Reminiscing on my days filled with reading
Ahh, summer. There’s nothing quite like lying outside, catching a tan and diving into a good book. As an avid reader, summer is my favorite time of the year; there’s all the time in the world to read! No school work, classes or pending tasks keeping you from your free time. This past summer, whenever I wasn’t working, you could find me sitting outside with my current read. Here’s my list and rankings of my summer reads:
1. A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas
I fell in love with the ACOTAR series last summer, but I got stuck when I got to the fifth book. It was the end of summer and the perspective changed from first person to third to follow another character. At first, I was so infatuated with Feyre’s story that reading from her older sister, Nesta’s, perspective was not as intriguing for me. I had preconceived notions of how I felt about Nesta’s character due to Feyre’s perspective and that left a bad taste in my mouth. I DNFed (did not finish) it for the school year, but decided to give it one more chance this summer. It did not disappoint.
About halfway through I started to understand Nesta’s nuanced character and felt bad for how harshly I’d judged her in the earlier books. Her character, while cold and quite ruthless at times, stems from a place of dwelling on past mistakes. Understanding that Nesta is not the “villain” she pretends to be was crucial to my understanding of her. It was incredible seeing her character arc throughout ACOSF and to finally get a glimpse into why she is the way she is. Overall, this one was 4/5 stars for me and I’m so glad I picked it back up.
2. The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
I’m a Hunger Games fan until the day I die. I blame this series for my fangirl nature, as it was the first series I remember completely obsessing over. I was that girl who braided her hair like Katniss and sported a Mockingjay pin in 7th grade. I laugh when I reminisce about my intense Hunger Games phase, but I react similarly each time a new addition to the original trilogy drops.
Sunrise on the Reaping was no different, and as always, Collins does not disappoint. She famously said she only writes when she has something to say, and the themes throughout SOTR were telling of this. In the novel, we get insight into Haymitch’s Hunger Games, the 50th Quarter Quell, and it is heartbreakingly tragic. We learn more about the system of oppression instilled by the Capitol government over the Districts, and how everything in The Games is controlled in order to be perceived a certain way by citizens; i.e., there is a lot of censorship and corresponding propaganda presented. Haymitch was never supposed to be in the games; his reaping was rigged, and in the face of threats from those in power, he continued working with Plutarch with the hope of inciting a revolution. Despite his efforts, he ultimately “failed,” all at the cost of those he loved most. Although he didn’t accomplish all he’d hoped, he was still a spark that laid the groundwork for Katniss to ignite the full revolution. This read was 5/5 stars for me and I can’t wait for the movie adaptation.
3. One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
I’m a huge fan of Carley Fortune (journalist turned author? Dream life!) and her annual summer romance did not disappoint. This story followed a secondary character from her first book, “Every Summer After,” and getting to know Charlie was incredible. I also liked that the characters were more grown-up instead of it being a teenage love story spanning into early adulthood. It was refreshing to read about characters having childlike summer fun in their thirties.
Recently, I’ve been heavily into the romantasy genre, but it was good to dip my toes back into my original love of romance novels. I have also always loved a good beach read, and OGS was the perfect book to throw in the beach bag. Overall, this read was 5/5 stars.
4. Writers & Lovers by Lily King
It’s been a while since I’ve picked up a literary fiction book, but I’m very happy that I did when I started Writers & Lovers. The story follows Casey on her journey to finish a novel. She recently lost her mother, which deeply affected her, and is feeling somewhat stuck in life. As she writes, she also works in a restaurant. My only complaint was that, as an aspiring writer who spends her summers bartending and serving at a restaurant, this book was not so much an escape as reading often is. But that was something I ended up liking about the story: it seemed to have some authenticity to it.
I enjoyed stretching the realms of genres I typically enjoy, and this book felt like a wholly new experience for me. It reminded me of the importance of reading a wide variety of stories to better understand the world and those around us. I give it 3.5/5 stars overall.
As homework piles up and leaves begin to change shades, my ache to be back beneath the summer sun, transported into the world of a story, intensifies. It gives me all the more encouragement to bring recreational reading into my school life as often as I can!