March Reads
March was a hit/miss month with books. Two of the books I read got rave reviews from people I trust but I really didn’t get the hype. While I don’t usually talk about books I don’t like, I do when they’re so often recommended so if you struggle with them as well, you won’t feel alone.
The first was Leave The World Behind. This one I felt like had potential it was just lacking for ME. I would never say a book is bad…it just didn’t work for ME. It had potential to be an interesting look at the position of race/class during a crisis, but it fell really short on that with just the most minor of interactions outside the main characters. It also had potential to be a good horror/thriller but that felt very under-developed too. It gets tons of positive reviews though so don’t be afraid to pick it up. But also don’t be afraid to put it back down if it’s not working for you.
The other one was just kinda..meh…but it made so many other people swoon: Bel Canto. Now, I gave this book 4 stars because I am a new Ann Patchett stan and I love her writing and this book does not disappoint in character development and interesting plot. In my case, this problem was definitely a READER problem and not a WRITER problem: I’m just not a music person. Music just doesn’t connect to my soul the way it does other people. I like music, don’t get me wrong, and I can be moved by music…but it’s just an average relationship. And so much about the connections in this book are built around music or the love of it and I just think I was unable to really relate to it a lot. I would love to see if anyone else found similar issue?
NOW! On to the GOOD stuff!
I’ll start with an Ann Patchett book to make up for my negative review of Bel Canto. I had never read any Ann Patchett until this month and then I read this spectacular essay/short story she wrote for Harpers. It’s about a relationship she built with Tom Hank’s assistant which sounds odd and mundane but it’s magnificent and I still think about it at least once a day. I read Run and The Dutch House this month and they were both excellent and I would recommend them both but I decided to focus on The Dutch House mainly because it has the prettier cover. BUT I RECOMMEND BOTH.
This book was about a brother and sister raised by their Dad when their Mom leaves in their youth. The ensuing challenges make them really close as they navigate life and complicated relationships together. IT IS LIKE MY LIFE.
I mean, not really. There’s a terrible step-mother and illness and housekeepers/nannies and a lot of things that have nothing to do with my life. But these threads of sibling relationships and then abandonment issues…I just found myself connecting to this book so much of this book that I wish I owned a copy.
So I read this book for my oldest kid. He’s a horror movie buff and My Best Friend’s Exorcism ended up on his TBR and I guess enough people knew that (I did not) that he ended up with two copies after his birthday. He gave one to us and said, “Lets have a book club!” And when your 26-year old kid asks you to read a book with him? YOU OBLIGE.
I honestly wasn’t expected to love it…but OH MY GOD I LOVED IT. This book looks like an 80s movie because that is exactly what it feels like. If you were a child of the 80s you should read this book at least for the fashion and music references. But the story itself was actually really moving and charming. A great multi-layered story about friendships and how there can be so much hurt that we dish out or receive as teens and how someone these threads can still survive through it all. Since I posted it on Goodreads I have had several people tell me this author has several good books out so I may read more but maybe not in the next 6 months or so because I try not to read too many books written by straight white guys and this is already my second one of the year.
Now…hear me out. I’m not recommending Midnight Sun as a stand alone book or anything. BUT. If you love Twilight, and you’re a bit of a completist…you should read this. I was really surprised how much extra stuff really made me love the universe so much. There’s great stuff about Alice and her enthusiasm over befriending Bella which is ADORABLE. There’s some great stuff with all of the Cullens as you get to know their minds better. Edward also does some sweet stuff with Bella’s human friends that we don’t realize happened in Twilight. I mainly just read this because I felt like I had to as a completist, but I really enjoyed a lot of the extra insight it gave me. I skimmed a lot of it, I’ll be honest. I didn’t need to read every one-on-one interaction with Bella/Edward again just to hear his thoughts. But everything in between? Totally fun and even surprising in parts!
The Prophets is probably going to be a love it or hate it book. I don’t know how you could feel anything in between. And I loved it. Now…in it’s stripped down state it is about two male slaves who love each other, so there’s obviously no path for a “sailing off into the sunset” type of ending. You know that going in. So, I think it made it easier to handle the heartbreak and the pain woven throughout the story, and still soak up the beauty in the words and in the love story. I don’t know how to explain it because it’s not an easy read, but I found it beautiful nonetheless. There are shifts in POVs and some of the chapters are from different timelines and voices all together…so if you struggle with non-linear and multi-perspective storytelling this one might not work for you. But I usually struggle with both and did fine. I really loved this book. It’s a new release this year and I’m guessing we’ll see it on a bunch of 2021 book lists.
The Bluest Eye is one of those books that I sometimes feel embarrassed I’ve never read. It is another difficult read, but Morrison’s ability to tell tragic stories with a beautiful lyricism is like a super power. I don’t know how she does it. It’s not a long read at all, but you’ll probably feel yourself taking your time with it anyway.
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents is definitely my top recommendation from the month. And this means a lot coming from me, because I don’t read this type of academic nonfiction often. It’s a really dense read with 11 pages of bibliography and 40 pages of footnotes. You are getting a lot of education in this book. If you think you’ve read all of the anti-racism, history of racism books you need to read…think again. In teaching the reader about the caste structures in Nazi Germany and in India, we learn a new way to look at the caste system in this country and it’s an important perspective and understanding that I think should be required reading. It took me all month to read this one. I digested it about 10-20 pages at a time every morning with my first cup of coffee. Don’t give up on it because it’s so dense or academic, stick with it. You won’t regret it.
What did you read this month?