What I Read in June 2019

This is turning out to be such a good year of reading! Only halfway through the year, and I've already almost met my goal to read 100 books in 2019. I've never made it to 200 books read in a year, but I'd love to try.

I recently set a goal to read all of the Newbery Award winners (just the gold medal winners for now, not the honor books). It's been so fun revisiting old favorites and reading many that I'd never even heard of. Middle grade books are fast becoming my favorite genre.

Here's the break down for June:

14 books total
4 Middle Grade Books
3 Newbery Award Winners
1 Non-Fiction book
1 Classic
3 YA books
6 Adult Fiction Books

My favorite reading experience in June was definitely East of Eden by John Steinbeck. It was a reread for me, but it had been almost 20 years.

If you’re interested in more of what I’m reading, you can also follow me on GoodReads where I track everything I read. And if you need more good books, check out what I’ve read so far this year here.

June 2019 Reading Recap:

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb | I loved this memoir by a psychotherapist who finds herself needing a therapist of her own. The story alternates between her work as a therapist with her own patients, and her experience being a patient in therapy.

A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum | I really enjoyed this book about a young Arab who leaves Palestine to marry an Arab-American in Brooklyn. It was sad, but ultimately redeeming.

Resistance by Jennifer A. Nielsen | This was a good historical fiction book about a Jewish girl in Nazi-occupied Poland. Written as YA fiction, but it would be fine for advanced middle grade readers too. I listened on audiobook.

Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumplestiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff | We read this one aloud as a family and everyone loved it. If you love clever fairytale retellings, check this one out!

Normal People by Sally Rooney | This is a quiet character study, which is just the sort of book I love, but also the sort of book that tends to be pretty polarizing. I think people will either love it or really hate it. I thought it was so well written and moving. But it was also full of triggers (sexual abuse, domestic violence, drug use, suicide) so I'd hesitate to recommend this to anyone.

Refugee by Alan Gratz | Fantastic! This is a must read, action packed YA book (but also fine for advanced middle grade readers). It was an excellent introduction to the refugee experience from three different points of view: Jews leaving Nazi Germany in the 1930s, Cubans seeking asylum in the 1990's, and Syrians looking for refuge now. Highly recommend this one (plus it was great on audio).

The River by Peter Heller | I picked this one from the Modern Mrs. Darcy's summer reading list. It was so gripping and I finished it in less than two days because I couldn't put it down.

How I Met Your Brother by Janette Rallison | I'm on a Janette Rallison kick right now. Her books are so fluffy, but they're completely charming. This one was a really sweet romantic comedy and a perfect summer read.

Last Things by Jacqueline West | This was such a fun, twisty YA mystery. I loved every page of it. It was almost a clean teen read, but there was some PG-13 language (I think there were only 3 or 4 curse words, but they were the worst ones).

The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron | I know this one was controversial when it won the Newbery (largely because it uses the word "scrotum"), but I thought it was honest and moving, and laugh out loud funny at times.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck | My favorite read this month. An absolutely stunning piece of fiction.

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis | I loved The Watsons Go To Birmingham -1963 and, more recently, The Journey of Little Charlie, so I went into this one with high expectations. It was pretty good - definitely glad I read it.

Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright | I read this because it won the Newbery, but also because I love Elizabeth Enright. I didn't love this one though. It was really pretty dull. What I did love, however, was the transcript of her Newbery acceptance speech at the back of the book. It was worth reading just for that!

Recursion by Blake Crouch | I don't know that I loved the writing in this one (or Dark Matter), but I have to admit that it was a gripping, exciting page turning story. Fun summer reading (but there was way too much cursing for my reading tastes).