Jillian by Halle Butler is about a recent college graduate named Megan who works as a secretary at a gastroenterologist’s office. Megan despises most people, including her coworker, Jillian, a cheery mother who has recently purchased a dog she can’t afford. Megan is an extreme pessimist who is likely suffering with depression, while Jillian is optimistic and willfully oblivious. I loved this book, just like I loved Halle Butler’s The New Me. I enjoy the dark, deadpan humor and the way your feelings about the characters constantly change. Read my full review here.
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman tells the story of Nina, a smart, quick-witted woman in her late twenties living in Los Angeles. Nina lives a quiet, comfortable life as she tries to cope with her anxiety. She spends her days working in a bookstore, playing on a trivia team, attending a book group, and sticking to her planner as closely as possible. This was another book I really enjoyed. I loved the witty banter, and I found myself relating to Nina in some ways and wanting to be more like her in others. Read my full review here.
One of my 2020 reading goals is to read more children’s and middle grade fiction. There are so many children’s classics I’ve yet to read, and this was one of them. I finally read Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Wilder, and boy, was it cozy! The cover is cozy, the artwork is cozy, the story is cozy. Being that I’m a vegetarian, many of the scenes made me laugh uncomfortably and cringe (like when they’re tossing a pig’s bladder back and forth), but obviously they needed to hunt for survival. I’m not judging 😀 Anyway, after reading this, I feel slightly more equipped to survive in the big woods of Wisconsin!
My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite is a dark comedy about a Nigerian woman named Korede whose sister is literally a serial killer. Her beautiful, psychopathic sister, Ayoola, murders her love interests, and she calls Korede to help deal with the mess and hide the evidence. Korede seems torn about it: on the one hand she’s protecting her sister, on the other hand, she’s an accomplice in murder. What I found most interesting about this book was Ayoola’s nonchalant, calm personality. She shows no remorse and religiously posts her day-to-day life on social media. While it isn’t blatantly funny, there’s something both disturbing and amusing about it all. Not only is this book unique, but it’s very fast-paced, with 1 to 2 page chapters.
Three Women by Lisa Taddeo is a new book that explores the sex lives of three women. Lisa Taddeo spent nearly a decade interviewing and following hundreds of women, and then narrowed it down to the three who are the subjects of this book. One woman is left heartbroken and feeling used after a relationship with her high school teacher ends. Another woman is married to a man who likes watching her have sex with other men. And the third woman, who is in a sexless, passionless marriage, has an affair with a former classmate in order to fulfill her desires. The Goodreads description calls this “a groundbreaking portrait of erotic longing in today’s America, exposing the fragility, complexity, and inequality of female desire.” While I don’t think this book is at all representative of desire for all or even most women, I do think it gives a heartbreaking and honest glimpse into the lives of these three women in particular. And I do think a lot of women will be able to relate to much of it.
Pawsitive Reads 