In the Books, a July 2018 Wrap-Up

As I mentioned in my previous post, my reading went a bit bananas in July with the arrival of my Kindle. Here's a quick wrap-up and mini review of the books "In the Books" for this month.

Dog Man #2 A Tale of Two Kitties by Dav Pilkey - Greyson loves this series to bits. I wasn't overly impressed with the first book, but this one definitely grew on me. There are plenty of fun classical literary references here for the adults.

Inspired: Slaying Giants, Walking on Water, and Loving the Bible Again by Rachel Held Evans - This when reading really got its claws back into me. Rachel Held Evans is my favorite progressive Christian writer and memoirist. Her writing is equal parts thoughtful, beautiful, and smart. I listened to Inspired on audio--the best way to read her work--and I ordered a paperback copy while I was still listening in order to read and annotate. So yeah, I read it twice at once. lol

Bird Box by Josh Malerman - The result of Twitter recommendations! I asked my fellow readers for recommendations to scare the poo out of me, and this one fit the bill. It's about a mother and her children, set adrift in a world where they must remain blindfolded to avoid being driven to homicide by...something. While this book is scary as all get-out, it's also complicated and dreamy in a way that reminded me of Cormac McCarthy's The Road...but I liked this one even more.

Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt - Good, old school horror! A three hundred year old witch walks freely around Black Rock, appearing in homes, making a regular circuit through town, and generally bleeding into the background. But aren't those pesky townspeople always their own worst enemies? Read it and see.

Cold Tangerines: Celebrating the Extraordinary Nature of Everyday Life by Shauna Niequist - Another audio selection, Niequist writes about her daily life...the ordinary and extraordinary. It's not a new concept, but Niequest has a delightful writerly voice. I listened to this one on audio and almost wish I hadn't. Her reading is VERY FAST (I thought I had the speed up), and it loses some of its glory. I think I would've liked to slow down and read the words on the page myself.

Matilda by Roald Dahl - A re-read/re-listen. I never get tired of it.

Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol - I loved Ghosts by Brosgol, but I liked Be Prepared even more. Young Vera desperately wants to fit in with her friends, and she wants to go to camp! Her mother, though, sends her to a Russian sleep-away camp that is not quite what Vera was expecting or hoping. Think lower-key, introspective Lumberjanes.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson - A great graphic novel in every way. This was another re-read. Just pick it up already.

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne - So. Much. Fun! Another winning Twitter recommendation, this one is about Lucy and Joshua, high powered work rivals who just happen to have some sparks. A very endearing novel when the characters weren't always so endearing.

A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay - A thinking person's horror novel. A family's young daughter is seemingly possessed, or is she?  This novel is also a lot of fun with plenty of shout-outs to classic horror, both literature and film.

Hocus Pocus and the All New Sequel by A.W. Jantha - Hocus Pocus is always a good time and a MUST, even in July. The actual Hocus Pocus novel was JUST LIKE the movie which made it a nice comfort read, but the sequel was a new delight. I didn't expect much from the writing, to tell the truth, but it was good!

Don't call it a comeback! Ok, do.

What have you loved lately?