Books books & more books

As most of you who follow my blog know my true love is nail polish, however another one of my loves and something else that you can find me doing in my spare time (when I’m not deciding my next polish color) is reading. Reading has been something that I have loved to do since a young age and as I’ve gotten older the love has only grown stronger. Below are some of the books I have read over the past few months whether they be picks from my work Book Club or books that I have read on my own! I hope that you enjoy this post just as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Polish worn is essie ‘Mooning’ and the cute model in the background is Duchess.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

Rating: 5/5

This was one of those can’t take my eyes of the page book. One of those books that makes me become an introverted couch potato until I’m done reading it. I was scrolling through the Reese Witherspoon book club picks one day and read the summary and instantly knew that I needed to read it. It is set in the aftermath of World War II and tells the story of a woman named Eve who joins the ‘Alice Network’, a group of female spies who’s sole mission is to get information from the Germans. It then flashes forward to Charlie a girl who is recently pregnant and is looking for her cousin Rose who went missing during the war. Charlie and Eve’s paths cross to create a funny and heartbreaking story about two courageous women and the sacrifices they make in order to find out the truth. This one is literally so good I don’t know if I can say it enough. Read it now. 

The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker

Rating: 2/5

This was the first book for our work book club and the best part is it was an absolute flop. Funny story I am actually the one who picked this book and let me tell you it was a rough read. I initially saw this recommended by some friends and so I decided I would give it a shot. It looked like the perfect mix of mystery and love so I thought it would be right up my alley and something that I would really enjoy. I was about 50 pages in to the book and I was telling my two friends at work about the book and they were interested as well so they decided to read it as well. This is when the book club formed and quickly grew from three members to a group of about ten. This book tells the story of a man named Harry who is implicated for the murder of a girl named Nola. Harry’s mentee Marcus comes to town thinking he will easily be able to get Harry’s name cleared but what unwinds is a story he would never have suspected. From my description this may sound like a good read to you but just trust me on this one…don’t waste your time. If you do decide to read it all I have to say is good luck and best wishes to your sanity!

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Rating: 5/5

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine was one of the first books that we read in book club and so far it has been one of my favorite reads. This book tells the tale of an eccentric loner named Eleanor and how her encounter with a stranger sends her life in to a new direction. A direction that puts her out of her normal routine and comfort zone and catapults her in to a new world where she realizes what it’s like to have human connection. This book really resonated with me and reminded me that we do not always know what someone is going through by looking at them from the outside. It made me remember to be kind to those that others may not be so kind to because you never know how your words or actions may affect someone. If you are looking for a quick read that will change your perspective than Eleanor is the one for you!

Educated by Tara Westover

Rating 4/5

Educated is a memoir of Tara Westover’s life and talks about her life growing up as a young girl in the mountains of Idaho. The review that I found on Barnes and Noble gives the best summary of the memoir so I have included it here for you. “Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, Tara Westover was seventeen the first time she set foot in a classroom. Her family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education, and no one to intervene when one of Tara’s older brothers became violent. When another brother got himself into college, Tara decided to try a new kind of life. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge University. Only then would she wonder if she’d traveled too far, if there was still a way home.” After I read the book I fell down a rabbit hole researching Tara’s interviews, her parents business, photos of the family etc. I was truly fascinated that this was a true story and hearing Tara explain her memoir and talk about where she is now in life and what she has overcome is something that I will never forget.

Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (And Everything in Between) by Lauren Graham 

Rating 3/5

Gilmore Girls was a staple of many who are 90’s babies and it became the go to show for mothers and daughters to watch together and a true part of many of our lives. I for one was someone who was fascinated with Lorelei and Rory’s relationship so I was very excited when I heard Lauren Graham was coming out with a book. I couldn’t wait to read all of the details behind Gilmore Girls and the relationship that Lauren had with her cast members while on GG.  I had such high hopes for the book and just knew that I was going to love it and so I was devastated when it didn’t live up to my expectations. Lauren and Lorelei are such staples of my life that I put a lot of pressure on this book to be just as witty and lovely as they are so my disappointment was even greater than normal when the book didn’t wow me like I had assumed it would. I was dreaming of more talk about cast member relationships and behind the scenes of Gilmore Girls and to get the feeling that I had every time I watched the show but those feelings didn’t return no matter how hard I tried to love the book. This was still a cute read but just wasn’t what I needed to get closure on the Gilmore Girls chapter of my life.

 

All the Light we Cannot See  by Anthony Doerr

2/5

All the Light we Cannot See is set in World War II and tells the story of a German boy and a blind French girl whose paths cross in occupied France as they try to make it out of the war alive. One of the reasons that I love book club is because it pushes me out of my comfort zone and allows me to read books that I normally would not. This was one of those books and although I did not love the book I am glad that I read it and got to step in to Werner and Marie-Laure’s lives. This book had me feeling happy, sad, mad, and sad all over again. The reason I didn’t give this one a higher rating is the amount of sadness in the book was just too much for me to bear. If you are a lover of heart wrenching books and don’t live off of happy endings like I do than this one is for you!

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Rating 5/5

Eleanor & Park is the story of two kids who are deemed misfits in their school. It is set over the course of one year in 1986 and tells the story of finding your first love and how important love can be to overcome your obstacles. This book is a must read and one that you will not be able to set down. Eleanor & Park will remind you of your first love, how trialing high school can be, and that sometimes a good friendship is all you need to get you through some of the worst times. Eleanor & Park is a book that I actually read a few years ago but I had to include in this post because it recently came back up in my life. My friend holds a get together called Boozie Books & Brunch at her house every few months, this is a fun time where a group gets together to enjoy books, food, one another’s company and mimosas! The entire premise of the get together is that each person brings one or two books that they no longer want, we share summaries of each book and at the end we swap with one another! It is a great way to get new books to read without any cost and a fun time to meet with friends and talk about one of our greatest loves…reading! I decided to give away a copy of Eleanor & Park so that someone else could read their story and fall in love with it just as much as I did!

I hope you enjoyed hearing about the lovely books that I have had the pleasure of reading over the past few months! Books are another one of my true loves just like nail polish so I thought I would share my recent reads with you so that you can enjoy them just as much as I have!