November was an exceptional reading month for me! Not only did I read EIGHT books, they were all really great books, with most of them getting a 4/5 star rating from me.
Two of these are audiobooks that I listed to on Libro.fm. One of them was super long and it took a couple months to get through. The other was pretty short and I listened to it in just a few days.
Here is a brief summary of the books I read in November:
Joan is Okay by Weike Wang
Joan is an ICU doctor at a busy New York City hospital coming to grips with who she is and finding her way after the death of her father. Her Chinese parents came to America to secure the American dream for their children, Joan and her brother Fang, but left after Joan started college. Joan is intensely devoted to her work, happily solitary and successful. After her father’s sudden death, Joan’s mother comes to America to reconnect with her children. It is soon after this that a series of events sends Joan spiraling out of her personal comfort zone at the exact time that her hospital, city and the world is forced to reckon with a health crisis more devastating than anyone could have imagined.
Joan was a strong character that I rooted for all the way through. She possessed an admirable inner-strength and she will stay with me for a very long time.
This was a heartwarming book that I absolutely adored! It was introspective in a way that addressed so many issues without being controversial or shocking.
You can see my full review of Joan is Okay here.
We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange
We are the Brennans is a family drama of an Irish family that owns a pub in New York and truly loves one another.
Twenty-nine year old Sunday Brennan wakes up in a LA hospital bruised and battered after a drunk driving accident that she caused. She swallows her pride and goes home to her family in New York to heal and reconnect after deserting them all five years before.
Sunday is determined to rebuild her life even if it means tiptoeing around resentful brothers and an ex-fiancé. In the end she realizes that her family needs her just as much as she needs them. Secrets are revealed and the family is forced to confront painful mistakes that they’ve all made and find a way to move forward.
I loved that this was a such a strong family–one in which the brothers and sisters wanted the best for one another. The characters were flawed, but relatable. I enjoyed getting to know (most) of them!
Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson
This was a Book of the Month add-on for me from several months ago. I kept putting off reading it because of some negative reviews. Here’s my advice to you…don’t be like me and let reviews tamper your desire to read a book because I loved it!
Sisters in Arms is a debut historical fiction book that reveals the untold, true story of the Six-Triple-Eight, the only all-black battalion of the Women’s Army Corps. These women made the dangerous voyage to Europe during World War II to ensure American servicemen received word from their loved ones.
Two strong women are at the center of this novel–Grace Steele and Eliza Jones. They may be from different backgrounds, but starting out in the Women’s Army Corps, they are on the same level. They were among the first black women allowed to serve in the US Army and faced many difficulties because of this.
I was fascinated to read this story that I was completely unfamiliar with! I love that this is a completely unique take in a World War II historical fiction novel. I loved these characters–they were flawed and very human. Their struggles were real and they overcame so much to serve for their own reasons.
The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois by Honoree Fanonne Jeffers
Wow…this book was epic! I listened to it on audio through Libro.fm and it was over 29 hours long!! In print this book clocks in at a whopping 816 pages.
The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois is a sweeping novel that chronicles the journey of one American family from the centuries of colonial slave trade, through the Civil War, up to our own tumultuous era.
Since childhood, Ailey Garfield has understood DuBois’ words about double-consciousness all too well. She carries this problem on her shoulders throughout her childhood and young adult life.
Ailey grows up in the north in the city, but spends summers in the small Georgia town of Chicasetta, where her mother’s has lived since their ancestors arrived from Africa on a slave ship. Ailey fights an inner battle for belonging that is made even more difficult by hidden past trauma, and the whispers of women that urge Ailey to succeed in their stead.
Ailey embarks on a journey through her family’s past, uncovering shocking tales of generations of ancestors in the deep South. In this process, she learns to embrace her full heritage, a legacy of oppression and resistance, bondage and independence, cruelty and resilience that is the story of America itself.
There are some triggering instances and themes in this book, but they all help to tell the story of Ailey’s struggles and how she overcomes them. This story is raw and gripping and I am so glad I read it. This is a book that I would like to revisit in print.
Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy
Once There Were Wolves is the unforgettable story of a woman desperate to save the creatures she loves–both human and animal.
Inti Flynn arrives in Scotland with her twin sister Aggie to lead a team of biologists tasked with reintroducing fourteen gray wolves into the remote highlands. In doing so she hopes to heal both the dying landscape and her sister who was unmade by the terrible secrets and events that drove them out of Alaska.
Inti is met by resistance from the town people who are concerned about the safety of their own selves, their family and their livestock as the wolves are being reintroduced.
This novel was beautifully written with a setting that was captivating and atmospheric.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Somehow I missed reading Station Eleven when it came out, so while I was waiting on new books to fill my TBR shelf, I read this on kindle. I’m so glad I decided to go back and read this extremely popular novel!
Station Eleven is a dystopian novel that explores the aftermath of the Georgian Flu that wipes out civilization.
In the opening scene of the book, Arthur Leander, a famous actor, has a heart attack on stage during a production of King Lear. His death is witnessed by child actor, Kirsten Raymonde. This was the same night that a devastating flu pandemic arrived in the city. Within weeks, civilization comes to an end.
Twenty years later, Kirsten is in a traveling symphony with a small group of actors and musicians that moves between the settlements of the altered world. This traveling symphony has dedicated themselves to keeping the remnants of art and humanity alive. They encounter a prophet that threatens their existence.
This story moves back and forth in time, depicting life before and after the pandemic. There is a strange twist of fate that connects them all that is revealed and adds a fun element to the book.
It was so interesting to read this now, during COVID times, so I’m really glad I waited to read this! It was an immensely enjoyable read.
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
This was my Book of the Month selection pick for October and it just arrived last week. I was so anxious to read this newest novel by Amor Towles and it did not disappoint. In fact, this may just be my favorite book of the year!
The Lincoln Highway spans just ten days and is told from multiple points of view. The characters in this book are an unforgettable delight!
In June 1954 eighteen year old Emmett Watson arrives home to Nebraska after serving time on a work farm in Kansas for involuntary manslaughter. His mother has long been gone, abandoning the family when he was much younger, his father has recently passed away, and the family farm is being foreclosed by the bank, so Emmett’s intention is to get his younger brother and head west where they can start anew. This plan is upended when Emmett discovers two friends who has snuck out of the work camp and show up at the farm with their own plans.
This story reminded me of a reading This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger, with the characters on an odyssey-like journey.
I loved reading the musings of each characters and marked so many passages to come back to give more thought to!
The writing and the story was compelling and made me want to pick it up to read every chance I got. I could have stayed with these characters much longer and that’s something to say for a book that’s over 500 pages! I absolutely love this author’s storytelling and writing style.
Mrs. March by Virginia Feito
Mrs. March was my second audiobook this month. I really wish I could remember where I saw it recommended and what prompted me to add it to my to-read list.
Mrs. March is an Upper East Side housewife whose life is shattered by her husband’s latest novel.
After a shopkeeper at her favorite patisserie suggests that the protagonist in her husband’s hit of a novel is based on Mrs. March herself, she is horrified and embarrassed.
Suddenly, Mrs. March is thrown into a harrowing journey that builds to near psychosis and ending in an unexpected death.
This novel was deeply disturbing and at times dark, yet compelling. I was horrified at times, but just could not stop listening.
Until next month–Happy Reading!