It’s book review day! If you missed yesterday’s post, it was all about how I became a “reader.” Today is all about the books I read in September!

I started this month with an author I had heard a lot about, Elin Hilderbrand. I read her book 28 Summers, and enjoyed it. It was an easy read, and I found myself imagining Nantucket in the summer. The descriptions of food, the scenery, I was ready to book my flight to Nantucket stat. The story she tells of a ‘same time, next year’ romance was…not my favorite. Mostly because I found it sad for all the parties involved. But was it an interesting idea, and the ending was satisfying? Yes. It was a good summer read, even if I don’t like the principle of the main relationship.

I followed up Elin with Necessary Lies. It follows a social worker in North Carolina over fifty years ago, and the families that she gets involved with and wrapped up in their lives. One element of the story is the use of sterilization for women and men that were deemed to be a burden on the social welfare, overly promiscuous, etc. The story was sobering, especially considering the eugenics program wasd very much real and used in North Carolina, and reparations to those impacted is only recently occurring. I found it particularly interesting given that I lived in North Carolina for several years after grad school, and it was honestly shocking that this happened not that long ago. A good book and read!

Next, Nathan picked out Bad Blood to listen to on our drive to South Dakota. Absolutely fascinating. It’s written by the journalist that broke the story about the rise and fall of the Silicon Valley start-up darling, Theranos, founded by Elizabeth Holmes. Theranos’ mission was to test people’s blood, utilizing just a few drops of blood, against a whole range of tests. At one point, the Company was seeking to be able to assist doctors with altering drug dosage based on the results of your blood test to allow for the most precise and best dosage for a particular patient. You may have seen recent news alerts about how she is currently standing trial in federal court for alleged fraud claims, as the technology didn’t work. Captivating and impressive investigative journalism. Highly recommend if you have a bend towards this type of writing.

Shortly after returning from my trip, I finished up The Midnight Library. This book dove into where your life would have gone if you had taken different paths than the ones you ended up originally taken. The thought that each decision would have set you down a slightly different path in life. Who you married, if you were married, what profession you had, where you lived, whether you were rich or poor. The Midnight Library allowed you to delve into what you would do if you could choose from a “library” any life you could have had. I found the book to be an interesting concept, but hard to stay focused and interested in at length. Perhaps it was because I was usually multi-tasking while listening, but for me, the book fell a bit flat.

What did you read this past month that you loved??