As summer is winding down, and we are getting ready to dive into Autumn, I wanted to share the rest of the books I read this summer. About halfway through the summer I gave up on trying to force myself to read the light-hearted beach reads, and I just read what I felt like reading, so this list is a good mix of light fiction, memoir, non-fiction, and even one "classic". I am trying to decide what kind of reading mood I am in for the start of fall. But the near future will also be full of vacation reads for me, since despite my worrying, our trip looks like it's going to work out after all!
Enough rambling, here are the books I read in July and August.
Better Than The Movies by Lynn Painter - 3 stars - I forgot to include this book in my May wrap-up. This is pure chic-lit fluff, where a high school girl convinces her next-door neighbor to help her win her crush, but ends up falling for her neighbor instead. Notes: There is one make-out scene, and the character occasionally wonders about adult-themed things (you know what I mean). I can't remember how much cussing was in it (it's been a few months since I read it now), but I think there were a few f-bombs. I actually wouldn't let my teenager read this, even though it's YA. But it definitely had a chic-flick movie vibe that I enjoyed. If it were a movie, I'd rate it PG-13 I think.
Wait 'Til Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin - 5 stars -This was a memoir about Goodwin's girlhood years, growing up in Brooklyn when the Dodgers and the Yankees were both located in New York. If you want a little glimpse of what it would have been like to grow up in New York in the 50's and 60's, this book is quite satisfying. I loved how Goodwin weaved in the baseball history, and it's a coming-of-age story as she recounts her family life and friendships from childhood through high school. I love baseball, and I love coming-of-age books, so I especially liked this book. It got a little political at the end, but overall I recommend it!
Call Me American by Abdi Nor Iftin - 3 stars - This is an immigrant biography, about a man that grew up in war-torn Mogadishu, but loved all things American. He dreamed of escaping to America and one day becoming an American, and this book is about his harrowing experiences growing up in a war zone, and how he finally made his way here. Unfortunately once he was here, the liberals got him, so the end of the book is less pro-American than the beginning of the story. If you want some interesting context, pick up the book Out Of America by Keith Richburg, about an African-American journalists experiences covering Africa during this same time period ( I highly recommend Out Of America, it was disturbing but fascinating to read). Ruchburg even covers some of the events of the war in Mogadishu that Abdi describes.
The Land That Time Forgot by Edgar Rice Burroughs - 1 star - I read this with my book group, and let's just say I can see why this book didn't exactly become a classic. A young man has his ship sunk by a U-boat during World War One, and along with the crew and a beautiful girl, ends up getting stranded on an island with strange creatures and different "evolutionary stages" of man. I believe God created everything, and I don't believe in evolution, so that ended up being obnoxious, but more than that, there were a few racist lines in this book about "lower races of man". Yikes! Especially considering that this book came a couple decades before World War Two, with Hitler's atrocities that were rooted in this same way of thinking about human beings, it makes sense that this book doesn't seem very well-known today (aside from being written by the same guy who wrote Tarzan).
I did find it interesting how one of the characters opines about how seeing all these creatures and "stages of man" makes her feel like there is no point or value to life. Indeed, that's where evolutionary philosophy ultimately leads. Yet, (spoiler alert) the main character ends the book with praying that they will be rescued. This book is full of philosophical contradictions like that, and it was written toward the end of World War One, when so many men were traumatized, questioning humanity, and many were losing their faith after what they had seen in the war. So in a sense, it's probably a book of it's very confusing time.
Fault Lines by Voddie Baucham - 4 stars - In this book, Baucham explains how critical race theory is infiltrating the church in America, even more conservative denominations. I have heard Voddie Baucham speak before, and read one of his other books, and I thought it was really interesting to read about his testimony and ministry experience as a black conservative pastor. I was hoping he would get into a thorough explanation about why critical race theory is incompatible with the gospel of Jesus Christ, and he did briefly, but the book was more focused on defining critical race theory, and then exposing how this has been corrupting the church. Even though it was a little different than I expected, this book is a great indictment of critical race theory and it's effect on the American church.
