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Bel’s joined the tiny Manchester office of a national paper from her indie podcast.
Thirty-something Connor is going to back to the start as the new intern.
The latest office news? They can’t stand each other.
So of course Bel bumps into Connor when she’s working undercover on the biggest scoop of her career. And of course she’s forced to improvise, pretending they’re a couple. A couple deeply in love.
Two rivals. One fake romance. The headline writes itself…
I have loved many of the author’s other works and would read anything by her.
The Narrator(s)
Kristin Atherton. I really like her narration! Her male voices were a little funny, but not funny enough to be an issue. It was quite a pleasure.
My Thoughts
I loved this book and it reminds me why I love McFarlane’s works so much! Her books are always thoughtful, sensitive to real life issues, and yet still feeds the romantic need in my soul. I love the chemistry between Bel and Connor, and I love how their relationship builds as we move forward in the story and they continue working together. I also love the premise of the story itself; the undercover story that they work on together, the other issues that they face individually and as a team, their personal backstories, and their professional lives at stake. McFarlane’s books always hit, and I am very strongly tempted to binge read and reread all of McFarlane’s books right now.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Lady Astronaut Universe series by Mary Robinette Kowal
On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process.
Elma York’s experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition’s attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn’t take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can’t go into space, too.
Elma’s drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.
The Reason
I’ve been eyeing this series for a while and was able to get the books on an Audible deal.
The Quotes
“It’s hard to convince people that catastrophic weather changes are coming on a nice day.”
“Even geniuses can be stupid when they’re scared.”
“There is something magic about takeoffs. I know people who are afraid of flying who say that the takeoffs and landings are the only hard parts, perhaps because that’s when the act of flying is most apparent. I love the way you get pushed back into your seat. The weight and the sense of momentum press against you and the vibrations from the tarmac hum through the yoke and into your palms and legs. Then, suddenly, everything stops and the ground drops away.”
The Narrator(s)
Mary Robinette Kowal herself. I loved it. I love the story, I love her narration, I loved it.
My Thoughts
Book 1 – The Calculating Stars It wasn’t what I expected but it was very good, very nuanced, and I love that the FMC, Elma York, was introverted and flawed and yet had to step up and take charge. It’s set in the past so all the prejudices of the time was intact, but they had to adapt to new developments for the sake of survival. I love how racism and sexism was addressed and worked on. I love that things were difficult for the FMC, and she didn’t always know to do the right thing. It was really good!
Book 2 – The Fated Sky I liked this one more than the first book. The characters became more developed for me, and I love that they are actually in outer space this time. One of the highlights for me was also the platonic relationships developing between the characters. I hated Parker in the first book, but he was so much more nuanced in this book, and the way his and Elma’s friendship developed was really beautiful to see. This might be my favorite of the series. Maybe.
Book 3 – The Relentless Moon This one follows Nicole instead of Elma, and I really enjoyed the story itself, but it was incredibly painful when something difficult happens near the end. I had to stop reading for a moment and take a break with another book because it was really painful to feel all that emotion “on the page” and in the narrator’s voice. I think it really shows how amazing the author is, both for the storytelling and for the narration of those intense emotions.
Book 4 – The Martian Contingency We come back to Elma for this story, and it was also another great story. She and her husband and other people are now on Mars and starting a new chapter. There was some very interesting subplots and backstories that we find out about, and there were also some Parker and Elma interactions, not many, but they were fun for me. I’m not sure I like the ending but it makes sense in a way, the stories from the first book until this one span many years, and goals and priorities change. It’s a good series and I loved it all.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars for all of them!
Have you read this series? Would you read this series? Did you like it or do you think you would like it?
William Stoner is born at the end of the nineteenth century into a dirt-poor Missouri farming family. Sent to the state university to study agronomy, he instead falls in love with English literature and embraces a scholar’s life, so different from the hardscrabble existence he has known. And yet as the years pass, Stoner encounters a succession of disappointments: marriage into a “proper” family estranges him from his parents; his career is stymied; his wife and daughter turn coldly away from him; a transforming experience of new love ends under threat of scandal. Driven ever deeper within himself, Stoner rediscovers the stoic silence of his forebears and confronts an essential solitude.
John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.
One of my in-person bookclub members praised this book very highly, and it became our December BOTM.
