Some young boys on a soccer team in Thailand were stranded in a cave in 2018 while exploring with their coach. The country and people from across the world came together to save them. Obviously, the rescue was incredible and it‘s a wonderful true story, but the book is written in a way that made it drag even though it was short.

I always dread reading the final book because it means the series is almost over. One thing that really stood out to me this time is how lost Harry would‘ve been without Hermione. Yet even with their friendship, in the end he had to take the final steps alone. Neville‘s transformation into a brave leader is one of my favorite parts of the story. I love meeting Aberforth and hearing his POV too. It‘s such a wonderful end to the series.

I will always read the new Flavia book and love them on audio. Her acerbic wit and calculating mind make each mystery delightful. When a former hangman is murdered, she jumps to find the killer. I loved diving into the bigger intelligence agency mystery in this one. We get a few more answers & watch Flavia mature a bit. She might be cold and calculating, but she‘s loyal to her core and loves deeply despite herself. Dogger is still my favorite.

Oh my gosh, I loved this! Mystery writers hunker down at an English manor and find themselves trying to solve a locked-room missing person case. Amazing chemistry, real issues to deal with, Agatha Christie vibes, character growth, just enough conflict to keep it interesting, it ticked all the boxes for me. A perfect read for Christmas time and one I‘ll probably revisit next year just for fun.

If you loved Taste, this one is for you. If you haven‘t read that yet, start there. Tucci‘s conversational style, sense of humor, and love of food make this such a fun read. I loved the diary style, which reminded me of the Alan Rickman book. We see one year of dinner parties, nights at home, lunch on the go, and airport food through his eyes. I highly recommend the audiobook, which he narrates. It makes the whole experience just delightful.

I‘ll never grow tired of Three Pines. Not my favorite in the series, but still good. This one focused on domestic terrorism and monks. I always wish for more time in the village for the books that include a lot of travel. I love the way Gamache‘s mind works. I loved learning more about the history of his relationship with his son.

6 astronauts orbit the Earth & reflect on what brought them to that point. A beautiful & poetic book. Who knew I‘d need a book set in space to gain a little perspective this week.

“We matter greatly and not at all. To reach some pinnacle of human achievement only to discover that your achievements are next to nothing and that to understand this is the greatest achievement of any life, which itself is nothing, and also much more than everything.”

A typewriter & an introverted boy are trying to find out what happened to the boy's missing mother. It has serious "Where'd You Go, Bernadette" vibes, but without the humor. I thought it was sweet & loved the theme of not assuming you know what's happening inside someone else's head. Grief & pain can elicit such different reactions from people. The various reactions shown by the family felt so real to me. I loved the story & the typewriter's POV.

This remains my favorite in the series & I always look forward to rereading it. I‘m still frustrated that Dumbledore didn‘t give Harry more information while he had the chance & he knew his death was imminent. But I love seeing Voldemort‘s history & watching Harry take on responsibility as the Quidditch captain and as Voldemort‘s ultimate foe. I also love that Dumbledore tells Harry to share all the info with Ron & Hermione so he‘s not alone.

I loved this book & had a chance to meet the author today! It focuses on time management, but from a woman‘s POV. She encouraged integration and leaning into each unique seasons instead of constantly striving to do everything all at once and be great all the time. I love that she includes details about monthly cycles and seasons to incorporate into your planning. There were so many helpful tips and I know I‘ll refer back to it frequently.

Phoebe arrives at a Rhode Island hotel after reaching rock bottom in her life, but a wedding is happening & she‘s swept up in the chaos. The level of crassness felt unnecessary at times, but I did love the honesty of the characters. They found how freeing it was to tell the truth & the liberation was exhilarating. The chemistry between 2 of the characters (no spoilers) was electric. I liked but didn‘t love it.

