The fact that I spent the last week and a half of April on my sofa recovering from my appendix surgery meant that I finished way more books than I normally do in a month.

I think just about everything I read this month I gave at least three stars on Goodreads and a two of them were five-star books!



Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance
This book casts a light on the challenges of growing up in modern-day Appalachia. It's the first person account of a young boy, who despite all the challenges of his family environment, somehow makes it to college and eventually graduates from Yale Law School launching himself out of poverty. He tells his own story, but mixes in some larger statistics that paint a bleak picture for children and communities struggling to get by in Appalachia. Highly recommend.

The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams
This book is set in two different time periods and tells the story of the haves and the have notes on a small island where the wealthy families come to stay for the summer. Miranda, the central character in both time periods, has returned to the island for the first time in 18 years. Her reason for returning is a mystery and not all the residents of the island are happy to have her back. Even though some of the plot points were a bit predictable, this was an overall enjoyable read.

Beartown by Fredrik Backman
This book started off slow, and I was beginning to wonder why everyone raved about it. But then it just hit a turning point and got so good. Backman's writing is beautiful, and he sucks you in to the lives of the characters in the hockey-loving Beartown. It basically reminded me of what would happen if you took Friday Night Lights, swapped football for hockey and stuck it in the middle of nowhere in the woods instead of the middle of nowhere in Texas. You've got the overbearing hockey parents, the sports politics and the lives of a bunch of teenagers when they're taught hockey comes before everything else.

Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
I actually liked this book more than I liked the original Beartown book. It follows many of the same characters as they deal with the fall out of what happened at the end of the first book. The writing was again beautiful and gripping. I couldn't put this book down.

Refugee by Alan Gratz
Boy this book will tear at your heartstrings. It follows three different children fleeing their home countries at different points in history. The first is fleeing Nazi Germany, the second is fleeing Castro's regime in Cuba in the 90s and the third is fleeing Syria in 2015. While the book is fiction, it's based on true stories of refugees desperate to escape to freedom and a better life for their families.

More Than Words by Jill Santopolo
I was so glad I picked up this book after some of the heavier stuff I read in March. While this book certainly has some heartbreaking moments, it was a fast read that sucked you in. I tore through this book in a couple of hours, and if you're looking for a good read, I highly recommend this!

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
I've enjoyed the last several books I've read by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and this one didn't disappoint either. I really loved the way it was written as an oral history. It made it fun to read.

Have you read anything good lately that you'd recommend?