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Saturday, July 29, 2017

Summer Book Review

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Hey y'all!
I did my Spring Book Review at the beginning of June, so I decided that it was time to round up the four books that I've been able to read since then and let you know what I thought of them!

Shelley Shepard Gray, Amy Clipston, Kathleen Fuller, & Kelly Irvin
This book is a collection of four short stories based in Amish country (y'all already know about my interest in sociology and in the way different groups and cultures live).
The stories are all different, but they draw you in quickly and have incredible character development for a short story.
These would be perfect if you're trying to make time for reading, but can't tackle a big book or you want something to read on the plane or on a beach vacay. 
My favorite of the four would probably be Summer Storms, which is the second one. It has a great story of a girl named Arianna who is engaged, but her relationship almost falls apart because of demons her brother is dealing with.
Each story has a great wrap-up (kind of a "what happens after the story"), I highly recommend!

Liane Moriarty
This was a really hyped up book, I've heard so many people (bloggers and just in everyday life) that have raved over how great it is, so of course I wanted to check it out-so I added it to an Amazon order to round out for free shipping ;)

This story is based on three women who are all mothers of children who go to the same school; there is drama amongst the women and the students at the school, but there is also drama at home that hardly any of the women put together-but somehow they are intrinsically connected.
It has a surprising and shocking ending that will keep you guessing along the whole story-very interesting and worth the read & the hype!

Philippa Gregory
Y'all know I have a love affair with historical fiction and Philippa Gregory does it best.
She does so much research and her novels are so historically accurate, I feel like I'm learning and enjoying the best stories that history has to offer at the same time (win-win!)
Virgin Earth is about John Tradescant, who is the gardener to King Charles I.
This story follows his life as King Charles I seems as though his kingdom is going to be toppled, so John leaves England for America (for Virginia) and tries his hand there.
John has sort of a double-life, one in America where he marries a Native American woman and lives among the Powhatan for a while, and then his family back in England.
It's a story of being torn between two loyalties & one that I thoroughly enjoyed, because you can sense his confusion and never knowing that the choice he makes is going to be the right one.

Like I mentioned before, her stories are very historically accurate and this one is no different. If you enjoy European (or really, American) history then I would recommend this or any of Philippa Gregory's novels (she wrote The Other Boleyn Girl as well!) 

Howard Greenfeld
This book is actually geared toward a younger audience, but it is so well-written and it has a way of drawing you in that I finished it in one sitting because I was so enthralled.
Essentially, this book focuses on the "hidden children" of the Holocaust-much like Anne Frank.
It goes in-depth with surviving hidden children, telling their personal stories about how they were able to survive the world and the way they felt while the war was raging & how they were unsure that they would live, or if they would ever see their parents/families again.

Although this isn't a light read, if you're interested in history-once again, this is a very educational read! I love increasing my knowledge and I thought that this might be useful in my classroom in the future one day. 

I hope y'all enjoyed this little review, I know the books I read are a little different than the "basic bloggers" book reviews, but what can I say, I like to read a little bit of everything!
Right now, this is what I'm reading and I can't wait to see the movie that is based off of it!

Until next time. . .
xoxo, 




15 comments:

  1. Big Little Lies is one of my FAVORITE books that I've read in the last few years. The twist at the end was SO good and so unexpected. I just watched the HBO version of it and it was SO well done. The cast was perfectly chosen and Reese as Madeline was exactly how I pictured her to be!

    xo, Chelsie @ Hey There, Chelsie

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  2. I also love sociology & historical fiction so I'm going to add these books to my to-read list!

    Lauren // http://laurensjourney.com

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  3. Have you watched the Big Little Lies series on HBO? I haven't read the book but I loved the show! My "to be read" list is so long but these all sound like good picks!

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    1. I haven't seen the show! I don't get HBO, so unless it comes on Netflix or Hulu, I'll have to do without-which makes me sad because I love Reese Witherspoon!

      xoxo, SS

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  4. I have never heard of anything of these, I heard big little lies is super good!

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  5. I think I'm going to read the book but not bother with the show haha (talking about big little lies)

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    1. I don't have HBO, so unless it becomes available on Netflix or Hulu I'll probably skip the show too!

      xoxo, SS

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  6. These books aren't usually the kind of reading I would normally choose for myself, but they actually sound super interesting! I think I Virgin Earth. I've been meaning to read the Moriarty book for way too long now haha!

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  7. Can't wait to read BLL! I've heard it's so good.
    Tori || Victori Media
    https://www.victorimedia.com

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  8. I promised myself I would read more this summer and I haven't! Now I'm inspired to again. I loved the BLL series on HBO, so I think I'll read that next.

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  9. Big Little Lies is on my list to read!

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  10. I need to check out some of these books. I'm halfway finished with Big Little Lies haha.

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  11. All sounds like great books! May need to check them out.
    xoxo,
    Amy | Pastel N Pink

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  12. Glad to hear Little Big Lies is deserving of all the hype! Adding it to my must-read list!

    Jennifer Ashley // www.prettylittledetails.com

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