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 September, 2016…

The Light Years (Cazalet Chronicles #1), by Elizabeth Jane Howard – The Cazalet family is gathering at the family estate in Sussex for their annual family summer holidays.  The Brig and the Duchy, family patriarch and matriarch, cast their benevolent gaze over their sons Hugh, Edward and Rupert, daughters-in-law Sibyl, Villy and Zoe, and daughter Rachel, and the legions of grandchildren.  As the family soaks up the sun and plays together, there are marital concerns, cousinly squabbles, unrequited love, sunny picnics on the beach, new babies and childish games.  But it’s 1937 and the coming war casts a long shadow – Hugh and the Brig both worry about the unrest in Europe, while Edward turns a blind eye, young granddaughter Polly frets about the family’s fate if there is a war, and cousins Simon and Christopher wonder what effect the international situation will have on their plan to run away and thereby avoid going back to school.  The Light Years was everything I could have wanted – comforting, engaging, and a joy to read from start to finish.  My only complaint was that there were way too many characters – it took me fully a third of the book to get straight which children belonged to which couple, and then a whole new family was introduced, leaving me wondering if I should start an Excel spreadsheet.  But I have the Cazalets straight now, and I can’t wait to dive into the next volume of the series.

The Witches: Salem 1692, by Stacy Schiff – Schiff is a really well-regarded narrative nonfiction writer (her biography of Cleopatra won the Pulitzer Prize) and The Witches, her latest, got all kinds of raves when it was first released.  I’ve always been particularly fascinated by Salem and the “dark and mysterious” season of the witch trials, and I’d heard such wonderful things about The Witches that I had to pick it up.  It really was wonderful – it really was.  Beautifully, engagingly written, and clearly meticulously researched.  It just was so dense that it was actually hard for me to get through – and I usually have no trouble with dense history books at all – bring ’em on.  But I loved it, and even though it sat partially read on my nightstand for literally months, it was worth the time I took over it.

Fables, Volume 6: Homelands, by Bill Willingham – It had been awhile since I’d visited the denizens of Fabletown, so I had to remind myself of the preceding events before I was able to sink into the story in Volume 6.  Fabletown is still reeling from its battle with an army of wooden soldiers that broke through from the Homelands in service of the Adversary.  Baba Yaga is dead, slain by Frau Totenkinder, but Bigby Wolf is missing and Boy Blue has disappeared back into the Homelands in search of his lost love, Red Riding Hood.  This volume showcases Boy Blue’s swashbuckling journey through the Homelands, interspersed with a storyline in which Prince Charming, Beauty and the Beast ferret out another of the Adversary’s spies (rather more competently than you would expect – the Beast in particular is proving a decent successor to Bigby, amazingly).  But Boy Blue is the hero of the story, and it turns out there is a lot more to him than meets the eye.  The volume ends with the revelation of the Adversary’s identity – meant to be a big shock, but it wasn’t for me, as I guessed it correctly in volume 5.  Still, I think this was my favorite volume of Fables yet – I loved Boy Blue’s adventures and the dynamic between Prince Charming and his new administrative staff.  There wasn’t nearly enough Bigby or Snow, but I’m hoping future volumes will feature them heavily again.  Overall, I’m loving this series and can’t wait to find out what happens.

Alias Grace, by Margaret Atwood – I have had Alias Grace on my TBR for years and finally got to it.  It’s a (rather uncharacteristic for Atwood) historical fiction novel featuring Grace Marks, who was (I think?) a real Canadian historical figure.  Grace, a housemaid, was convicted of being accessory to the killing of her gentleman employer and his lover, the housekeeper.  When the novel opens, Grace has served eight years in prison and done time in a mental institution as well.  A group of her champions is seeking a pardon for her and enlists the help of a young American psychiatrist to probe into Grace’s past and awaken her recollection of the murders, of which she steadfastly claims to have no memory.  As the young doctor and Grace move through Grace’s life story, the sense of foreboding deepens even while the doctor finds himself more and more drawn to Grace as a woman.  So, I absolutely loved every word of Alias Grace – I read it much more slowly than usual, even though I was itching to find out the end, because I wanted to take my time over every perfectly crafted paragraph.  Alias Grace has toppled MaddAddam from the top spot on my personal “best of Atwood” chart, and I’m recommending it to everyone I meet.