The Quotes
“In his forty-third year William Stoner learned what others, much younger, had learned before him: that the person one loves at first is not the person one loves at last, and that love is not an end but a process through which one person attempts to know another.”
“A war doesn’t merely kill off a few thousand or a few hundred thousand young men. It kills off something in a people that can never be brought back. And if a people goes through enough wars, pretty soon all that’s left is the brute, the creature that we—you and I and others like us—have brought up from the slime.”
“In the University library he wandered through the stacks, among the thousands of books, inhaling the musty odor of leather, cloth, and drying page as if it were an exotic incense.”
The Narrator(s)
Robin Field. It was great, I was very much immersed in Stoner’s world and I thought the narration was perfect.
My Thoughts
I was surprised by how invested I got into Stoner’s life. He’s an ordinary person, not special at all, and he doesn’t do anything special either. He was the most passive person but there were occasional times when he fought hard, and then nothing again, it’s interesting and perhaps true to life. The book follows him throughout his life and we see him through all his ups and downs. There were times you think he might achieve great things or do something extraordinary, times when you hurt for him and celebrate with him, times when you wish you could reach into the book and shake him and tell him to make better choices. There was a lot to think about and I think the writing is absolutely beautiful.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.
Today’s topic is Best Books I Read in 2025
I read so many good books in 2025, it was so hard to choose! It’s a blessing though, I think, and I’d rather have too many good books than not enough to choose from. I also reread several favorite books that may or may not have a higher standing than some of the books I’ve listed here, but I didn’t think I should add them to this list in order to be fair to first time reads. The one exception is Dungeon Crawler Carl – I read the first two books the year before, but reread them, and the rest of the five books for the first time in 2025.
Top Ten Best Books I Read in 2025
Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman – This is hands down my favorite books read in 2025. I know I’m cheating because it’s a whole series but it’s technically one story, and all seven books (so far) are so good! If I didn’t give the series a spot, it would be all seven books in seven spots on this list, and we gotta give the other books a chance!
Lady Astronaut Universe series by Mary Robinette Kowal – Another cheat because it’s also a series. There are four books so far, and they are tangentially related but I really loved them and had to include them. I didn’t realize they were alternate historical fiction and initially expected something more sci-fi, but I loved what I got! I especially love how much attention to detail Kowal gave the story, and how nuanced the issues with societal and cultural prejudices were presented. It was very well-written.
Perdido Street Station by China Miéville – This book is incredible and lives rent free in my head. There is so much to it; the worldbuilding, the characters, the emotions! OMG, the emotions! It was difficult to read at times because of how intense it got. It’s one book I know I want to reread because I know I’ll get more out of it, but not any time soon because I need to recover from the first time I read it!
Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – I tend to not remember much of the details of books I read, especially if it was a while ago, but I remember impressions, and this book really packed a punch. It’s especially painful for me to see small and vulnerable people getting hurt by big, authoritarian people, and this book made me rage and cry.
Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann – Another story that highlights racism, genocide, oppression, and the injustice of powerful people towards vulnerable people. Except that this is a true story and I hate that it happened and is still happening in less obvious ways. It hurts to see the evil that people are capable of, and especially with the current political climate we live in, that they get away with because other people allow them to, and even condone their actions. It frightens me and I really hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman – This was a beautiful book about found family, which everyone knows I have a soft spot for. I can understand the despair and loneliness Ove initially felt and why he was so curmudgeonly at first, but I love seeing the journey of how things changed for him. It was such an emotional read for me.
A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher – I love Kingfisher’s books because I love fairytale retellings and the kind of stories she writes in particular, but some are better than others and I think this is one of them. I’m not very familiar with the original fairytale it’s based on (Goose Girl) but I love this story on its own. I especially loved the characters because they were all so different but so strong in their own ways.
Christine by Stephen King – I was good and only put one Stephen King book on my list. I was so surprised by how much I loved this one. I never prioritized this book from his vast catalog because I was not very interested in cars, but of course, it’s not about the car, it’s about the story and the way he tells it. King is a master at creating the most interesting characters; I love how even the side characters stand out and reminds us of real people in our lives. I love the way he writes the relationships between the different characters in the book and how relatable they are in different ways. The characters are always the best part of any King book.
