June Books and Delights

Every month I like to share the books I read that month and other little things that delighted me. Last month I only finished one book, so I didn’t share a May Books and Delights, but June was a good month for reading. So here are my June books and delights! I finally found a quote to sum up my book-buying (and checking out) habits…

“I guess there are never enough books.”
― John Steinbeck

Thank you Mr. Steinbeck for your affirmation and support. And now onto the books! To see all my book posts from this year, click here.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

“The strongest distinguishing characteristic of humans is their power of denial.”
–A Discovery of Witches–

I read this book with a small group of friends. It’s not something I would normally choose. I don’t have a problem with reading about witches and vampires, but this was very slow. There was a lot of inner monologue from the main character, and I found myself skipping lots of pages to get to the action. However, towards the end I was sad that I would not learn how everything ends for all the characters. It is a trilogy, and I probably won’t read the other two books. I may look up some spoilers to see what happens in the next books!

Amazon Description: Deborah Harkness’s sparkling debut, A Discovery of Witches, has brought her into the spotlight and galvanized fans around the world. In this tale of passion and obsession, Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches, discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford’s Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont.

Harkness has created a universe to rival those of Anne Rice, Diana Gabaldon, and Elizabeth Kostova, and she adds a scholar’s depth to this riveting tale of magic and suspense. The story continues in book two, Shadow of Night, and concludes with The Book of Life. Find it here.

Becoming Better Grownups: Rediscovering What Matters and Remembering How to Fly by Brad Montague (audiobook)

“To believe that the best days are behind us is short-sighted. To operate as if things will not improve, nor can they improve, is to give up. To feel like we’re marching toward something terrible is to have your eyes closed to the beauty of all that is around us. To provide little loving nudges every day is to do something very big. We’re better grownups, creating a world with even better grownups.”
–Brad Montague, Becoming Better Grownups

I really enjoy Brad Montague’s newsletter, The Enthusiast. I’ve also enjoyed other creations of his, like Kid President. So I was delighted when I saw the audiobook available on the Libby app. I appreciated hearing about the insecurities that come with sharing your creative work with the world, and how he thought the importance of his job didn’t compare with the importance of a police officer or an accountant. This book is hopeful. I even checked out the book from the library after listening to the audio because there’s some things I want to quote. I love the physical copy, it has a thick cover like a board book! And the drawings are fun!

Amazon Description: When his first book tour ended, Brad Montague missed hearing other people’s stories so much that he launched what he dubbed a Listening Tour. First visiting elementary schools and later also nursing homes and retirement communities, he hoped to glean new wisdom as to how he might become a better grownup. Now, in this playful and buoyant book, he shares those insights with rest of us –timeless, often surprising lessons that bypass the head we’re always stuck in, and go straight to the heart we sometimes forget. 

Each of the book’s three sections begins with the illustrated story of “The Incredible Floating Girl.” Brad weaves this story together with lessons of success, fear, regret, gratitude, love, happiness, and dreams to reveal the true reason we are here: to fly, and to help others fly.

Beautifully designed and featuring Montague’s own whimsical 4-color illustrations that appeal to the kid in all of us, Becoming Better Grownups shares the purpose and meaning we can all discover merely by listening, and reveals that–in a world that seems increasingly childish–the secret to joy is in fact to become more childlike. Find it here.

Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks

“Over time, I’ve come to accept the notion that we don’t always get to choose our paths in life; sometimes, they choose us.”
–Dreamland–

While standing in line at the library with my kids’ books, I see this one on display. I’ve read a lot of Nicholas Sparks’s earlier books, but felt like they were very repetitive. I hadn’t read any of his work in a while until I read The Wish last year, and I was delightfully surprised. This one was ok. And to be honest I can’t remember all the details about the twist at the end, but I know there was one.

Amazon Description: After fleeing an abusive husband with her six-year-old son, Tommie, Beverly is attempting to create a new life for them in a small town off the beaten track. Despite their newfound freedom, Beverly is constantly on guard: she creates a fake backstory, wears a disguise around town, and buries herself in DIY projects to stave off anxiety. But her stress only rises when Tommie insists he’d been hearing someone walking on the roof and calling his name late at night. With money running out and danger seemingly around every corner, she makes a desperate decision that will rewrite everything she knows to be true. . . .
 