Little Victories: Perfect Rules for Imperfect Living, by Jason Gay – My mom gifted me this slim volume last Christmas; I think she’d either read a review in the newspaper or someone had recommended it to her.  I enjoyed it.  Gay switches effortlessly from hilarious (his rules for his fictional Little League team, the Zen Cubs, are a riot – and more people should take his relaxed attitude towards kids’ sports) to touching, as when he writes about the loss of his father and his own battles with cancer and infertility.  It was a sweet book, and I love any book that can make me laugh and cry on the same page.

Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, by Ayisha Malik – Sofia Khan is a hip urbanite book publicist living in South London.  She’s also a devout Muslim, a hijabi, who prays five times daily, fasts for Ramadan, and blogs about life as a modern Muslim.  Yet when Sofia proposes a “Muslim dating book” to her boss, she’s shocked when her boss loves the idea and presents Sofia with a publication deal to write the book herself.  Sofia, you see, doesn’t think she knows much about Muslim dating.  She’s recently broken up with her ex, because he wanted her to marry him and move into his house with “a hole-in-the-wall” – and if you’re wondering why that was an issue, you’ll have to read the book.  Her friends don’t seem to have it together, either.  Hannah wants to become a second wife, Fozia is struggling with the implications of her past divorce on her current relationship, and Suj is hiding her relationship with a black man from her family.  Meanwhile, Sof’s sister Maria is getting married, her parents are in a state of advanced wedding mania, and Sof herself is trying to sort out her feelings for ex-boyfriend Imran, new flame Naim, and the surly tattooed next door neighbor.  There are musings on everything from samosas to hijab fashion to terrorism (the scene in which Sofia’s parents offend a potential new boyfriend by asking his parents if he’s a fundamentalist is comedy gold) and throughout the book I kept thinking, “Sofia Khan is the Muslim Bridget Jones, except with way more substance!”  I loved Sofia Khan is Not Obliged and am delighted that there is a sequel (“this time, it’s matrimonial!”) – or will be, when the kindle edition gets around to the U.S.  Thanks to my friend A.M.B. for recommending Sofia – you were right, as usual, A!

Hamilton: The Revolution, by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter – The “Hamiltome,” as Lin-Manuel and the legions of #Hamilfans call it, has been on my TBR for awhile, and recently I was lucky enough to get a copy as a gift (another present for my mom, who thought I had been working hard and deserved a special treat – thanks, Mom!).  I saved it for a Friday night, then dove in and spent the entire weekend immersed in the gorgeous photographs of the Hamilton cast, crew and set, the fascinating story of how the musical came to be, and of course the perfect lyrics and brilliant annotations (by Lin himself!).  I’m a HUGE Hamilton fan – not a day goes by, lately, where I don’t quote it at some point – and I’m delighted to have the book on my shelf now.  I’ll be dipping back in and out for years, I know.

Ms. Marvel, Volumes 1-5, by G. Willow Wilson – Pictured here is volume 1 only, because this would be the longest reading round-up ever if I showcased all five.  The last week of September was a bit of a doozy.  I had some very stressful stuff going on, and I was quite worried and losing a lot of sleep as a result – so I knew my reading had to provide the perfect escape, and Ms. Marvel fit the bill nicely.  Kamala Khan is a regular teenaged nerd from Jersey City when she sneaks out to a party, stumbles into a mysterious mist, and wakes up with superpowers.  Wahoo!  This is cooler than even her most upvoted Avengers fanfic!  But along with the awakening of Kamala’s powers came the awakening of dark forces that threaten the teens of Jersey City.  It’s a good thing there’s a new Ms. Marvel on the block to protect JC!  Whether she’s defending the Circle Q convenience store from inept robbers, unbrainwashing a herd of teenagers, or shepherding her neighbors through the end of the world, Kamala is on the scene wherever she’s needed!  And she even manages to balance her superhero duties with her schoolwork, an overly religious older brother (who grew on me, I must say) and a best friend who wants to be something more – now that’s superpowers.  I’ve been hearing about Ms. Marvel for ages now, and it didn’t take long before I could absolutely see what all the fuss was about.  Kamala Korps 4 lyfe!  Now when does the sixth trade come out, again?

12 books in September!  (Granted, six of them were comics trades – but those take longer to read than you’d expect.)  Not too shabby for my first full month at a new job, and a month in which I had a lot of personal crap going on, over and above work.  I’m hard pressed to pick a highlight of the month – how do you choose a favorite from amongst the likes of Margaret Atwood, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and G. Willow Wilson?  But it was a great month, so I can’t complain – lots of fun, engaging reading from diverse voices.  And since I’ve been so poky about getting this recap up, and we’re already halfway through October (how??) I can tell you that the next one is going to be another good one.  Stay tuned!

What was the best thing you read in September?