Friday, May 31, 2019

May Books in Review


May was a very good reading month for me.  I read (16) books and posted short reviews for them as well.  (65 books YTD.

I had one DNF in May - Come With Me; Helen Schulman (just wasn't working for me)

 In May my armchair travels kept me mostly here in the USA with the exception of a brief stint in Italy, Ireland and Canada. The US states visited were: (3) trips to Massachusetts, (3) trips to New York, Illinois, California, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Washington.

I really enjoyed my May picks overall. I had (2) 5-star reads in May and several in the 4 to 4.5 star range as well.














What I Read
  1. Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting; Anna Quindlen - 4.5/5 (eGalley-May)
  2. The River; Peter Heller - 4.5/5 (library/May)
  3. Here's to Us; Elin Hilderbrand - 3/5 (audio/library-May)
  4. Henry, Himself; Stewart O'Nan - 4.5/5 (print/library-May)
  5. Miracle Creek; Angie Kim - 4.5/5 (audio download/library-May)
  6. The Wartime Sisters; Lynda Cohen Loigman - 5/5 (ARC/Audio Combo-May)
  7. A Stone for Danny Fisher; Harold Robbins - 5/5 (audible-May)
  8. Normal People; Sally Rooney - 4/5 - (eGalley-May)
  9. Daisy Jones and the Six; Taylor Jenkins Reid - 4/5 (audio-May)
  10. The Girl He Used to Know; Tracey Garvis Graves - 4.5/5 (print/library-May)
  11. Women in Sunlight; Frances Mayes - 3.5/5 (ebook-book group read-May)
  12. Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay & a Mother's Will to Survive; Stephanie Land - 1/5 (audio/library-May)
  13. Herstory: 50 Women & Girls Who Shook Up the World; Katherine Halligan - 4.5/5 (audio & print-library - May)
  14. Never Love a Stranger; Harold Robbins - 4/5 (audible - May)
  15. The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls; Anissa Gray - 3.5/5( print & audio-May)
  16. Before She Knew Him; Peter Swanson - 4.5/5 - (audio & print/-May)
Breakdown

Fiction - 13  NF - 3 - DNF - 1

Audios -  10
eBooks  - 1
print     - 5
ARCS/Review Books - 4
audio/eBook Combos - 4
Borrowed from Library - 8
Off my Shelves - 8
June Plans
(so far)


  • The Last Resort; Marissa Stapley - The Harmony Resort promises hope for struggling marriages. Run by celebrity power couple Drs. Miles and Grace Markell, the “last resort” offers a chance for partners to repair their relationships in a luxurious setting on the gorgeous Mayan Riviera.
  • The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted; Robert Hillman - A tender and wise novel about love, family, and forgiveness in 1960s Australia, in which a lonely farmer finds his world turned upside down by a vibrant woman determined to open the first bookstore his town has ever seen--and to leave her haunting memories of the Holocaust far behind.
  • The Secretary; Renee Knight - A novel of psychological suspense about the intricate power struggle between a prominent female executive and her faithful personal assistant—and its explosive consequences.
  • The Ditch; Herman Koch - The bracing and inventive new novel of suspicions and secrecy from Herman Koch, the New York Times bestselling author of The Dinner
  • The Mother-in-Law; Sally Hepworth - A twisty, compelling new novel about one woman's complicated relationship with her mother-in-law that ends in death.
  • What Alice Forgot; Lianne Moriarty - “Funny and knowing...[about] what we choose to remember, and fight to forget.”—O Magazine
    • Hope everyone had a great month!
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    28 comments:

    1. Brian's Home BlogMay 31, 2019 at 8:05 PM

      Yes, you sure had a bunch of goodies in May!

      ReplyDelete
    2. Deb Nance at ReaderbuzzMay 31, 2019 at 9:09 PM

      I agree with you completely. I loved Normal People and Nanaville, and I loathed Maid.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:35 AM

        I never disliked a book as much as I did Maid, Debbie. I almost made it a DNF.

