I had another fun reading month, including four 5-star books, and one that was an almost 5-star read! For one of these books, I went to hear the author speak in person and thoroughly enjoyed hearing about her creative process and learning more about her in general. There was another nonfiction book that I listened to on audio and while I ranked it accordingly, I also cannot express how thought-provoking it was for me. Keep scrolling to see the books that I read Iin September with my ratings for each.
See my favorite reads from 2022 here and check out all I’ve read here.
Everything I Read in September 2023
The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry
Synopsis
In the war-torn London of 1939, fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora are evacuated to a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War. Living with the kind Bridie Aberdeen and her teenage son, Harry, in a charming stone cottage along the River Thames, Hazel fills their days with walks and games to distract her young sister, including one that she creates for her sister and her sister alone–a fairy tale about a magical land, a secret place they can escape to that is all their own.
But the unthinkable happens when young Flora suddenly vanishes while playing near the banks of the river. Shattered, Hazel blames herself for her sister’s disappearance, and she carries that guilt into adulthood as a private burden she feels she deserves.
Twenty years later, Hazel is in London, ready to move on from her job at a cozy rare bookstore to a career at Sotheby’s. With a charming boyfriend and her elegantly timeworn Bloomsbury flat, Hazel’s future seems determined. But her tidy life is turned upside down when she unwraps a package containing an illustrated book called Whisperwood and the River of Stars. Hazel never told a soul about the imaginary world she created just for Flora. Could this book hold the secrets to Flora’s disappearance? Could it be a sign that her beloved sister is still alive after all these years?
As Hazel embarks on a feverish quest, revisiting long-dormant relationships and bravely opening wounds from her past, her career and future hang in the balance. An astonishing twist ultimately reveals the truth in this transporting and refreshingly original novel about the bond between sisters, the complications of conflicted love, and the enduring magic of storytelling.
Meghan’s Thoughts & Rating
- I absolutely adored this book and did not want to put it down! It’s beautiful historical fiction written between 1940 and 1960 in Britain. The story has some elements of mystery and chills to it, with a happy ending for all involved. It is a truly delightful book and I am sad that it has ended. Definitely add to your TBR!
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Evil Eye by Etaf Rum
Synopsis
After Yara is placed on probation at work for fighting with a racist coworker, her Palestinian mother claims the provocation and all that’s come after were the result of a family curse. While Yara doesn’t believe in old superstitions, she finds herself unpacking her strict, often volatile childhood growing up in Brooklyn, looking for clues as to why she feels so unfulfilled in a life her mother could only dream of. Etaf Rum’s follow-up to her 2019 debut, A Woman Is No Man, is a complicated mother-daughter drama that looks at the lasting effects of intergenerational trauma and what it takes to break the cycle of abuse.
Meghan’s Thoughts & Rating
- I was not sure how Etaf was going to be able to follow up A Woman is No Man, but she did it again! Yara’s struggles with familial and childhood trauma, mental illness, learning to love oneself, and trusting others were truly excellent. I heard Etaf speak about her book at a local bookstore and she said Yara was not going to be a likable character, and I fell in love with her. A truly wonderful book. Add it to your TBR!
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
Synopsis
Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.
A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.
Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realize that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life–and into her home.
But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappeared. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat.
Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?
Meghan’s Thoughts & Rating
- I really enjoyed this thriller and kept finding myself looking forward to being able to pick it back up. If you enjoyed The Girl on the Train and Greenwich Park, I suspect you would enjoy this book as well!
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Synopsis
Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.
When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he’s given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.
But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.
An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place–and realizing that family is yours.
Meghan’s Thoughts & Rating
- I saw this book described as a big hug and that review is one of the reasons why I picked it up when I did. It also felt like the ultimate escape-type book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I would say that I did not find it to be a page-turner, despite how enjoyable it was. I especially found the lessons of unconditional acceptance, stepping out of one’s comfort zone, and respecting differences in others to be timely and important. One of my favorite books this year.
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond
Synopsis
The United States, the richest country on earth, has more poverty than any other advanced democracy. Why? Why does this land of plenty allow one in every eight of its children to go without basic necessities, permit scores of its citizens to live and die on the streets, and authorize its corporations to pay poverty wages?
In this landmark book, acclaimed sociologist Matthew Desmond draws on history, research, and original reporting to show how affluent Americans knowingly and unknowingly keep poor people poor. Those of us who are financially secure exploit the poor, driving down their wages while forcing them to overpay for housing and access to cash and credit. We prioritize the subsidization of our wealth over the alleviation of poverty, designing a welfare state that gives the most to those who need the least. And we stockpile opportunity in exclusive communities, creating zones of concentrated riches alongside those of concentrated despair. Some lives are made small so that others may grow.
Elegantly written and fiercely argued, this compassionate book gives us new ways of thinking about a morally urgent problem. It also helps us imagine solutions. Desmond builds a startlingly original and ambitious case for ending poverty. He calls on us all to become poverty abolitionists, engaged in a politics of collective belonging to usher in a new age of shared prosperity and, at last, true freedom.
Meghan’s Thoughts & Rating
- This book was thought-provoking, well-written, and well-researched. I truly enjoyed reading it and am still simmering in my thoughts about it. One of the best nonfiction books I have read this year.
- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
