What I Read in August
August has been a really hard month for me. I lost my beloved dog Charlie on the 6th and it has been the most heartbreaking experience to not only grieve him, but be present for his sister Ruby as she grieves him and learns to live without him for the first time. I can’t say this was a productive or social month, but getting out of my own head and into others’ through reading has always helped me through hard times, so I still kept up my daily reading habit. Below you’ll still find a few thrillers, but I also read a few grief-related books as well as my first ever sci-fi novel. While I have yet to read anything in this genre before, I had to make an exception as this was written by my little cousin, Lauren DiTullio. I won’t spoil the whole review in this intro, but I will say that it really leaned into what’s already been on my mind this month and if you only read one thing from my August list, that’s the one I most recommend. Keep reading for my full monthly selection, and let me know what you’re reading, too.
what i read in august
all the little raindrops by mia sheridan
4/5 stars
This was dark, graphic, and intense from basically the first page, so check the TWs first. It was slightly reminiscent of the SAW movies at times; definitely dark and horrifying.
It had more of a romance angle than I expected, but you kind of needed it to balance out how disturbing certain parts were.
The time jumps were purposeful and really moved the story along; they didn’t feel choppy or awkward.
Overall, this book is not for everyone but I found it to be a very engrossing read that really makes you think about justice and the complexities of human nature.
Read it here (free through Kindle Unlimited).
when a soul walks by lauren ditullio
5/5 stars
This is my little cousin’s debut novel, and also my first sci-fi book. I went into it with no idea of what to expect and while I might seem biased, my cousin has always been an incredible writer so I had very high hopes.
There’s quite a bit going on in this book; science was not one of my strong subjects going up, but that didn’t impact my understanding of the book (or ability to enjoy it).
There were a few twists I didn’t see coming, one of which was very unsettling and gave me thriller vibes.
While I think sci-fi can lean much more “head” than “heart,” this book was thoughtfully written and a lot of the themes regarding life and death were very emotional. Exploring the idea of how your life impacts others made this feel like an existential crisis in a book, but there was a hopeful tone to it.
Favorite quotes: “There’s a difference between deciding when you want to feel your feelings and completely avoiding your past traumas.” (p. 47)
“My whole life I associated death with the end. You go through the motions of living, until you cease to exist. The idea of dying but not being dead was new to me.” (p. 64)
“People cope differently, and when they’re pushing you away, they really want you to pull them closer.” (p. 73)
“You must learn to find peace amongst the chaos of existing and not worry about the ‘after.’” (p. 221)
Read it here.
in my dreams i hold a knife by ashley winstead
4/5 stars
This was a really fun, fast-paced read.
The author did a great job with characterization. Sometimes books that center around a friend group can get confusing, but there were enough characters to keep you suspenseful and the author gave each one a unique backstory and personality to help them stand out. And while the main character is flawed and morally grey, she wasn’t so unlikeable that it was hard to keep reading. I really didn’t know what to make of her until the end, which kept me fully engaged in the story.
The more thrillers you read, the easier it is to predict the ending, but there were enough mini-mysteries to hold your curiosity throughout. I had a feeling about who the main suspect was, but the author made connecting the dots really fun with this one.
If you liked “Luckiest Girl Alive,” i think you’ll enjoy this, too.
Read it here (free through Kindle Unlimited).
relaxed: walking with the one who is not worried about a thing by megan fate marshman
5/5 stars
This book was released this month, and it came at a very heartfelt time for me, as I’m grieving the loss of my dog, Charlie. It touches on grief as the author lost her husband unexpectedly a few years ago, but even if you’re not grieving, there’s so much to takeaway from this book.
Written by one of my favorite speakers, this is the kind of book that will grow with you and reveal new meaning and insight each time you read it. Megan’s ability to mix analogies and personal anecdotes to drive the main lessons home in her speaking translates into her writing, as well. This is simple, approachable, and easy for everyone to understand.
I appreciated the way in which this book addressed the sanctification gap, or how we can agree with a message we hear, but get lost in trying to incorporate it into daily living. Topics include anxiety, money, parenting, and trials, and really provides a roadmap for how we practice trust and faith in God through prayer and everyday actions.
I highly, highly recommend this book, especially to anyone who feels lost, overwhelmed, anxious, or confused about where they are in life or how they can live out their faith.
