I have to admit, this month I really got my reading mojo back after months of not feeling like I could concentrate. I realized how much I love my little reading corner, how much I love the process of sinking into a story, and how much I enjoy all of the little things that make reading even better (Book snacks! Book drinks!).

Here were my favorites for the month, which were actually a bit tough to choose. I definitely got lucky this time around with a bunch of exciting and engaging reads. But here were the stand outs.....

We're into August and I'm STILL thinking about this one. It's not a book I can recommend to everyone, but I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more Moshfegh. MYoRaR tells the story of a young woman who makes the decision to "hibernate" for a year. She finds a shady psychiatrist who prescribes her a rotating cocktail of heavy sedatives, and then she sleeps, waking only once a day or so to eat and take care of anything needing doing. 

The main character is truly unlikable, but in an odd way this is part of what made the novel so captivating to me. It was also oddly inspiring to read about a woman leaning HARD into her right to rest without feeling guilt or shame about not being productive. It's something that capitalism doesn't afford most of us, especially women. I loved this one, and I wouldn't be surprised if it made to my list of favorites at the end of the year.

Going back to Italy this past November (Travel? What is travel? #laughcry) reignited my love for the Italian language, and also let me know that...ahem...I've let my Italian slip quite a bit! It would be a shame to let all those hours of hard studying and those strings of embarrassing Ummmmms when trying to come up with the right phrase go to waste. So I'm trying to read more books in Italian. I was thrilled to find this book, and it actually ended up being one of my favorites for the month!

Non Puoi Essere Tu (roughly translated to It Can't Be You) is a mystery/thriller set in Northern Italy. A young woman sees a picture her cousin posts to Facebook and in it appears her best friend Marcella who had died the year prior under mysterious circumstances. That wouldn't be strange, except that the picture is from a few days ago. Determined to find out more about this double of her friend, she travels to the small seaside town where her Marcella died. This short novella oozed atmosphere, and was actually really creepy at certain points! I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this one, and can't wait to read more of Ognibene's work.

March tells the story of John Lewis' childhood and early forays into the Civil Rights movement. The book does such a lovely job of telling Lewis' story and bringing this period of history back to life for the reader. Lewis' recent passing and the wider discussions around Black Lives Matter makes the series even more poignant and timely. There are two more books in the series, and I can't wait to dive into them!