This is a long one, so be sure to click the title and open in your browser.
I am woefully overdue on my monthly reading roundups. These are some of my favorites from the past 3 months:
Everyone Is Lying To You by Jo Piazza
I will read everything Jo writes, and am often begging for an ARC the second she announces a new book. I literally couldn’t put down this book, staying up way too late and waking up way too early to finish it in a day. It’s got it all—trad wives and influencer culture, murder, missing people, and a mess that seems impossible to clean up. It’s a perfect summer read. 100/10, no notes.
If you’re in Philly, I’ll be going to her book tour stop on the 22nd (here are the rest of her tour stops).
Goddess Complex by Sanjena Sathian
This book reminded me of The Centre. It’s a twisty, mind-bending thriller that had me thinking about it long after I finished it. Sanjana is a mess whose life has imploded when we meet her, and this book navigates motherhood (and opting out), cultural expectations, and achievement within a carefully paced plot. You never quite know where the book is going, and it’s been a long time since I surrendered to a book like this.
Both Goddess Complex and The Centre are Lilly’s Library Book Club selections, and the book club has never let me down.
Notes on Infinity by Austin Taylor
If this book is on your radar, you’ve also seen it mentioned alongside Tomorrow, And Tomorrow, And Tomorrow. It’s an accurate comp, but Notes on Infinity is its own spectacular, heartbreaking book. It’s rare that fiction delves into the life sciences world, so I’m always going to pick up a novel that even mentions it (like Ava Rani’s Biotech Billionaires series, for example). Infinity perfectly captured the details of clinical development and fundraising amidst Zoe and Jack’s turbulent relationship as fated mates and business partners. Like Tomorrow, I don’t think I’ll ever re-read this book, but I’d regret never reading it.
Cassandra Speaks by Elizabeth Lesser
This book is so powerful, it inspired an entire issue of #5SmartReads. The way that Lesser unpacks the women in myths and connects their stories to the finite, limiting roles of women in society today…oof. It will change the way you speak, how you consume the news and the world around you, and how you think. It validates everything we know and feel as women, and men absolutely need to read this book (and more books written by women, period).
In The Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero
This is another book culled from a #5SmartReads issue, and it’s one that refortified my humanity with regards to the horrors we’re currently living with. Rarely do we get to know the people who are victims of ICE raids, internment in horrific conditions, and deportation. Guerrero’s personal story (her childhood in Boston, her parents’ persistent attempts in obtaining legal residency, their deportation and the impact on her teenage years and early adulthood) shows the human toll of an entire family. Reading her story was heartbreaking enough, and I still am trying to wrap my mind around this toll at scale and how it’s rapidly destroying our humanity.
The High Dive by Chelsea Fagan
My favorite vacations are ones that are half exploring and learning, and half lazing about in a beautiful place. The High Dive is that vacation in book form. It’s sexy, smart, and carries a depth that you don’t find in most summer reads. Chelsea Fagan doesn’t do anything in half measures, from running The Financial Diet to writing addictive books that whisk you away and make you think deeply. I loved this book, and will probably re-read it come August.
Worth Fighting For by Jesse Q Sutanto
I haven’t dipped my toes in the Disney-films-turned-romance-novels until this one, and Sutanto has set a high bar with her retelling of Mulan. It has so many things I love and relate to - family businesses, a dad and daughter working together and genuinely enjoying it, some escapism (in this case, to a ranch), and one of the best written third act breakups I’ve read.
32 Days in May by Betty Corrello💘
This is an exquisite beach read, and a literal one. Set in the Jersey shore, you have a deadline relationship between Nadia (who’s adjusting to life with lupus) and Marco (an actor hiding out from a very public crash out). There’s banter (oh, the banter!), yearning and withholding, and there’s a couple of adventures that both make and break them. I loved this book so much.
Park Avenue by Renee Ahdieh
I’m constantly chasing the Crazy Rich Asians hole in my life (and end up watching the film anytime I’m on an airplane or need to soothe my brain after a hard day). Park Avenue has some of those vibes, but woven with Succession. It’s a more toxic situation than Worth Fighting For, but equally engrossing. This book really helped me get out of my head during a stressful time, in a way that few books can.
The Crucial Years by Sheryl Ziegler, PsyD
I know better than to compare books with therapy (a lesson Israa Nasir keeps teaching me!), but this book has helped Sri and me navigate some challenging moments with the boys over the past year. Chapter 3 felt like getting the cheat codes into Rho’s brain at the moment, and we continue to revisit this book as we help the boys through some big transitions (new camps, new schools in the fall, new boundaries around video games and screen time).
Honorable mention goes to Innkeeper Chronicles, which I’ve re-read an embarrassing number of times this year to date.
I have a pile of books facing me as I type this, waiting to be picked up and consumed. I have The Art of Vanishing by Morgan Pager, Maine Characters by Hannah Orenstein, and some spicy reads from my first Pepper Books delivery (brava, Ellie - A Day In Her Life!).
Catch up on the latest:
From Instagram: my anxiety toolkit + my sanity practice, how I run meetings (so we have fewer ones), crowdsourced curly hair styling tips, and the weird thing I do for book club.
Some summer-fall transitional pieces I’m eyeing right now - an oversized sheer blouse, casual mesh flats, a ‘makes the outfit’ cardigan, and these barrel-ish jeans.
The CW’s Supergirl was one of my favorite shows, and I can’t wait to see Milly Alcock don the cape in next year’s film (especially after her cameo in Superman). Will I be reading this book multiple times? Absolutely.
I’m early in my curly hair journey, but this brush, water mister, styling cream, and silk bonnet are responsible for making it look good.
My brain has been all over the place, and this article both attacked and helped me.
I bought these Bose headphones on a whim (and on Ashley Spivey’s recommendation), and they are truly worth the money. I love that they don’t go inside my ear AND stay in place, even when I’m running. The balance of high quality sound while still being able to hear what’s happening around is excellent and something I didn’t know I needed.
As always, my mother is right.
If you’ve made it this far, THANK YOU. And if you enjoyed this Substack, please:
I hope you have a wonderful week.
xo,
HPN
