we have made in treating and diagnosing schizophrenia in particular. I found myself at many points wondering how in the world this mother survived life with 6 Schizophrenic sons. Truly astounding.
Nory Ryan’s Song: We read this one aloud - and promptly got the other two books that will round out the series. Set during the “Great Hunger” (potato famine) in Ireland, it is the story of Nory Ryan, a determined, tenacious young girl who gives us insight into what true hunger, suffering, and triumph are. I can’t recommend this one enough!
This book goes beautifully with our study of Irish music in July in SQUILT LIVE!
My Side of the Mountain (Puffin Modern Classics)Nory Ryans SongThis Must Be the Place (Vintage Contemporaries)Dangers of a Shallow Faith: Awakening from Spiritual LethargyHidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American FamilyEvening in the Palace of Reason Publisher: Harper PerennialBorn a Crime: Stories from a South African ChildhoodLove Lettering: A Witty and Heartfelt Love Story28 SummersLovely WarTweet Cute: A Novel
Tweet Cute, Love Lettering, and 28 Summers were all fun (fluffier) reads.
This Must be the Place was one that has been on my TBR for ages, and I very much enjoyed the writing of Maggie O’Farrell - I will be reading more by her in the future!
A.W. Tozer was also new to me - The Dangers of a Shallow Faith was a wake-up call. My husband is listening to it now and getting a lot from it as well. It is packed full of practical Christian wisdom - which rings just as true now as it did in Tozer’s lifetime over 50 years ago.
Finally, while I’m not a big fan of Trevor Noah now, I had heard that Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood was a must-read. I agree. It was laugh out loud funny, but also gravely serious in many parts. The insight into Apartheid - as told by someone now living in America who enjoys great celebrity, was very interesting. I was thinking of giving this to my son to read, but there was way too much cursing. I haven’t read the young reader’s edition - but I imagine it would be good for your kids to read especially now.
