September 2021 Book Reviews and Recommendations

We are in back-to-school mode in our house and our schedule seems to be jammed packed. In reality, it’s just a normal month but after social distancing for so long a full calendar seems a bit overwhelming. I haven’t been able to read as much as I would like but below are four new book reviews. I hope you find something that catches your interest.

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The Midnight Library is not my typical read but I thought it was interesting. I enjoyed the variety it added to my reading this month. The ending was very satisfying, I would definitely recommend it.

In this story, a woman had a lot of potential to make something of herself when she was younger. But instead of becoming an Olympic swimmer, a rock star, or a scientist she now works at a local music store and lives in a dingy apartment.

Once her cat dies, the woman feels she has nothing to live for and ends up in a place between life and death. For her, this place is a library full of books. Each book contains a different possibility for how her life could have ended up depending on a choice she made earlier in life. She now has the opportunity to jump into those lives and see if there is one she would like to live in. Along the way, the main character learns many lessons.

Things We Lost to the Water started out a little slow for me but it definitely got better over time.  I thought the book was written from an interesting perspective (one I don’t often read). The book is not a page-turner but it held my interest.

A young mom is able to escape Vietnam and settle as a refugee in New Orleans. What she doesn’t understand is why her husband didn’t get on the boat at the last second. He was a professor in Vietnam and tortured by the Communists, it was his escape plan.

Now she has a baby and a young child in a foreign land with a missing husband. She gets an apartment and a job. When her oldest son goes to school it’s a challenge for him and he makes friends with the wrong crowd.

Once the second son grows up he discovers a secret that tears the family apart. He’s extremely smart and goes to college with the help of a professor he knows.

Over time you follow the small family through relationships, school, jobs, and moves. Questions are answered and everything comes full circle in the end.

In my opinion, this book, take it or leave it.

In a Book Club Far Away is about three women who used to be good friends but something occurred that tore them apart.  Now the one friend who is still in touch with the other two needs surgery. With her husband overseas, she needs the help of both her friends during her recovery.

The story takes the reader back in time to when the three women met on a military base and formed a book club. You learn about their husbands, children, and careers.

I thought the story fell flat. The argument between the women was pathetic plus the ending was super unbelievable. Skip this one unless you have a lot of time on your hands.

Yes, I liked The Unraveling of Cassidy Holmes but if you haven’t read Daisy Jones & The Six read that one first (or instead of)!  This one is a little on the depressing side.  A lot of “woe is me” throughout the entire book.

Currently, former members of a popular girl group are about to meet in person again. The story goes back ten years to when the group was formed. The reader learns about the relationships between the different members of the group but Cassidy is the focus of the book. She gets everything she wants in life but the price of fame might be too much to handle. 

Check out my book reviews from August for more recommendations!