It has been a minute since I last shared what I read so I've got seven books to share with you today! On my previous commute I was able to take a shuttle and really loved having a built in 1.5 hours of reading every day. Now, however, I have to drive to work so I'm going to have to make more of a conscious effort to carve out reading time. Wish me luck!
How to American: An Immigrant's Guide to Disappointing Your Parents. This book is written by Jimmy O. Yang who is a comedian and an actor on Silicon Valley. Mark and I actually saw him do stand up in San Jose and then I read his book shortly thereafter. It's so funny and his story of immigrating to America as a 13 year old scrawny Chinese kid is told in a highly entertaining and endearing way. He goes on to talk about how he became an actor and eventually got his big break with Silicon Valley. Would I recommend: Yes! I think this would be a fun book even if you're not familiar with him or the show but if you've watched the show definitely pick it up!
The Wedding Date. This book was SO cute! It's the perfect rom-com in book form. Alexa and Drew find themselves stuck in an elevator and Drew ends up inviting Alexa to be his fake girlfriend to a wedding he's in that weekend. They end up having such a good time but they live in different cities and both have demanding jobs. You'll have to pick it up to see what happens from there! Personally, I couldn't put it down. Would I recommend: Oh yes! The book is pretty steamy and would make for a perfect beach read. I just found out there's a semi-sequel coming out in August so I'm pumped for that.
The Summer of Us. I got this book for free at work and wouldn't have normally picked it up. It's a YA book about a group of expat high schoolers living in London who just graduated and are going on a Euro-trip together. A few of them are in relationships with one another and a bunch of secrets and drama come out during their multi-city trip. Would I recommend: meh. I ended up wanting to find out what happened to everyone but it ultimately wasn't worth the time.
Little Fires Everywhere. I finally got my hands on this book and was so excited to read it. After I was a good ways in I realized that nothing substantial had happened yet but that I was still hooked. It does heat up and the plotline thickens but you'll love it from the beginning because the author's writing and character development is so deep and beautiful. She'll go off on these tangents about each character so you can get to know them better but it's not distracting and you can tell she's really got all of the characters figured out. Anyway, the story revolves around an affluent Ohio suburb and two families who live there. Pearl and her mother Mia move to town and rent a house from the Richardsons who live a few blocks away. The two families eventually all become intertwined with friendships and romantic relationships and secrets. Me describing it here doesn't make it seem all that great, but just trust that it is. Would I recommend: definitely! Add to your list pronto.
The Thousandth Floor + The Dazzling Heights. These are books one and two in a three-part story and I'm obsessed. I finished the second book a month ago and still can't stop thinking about it. The stories take place 100 years from now in 2118 in New York. Basically the entire city (and lots of other big cities around the world) have been built into vertical towers that are 1000 stories high. If you live at the top of the tower you've got tons of money and the further down you go the poorer it gets. The books follow several characters from both up-tower and down-tower who are high schoolers and whose lives all end up crossing paths. I've heard this series likened to a futuristic Gossip Girl and I can definitely see it. The thing I loved about these books is how well the author crafted this future world. She did not half-ass it! Every little detail is so well thought out and you feel like you've been transported. Honestly, it feels like Harry Potter in that sense. What I really loved is that it's a YA book set in the future but it doesn't have any war to be waged like in Hunger Games, Divergent, etc. That storyline is overdone IMO. Would I recommend: 1000X yes (see what I did there?)! If you can't tell I really loved this series and can't wait for the third book to come out this summer.
The Selection. Here's one last YA book for you! The Selection is kind of like a futuristic Bachelor. The United States has been war-torn and now all of North America is called Illéa, which has a royal family. The time has come for the prince to pick a princess so 35 girls from around the country are chosen to come and stay at the palace and pretty much compete to become the next princess. I don't watch the Bachelor but I still really enjoyed this book. It's also part of a three-part series and now I just have to wait on the library to read part two! Would I recommend: yes if you like a good YA book! Be warned that it ends with a cliffhanger and you'll need to read the next book ASAP!
What have you been reading lately? If you're looking for more book recs you can find all Recent Reads posts here!
xo Catherine
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