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – I don’t know where to start with this. The fact that it’s a true story and such a tragedy made it really hard to read, but also so hard to put down. It doesn’t matter that it happened years ago, Krakauer wrote it when it was relatively fresh for him and even though he tried to be objective, his emotions are obvious on the page. I had so many thoughts and feelings while reading this that I write about more in the review, but oof, I’m still processing even now.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – I love this book because of how subtle and nuanced the issues with classism and racism are. Don’t get me wrong, it’s also pretty blatant, but there are so many little details; the micro-aggressions, that you don’t see and don’t realize unless you’re living it or it’s pointed out to you. The topic of motherhood and what makes a good mother is also explored deeply here, and it’s emotional. I’m both traumatized and healed by this book.
Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?
A propulsive and uncommonly wise novel about one unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew.
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe’s plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I’ve heard a lot of praise for this book and I was curious.
The Quotes
“There is no such thing as a happy place. Because when you are happy, everywhere is a happy place. And when you are sad, everywhere is a sad place.”
“And maybe that’s it: You do things in the moment for the person you hope you might be two years from now.”
“Nobody can take care of you the way you need to take care of yourself. It’s your job to take care of yourself like that.”
“She is so good at predicting what will happen in books, so bad at predicting what will happen in life. That is why she has always preferred books – because to be alive is so much harder.”
The Narrator(s)
Helen Laser. She’s really good! Her narration reminds me a little of Julia Whelan’s narration and I’m a huge fan.
My Thoughts
I’m not sure what I was expecting with this book; I initially thought perhaps something along the vibes of Fredrik Backman’s books, something depressing turned heartwarming, and it was a little like that but also more complicated and a lot less clear-cut. There was a lot of tension throughout the book, and I love how the author juggled that along with telling the story. I loved the characters, the fact that there is more to each of them than initial impressions. They make mistakes, do stupid things, behave badly, want things they shouldn’t, but they can still be good people who mean well.
I also love how chance encounters can change your life and how random people can turn into important relationships. I met a random woman once when I was a young teenage girl, who gave me some life advice that I’ve remembered and tried to stick to ever since. I don’t even know her name and wouldn’t recognize her if I saw her again but I’ve never forgotten her and what she said to me. I love that Lila changed Phoebe’s life without even meaning to, and for purely selfish reasons. You just never know the impact you have on someone.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn’t slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn’t made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and author of the bestseller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world. A rangy, thirty-five-year-old New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led thirty-nine climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall’s team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a forty-year-old American with legendary strength and drive who had climbed the peak without supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.
Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people — including himself — to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense. Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer’s eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
It’s one of the most recommended nonfiction books and I have an interest in reading about Everest in general.
The Quotes
“Getting to the top of any given mountain was considered much less important than how one got there: prestige was earned by tackling the most unforgiving routes with minimal equipment, in the boldest style imaginable.”
“Everest has always been a magnet for kooks, publicity seekers, hopeless romantics and others with a shaky hold on reality.”
“We were too tired to help. Above 8,000 meters is not a place where people can afford morality.”
“There were many, many fine reasons not to go, but attempting to climb Everest is an intrinsically irrational act—a triumph of desire over sensibility. Any person who would seriously consider it is almost by definition beyond the sway of reasoned argument.”
The Narrator(s)
Philip Franklin. It was amazing! I was completely immersed.
My Thoughts
I see why this book is so highly recommended! It is intense, emotional, exciting, and heartbreaking all at once. There has apparently been a lot of controversy surrounding this book and the events of the 1996 Everest disaster. There were criticisms thrown around about how individual people handled the situation as it was happening, how they helped or didn’t help, and so on. Obviously, all of this happened almost 30 years ago now and I’m late to the discussion, but I do have thoughts.
I think when you’re in a unique environment like Everest, all the normal protocols and morality for helping others don’t necessarily apply. You don’t have trained first responders you can call, you only have whoever’s up there with you, and very often you are already in compromised health yourself. It’s like if a person is drowning and you don’t know how to swim, don’t be a fool and jump in there to try to save them yourself; you’re only causing more problems because now rescuers have to rescue both you and the person who was originally drowning. In Everest, there are often no trained rescuers, fresh and energized, coming to help anyone in distress. You and the other climbers, all exhausted from their own climb, are all you have. And yes, if you aren’t in the best shape or condition, sometimes the choice you have to make is to not make the rescue, otherwise instead of one death, you’d have two or three or more.
