Home Sweet Sarah

I am making a conscious effort to read more books this year. I say that every year, but this year I am really focusing on reading when I would normally be doing other things. Like today, when I spent most of the morning on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat, I could have been reading Pines, by Blake Crouch. See? It’s working well!

Here’s what I read during the first three months of the year…

A Summer Affair, by Elin Hilderbrand

This is another of the Nantucket-based housewife drama stories that Hilderbrand is known for. In general (for all books, not just Hilderbrand’s), the whole, “I’m a wife and mother and now I’ve lost my purpose” trope is eye-rolly for me, so I was meh on the main character and more interested in the supporting characters–the Irish sister-in-law, the rockstar ex-boyfriend, the former friend. Their stories were more intriguing and while we did get small glimpses into their lives, the crux of the story was with the main character and her annoying life. Anyway, it was a quick and easy read.

Winter Storms, by Elin Hilderbrand

This is the final book of Hilderbrand’s winter trilogy and it was a nice little bow on an overall enjoyable reading package. (CHRISTMAS-RELATED REFERENCE INTENDED!) This is the kind of book where everything gets sorted out at the end–not necessarily in a positive way, but there’s closure nonetheless–and it’s a quick, quick read. Throughout the trilogy, I found all the characters to be likeable in their own ways and would definitely read another book centered around this family or any of the individual characters.

The Passenger, by Lisa Lutz

Similar in style to all the ‘Girl’ books–Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train, etc.–this quick read centers around a gal on the run. Mystery abounds–why is she running?, what is her real name?–but the mysteries get solved piece by piece as you read the book. This is nice, so you’re not sitting around until the very end to get all the closure. And, up until the end, tiny twists keep coming, which is also fun. Overall, it was an interesting look on going on the run unnoticed. How easy would it be to just disappear?

Not That Kind Of Girl, by Lena Dunham

Lena can do no wrong for me. I love that she’s having the conversations that need to be had, no matter how uncomfortable. I found her book of essays very relatable and often and inspiring. As a performer or creative person, there are times when you have to take chances and make choices and sometimes things don’t land. That doesn’t mean you run offstage or stop trying to make your point or change the things you’re trying to change. We’re all human and we sometimes say things that are dumb, but we are trying. How else are we supposed to grow and learn and further causes (or make people laugh) if we don’t bomb every now and again? Lena’s fighting the good fight. *Chris Crocker voice* LEAVE LENA ALONE. Anyway, as far as this book, there were many times when I was like, “OMG me too!” and that’s always fun in a book.

A Gentleman In Moscow, by Amor Towles

I looooooooved Towles’s first book, Rules of Civility, when I read it a couple years ago and have been patiently waiting for him to write another book. This one–about a gentleman in Moscow, you don’t say!–takes place in one hotel over many decades. Towles’s writing is truly beautiful, although after all the “quick and easy” books above, it took a a little getting used to for me. Once I got in it, though, I was IN IT and I loved this book. How can a book where the setting does not change be good? I don’t know! That’s the magic of Amor Towles, I guess. Also the historical look at Russia was fascinating, given our current state. REC. OM. MEND.

Superficial, by Andy Cohen

This is the first book I’ve read by Andy Cohen and what fun it was! This is his second installment of diary entries and here were the biggest takeaways for me:

• If you’re a Bravo/Housewives fan, you’ll love it
• Andy parties a lot; I don’t know how he does it
• Andy’s mom is amazing
• I want a glass of rosé

Dark Matter, by Blake Crouch

This was really weird and really good. I heard it’s been optioned by Sony for a movie, and I’m excited to see that movie because hopefully the director will be able to visualize some of the more confusing parts of the book. I don’t want to say much because I feel it would give away the whole plot of the book, but there’s some weird science-y stuff and major life drama ensues. So weird, so good. Recommend.

What are you reading right now? And you should sign up for my friend Hillary’s newest venture, Make America Read Again! I don’t subscribe to any newsletters except hers and they are fantastic.

Here’s what I read the last few months of the year.