TW Infertility, suicide & infidelity

Ready for the perfect October read? Cordelia has always been controlled by her mother. When they move into a rich man‘s house she starts to realize what true friends feel like. It‘s like a grownup version of Ella Enchanted. Hester, the rich man‘s sister is my fav! She‘s clever & sassy & her fear of losing her independence feels so real. This one wasn‘t as scary as I was worried it would be, but it‘s just creepy enough to be perfect right now.

A quick reread while my kids played at the park. I love this reminder to cherish the small moments and not just get caught up in work. “Life is made up of moments, small pieces of glittering mica in a long stretch of gray cement.”

Absolutely delightful! Annie‘s sweet earnestness, paired with Will‘s tattoo-covered heart of gold personality created the perfect blend for great chemistry. This is my first by this author, and it made for the perfect vacation read. Fun and just enough character development to make it work. I loved watching Annie and Will figure out how they saw themselves versus how the world sees them and find the balance of who they really were.

The one is about the heaviness of human life & the lightness that we can sometimes bring to it by sharing our burdens. The book continues the stories of Olive, Bob & Lucy, intermingling and overlapping them as the three characters walk through their later years in Maine. There‘s a focus on the importance of sharing our stories, even the ones that don‘t seem to have a point. It helps mitigate the loneliness that can come. It‘s a bit heartbreaking.

A big fat book about predestination vs. making your own choices and the grief that shapes us. It felt a bit like The Measure and Lessons in Chemistry combined. Cherry is the main character & she‘s hard to know at first, but she grew on me. It runs long & there are so many characters, but it was a perfect vacation read. Save it for when you have time to sink into the story & appreciate the layers. It‘s a satisfying read if you can give it the time.

This one was a super quick vacation read. Something in a young politician‘s past haunts him, and his chief of staff is determined to find out what. A thriller, but with nothing graphic or too scary. Definitely predictable elements, but still enjoyable. I like the exploration of what drives peoples‘ motives and where power comes from. Entertaining, even if it is forgettable.

Found another beautiful bookstore! Discovering new independent bookstores is always one of my favorite parts of travel.

Stumbled upon an absolute gem of a used bookstore today! He had first editions of Steinbeck and even a copy of Jane Eyre that was so old there‘s no publication date. But there was an inscription dated in the 1890s! I was in heaven. 😍

I‘m wary of memoirs written by young people, but this paired well with my rereading of the Harry Potter series. Read it for the onset anecdotes if you‘re a fan. He never takes himself too seriously and seems pretty grounded for someone who grew up in the spotlight. He doesn‘t pretend to be someone he‘s not. Great on audio since it‘s read by Tom Felton.

Slow and steady is the best way to describe this story. A trio of adult siblings from Maine reconnect when one of their kids is charged with a hate crime. Bob is the quiet force that holds them together. I had a hard time getting into it, but once you understand the pace it hits its stride. I loved Bob's character growth throughout the story. It had me thinking about how we surround ourselves with the people we think we deserve.

Book two in the series is just as readable as the 1st. I didn't love Sloan as much as her spitfire BFF Kristen, but the love story with a famous musician was sweet. I'm always a little wary of the immediate can't live without each other idea, but I loved the visit to his family in Minnesota. Another one that I didn't want to put down.

I loved the novella that started this series, but I struggled with this one. It took me month to finish. It's more of a coming-of-age take as Binti returns to her home planet. I highly recommend the original novella Binti and the short story: Binti: Sacred Fire. I‘d pass on Binti: Home.

This is my 1st by this author & I have mixed feelings. It was absolutely compulsively readable & I couldn‘t put it down. But it also had one of the main tropes that I don‘t enjoy, which is a misunderstanding or lying to the other person “for their own good”. I‘d always rather they tell the truth & let the other person make their own decision. That being said, I did care about the characters, and I immediately picked up the next book in the series.

This was the perfect road trip book with my daughter! We particularly loved the first few chapters which introduced the characters. A secret society of clever children who tackle saving the world? Sign me up! It was such a fun adventure. It's a bit like Lemony Snicket, but with a lot more heart.

