Writings, Wanderings

Four more books made it to my finished list this month. Unfortunately my read for my book club did not make this list. I have stalled out about halfway through it at the moment but am determined to finish it some time in March... My first completed read for February then was  Tricky Twenty-Two by Janet Evanovich. I'm really enjoying this part of the series and Stephanie's adventures. I'm not a huge fan of love triangles, so I like that things with Morelli seem to be settling. Hidden Love by Cara Putnam. With geocaching as the background, this novella mixed elements of romance and suspense. While it did feel too short and not as fully-fleshed out as I would have liked, it is the best geocaching story I've read so far. Sweetly Seeking  by Sarah Dickey is a physically gorgeous book. The pages were gorgeous with their mixing of photographs and design elements. The message was inspirational but at times began to feel repetitive. And Then You Die of Dysente...

My top two non-children book reads for January were For Everyone by Jason Reynolds and The Girls by Abigail Pesta. For Everyone is a poetry book that takes an honest look at life. I gave it 5 stars and its own blog entry . The Girls by Abigail Pesta. Wow, this was a tough one, but I do not regret one bit picking it up from the local library. I have loved watching gymnastics my whole life, even did a two-month stint back in elementary school at the local Y on the four apparatus that female gymnasts conquer. The unfolding of the abuse scandal over the last few years has been gut-wrenching. I hate what these young woman have been through but applaud their courage in standing up and testifying. This book documents many of their stories. The focus in on the girls not their abuser nor the system that protected him. Yes, he is a character but the protagonists are the women and the events they chose to share, some of them for the first time with the public. I believe the author h...

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate is one of my favorite reads for the year so far. Based on a true scandal out of Tennessee over half a century ago, the story is heartbreaking. The mystery of who Mae and Judy really were kept me guessing until closer to the end. I did find the romance angle a little cliche but if I ignore that part, this is a 5-star book (4 1/2 when considering the romance). Another audiobook by Janet Evanovich made my list this month: Plum Lovin'. This was a great choice for a road trip since while there were multiple storylines, none of it was complicated. I didn't really like how the narrator approached some of the voices, but the three CD's made my twelve hours on the road pass much quicker. I enjoyed seeing Stephanie hold her own in a different setting than the usual bounty hunting. I also read a co-written book by Evanovich and Lee Goldberg The Job, the third book in the Fox and O'Hare series. I'm really liking this series following ...