The April Book Report

I used to look forward to packing my weekends with people to see and places to go, but thanks to COVID, I’m delighted with quieter Saturdays and Sundays. After a busy week at work, all I want to do is curl up on the sofa with my favorite blanket and a good book. Luckily, I used my downtime wisely because April was another busy month of reading.

Today, I have three books to review – I thoroughly enjoyed one of them. I managed to finish another, but sadly one might land in the dreaded DNF (did not finish) pile. It is rare for me to add a book to the DNF list, but it is one of those books that I had high hopes for, but it just isn’t doing it for me. But let’s get to the good ones first!

As a side note, I do not receive any commission if you buy a book from these links. All I ask is that you consider buying the book from your local independent bookstore. Amazon has enough of our hard-earned money, don’t you think?

Writers and Lovers by Lily King

It was the opening scene that hooked me into this book right away. Casey’s landlord catches her outside and peppers her with intrusive questions about her book. And then, he has the nerve to say the most obnoxious thing that no writer wants to hear. “I just find it extraordinary that you think you have something to say.”  I wanted to slap him. Once I have someone to root for in a book, the story has my complete and undivided attention. Casey is a writer and a waitress who is dealing with the grief of losing her mother and juggling her feelings for two men – all while trying to get a book published. I loved the details of her writing process and her posse of supporters that have her back. I finished this book in less than a week. Whether you are a writer or not, this is one novel to add to your TBR pile.

The Power of Writing Things Down by Allison Fallon

I picked up this book because I enjoy receiving the author’s weekly emails on writing. She is a reliable source of excellent prompts when I can’t think of anything to write about in my blog. I also enjoyed her recent webinar on how to write a memoir. I thought her book would be equally brilliant. Honestly, I finished the book but can’t remember if I learned anything – which means I probably didn’t. Not because she isn’t a wonderful speaker and writing coach – but because I’ve read too many other books on writing, and she wasn’t saying anything I hadn’t heard before. This made me realize that maybe I need to stop buying so many books about writing and just sit my ass down and write! 🙂 If someone is a new writer, I think this book has a lot to offer and is a good place to start. But, if you are someone like me who has been doing this for a while and has read writing books from Anne Lamott, Stephen King, and others of that caliber – this might not be the right fit for you. But, her Monday Motivation emails are superb.

The Library Book by Susan Orlean

When I buy a book, I’m pretty committed to reading it – maybe not right away – as noted by the size of my TBR pile. But I will get around to it. I was so excited about this book because I love libraries. If independent bookstores are my guilty pleasure, libraries are a safe haven to explore new genres and authors without buying the books. This particular book is a nonfiction account of the largest library fire in the United States. It happened in Los Angeles, and there are a lot of unanswered questions. But instead of drawing me into the big mystery, I’m reading more about the ins and outs of library systems and how they operate. Maybe the mystery is still in there somewhere – but after about 50 or so pages – I’ve lost interest, and I’m tired of waiting for the juicy part.  So, I’m going to put it aside for now and pick it up at another time.

No time to waste, my next new read is The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I’ll review it in my May book report.

What book did you read in April? Have you ever DNF-ed a book? Which one and why?