My BookStack, May and June

A "stack" of books I've read, reviewed, and might recommend.

Jul 05, 2024

Since the beginning of 2024, I’ve taken one newsletter every two months to review my recent reads. Not only does it keep me on track for my reading goals and push me to leave reviews online, but it’s also inspired at least some of you, my dear readers, to pick up a book, try an author you’ve not read before, or explore a new genre.

I’ve had a busy couple of months, so my reading life has suffered a bit. I finished five books in May and June, but I’m still on track to meeting my 36-book goal for 2024. Have you set a reading goal? How’s it going?

BookStack, vol. 3, May-June, 2024.

Demon Copperhead (Barbara Kingsolver) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommend. Damon, a.k.a. Demon, will stay with you for days after closing this book. His story is hard and sad, and unfortunately, a true picture of what many kids have gone through or are currently experiencing. Although it was difficult to read scenes of child abuse, poverty, teenage waywardness, and illicit drug use, the story shed light on our broken foster care system and the early days of the opioid crisis. Most importantly, this book demonstrates the importance of each child having trusted adults to whom they can turn who will provide for them, care for and love them, and believe in their inherent goodness and worth. (Audiobook)

The Way of Belonging: Reimagining Who We Are and How We Relate (Sarah E. Westfall) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Highly Recommend. In The Way of Belonging, Sarah E. Westfall opens her heart to her readers. We get a glimpse not only of her struggles but also of our own, in our God-given longing to be in community with others. Sarah teaches us through a beautiful narrative style and well-placed quotes from the Bible, theologians, and other great thinkers, that our desire to belong comes from a longing God created in us, and not due to some lack society has made us feel.

Sarah walks the reader through how, when, and with whom we might "go deep" and become vulnerable. She explains what it means to live authentically and how that differs from transparency. She instructs us in the "circles of belonging" and what it means for our relationships, as well as how we can use creativity to draw others in.

There is so much truth in the pages of this book, that I found myself highlighting throughout. I'm sure I'll refer to it again, especially when I experience that longing to belong. (Paperback)

One Hundred Saturdays: Stella Levi and the Search for a Lost World (Michael Frank) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommend. Stella Levi's story is fascinating, heartbreaking, and full of resilience. In this book, author Michael Frank tells her story as he heard it first-hand through 100 Saturdays' worth of personal interviews. As their friendship grew, Stella opened up, telling her life story, including tales of the now-vanished Jewish community on the island of Rhodes where she grew up, the tragic story of her family's loss and suffering during the Holocaust, her survival, and subsequent long life afterward in America. Frank's writing is full of facts and names and sprinkled with foreign language, sometimes making it difficult to follow. However, Stella Levi's story is captivating, and the audiobook is a treasure as it contains actual snippets of Stella's singing. (Audiobook)

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Highly Recommend. This “coming of age” classic—often required reading in schools— brings timeless values to light. The story of Francie Nolan, who grew up in the early 1900s, made me realize that despite many changes in society, people at heart, are much the same. Like Francie and her family, we continue to value education, gender equality, a strong work ethic, faith, and most precious of all, our family ties. Francie’s life was riddled with poverty, war, an alcoholic father, and a scarcity of true friends. Her strength and ability to survive came from her imagination, creativity, and adults who, though flawed, showed her love. Francie’s inclination toward writing caused her to pay attention to minute details around her. Her ability to practice mindfulness before mindfulness was trending, is one example of author Betty Smith’s being ahead of her time. (Audiobook)

The Vanishing Half (Brit Bennett)⭐️⭐️⭐️

You might like it, but it wasn’t for me. I listened to The Vanishing Half on one of my car trips to Minnesota. The plot was gripping enough to keep me awake at the wheel, and I was enlightened on the subject of racial “passing.” When two Black twin sisters leave home in their teens, their lives go separate ways, with one sister continuing to live as Black and the other passing as White. The book follows them and their two daughters through the trials and triumphs they face. I thought the author’s attempt to include another tangential storyline about transgenders was a little forced, and didn’t add to the central theme of racial tension. The book left me wanting more at the end—more reconciliation, more redemption, and more hope. (Audiobook)

And that’s the Stack!

What’s next? I just finished Rift: A Memoir of Breaking Away from Christian Patriarchy by Cait West, which I’ll review next time. For the next B&W book club, I’m reading Lost & Found by Kathryn Schulz. I’m only 15 pages in, but am already loving Schulz’s voice and writing style!