How To Eat Fried Worms by Billy Forrester - 3 stars - I thought I'd include one of the books the kids and I listened to in the car this summer. The entire plot of this book is about the main character eating worms in order to win a bet, and the other kids' attempts to make him lose the bet. Each chapter focuses on a different worm-eating experience. My kids thought it was hilarious and gross, and I found it pretty amusing too! Note: There is some name-calling in the book, so I had to talk with my kids about why we don't do that.
North! Or Be Eaten by Andrew Peterson - 4 stars - This is the second book in the Wingfeather Saga, and I've heard from others that the plot take s little bit of a dark turn in this book - I'd have to agree. Think less Chronicles of Narnia and more Lord Of the Rings. Because of some of the possibly disturbing plot points, I'll probably wait until my kids are a bit older to read this to them (probably 11-14 for my particular kids), but I am still enjoying it as an adult.
Notes: There is some "magic" in the world Peterson has created, and it all comes from the "Maker", the creator of that world. The way these elements are handled reminds me a lot of the allegorical aspect of The Chronicles Of Narnia, so I haven't minded it as I've been reading the books. In this book, Janner discovers that he can sometimes see what is going on in other parts of the land when his sister plays on her special flute. I did have a concern about the dialogue on page 279, about why this magical "gift" is something that the characters shouldn't try to manipulate to their own ends, but something the Maker is showing them to help them on their quest.
If we're taking this book in an allegorical sense, we could think about the "gifts" in terms of spiritual gifts and it might make sense, maybe (though I am a cessationist, ha!). However, that part of the book left me uneasy since we are warned in Scripture against using divination, etc, in any way in our own real world, and the description of Janner's gift could sound a bit New-Agey. Since this is a fairytale world though, and since the gifts are completely something the Maker uses to help them and not some "power" they are wielding, I think I am okay with it. But that section of the book would definitely be something I would discuss with my kids. It is a relatively minor plot point, so we'll see how it plays out.
The Call Of The Wild And Free by Ainsley Arment - 4 stars - I read this in two sittings, and I really enjoyed Arment's holistic view of what it means to educate a child. She encourages homeschool moms that it's not about checking things off a list, but about investing in our children and building up their education around their particular bent, and ensuring they have real experiences within their education. If you need a shot of inspiration for your homeschool, I recommend this one!
Teaching From Rest by Sarah McKenzie - 5 stars - This is a re-read for me, and it was just as encouraging as the first time I read it. Mackenzie reminds us that the curriculum is not a set of books, but our entire strategy in educating our children, which should be centered around raising them up for the glory of God by showing them His truth, and goodness, and beauty. It's a blessedly short book, and easy to read in a few mornings when you need to refocus on what's important in homeschooling your children.
The Things We Wish Were True by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen - 4 stars Whalen writes great small-town drama/suspense books, and ones that are typically relatively clean. This book surrounds a cast of characters, including a newly single mom returning to her hometown, a young mother who is harboring some secrets from her husband, and a young girl whose brother almost drowns, leading her to stay for part of the summer with an older lady who misses having her children home. There are also some mystery elements thrown in surrounding a missing girl, and a 20-year-old case of stalking that was never solved. Note: Mild on the cursing, but there is some past infidelity within the plot, though it isn't dwelled upon. Other adult (ahem) references, but nothing explicit.
Garlic And Sapphires by Ruth Reichl - 5 stars - I'm nearly done with this book, but I feel quite confident in giving it five stars. This book is about how Reichl got a job as the food critic for the New York Times (in the 90's), and how all the restaurants had her picture taped up in their kitchens - so to get a real look at what it would be like to patronize these restaurants as a normal person, she goes undercover. Her descriptions of the disguises she donned, as well as her food writing, are really fascinating to read. I don't even like half the food that she's writing about, but she makes it sound so delicious. This is a really fun memoir, and I recommend it!
What kind of books do you like to read in the fall? I'm looking at trying to knock a few books off my "unread" shelf, but if you have an atmospheric fall read you love, I'd love to hear!
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