read a book a month

June was kinda crazy for me and flew by! I managed to finish “The Friday Night Knitting Club” around the middle of the month (it was great! A bit of a tearjerker and the main character wasn’t particularly likeable to me but I did like the book as a whole…) but didn’t start this one until right before the end of the month.

Author’s website says – “A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to the post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around them.

Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love—a stunning accomplishment”

Why this book? – I read “The Kite Runner” about 6 months ago. It was beautifully written, emotional and gripping; I couldn’t put it down. Hosseini is a fabulous writer and I knew this novel would be just as good. I’m tearing through the thing so I guess I was right :)

June -> Breaking Dawn – Stephanie Meyer

“The Friday Night Knitting Club” by Kate Jacobs

Back says: “Once a week, an eclectic group of women comes together at a New York City yarn shop to work on their latest projects – and share the stories of their lives…
At the center of Walker and Daughter is the shop’s owner, Georgia, who is overwhelmed with juggling the store and single-handedly raising her teenage daughter. Happy to escape the demands of her life, she looks forward to her Friday Night Knitting Club, where she and her friends – Anita, Peri, Darwin, Lucie, and K.C. – exchange knitting tips, jokes, and their deepest secrets. But when the man who once broke Georgia’s heart suddenly shows up, demanding a role in their daughter’s life, her world is shattered.
Luckily, Georgia’s friends are there for encouragement, sharing their own tales of intimacy, heartbreak, and miracle making. And when the unthinkable happens, these women will discover that what they’ve created isn’t just a knitting club; it’s a sisterhood.”

Why this book? – I wanted to read “Certain Girls” by Jennifer Weiner this month but when I went online to reserve at the library I found my card was expired so I had to stop in for my annual renewal. This caught my eye so I figured why not?

So I finished “After All These Years” last weekend. It was decent, it held my attention, had good plot twists and was another quick read. I didn’t like how everything just fell into place and all worked out for the main character nice and tidy but I suppose that’s how most mystery novels end, just one of the reasons it’s always difficult for me to get into the genre.

Currently working on re-reading “Angels & Demons” by Dan Brown before I catch the movie but I probably won’t count that toward my book a month goal just because I’ve already read it once and want to count only books that are new to me. I knocked down two books in May, if I can keep up that pace I will officially mark this goal as complete in November! This is turning out to be less difficult than I thought :)

Finished May’s book, The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis, and started on June’s book.

Charity

So I finished this book last Monday, May 11, on the flight home from Denver. The ending was rather dramatic and depressing and when I was finished I was irritated that I read that entire book with it’s dumbass premise just to get to that.

This book is like bad sex. No, it’s worse than that because even if you had bad sex, at least you still got laid. I can safely say The Ruins was not my cup o’ tea and most certainly not equivalent to getting laid in any way, shape or form. It WAS a fast read though so I guess there’s one redeeming quality.

I’ve since moved on to a “middle-aged mystery” novel. “After All These Years” by Susan Isaacs.

Back says: “The day after her lavish wedding anniversary bash, Rosie Meyers gets a big surprise: her noveau riche husband, Richie, is leaving her for a sultry, sophisticated, size-six MBA. So, when he’s found murdered in their exquisitely appointed kitchen, no one is surprised to find Rosie’s prints all over the weapon.
The suburban English teacher is the prime suspect – the police’s only suspect. And she knows she’ll spend the rest of her life in the prison library unless she can unmask the real killer. Going into Manhattan on the lam, Rosie learns more about Richie than she ever wanted to know. And more about herself than she ever dreamed possible.”

Why this book? – My mom recycled this book to me about a year ago on my last trip home to Denver. The BF has already read it (he reads books at a way faster rate – that guy is a book readin’ MACHINE) and said it was pretty good. And while I’m not anywhere near mid-life and am not currently solving any murder mysteries either, chick lit is chick lit and I have an addiction ;-)

This is turning out to be a fairly quick read, I was hard pressed to put it down much over the weekend.

The plot is suspenseful but not very difficult to follow. And the whole concept is pretty weird so the book has definitely kept my attention.

I should finish up this book by the time we fly back to Denver for a visit on Friday. Looks like I’ll be able to read at least 2 books this month.

“The Ruins” by Scott Smith

Back cover says:
“TERROR HAS EVOLVED – In the wild interior of the Yucatan, far from the lazy beaches of Cancun, two young couples and some new-found friends venture to the site of an ancient Mayan temple, in pursuit of another in their group. What started out as a day trip spirals into a nightmare when they reach the ruins…and discover the terrifying presence that lurks there.”

Why I chose this book?
- My BF has a habit of picking up random books at secondhand stores. This was on our shelf in the living room but I hadn’t read it yet so I will in May :)

FINISHED
The Luxe
It Sucked and Then I Cried
Haunted

READING
While America Aged

Read this month’s book: The Tale of Three Kings

Since this goal is one that will be ongoing, it makes it hard to determine when it is “finished.” So I’m going to define this goal as having been met when I’ve been consistent for four months. I will then remove it so I can free up a spot for a new goal, but will continue on with the habit.