Images from Goodreads

This is a rare instance where every book below was a five star read that I’d recommend. Each one focuses on a different heavy topic in a unique way, but they’re all eloquently done. I’m putting this note here because my synopses and reviews aren’t eloquently done and don’t showcase how amazing these books are. If any of them sounds remotely interesting, please check them out!

[40] The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord
Young Adult, saw on anniebjones05’s Instagram

Synopsis: Lucy Hansson was expecting the summer between junior and senior year of high school lto be like every other one – she’d go to church camp with her family and spend time with her boyfriend. But she ends up being a counselor at the secular camp across the lake from church camp, and her boyfriend asks her for a “pause” in their relationship. And worst of all, her mother’s breast cancer comes back for a second time, making Lucy question her faith, which had previously been a huge foundation in her life.

Review: I’m so glad I randomly saw this book and requested it from Libby. It isn’t something I’d normally pick since I’m not religious and avoid books with religious undertones, but I LOVED this book. Lucy is a kind, sincere, thoughtful young woman. You’re just rooting for her the entire time – wanting her mom to recover, wanting her to make friends at the secular camp, wanting her to be comfortable with who she is. What a sweet and uplifting (but definitely sad) book. A perfect read for right now (especially since it was easy and quick).

Recommend? YES! Five stars!

[41] The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne
Fiction / Coming of Age, recommended on Sarah’s Bookshelves Live episode 57

Synopsis: Cyril Avery is born out of wedlock in 1945 and adopted by an eccentric couple in Dublin who insists on reminding him “he’s not a real Avery.” When his adoptive father’s lawyer visits with his son, Julian, Cyril begins to realize he is attracted to boys, not girls. The story checks in with Cyril every seven years throughout his life, showing his transformation as he learns and accepts who he is, and chronicling Ireland’s political/religious/cultural transformation as well.

Review: So much happens in this book, as it spans from 1945 to 2015, but I don’t want to spoil any of it! I loved how the story tied together so cleverly, and how much I learned about Ireland by reading it. Cyril is flawed, but a completely lovable character, with a quick wit, and many of the conversations had me laughing – either at how funny he was being, or how absurd people were being toward him. It’s not a humorous book though – Cyril goes through hardships and causes some, too. But like the previous book, you’re just rooting for him to find happiness and be comfortable with who he is.

Recommend? YES! Five stars!

[42] A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler
Fiction / Family Life, saw on Goodreads and my friend Kelsey recommended on Instagram

Synopsis: Valerie Alston-Holt has raised her biracial son Xavier in Oak Knoll, a North Carolina neighborhood, since he was a child. He has a bright future as a classical guitarist and is about to head off to study music in college in California. The spring before he leaves, the Whitmans move in next door, but not before completely gutting the lot and removing all the trees and building a mansion that feels out of place. Valerie, a professor of forestry and ecology, is heartbroken about the damage to the ecosystem from their home, and after she meets Brad Whitman, a local small business celebrity, and his wife Julia, she doesn’t get a good impression. A romance secretly blossoms between Xavier, and one of the Whitman daughters, Juniper, and the families become even more at odds.

Review: Wow. This book destroyed me and broke my heart. In the beginning, you’re told (by the collective “we” omnipresent narrator of the neighborhood) that a funeral happens at the end of the summer. Then the book is unputdownable as you learn more about these two families and try to figure out what is going to happen, because in the beginning, it doesn’t feel doomed, but then you slowly start to get an icky sense of something really horrible about to happen. This book made me feel very emotional – yes, heartbroken, but also VERY angry about what happens. And it made me think a lot about race, class, privilege, corruption, and ambition. And many other things.

Recommend? YES! Five stars!