Meanwhile, Colby Mills is on a heart-pounding journey of another kind. A failed musician, he now heads a small family farm in North Carolina. Seeking a rare break from his duties at home, he spontaneously takes a gig playing in a bar in St. Pete Beach, Florida, where he meets Morgan Lee—and his whole life is turned upside-down.
 
The daughter of affluent Chicago doctors, Morgan has graduated from a prestigious college music program with the ambition to move to Nashville and become a star. Romantically and musically, she and Colby complete each other in a way that neither has ever known.
 
In the course of a single unforgettable week, two young people will navigate the exhilarating heights and heartbreak of first love. Hundreds of miles away, Beverly will put her love for her young son to the test. And fate will draw all three people together in a web of life-altering connections . . . forcing each to wonder whether the dream of a better life can ever survive the weight of the past. Find it here.

The German Wife by Kelly Rimmer

“Hundreds of these decrees were passed, one by one. This is how polite society gives way to chaos. The collapse that comes at the end of the process is a consequence of the slow erosion over time.”
–The German Wife–

Every time I say I’m done with WWII historical fiction another one comes along and makes me a liar! Apparently, there’s never enough books about WWII. I saw this one available on the Libby app and the description mentioned Operation Paperclip. I had just learned about this from my favorite government teacher, and couldn’t believe my luck that now I could read a fiction book about it! I’ve read a lot of WWII historical fiction, and this one was really well done. Could not put it down–and that is the highest rating I give a book!

Amazon Description: Berlin, 1930—When a wave of change sweeps a radical political party to power, Sofie von Meyer Rhodes’s academic husband benefits from the ambitions of its newly elected chancellor. Although Sofie and Jürgen do not share the social views growing popular in Hitler’s Germany, Jürgen’s position with its burgeoning rocket program changes their diminishing fortunes for the better. But as Sofie watches helplessly, her beloved Berlin begins to transform, forcing her to consider what they must sacrifice morally for their young family’s security, and what the price for their neutrality will be.

Twenty years later, Jürgen is one of the many German scientists offered pardons for their part in the war, and taken to America to work for its fledgling space program. For Sofie, this is the chance to exorcise the ghosts that have followed her across the ocean, and make a fresh start in her adopted country. But her neighbors aren’t as welcoming or as understanding as she had hoped. When scandalous rumors about the Rhodes family’s affiliation with Hitler’s regime spreads, idle gossip turns to bitter rage, and the act of violence that results will tear apart Sofie’s community and her family before the truth is finally revealed. Find it here.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

“Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun” 
–Lessons in Chemistry–

This is a very popular book, was Barnes and Nobles’ book of the year for 2022, and it’s historical fiction. Overall, I liked the story and I definitely couldn’t put it down–easy to read, enough action to keep me flipping through the pages. My complaint about this book is that every religious person in this book is evil, slimy, corrupt, fake, lying, pretending, or doesn’t even believe in God. I get that the main character is a scientist and her parents were religious only when it suited their wallets, but it felt like the author was laying it on thick. Other than that, I liked the book and was rooting for the main character in all her roles (scientist, wife, mom, cooking show host, friend).

Amazon Description: Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel–prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results. 

But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth’s unusual approach to cooking (“combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride”) proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn’t just teaching women to cook. She’s daring them to change the status quo.  

Laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant, and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters, Lessons in Chemistry is as original and vibrant as its protagonist. Find it here.

Currently Reading: James: Mercy Triumphs by Beth Moore and The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly

June Delights

I want to live with an extremely low bar for delight. It takes almost nothing at all—a good song, a ripe piece of fruit, a perfectly packed tote.”
–Shuana Niequist, I Guess I Haven’t Learned that Yet

Inspired by Shauna Niequist, I’ve been keeping a list of things that bring me delight. Here is my list of June delights.

• Ice cream–this might be on my list every month
• Listening to podcasts on Spotify–this is great, I can sort the episodes from oldest to newest AND create playlists of my favorite episodes
• Kids enjoying camp, son getting an award
• Watching the new The Little Mermaid–We wore out the VHS tape of the original. I just loved the nostalgia of watching the new one.
• That fire pit

• The summer writing coaching group I’m in
• My mom visiting for a week
• Making lasagna and strawberry pudding for Father’s Day
• Watermelon
• New Glasses
• This episode of The Next Right Thing–morning pages and facial sunscreen, sounds like my life!
• @andrea.nelson.art Her art videos look so fun and doable. My six-year-old made the space painting for her dad for Father’s Day!

I’d love to hear what books you read recently!

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