Reading is my oldest and favorite hobby.  I literally can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t love to curl up with a good book.  Here are my reads for July, 2015…

The Elephant Whisperer, by Lawrence Anthony – My mom recommended this memoir by the owner of an African game reserve who saved a “rogue” herd of elephants and created an incredible bond with the creatures in the process.  It was wonderful.  I laughed.  I cried.  I priced African safari vacations.  I’ve always liked elephants (although I never considered them my very favorite animals, #whales4lyfe) but after reading Anthony’s memoir I have a new appreciation for their intelligence and magnificence.

Orchard House: How a Neglected Garden Taught One Family to Grow, by Tara Austen Weaver – Hmmmmm.  I had mixed feelings about this one.  There were certain things I loved – the descriptions of life in Seattle, and the luscious pages Weaver devotes to discussing the garden she is growing with her mother.  But I found myself frustrated when the author became petulant.  I could give many examples, but the hissy fit she threw when her sister-in-law told her that her nieces could not come eat strawberries at the last minute because they had swim lessons was particularly silly.  And her relationship with her mother was strange.  For instance, when her mother broke her back and a family friend/doctor told Weaver that Mom would need “a lot of nurturing” Weaver’s first thought was “But who will nurture me?”  Ummmmm, nobody?  You’re a grown woman, for goodness sake!  Get a grip!  Sigh.  Still recommended because of the garden descriptions, which were truly beautiful.

The Book of Speculation, by Erika Swyler – It’s probably a result of too much hype, but this magical realism story of a family of “drowning circus mermaids” didn’t wow me.  I predicted the twist a mile away and the story never really grabbed me.  A disappointment, because it’s been getting raves on other book blogs.  Maybe I just expected too much.

American Ghost: A Family’s Haunted Past in the Desert Southwest, by Hannah Nordhaus – Meh.  Another underwhelming one.  I was intrigued by the beginning, which describes a “haunting” at a Santa Fe hotel – the ghost being Nordhaus’s ancestor Julia.  But the book ended up being far more an exploration of Nordhaus’s German roots and her family’s settlement in New Mexico, and less about spooky stuff, which was what I wanted.  It was short, so I pushed through, but goodness.  I’m not even that interested in my own ancestors, let alone a stranger’s.

Summer Sisters, by Judy Blume – Read this one for Kerry’s BlumeAlong, and enjoyed it very much.  It was a re-read and I loved diving back into the story of the complicated friendship between Caitlin and Vix.  Full review here.

The Millionaire and the Bard: Henry Folger’s Obsessive Hunt for Shakespeare’s First Folio, by Andrea Mays – Loved this one!  Mays takes what could be a dry subject – Henry Folger’s rare book-collecting hobby and the building of the Folger Shakespeare Library – and turns it into a thrilling chase.  There were times I was quite literally on the edge of my seat, wondering if Folger would score a particularly coveted First Folio, and how much it would cost him.  He wasn’t the richest or most powerful rare book collector working at the time, but he was the most single-mindedly devoted to Shakespeare, and that set him apart.  A great read.

Doomsday Book (Oxford Time Travel #1), by Connie Willis – The first of my vacation books!  Oxford, in the mid-2000s, is home to a collection of time-traveling historians (!), including Kivrin Engle, who focuses on the Middle Ages.  When Kivrin determines to travel back to 1320, her mentor, Mr. Dunworthy, is extremely worried.  His worries prove well-founded when a crisis in present-day threatens to strand Kivrin in the past.  I predicted a couple of the twists, but still loved the ride. Time travel books are one of my weaknesses, and I had so much fun with this one.

Brown Girl Dreaming, by Jacqueline Woodson – I probably should have taken my time, so as to really enjoy it, but I couldn’t put down this free verse memoir of Woodson’s childhood in Civil Rights era South Carolina and Brooklyn.  The poems were beautiful and moving, and I immediately decided to buy a copy, because I can see myself reading it over and over.

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo – Even after finishing this one, I still can’t decide if it’s brilliant or bonkers, inspired or insane.  I think it might be a little of both.  Kondo’s method for “tidying up” (read: decluttering) makes a certain degree of sense (ask yourself if you really love something; if the answer’s no, get rid of it), but her conviction that “stuff” has “feelings” came off as completely loony tunes.  I will be applying some of her decluttering tips.  I will not be congratulating my socks on a job well done at the end of the day.

Nine books!  Not too shabby.  I’d hoped for more, since we were on vacation (with extra baby-holding arms available) for a chunk of the month, but I’m pretty pleased with what I did get read.  Not every book was a winner, but I’m making steady progress toward finishing up my absurd library stack, and that’s a good thing.  I have exciting reading plans for August – a few more library books I’m pumped about, and some Jane Austen for Roof Beam Reader’s Austen in August event.  Can’t wait to dig in!