        Delete
    3. Terra May 31, 2019 at 11:15 PM

      You had a productive May for reading, I haven't read any of these. One book I read in May was Antonement by Ian McEwan, for a book discussion group, I enjoyed it.

      ReplyDelete
    4. Judy KruegerJune 1, 2019 at 11:34 AM

      Great month! I read 13, including Daisy Jones.

      ReplyDelete
    5. Katherine PJune 1, 2019 at 12:22 PM

      What a great month of reading! That's great that you DNF'd a book though it's too bad it wasn't working for you. I have a tendency to try and force myself to suffer through a book I'm not loving and end up in a slump.

      ReplyDelete
    6. fredamansJune 1, 2019 at 2:54 PM

      Really great job, I want to read Daisy and the Six. Happy June!

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:33 AM

        I hope you'll enjoy Daisy Jones - try the audio if you enjoy audios.

        Delete
    7. Helen's Book BlogJune 1, 2019 at 5:05 PM

      It feels so good to have a month of reading books that you enjoy. Too bad there was one DNF as those are always so disappointing.

      ReplyDelete
    8. VickiJune 1, 2019 at 5:12 PM

      That's a lot of books for one month, I'll have to check the new to me ones out. I've been in a reading/reviewing slump all year and behind on both. Even my audio's have slowed down because my daily commute went from an hour to 10 min. when I moved.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:32 AM

        I've really been on a reading binge and being retired makes for plenty of free time.

        Delete
    9. SusanJune 1, 2019 at 7:54 PM

      You did have a great May! I hope you like the Mother In Law I already read it and it was my favorite book of the month for June. I just finished My Ex Best Friends Wedding today. I loved it and may have a book hang over only time will tell. I have all my usual favorite authors books in for "summer reads" right now Mary Kay Andrews and Dorthea Frank Benton both of which I am really looking forward to reading.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:31 AM

        I'm glad you like Mother-in-Law; I'm enjoying the audio right now.

        Delete
    10. SukoJune 1, 2019 at 8:25 PM

      Wow! You had a terrific reading month, Diane! I haven't read any of the books on your May or June list. I may need to come back and take another look at your lists from time to time. Have a wonderful weekend.

      ReplyDelete
    11. JoAnnJune 2, 2019 at 10:14 AM

      A great month! I listened to Normal People and thought it was great.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:29 AM

        I wasn't sure how the dialect would be on audio so I stuck to eGalley. Glad you enjoyed it.

        Delete
    12. HarveeJune 2, 2019 at 11:10 AM

      I'm amazed at the volume of books you read last month! What Alice Forgot is one of my favorite reads.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaJune 2, 2019 at 11:28 AM

        I am retired these days so plenty of book time. So happy to hear you loved What Alice Forgot. Looking forward to trying it.

        Delete
    13. TiJune 4, 2019 at 3:09 PM

      Oh wow, that is a lot of reading. Impressed. Good ones, too. I gotta go to camp next week but when I come back I am going to attempt to organize my summer reading. Summer camp. You think books, right? Nope.No time for books at all. I was surprised by this the last time I went. I'll still bring one or my Kindle just in case but there won't be any time for it.

      ReplyDelete
    14. thecuecardJune 7, 2019 at 5:53 PM

      I liked the audiobooks of Daisy Jones and The River and now I'm almost done with The Girl He Used to Know ... which seems an easy listen. We're on the same wavelength lately !

      ReplyDelete
    15. Les in OregonJune 9, 2019 at 7:22 PM

      You have a few on your list that I'm eager to read (Henry, Himself and The River). I really enjoyed What Alice Forgot.

      ReplyDelete
    16. SusanJune 12, 2019 at 9:54 AM

      Sounds like you had a great reading month! I'm excited for you to read WHAT ALICE FORGOT. It's a great book and one of my favorites from Moriarty. I hope you love it!

      ReplyDelete

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