Americanah

★★★★☆/5

Genre: Contemporary Fiction⁣
Read if you like: An American Marriage, Becoming⁣
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This post is a little delayed, but I finished Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche while wrapping up another Forth of July weekend, and it was book that felt pretty fitting around the holiday this year.
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The Glass Hotel

★★★★✹/5

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Read if you love: Cloud Atlas, Station 11
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“Does a person have to be admirable or awful?”⁣
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The Glass Hotel by Emily St John-Mandel is one of the best books I’ve read this year. The story was crafted beautifully, and I finished feeling like I had read something poignant and substantial.⁣
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Dear Edward

★★★★/5
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Read if you like: Bel Canto (or anything by Ann Patchett)
Don't read if you get anxiety about traveling/flying - it'll only make it worse!

It's been a while since my last review and I'm happy to be back! I read Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano with my old Pittsburgh book club (we're discussing it via video) - I've really missed these ladies so I'm super excited that we're making it happen virtually!

Nine Perfect Strangers

★★★☆/5

Happy Monday! Hope everyone is doing well and had a nice Easter weekend. I don't know about you guys, but at this point in quarantine my reading needed a little bit of a pick-me-up. I found Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty at a library sale ages ago ($3 - deal of the century!) and decided now was as good a time as ever to give it a go - usually books I own are the last ones to get read because I always prioritize the library books I have out. But with everything going on and that no longer being an issue, I suddenly had plenty of time to read it. Plus, my mom and I are hoping to go to a health resort in June (fingers crossed it still happens) and this felt like a fun way to keep that vibe while stuck at home. While it was absolutely nothing like the place we're going to, it was still exactly what I needed!

Such a Fun Age

★★★★/5

I know I'm a little late to the party with Such A Fun Age by Kiley Read, but I'm so happy to have finally gotten to it! I loved the book and totally understand the hype. SAFA addresses critical issues surrounding racism, classism and female dynamics in the home/workplace - but the characters are so relatable and the writing is so upbeat that the book is still refreshingly fun. Definitely a book I really enjoyed while also gaining insight on cultural complexities that I didn't know nearly enough about.

Ask Again, Yes

★★★★/5

Wow - I have so much to say about Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane. This is our second Ya-Ya Book Club pick, and I think it's going to generate some great conversation. For me, AAY is definitely the type of book that proves I can appreciate a book and rate it highly without actually "liking" it very much. It's extremely thought provoking with fascinating characters and complex subject matter - let's dive in! 

The Whisper Network

Wow. I don't even know where to start with The Whisper Network. Chandler Baker's novel struck me in a way I haven't had a book do in a long time. It's entertaining, gripping, but most importantly relatable. She takes the extremely important and relevant subject of sexual harassment of women in corporate America and sends home a message in a manageable way. Without going into too much detail about my own personal life, I loved this book because it felt like there were parts where she was telling pieces of my own story. It always shakes me when I come across a book that does that.