Monday, August 12, 2013

Monthly Book Roundup: July

If you guys thought I read a lot of books in June, you ain't seen nothing yet. July was a whirlwind of delightful things to read. Here's the list:

Catch a Wave by Peter Ames Carlin
The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Some Girls, Some Hats & Hitler by Trudi Kanter
A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff
Heartbreak, Tennessee by Ruby Laska
Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian
The Very Picture of You by Isabel Wolff
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts
Mariana by Susanna Kearsley

I really loved the Carlin book. It's a Brian Wilson biography and it was completely engaging. If you have any interest whatsoever in the history of the Beach Boys and the genius behind their music, start with this book. I'd read Paris Without End (the nonfiction account of the relationship between Hadley and Ernest Hemingway) before picking up The Paris Wife, so I was very intrigued to see how McLain did with the material. I liked it very much. And, of course, I loved Mariana. I'd probably read Kearsley's books every day if I could. 

Oh, and the Agatha Christie book was our book club selection for July. It was short and wonderful and I read it in one day.

 I think August is going to be a slower book month. I was taking a lot of time with one of my selections. Oh well. I'm trying to introduce a bit more nonfiction back into my reading, so we'll see how I do with that.