Biggest takeaways:
“The most intimate conversations we can have are about the parts of our lives that we haven't figured out yet, when we take the time to process our lives with God… it's a conversation where I confess my lack of trust in Him and His timing. A conversation where I confess that I want to get my way more than I want to submit to His.” (p.20)
“Perseverance is not something we do, it's something we need to let God do to us as we give up trying to figure it all out on our own. This is what it means to submit to God in your trials.” (p.113)
“God wants to transform our desires not by changing our behavior but by addressing our hearts. This is why the first step cannot be modifying our behavior, because the healing that we need begins in the heart. True healing takes place as we open our hearts in prayer.” (p.174)
“In the end, God will make our paths straight. In other words, we will change not because we try hard to change but because we try hard to trust in the one who can change us.” (p.184)
Read it here.
a gentle reminder by bianca sparacino
4/5 stars
This is a cute, sentimental little book of quotes, short paragraphs, and mini essays. The author touches primarily on connection, loneliness, letting go, closure, and authenticity.
Not all of this spoke directly to me, but I think everyone can resonate with at least a few passages and it does feel very heartfelt.
You don’t have to read this start to finish; it’s not a large coffee table book but you can pick it up and read pages at random.
Favorite quotes:
“Love is not meant to be possessed. It is meant to be felt.” (p.25)
“There is beauty to be found in being the person who cares. So care.” (p.77)
“You are your own safe place. Make your alone a beautiful place to be.” (p.77)
“We never really lose the people we lose. They are in the sunsets, and in the rain, and in the forests, and in laughter, and music that takes our breath away. We never really lose their love, their beauty, because that energy doesn’t disappear — it finds new ways to reach you. Pay attention.” (p.132)
Read it here (I definitely recommend buying the paperback over Kindle version, as it’s a book you can go back to again and again).
the pelican tide by sharon j. wishnow
5/5 stars
I saw lots of good reviews for this book and thought it would be a great end-of-summer book. This is a fictionalized account of the aftermath of the real-life Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and centers around a family and the hardships they face. Lots of topics are covered, including mental health, addiction, financial troubles, entrepreneurship, and parenting.
The author did an incredible job writing this story, which is something I saw other reviews mention as well. Sometimes Kindle Unlimited books can feel a little unpolished, but this did not read like a debut novel in the slightest. Her attention to detail is great; the main character is a chef, and the author went the extra mile to include recipes at the end, which I thought was fun.
Overall, this is a beautiful story about family relationships and resiliency, and it reminded me of the heartfelt family movies I watched growing up. The characters are real and imperfect, but you really root for them. I highly, highly recommend this book, and think it will resonate on some level with most.
Read it here (free through Kindle Unlimited).
the champions by kara thomas
4/5 stars
This is a companion novel to “The Cheerleaders” which was released in 2018. I had high hopes for this book as I really loved the first one, and was not disappointed.
“The Cheerleaders” is definitely a standout YA thriller, but it’s more of a slow bur mystery than an action-packed page turner. The author makes the small-town setting vividly believable, and the characters are authentic and realistic, especially for the age group. While it’s a little longer than most YA thrillers are at over 350 pages, it doesn’t feel like it drags and every question is answered by the end (and the final twist was gooooood).
Because it’s a companion novel, you don’t have to read the first book to enjoy this one, but the author does an incredible job of weaving in some of the original characters without taking away the spotlight from the new ones. There’s also a time jump from the first, which allows for character growth and progression and you can tell the author was very thoughtful in constructing how this novel would live alongside the first.
Focused on the football team instead of the cheer team, the idea of a corrupt football team isn’t a new storyline, but this is a standout because of the way the author addresses tough topics with sensitivity yet respect for the audience. Nothing is dumbed down, nor are things over-dramatized.
I slightly prefer “The Cheerleaders” but it was nice to step back into the Sunnybrook world for a little bit.
Read it here.
once more we saw stars by jayson greene
5/5 stars
It always feels counter-intuitive to rate a memoir, especially one of this nature. This is a father’s story of losing his two-year-old daughter, Greta, after she is killed when a brick falls from a windowsill above where she is sitting. It recounts his grief journey in a raw and honest way
I will say this honestly left me speechless. It’s remarkably honest, mixing near-prose with simple recollections of raw human emotion. I loved how he switched between the past and present, mixing stories about Greta while she was alive with their present-day grief. Losing someone can make you feel like you’re in a haze where time moves too slow and too fast all at the same time, and his writing really captured this.
This book differed from other grief-centered books that I’ve read in that it was strictly a memoir; the author doesn’t really mention statistics, research, or anything on the psychology or sociology of grieving. It didn’t feel like anything was missing, though. I appreciated reading about someone’s personal experiences and found that I related to quite a few aspects that I thought I was alone in.
While this story is intensely heartbreaking, it ultimately has a hopeful tone and I’m really grateful to have read it.
Favorite quote: “Grief at its peak has a terrible beauty to it, a blinding fission of every emotion. The world is charged with significance, with meaning, and the world around you, normally so solid and implacable, suddenly looks thin, translucent.” (p.83)
Read it here.