Watching my daughter become a reader and seeing her joy in finding new books is just about the best thing ever. 📚

This weekend I got to see Much Ado About Nothing at my favorite outdoor theater in Wisconsin. The witty banter, the electric chemistry, it was wonderful! It was my daughter‘s first performance to see at the theater and I was reminded how even centuries later Shakespeare‘s work still entertains and resonates.

I just reread this one and loved it just as much the second time. This time I listened to the audio and it was as wonderful as everyone said. Since I knew the ending, I was able to focus more on the characters and less on the plot. The reflections of a woman to her adult children is beautiful. It‘s about memory and nostalgia, the secrets we hold and the experiences that shape us. I know it will stay with me.

There‘s a lot of teen angst in this one, but there‘s so many beautiful moments. The one that breaks my heart is when Mrs. Weasley faces the boggart and sees the deaths of her family members. I recently read somewhere that both of her brothers were killed in the first fight against Voldemort, so it makes sense that this fear would be so real for her.

Another delightful gem that I somehow missed when I was growing up. A small town family lives in a rented yellow house. Their life shifts when the house is put up for sale by their landlord. Each little adventure from a dancing dog to hiding in a bread box is incredibly sweet. I particularly loved the unplanned field trip of the little kindergarten who hopped on a local train.

The loveliest wall of female authors in a local Indianapolis bookstore. Visit Pen & Pink if you‘re ever in Indy!

I love a good memoir and this one by a woman who came to America from Iran in the 1970s was wonderful. Just enough humor to balance stories with a more serious tone. In America, she was met with kindness and open arms, but that doesn‘t mean there wasn‘t also bullying. Cultural differences brought some hilarious moments, but others were more painful. She also talks about her marriage to a French man. I‘d love to read more of her work.

I wasn‘t a fan of this one. A woman is living with her brash mother who is undergoing chemo and her teenage daughter who works leading kayaking tours. They find themselves in the midst of a murder investigation. The plot felt unnecessary I‘ll convoluted. It lost momentum. It seemed like it couldn‘t decide if it was a murder mystery or a family drama completely unrelated to the murder. This was almost a DNF but I kept waiting for things to pick up.

Mrs. Weasley is such a powerful character in this series. Making Harry feel welcome in their home, showing up for him as family during the TriWizard tournament, and fiercely protecting him at the end of the book, she mothers him in a beautiful way.

“Mrs. Weasley set the potion down on the bedside cabinet, bent down, and put her arms around Harry. He had no memory of ever being hugged like this, as though by a mother.”

A whirlwind of a play about a widowed woman and a young man newly released from prison. The audio production is just beautiful, performed with a full cast. It moves quickly through topics of depression, nature preservation, and grief but all the characters are fully realized. One of the best plays I've read in recent years.

This was a reread and it was just as delightful the second time. It's about a group of people who live in the tiny English village where Austen wrote some of her novels. They form a society to try to preserve her legacy. Each of their stories, from Mimi the Hollywood star to Adeline, the strong young widow, mirrored a portion of an Austen novel or added a new layer to the impact she had on the world. This was a cup of hot cocoa that hit the spot.

A quick read and easy to stay interested, but painfully predictable. It felt like a prince version of Anastasia. I felt myself rolling my eyes at the main character's actions and attitude too many times. I also didn't love the way the author intentionally waited to reveal certain details in a very "tell me" instead of "show me" style. We got to the final third of the book and all of a sudden the main character reveals a completely different story.

This is the most realistic romance I‘ve read in a long time. Not at all what I was expecting with the romcom sounding premise, but it went emotionally deep quickly. Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school & reconnect at a wedding, but the story is about so much more than that. It‘s about the middle, caring for parents & kids and all the complications life throws your way. It breaks your heart and makes you giddy with hope.

