Week in Reading: June 8

It's Monday, which means another weekend behind us. I had a particularly lazy two days that involved several hours of Outlander, several hours of Parks & Rec, and several hours of reading. What's not to love about that? I started--and finished--Newport, by Jill Morrow, a 1920s-era novel about a family contesting their patriarch's will that includes seances and mysticism and all kinds of dirty secrets. While not the type of book I'm usually drawn to, I was caught up in the first few chapters and wasn't disappointed in the end. I also finished At Hawthorn Time, a quiet and slow-building novel about strangers living in the English countryside. Reviews of both will come in Shelf Awareness for Readers next month.


I'm slowly working through Charity Detox, the sequel to the controversial 2011 book by the same author, Toxic Charity. While I agree with many of the author's points about the state of non-profit work in the United States today, I take strong issue with a) the way many arguments are presented and b) the religious overtones in the book as a whole. Still wrapping my mind around how to write about a book that I think is worth reading as part of a conversation, though I'd never recommend it as standalone on a subject.

I expect this will be a quiet week in reading for me as I've got a boatload of household projects on my list, though I'm still working my way through Cloud Atlas and Drums of Autumn.

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And in case you didn't see it last week: I'm hosting a Summer of #BlumeALong event, starting next week! Won't you join us? We're reading Are You There God? It's Me Margaret first, then Summer Sisters in July. Come for one, come for both!



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What are you reading this week?