Assuming that everything that Krakauer shares in this book is as accurate as he can be – and he admits that they may not be accurate because there have been discrepensies in each individual’s memories – he has been open with his actions and inactions with helping his fellow climbers, and takes some of the blame for the tragic deaths and suffering that happened. His writing voice in the book reflects his emotional distress about the tragedy, even as he tries his best to be objective about putting it down in words.
It’s easy to criticise others for their inaction, but honestly for me, you don’t know what you would do if you were in the same situation until you’ve been there yourself. It’s not even just being physically compromised and not able to physically help others, the conditions including the lack of oxygen to the brain also causes you to be mentally compromised and not able to think and make decisions. If it were me, I’d imagine that my lizard brain kicks in and survival instincts take over, and I’d be basically useless to help anyone but myself.
And that’s also why I will never ever climb Mount Everest! I am perfectly content reading about other people doing incredible things while I sit comfortably at home on the couch! The most risky thing I did was sitting on the edge of my seat while reading this book. I could’ve fallen off! I got into such a rabbit hole of googling more about Everest and watching some videos of Everest climbers after I finished the book. It’s an amazing story and I respect the hell out of people who do stuff like this.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith
Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?
Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. Having missed her flight, she’s stuck at JFK airport and late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s sitting in her row.
A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?
Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I recently finished another one of the author’s books, Field Notes on Love, and loved it and I’m craving love stories so I decided to read another one.
The Quotes
“It’s not the changes that will break your heart; it’s that tug of familiarity.”
“Did you know that people who meet at least three different times within twenty-four hour period are ninety-eight percent more likely to meet again?”
“It’s one thing to run away when someone’s chasing you. It’s entirely another to be running all alone.”
“I like how you’re neither here nor there. And how there’s nowhere else you’re meant to be while waiting. You’re just sort of suspended.”
The Narrator(s)
Casey Holloway. It was great, no notes!
My Thoughts
I have read this before and as per usual, have completely forgotten everything about it. I did rate it 5 stars on Goodreads though, so I knew I was going to love it again, and I did! It does hit differently now than when I read it more than ten years ago; I was younger back then and remember the nostalgia and the romance of young love more clearly. Now that I’m older and more practical about love, I feel so much concern in the back of my mind for the two MCs falling in love after only a couple of days and during significant moments in their lives! I’m also judging Hadley’s father hard!
However, putting my practical real life tendencies aside and only focusing on the MCs’ stories, it was easy to get immersed in their world and their lives, and feel the romance of their meet-cute. I particularly loved how witty Oliver was, with his banter, and the way he made Hadley feel comfortable with him. It’s such a sweet, wonderful love story, and I still love it reading it now.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Stephen King’s ultimate, evil vehicle of terror, Christine: the frightening story of a nerdy teenager who falls in love with his vintage Plymouth Fury. It was love at first sight, but this car is no lady.
Evil is alive in Libertyville. It inhabits a custom-painted red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine and young Arnold Cunningham, who buys it.
Along with Arnold’s girlfriend, Leigh Cabot, Dennis Guilder attempts to find out the real truth behind Christine and finds more than he bargained from murder to suicide, there’s a peculiar feeling that surrounds Christine—she gets revenge on anyone standing in her path.
Can Dennis save Arnold from the wrath of Christine? This #1 national bestseller is “Vintage Stephen King…breathtaking…awesome. Carries such momentum the reader must force himself to slow down”
“Has it ever occurred to you,” he said abruptly, “that parents are nothing but overgrown kids until their children drag them into adulthood? Usually kicking and screaming?”
“If being a kid is about learning how to live, then being a grown-up is about learning how to die.”
“I once heard about some millionaire who had a stolen Rembrandt in his basement where no one but him could see it. I could understand that guy. I don’t mean that Arnie was a Rembrandt, or even a world-class wit, but I could understand the attraction of knowing about something good … something that was good but still a secret.”
“I don’t believe in curses, you know. Nor in ghosts or anything precisely supernatural. But I do believe that emotions and events have a certain…lingering resonance.”
The Narrator(s)
Holter Graham. I loved it!
My Thoughts
I watched the movie for the first time earlier this year and I thought I really should read the book too, because it’s the one Stephen King book that my husband read that I hadn’t yet, and he’d been singing its praises. I’m glad I finally did because I really liked the story and yes, it’s definitely much better than the movie! There was a lot of nuance with the characters and their relationships, and their backstories too, that I wasn’t expecting and didn’t get with the movie. The relationships between Arnie’s parents and himself was especially interesting, and I love how King really gets in there with the complexity of parent-child relationships.
