I got my Summer Book Bingo Coverall last Friday and that made me a very happy reader!

25 books from May 31st until August 9th is a great accomplishment.

Here are the books I have finished since my mid-July update:

Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There were parts of this that were so well written it took my breath away. It’s an incredible book that left me yearning for more while knowing full well there wouldn’t be more because of the author’s tragic real life story.

Bingo Square: Originally published posthumously

 

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A gut-wrenching story about racism in America, mostly told from the viewpoint of children, which makes it all that much harder to process. It’s an important and extremely well-written work.

Bingo Square: Banned in the US

 

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Jacqueline Woodson has written another incredible albeit short novel. This one opens in 2001 at the 16th birthday party of Melody but the timeline then goes back and forth and the viewpoint switches between Melody, her parents, and her grandparents. Themes of race, class, unexpected pregnancy, education, and loss are covered beautifully and honestly. Highly recommended.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Bingo Square: Latest book by an author your love

 

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve read this before but re-read it for my Summer Book Bingo card. I had forgotten many of the details but not the overall terrifying nature of the story. This is Atwood at her finest and I’m really excited about the sequel coming out in September.

Bingo Square: Re-read

 

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a fabulous story, full of 1970s culture, lots of good rock ‘n roll, and enough romance and angst to make it truly interesting. The audio is fabulous but now I sort of want to read it, too. Highly recommended for a great summer read.

Bingo Square: Audiobook with multiple narrators

 

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Try as I might, science fiction just is not my thing. I think the imagination of H.G. Wells is incredible and I can appreciate that this book was ground breaking in it’s time but I had a hard time caring about the characters or setting.

Bingo Square: Originally published in the 19th century

 

Days Without End by Sebastian Barry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Can the slaughter of Native Americans, the civil war, and prison be poetic? In the hands of Sebastian Barry it certainly can. This book is beautifully written, exposing the vulnerability and humanity of truly heartbreaking times in our history. There were moments where I gasped out loud and I absolutely adored the story even though so much of it is brutal and tragic. Highly recommended.
Bingo Square: Historical fiction

Almost all of those books were already in my reading queue and I managed to find a way to fit them each into a square. A few were ones I’ve been meaning to read for ages and book bingo provided the incentive to get that done. A few were ones I’ve heard mentioned or meant to read and, again, book bingo was the incentive to get them read.

I’m tempted to say something along the lines of now I can read whatever I want but that sounds silly because I can always read whatever I want. I’m not a student, I don’t (usually) have books I have to read for work, and my reading choices are all my own. I like Summer Book Bingo because I enjoy a challenge and because, as I noted, having a specific square (like reread a book, which was perfect for me to reread The Handmaid’s Tale in anticipation of the sequel coming out next month) is a great motivator to move something into my reading queue that I might not have gotten to read otherwise.

Even though I won’t say something about reading whatever I want, I will say that I’m very much looking forward to vacation reading! I hope you all are reading fabulous things right now!