What I Read in September
I love reading.
Growing up, I learned how to read at 3 and never stopped. Actually, that isn’t entirely true. In high school and college, I tried my best to read for pleasure and what I enjoyed but I lost touch of literature in my pursuit of higher education.
Now, I’ve set a yearly reading goal for myself that I’ve pushed to achieve. In 2020, I set out to read 52 books (I finished 55 during the year that the world turned upside down) and I’ve posed that challenge to myself every year since.
To be completely transparent, I’m ridiculously behind on this goal.
I’m not even going to tell you how far but if you go to my Storygraph profile, you can find out for yourself.
But I’m determined to meet my goal and I spent this month reading whatever sounded interesting to me and found my passion. This month was pretty heavy on YA but hey, it all counts. These fast reads got me stoked for reading again and I’ll be hitting the big classics again soon.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab (4.75 stars)
This book was one of my favorites I read this month. A historical fiction book filled with suspense, heart-break, and a big helping of fantasy, I was so obsessed. Though it’s pretty long at almost 500 pages, I was so captivated by the vivid writing and intense plot that the pages flew by.
I did knock off a quarter star because a few parts were predictable and I didn’t love the expose at the end.
With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo (3.25 stars)
I tried reading this book back in 2020 and never got past the first chapter. I just wasn’t feeling it. But I picked up the audiobook and finished it in a day editing photos and creating graphics for work. The story is geared towards YA but I loved following high-school senior Emoni’s life juggling a toddler and her last year of school. It was light-hearted and a great read if you’re looking for something easy to digest.
Wilder Girls by Rory Power (4 stars)
What a mind twist! Wilder drops you right into the world of Raxter School for Girls in the middle of an insane disease called The Tox. The girls fight for their lives against a terrifying world, trying to find their lost friends, and the source of The Tox. This book has great LGBTQ+ representation and I loved how intense the whole book was.
I rated it 4 stars because I felt like the characters were a bit flat and some only served to hold up the plot.
Deenie by Judy Bloom (2.25 stars)
If you don’t know me, I’ve been on a quest since high school to read all the books Rory Gilmore reads in Gilmore Girls. After a long hiatus, I’m back! This was available at my library and I figured since it’s such a short read, it would be a great way to ease out of my reading slump.
While I did finish it in about an hour drinking my morning coffee, I honestly hated this book. Judy Bloom was one of my favorite authors growing up and I was hoping to be brought back to the world of braces, teen crushes, and awkward homecomings. But this book didn’t live up at all. The whole plot is based on a girl getting treatment for scoliosis and her life falling apart because her back brace has “ruined” her beauty. The entire book is superficial at best.
My Broken Language: A Memoir by Quiara Algería Hudes (5 stars)
This was by far my favorite book I read this month. Quiara is an incredible poet, musician, and writer who truly captivates her readers in the pages of her memoir. Growing up in North Philly, she paints a vivid picture of her Puerto Rican family’s love, death, sorrow, joy, and all the intimate parts of life.
If you read one book on this list, make it this one. I laughed and cried with her as she narrated her life from a small girl to the present day.
Final Girls by Riley Sager (4.25 stars)
I’m a huge fan of thrillers, mysteries, and horror. This book was available at my library, looked interesting, and I was obsessed right off the bat. Sager does an incredible job at hooking their readers early on and keeping them on their toes for the entirety of the novel. Following a woman who survived a brutal slaughtering in college and left as the sole surviver, we see Quincy trying to navigate through life without the title “Final Girl.” When her fellow Final Girl commits suicide, it sends Quincy on an intense search for answers about her and the connections she had to Quincy.
There’s the six books I read in September! I’m so excited to start devouring books again and I feel inspired. Sometimes it takes easy to digest literature, lyrical prose, and a captivating mystery to light that fire again.
Let me know if you read any of the books and add me on Storygraph!