I had put off reading this book because I wasn’t particularly interested in cars and there were so many other King books I wanted to read first, but now that I’ve read it I feel like a fool for putting it off so long. I think this may be one of my top Stephen King books now!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes a series of horrific discoveries about his client. Soon afterwards, various bizarre incidents unfold in England: an apparently unmanned ship is wrecked off the coast of Whitby; a young woman discovers strange puncture marks on her neck; and the inmate of a lunatic asylum raves about the ‘Master’ and his imminent arrival.
In Dracula, Bram Stoker created one of the great masterpieces of the horror genre, brilliantly evoking a nightmare world of vampires and vampire hunters and also illuminating the dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire.
It’s one of my online book club’s buddy reads for Halloween season.
The Quotes
“Remember my friend, that knowledge is stronger than memory, and we should not trust the weaker.”
“The last I saw of Count Dracula was his kissing his hand to me, with a red light of triumph in his eyes, and with a smile that Judas in hell might be proud of.”
“Doctor, you don’t know what it is to doubt everything, even yourself. No, you don’t; you couldn’t with eyebrows like yours.”
“Ah, it is the fault of our science that it wants to explain all; and if it explain not, then it says there is nothing to explain.”
The Narrator(s)
Tavia Gilbert and J.P. Guimont. I loved this narration, it was so immersive.
My Thoughts
Wow, this is one hell of a journey! I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed the book considering it’s been adapted to death in pop culture media. A lot of the story is familiar to me, of course, but reading it for the first time, I’m enjoying so much of the nuances of the individual characters and their actual interactions with each other.
Van Helsing’s reasonings and the way he speaks to and cares for the other characters really jumps off the page to me, and I can’t help but love him. Mina is also such a wonderful character, so vibrant and smart and compassionate, caring about everyone else even when she’s the one in danger. I love that the book is in epistolary form, and that it plays a part in how they document events and discover connections.
The book did go on longer than I expected, but I found it interesting how much that added to the tension; the waiting, anticipating resolutions – was Lucy going to get better? was Mina going to die? will they find where Dracula is? will they triumph over evil? I’m really surprised how much I loved reading the book! I’m pretty sure I’ll reread it again soon!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
When Jenny Lawson was little, all she ever wanted was to fit in. That dream was cut short by her fantastically unbalanced father and a morbidly eccentric childhood. It did, however, open up an opportunity for Lawson to find the humor in the strange shame-spiral that is her life, and we are all the better for it.
In the irreverent Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson’s long-suffering husband and sweet daughter help her uncover the surprising discovery that the most terribly human moments—the ones we want to pretend never happened—are the very same moments that make us the people we are today. For every intellectual misfit who thought they were the only ones to think the things that Lawson dares to say out loud, this is a poignant and hysterical look at the dark, disturbing, yet wonderful moments of our lives.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
It was my in-person bookclub’s Book of the Month, and I’d been wanting to read Jenny Lawson for a while.
The Quotes
“Because you are defined not by life’s imperfect moments, but by your reaction to them. And because there is joy in embracing – rather than running from – the utter absurdity of life.”
“But really, what else are you going to talk about in line at the liquor store? Childhood trauma seems like the natural choice, since it’s the reason why most of us are in line there to begin with.”
“When I was in junior high I read a lot of Danielle Steele. So I always assumed that the day I got engaged I’d be naked, covered in rose petals, and sleeping with the brother of the man who’d kidnapped me.”
The Narrator(s)
Jenny Lawson, the author herself. I absolutely loved it, she was hilarious!
My Thoughts
I listened to this on audio with the author narrating, and I think that adds tremendously to my enjoyment of the book. She’s hilarious and I love how she finds humor in everything, but she also talks about some serious issues in such a nonchalant way, making light of them, sometimes to the point where I’m wondering, “Are you okay, Jenny?” I actually had her other book “Furiously Happy” on my TBR for a while, but I ended up reading this one first because it was my in-person bookclub’s BOTM. I’m glad I did because apparently this book was her first published one. Taking a look at the other books she’s released, it looks like humor about horrible things is her niche, and yes, I absolutely want to read them all! I’m also going to try to read them all on audio because I think it’s better with her narration. The copy I listened to had a bonus chapter and some really funny outtakes of her recording process which are probably not in the printed copies!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
