Greetings, bookish friends! Kendra here. Can you believe the summer's half over? Just the other day I saw the associates at Target dragging out the school supplies. Such mixed feelings. Of course, who doesn't love school supplies? But I'm not ready for the summer to over! Holy mother of pearl, I still have WAY too many books on my summer TBR to be ready for fall. Here are a few titles on my list. Feel free to share yours in the comment section below!
St. Martin's Press, 2017
The Gypsy Moth Summer by Julia Fierro
It says it in the name: The Gypsy Moth Summer. I love reading books set in a single summer that changes the life of the protagonist. In the summer of 1992, a woman returns to her small hometown with her husband and child in tow. Small town drama ensues. Secrets come to light. Moths invade the island.
Bring it on.
Abrams, 2017
The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui
Ever since I ghost wrote a memoir for a Vietnamese refugee, I've been interested in other refugee stories. But I've never seen a Vietnamese graphic memoir before finding out about The Best We Could Do. This book chronicles one family's journey around the world as they search for a new place to call home. The author of The Symathizer, Viet Thanh Nguyen, says “a book to break your heart and heal it,” and I totally expect to experience just that.
Viking, 2017
What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons
The word on the bookternet says that Clemmons is an up-and-coming new talent, so I can't wait to read this book for myself. In this short novel, we meet a bi-racial American woman who must come to terms with her heritage, her sense of belonging, and her mother's death. In an interview, Clemmons says that her own mother's death heavily influenced her writing of Thandi, the book's protagonist. Thandi, like Clemmons, is half South African, which adds an additional layer of complexity to the story. I can't wait to see how the author fits all of THAT into such a small novel.
Vintage, 2003
The Little Friend by Donna Tartt
I loved both The Goldfinch and The Secret History, so it makes sense to read The Little Friend. But Tartt's second novel suffers from middle child syndrome: it's often forgotten in the face of its two more famous siblings. The Little Friend is said to be the odd duck, a Southern novel to The Goldfinch's and The Secret History's distinct northeastern flair. I can't wait to get my hands on this chunkster and dive into another adventure from Tartt's brilliant mind.
Orbit, 2017
The Stone Sky by N.K. Jemisin
If you've listened to our most recent episode, you'll know Autumn and I can't get enough of N.K. Jemisin. Every summer needs to have least one book you're so thrilled about that you pre-order your copy to arrive the day the book's released. For me this year, The Stone Sky wins the prize. Jemisin's imagination and storytelling invite you into this unique world, capturing your mind and enthralling you until the very last page. And I'm more than happy to succumb to its charm. It's just that good.
St. Martin's, 2016
The Summer that Melted Everything by Tiffany McDaniel
Last year, Liberty Hardy gushed about The Summer That Melted Everything all over the bookternet. All. Summer. Long. But the summer of 2016 slipped before I got to read it. I told myself I'd wait until the next summer to read it, because when else could I read a book with a title like that? But now the summer is half over, and I still haven't read The Summer That Melted Everything! Hopefully I'll have a chance to read this delightful novel in the next couple weeks. Cross your fingers!
