July seemed to go on forever but I made good use of the time for reading! Many genres, many locations, stories, stories, stories. Still a bit behind on reviews but I am more caught up than I have been all year. A mixture of lengths, a couple I have been reading at a leisurely pace and got through in July, kept me on my goals for the year.
Stats: 14 books read. 7 by women. 3 spy thrillers, 1 memoir, 2 translated, 1 picture book, 1 non fiction, 1 poetry.
Where I went: France, Ireland, Mexico, Syria, Russia, Jamaica, Great Britain and China, San Diego in CA, Louisiana
Authors new to me: Khaled Khalifa, Ed Young, M O Walsh.
Favorites: Chimes of a Lost Cathedral, Trust Exercise. Least favorite (but not horrible): Normal People
Have you read any of these? What were your favorite reads in July?
Looks like a good month of reading for you once again.
ReplyDeleteI completed 16 reads last month, which is a good month for me. I'm hoping to read at least 8 books this month. We'll see what happens!
Thanks and good on your total. Yes, August is always unpredictable when it comes to reading.
DeleteI'm currently struggling through Topaz by Leon Uris... It's the 1st novel I'm reading by the author and am roughly 40% into it. Topaz was published in 1967. I like the cold war spy factor/element to Topaz, but the misogynist elements in the novel are annoying. I'm left wondering if the author was a real life misogynist???
DeleteI have read Battle Cry, Exodus, Mila and Armageddon by Uris. He is wordy isn't he? But tells good historical stories. I think the way he writes about women is due to when he was writing. All the books I have read were published earlier than 1967. Women's lib wasn't until the 70s and even then male writers went on with that stuff for quite a while! Topaz was a Top 10 bestseller so I will be reading it when I get to 1967. Good luck!
DeleteYou're probably right, that it has more to do with the time in which he was writing... Yes, Uris is wordy, but there's a lot of interesting detail in his work. I am enjoying the cold war spy part of the novel very much. Onward I go!
DeleteI look forward to your review.
DeleteLooks like a great reading month! I only read 12 books and a few weren't the best...
ReplyDeleteThanks, Carrie. Still 12 books is not bad.
DeleteI've only read Normal People and My Sunshine Away, other here look intriguing though. Hope August is as productive as July for you.
ReplyDeleteI will look for your review of My Sunshine Away. I am still thinking about that one.
DeleteLon Po Po is one of my most favorite childhood stories. I remember being so excited when Mrs Schneider (school librarian) told us we would be reading it, but also a little scare of the wolf's eyes. Such a great book.
ReplyDeleteYes, those eyes! I thought the illustrations were great. And the sisters.
DeleteSuch a good one. The cover kind of freaked Eleanor out a little bit, so we have not read it yet. But, some day!
DeleteOnce again, both the content and quantity of your list of competed books is impressive.
ReplyDeleteThe above comments about Uris are interesting. I cannot help think about Anthony Trollope. I am reading Orley Farm which is my fifteenth Trollope novel. Though he wrote in the Ninetieth Century many of his books highlighted the unfairness of sexism and were sympathetic to the plight of women. I guess this can be attributed to the fact that his mother, Frances Milton Trollope, was something of an early feminist.
Well, yes there have been men that were not misogynist all through the ages but Uris had a formula that made for bestsellers. Moms do make a difference though, don't they.
Deletewow, so many fascinating books! Dangerous for my TBR!!
ReplyDeleteDangerous for your TBR...I like that!
DeleteAnother great month of reading. Congrats!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dorothy. Reading is the most fun I am having these days.
DeleteGreat month! I have read 4 of these: Trust Exercise, My Sunshine Away, White Teeth, and Normal People. I had to go back & read my review of Sunshine Away to see what I thought. I guess I liked it for the most part but perhaps it had some weirdness or creepiness too.
ReplyDeleteFour matches! I like that. Something in Sunshine Away was off a bit for me too.
DeleteLooks like you had a great month! I have not read any of the above books. If you could recommend me 1, what book would you choose?
ReplyDeleteThat is a hard question. If you are interested in present day Syria, I would recommend Death is Hard Work. If you are curious about the American/Mexican border situation I would recommend The House of the Broken Angels. There are some amazing characters in that one. Both are novels but take place in current times which are in the news.
DeleteThanks for the recommendations!
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