You Should Have Known, by Jean Hanff Korelitz
Considering the idea for the plot was pretty solid, this book should have been a lot better. Basically, a bad thing happens to a woman and she has to come back from it. There was absolutely zero ounce of humor in this book. I kept thinking, when is something entertaining going to happen? A wacky best friend or grandma…something? Related, and not that it spoils the story, but the main character had no friends. It was kind of consistent with the main plot of the story, but it was something I noticed that made the book more boring. Like, no one even wants to be friends with this woman? So why am I reading about her? This was a snooze.

Eight Hundred Grapes, by Laura Dave
This was a very cute book. Fairly predicable plot, but I enjoyed reading about California wine country–HOW I MISS YOU SO. This book also had dynamic characters GO FIGURE. Recommend for a cute, quick read.

The Bullet, by Mary Louise Kelly
While this was my favorite book of the year, I am not saying it was the best book ever, just that it was the best book in a series of slightly mediocre books. That’s not to say it wasn’t good! Just that giving it the Best Of title kind of over-sells it. It was a very good book. I recently recommended it to my mom. I recommend it to you.

It appears that in my last update, I counted some books that I hadn’t actually finished in the second quarter. I am sure this is critical to your book review-reading, but I wanted to be honest. I AM NOTHING IF NOT HONEST. Anyway, here’s what I read over the summer. It’s not really as pitiful as it looks, because of the great book miscount of 2016, but it’s still kind of pitiful.

Winter Stroll, by Elin Hilderbrand
This is the second in the Winter series and I enjoyed it. I like all of Elin Hilderbrand’s books, so there’s no complaint. I am not sure if the third book is out yet–I’ll have to check into it. Anyway, this follows the same family as in the last book, almost a year later. There are a bunch of different characters and while the chapters mostly focus on the main ones, the tertiary characters do pop up from time to time and it’s fun to get their perspectives.

What are you reading lately? I am trying to finish out the year strong, so any recommendations are welcome!

Well I guess I forgot all about this, didn’t I? Whoops. I’ve not been as great of a reader as I’d like–I have binge-watched Nurse Jackie, The West Wing, and The Sopranos, so I’ve been productive–but at any rate, here’s what I’ve ready so far this year.

Fates And Furies, by Lauren Groff
People went kind of crazy for this book. I found it to be mostly infuriating until halfway through. Infuriating throughout, though, was the fact that I needed a dictionary to look up every other word. Anyway, I think people liked this book because of the s-e-x, but I didn’t find it very racy. It’s an interesting character study once you get to that halfway point…but first you have to get there.

The Rumor, by Elin Hilderbrand
I don’t even remember what this was about, but did it have Sancerre and Nantucket? Probably. I’m sure it was enjoyable, as all Hilderbrand’s books are for me.

The Art Of Fielding, by Chad Harbach
Okay. OKAY. Everyone loved this book. I had to slog through it. This book might be what almost single-handedly killed my reading mojo for the year. The plot(s) were good. The characters were interesting. The way the book jumped from point-of-view to point-of-view kept it engaging and enjoyable (although it was long, hence the slog). UNTIL THE VERY END. THIS WAS THE DUMBEST ENDING I HAVE EVER READ. Perhaps because I am not literary, maybe I didn’t get the meaning or something, but MEH. (This article that my girl Jennie shared years ago, on how this book came to be written/published at all, is a fascinating read. Recommend.)

Winter Street, by Elin Hilderbrand
This is Hilderbrand’s first winter-themed novel and I enjoyed it! It’s very short, I finished it in two days. It was nice to read in the summer, when it’s hot as balls and you’re just looking forward to Christmas.

The Royal We, by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
This was cute. It’s based-ish, I guess on Prince William and Kate Middleton (who I’m sure have actual titles by which they should be referred, but whatever). Anyway, the ancillary characters were probably more interesting than “Prince Nick” and “Bex” themselves, but there were a lot of those characters to cover, which is good. If anything, this novel did take me back to the royal wedding, which I was up early (late?) watching when LG was 9-days-old.

Right now, I’m finishing up the second in Elin Hilderbrand’s “Winter” trilogy, and then I’m not sure what’s up next. What have you read recently that’s not total dreck?