Back in January I shared that I was a tad disappointed at how my 2021 reading has started out yet I felt confident that Febraury was going to be an amazing month for me reading-wise. I was right! I finished nine books in February and for the most part enjoyed all of them – some more than others. I do think that some of the planning that I am doing this year is working as I am happy so far with what I am starting in March. It would be amazing if this turns out to be my best reading year ever and I could attribute it to actually reading what has been on my TBR list (instead of just being distracted by all new releases).
Here is what I read in February. I hope you are having a great reading month too.
The Four Winds – Kristin Hannah
Wow. Some of Kristin Hannah’s more recent books are among my all time favorites and The Four Winds is no exception to that. I want to say right off the bat, this is not a happy book. So if you are not in a place to learn about the dust bowl era of the Great Depression, save this piece of historical fiction for another time. You will go on a journey with Elsa as she fights every day to save her children and keep them safe and fed as her life is destroyed by the dust bowl. There is a line in the book about still being able to taste the dirt. No joke. I had it in my eyes and throat for the 3 days I devoured this book.
🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
Accidentally Wes Anderson – Wally Koval
This was a refreshing treat. Somewhat of a coffee table book, there was enough writing about each photo to keep me entertained for the better part of a Saturday. Exploring this book took me on a travel journey that I have been craving and was a surprising break in the monotony of Covid life.
🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
The Paris Library – Janet Skeslien Charles
The Paris Library is a historical fiction novel that is based on actual happenings before and during WWII. It is woven from true events of the brave and heroic group of The American Library in Paris that worked tirelessly during the war to keep the library open. Odile is a young Parisian book lover that gets a job at the library just before the war – although her family, particularly her father, would rather her not work outside the home and get married instead. She is strong willed, bright and passionate and that is displayed well throughout the book. Of course, not all strong willed, passionate people make the best decisions all of the time….
Outside of the narrative of Odile’s life and family, you will learn all about The American Library in Paris and the events that took place before and during the war.
There is a second timeline in the 1980’s with Odile in Montana that takes a little bit of a back burner to the first, but I enjoyed this part of the story too. Young teen-aged Lily is very interested in the mysterious Odile and seeks her out. They become friends of sorts and help each other quite a bit without realizing it.
As a lover of libraries myself, I did very much enjoy the history of The American Library in Paris and appreciated learning all that was done to keep it open. There were a few parts throughout the book that became a bit tedious and I did find myself skimming more than once. All in all, a good historical fiction read. If you enjoy WWII historical fiction, you will likely enjoy this book.
Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review. The Paris Library is now available.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
The Printed Letter Bookshop – Katherine Reay
I found this one a delightful surprise. A story of a strong woman and her tribe as they find out they are stronger than they know as well. I always love a book about women supporting other women and lovely female friendships. This was a pick for me from one of my local bookclubs and it was lovely.
🍷🍷🍷🍷
The Survivors – Jane Harper
I have read all of Jane Harper’s books and was wildly anticipating The Survivors. Harper is very skilled at developing her characters and the setting. She just has a knack for bringing you right there to hang out with her and her characters. With that said, I was a tiny bit disappointed. First off, the first 100 pages were very slow. So slow that I even considered giving up on more than one occasion. Knowing that she has the slow burn style I stuck with it and decided to channel my inner patience. Overall I did enjoy it but even the rest of the book tended to be a bit slow. Her characters were real and I felt compassion for those enduring pain, guilt and grief. For as slow as it was, she tied it up with a bow very quickly. Too quickly. If that ending had been as deeply dissected as the rest of the book – perhaps some closure for other characters, it could have been a solid 4 for me. It does feel like there could possibly be a #2 here with other characters as the main story. Side note – if you follow Harper on Insta, she is currently detailing her writing process as she works on #5. Look for “Book 5” in her Highlights. Very Interesting
🍷🍷🍷1/2
This Time Next Year – Sophie Cousens
I originally planned to read this in December as there is a tad bit of a holiday theme – the main characters share a birthday on New Years Day. I did postpone the rest of my unread holiday “to-read” list to November and December 2021, but decided to read this one now instead of pushing it out. I have still been drawn to some cute and lighter books lately and this fit the bill. It was indeed quirky, cute & mostly light but still with some heavier real life stuff.
🍷🍷🍷1/2
A Very Punchable Face – Colin Jost
I tend to like memoirs in the listening format. However I think I need to take a long break from celebrity memoirs. Their stories just aren’t doing it for me anymore. I originally rated this one 🍷🍷, but decided to move it to 3 🍷’s after some reflection. Colin did make me laugh, I enjoyed hearing about his childhood and overall I think he probably is a pretty good person. But when it comes right down to it, I need to move on from this genre, at least for now. If you are going to read it, audible is nice because he is the narrator. However the book has photos that are not in the audible form of course, and he will tell you about the photos approximately 80 times while listening.
🍷🍷🍷
Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times – Katherine May
I was drawn to this book due to the title alone and the life we have been living for the past year. It felt very much like Wintering was a good descriptive word of getting through a year of Covid. In reading it though, I didn’t find as much comfort from it as I had hoped to. I found the author a bit un-relatable and I couldn’t connect and grasp the concepts she was trying to explain to the extent I needed to. Maybe it’s because a full year of living as I have is more than the book could offer myself in a comforting way, I don’t know. In any case, I did glean some tidbits from it but overall it wasn’t what I had hoped it to be.
🍷🍷🍷
The Dash Diet Mediterranean Solution – The Best Eating Plan to Control Your Weight and Improve Your Health For Life – Marla Heller
We have been trying to eat a heart healthy diet for some time now and while we have been following the principles of the Mediterranean diet, it is a bit too fish and olive heavy for our liking. The Dash Diet is similar and we have found good success with the recipes and meal plans with that but this has been the winner for us. It is a good combo for us and not only am I enjoying the food selections, I have learned a ton by reading the whole book.
🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷
Book of the Month: The Four Winds – Kristin Hannah
See y’all next month! Or, maybe I will surprise you and post before then!