I love the way the story is told, very funny and clever as the author breaks the fourth wall and talks directly to the reader. I was expecting some sort of literary family drama, but instead it‘s more of a murder mystery. It became a little convoluted about 60% in, but the way it was told kept me interested and engaged. Fantastic on audio. Recommended if you like old-school detective stories that follow format and still surprise you.

This was one of the most popular books in America in the late 19th century. There are shades of The Count of Monte Cristo with a wronged man seeking revenge, but it gets a little lost along the way. Some elements were fascinating, like the chariot race, while others, like an Egyptian love interest, dragged. I loved seeing the story of Christ from an outside POV and his mother & sister‘s healing. I‘m glad I read it, but I wouldn‘t read again.

For me, this is where the series really picks up. I love the whole story of the dementors, the time turner, a prisoner on the loose, the Marauders‘ Map, learning more about Snape‘s grudge, and (my favorite) Lupin! I love that Hermione has a few moments of defiance in this book with Malfoy and Prof. Trelawney. *I found this British edition in a used bookstore, and I love it!

I absolutely loved The River, & this one sounded like it was in a similar vein, but I hit a few speed bumps with it. While I love the adult male friendship and the way it resonates, I still maintain that Heller does not know how to write a believable woman. One plot point with a woman took me completely out of the story and seemed to throw off the whole tone of what he was attempting. There were still elements I loved, but it‘s his Achilles Heel.

This is always my least favorite book of the series, but this time I appreciated seeing Harry‘s first trip to the Burrow. I love how he immediately feels at home and makes Ron understand that he shouldn‘t be embarrassed by it. Fawkes is the other highlight. Harry would have been killed in an instant without him. It‘s also the book where Harry feels confident (at the end) about his placement in Gryffindor.

In my head, this was a serial killer book. That is absolutely not the case. It‘s much more of a character-driven investigator book with a big dose of family drama in the same vein as Jane Harper & Tana French. I‘m so glad I read it. I loved it! Combine summer camp, the Adirondack woods, class complications between the rich and the locals, and gender politics in the 1970s and you‘ve got quite a plot. Plus the tension of a missing child, so good!

Rereading the series with @ruthmoeller for the millionth time. It always brings me such comfort. I couldn‘t help noticing this time how incredible Mrs. Weasley and Hagrid are to Harry. Before either of them even know him well, they welcome him and make him feel like family with gifts at Christmas, kind words, and an understanding that he needs friends and not fans. Also, Hogwarts is a ridiculously dangerous school to send your kids to. 🤣

Amina Al-Sirafi is a retired Muslim pirate captain who finds her was back to the sea for one last adventure. The story reminded me of Tress of the Emerald Sea, but more adult content. It‘s a wild adventure, but the camaraderie of the main crew was my favorite part. Despite their bad choices or past conflicts, they come together to create a community. Lots of magical creatures, but also just a mom trying to find a work/life balance… as a pirate.

I stumbled upon the loveliest sculpture in front of a public library in a small town recently. What a sweet tribute to the woman who was an advocate for the library and her community!

Banter for days! The first book sucked me in completely as Evie Sage becomes the assistant to an ”evil” villain. This book picks up right where the other left off as Evie is finding her own strength, and the villain is struggling with his new feeling. The supporting characters are just the chefs kiss on top. The characters show growth, which is essential in a second book. It‘s not wrapped up neatly at the end & I‘ll look forward to reading more.

I have mixed feelings about this one. I love that the author takes back Jim's story as he retells the classic Huckleberry Finn tale. But at the same time, I felt like the storytelling was so heavy handed. Retellings are tricky and I think hearing Jim's story through his own voice is completely different from Huck's POV. But I struggled to connect. That doesn't mean it's not worth reading, I just struggled with it.

This was my least favorite of her books so far, but it was a very fast read. I felt like the twists were predictable and I didn't have any feeling of suspense as I watched it play out. The foster care story is full of abuse TWs. I'd recommend The Good Sister as a better place to start if you'd like to check out her work.