BOOK REVIEW ROUND UP – VOLUME 3 ISSUE 5

Call Us What We Carry
Author: Amanda Gorman
Publication Date: September 2021
Genre: poetry
Method: audiobook via TPL

In 2022, I’m on a mission to read more poetry in the hopes to expand my worldview and appreciation for literature. This journey didn’t start out on a high note in 2021, but we are now on the upward trajectory after having listening to Call Us What We Carry by American poet and activist, Amanda Gorman. Because I loved this collection – it’s fresh, raw, relatable, beautiful, thoughtful, thought provoking, and so much more.

I should have known this collection of poems would have social commentary and historical context given Gorman’s rise to critical acclaim after her reading of The Hill We Climb during the Inauguration of President Biden in January of 2021 (marking her as the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history). Maybe social poetry, if that’s a subgenre, I don’t know, is where I should keep exploring. Because, no hate to Mary Oliver, but reading about forests and trees is just too abstract, I can’t connect at all, and I love forests and trees. But reading lines and stanzas about racism, hatred, a global pandemic, then hope, freedom, and prosperity, I can jive with.

My favorites, in order in which they appear in the collection, include: ESSEX I, ANOTHER NAUTICAL, CORDAGE, or ATONEMENT, SURVEY, _____ [GATED], DISPLACEMENT, AND AUGURY or THE BIRDS
Buzzword Readathon: February selection

Olympus, Texas
Author: Stacey Swann
Publication Date: May 2021
Genre: fiction
Method: audiobook via TPL

Let the record be known, I love a family drama. I want a messy, multigenerational saga about a dysfunctional family. Give me all of the broken marriages, love affairs, dark secrets, and small town scandals. In this story, one by one we are introduced to each member of the Briscoe family, highlighting their origin story as we come to understand how each member of this woven family is interconnected. Every character is flawed, everyone has made mistakes, but that’s what makes it so enjoyable to read and uncover the vast history of this family. I had known about the mythological tie ins but it wasn’t until after I finished the audiobook and started readings reviews that I started to truly understand the genius storytelling of this debut novel. Nearly perfect, but it did start to drag in the last quarter. So, 4.5 stars rounded up to 5!
Buzzword Readathon: March selection

Cherish Farrah
Author: Bethany C. Morrow
Publication Date: February 2022
Genre: horror, thriller
Subgenre: social horror
Method: hardcover borrowed from TPL

The amount of times I thought to myself, and outwardly verbalized, “what am I reading” is maybe cause for concern. As I sit here and reflect on this story, I’m just at a loss. What did I just read? Unsettling? Yes. Eerie? Yes. Thrilling? Not really??? Horrifying? I mean, kinda. I think I’m left with more questions than answers, which I don’t mind.

It was fine. The characters were interesting, the premise was compelling, the social horror and social commentary was intriguing. A story I’ll think back on from time to time, sure, but won’t widely recommend to friends. If social horror is your jam, sure go for it, but otherwise just pass.

The Paris Apartment
Author: Lucy Foley
Publication Date: February 2022
Genre: mystery, thriller
Subgenre: locked room mystery
Method: hardcover

The Paris Apartment was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022 and it didn’t let me down! Yes, 5 stars! Generally I’m seeing mixed reviews across Goodreads and bookstagram and some of the criticism is warranted, but for me, this is my perfect blend of a locked room mystery meets familial drama.

Here’s my abbreviated list of my favorite components of this mystery-thriller: 1) short chapters that make for a quick reading experience, 2) atmospheric, historic Parisian apartment setting, 3) multiple POVs, 4) multiple characters (10 or more) 5) cluster of plot twists, and 6) ambiguous/cliff hanger chapter endings.

And because one list isn’t enough, here’s another list of everything else I loved about this story: 1) the juicy family drama, 2) tangled/secret relationships, 3) unlikable characters, 4) a language barrier/foreign language, and 5) the slow burn, plot pace.

I will say, I didn’t find this story to be that thrilling per say, and was disappointed in Irina’s tie in, but that’s more a personal preference than a commentary on the quality of the book. In the end, I loved it and was highly entertained, and that’s what matter to me! Maybe it’s time I finally pick up Foley’s first mystery, The Hunting Party.
Buzzword Readathon: March selection

The Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women – And Women to Medicine
Author: Janice P. Nimura
Publication Date: January 2021
Genre: nonfiction, history, biography
Method: audiobook via TPL

Picked up the audiobook to read in March in celebration of Women’s History Month, brilliant, I know. This was definitely a passive listen for me. Glad to have learned about Elizabeth Blackwell and Emily Blackwell, but don’t ask me to give you a synopsis of this book or of their lives.