I know I say this every month, but I really can’t believe September is already over. If you hadn’t noticed by my lack of posts, it was not the best month for me. My life has just been very chaotic – and will be for at least another few weeks – and I didn’t have the energy or motivation to blog or even read all that much. Hopefully by the end of October I’ll be back to normal and I can get to posting regularly again (I’m going to try the next few weeks, but can’t guarantee anything).

But despite struggling, I did read quite a few books in September. There wasn’t anything I hated, but there weren’t any five-star reads, either,. It was a solid mix of three- and four-star books (maybe skewing a bit more towards three-stars). I’m not mad about it, but it definitely wasn’t my best reading month. And I really hope October is better because I am ready for all the spooky reads!

What I Read

Obit by Victoria Chang

The first book I finished in September was this very interesting blend of memoir and poetry. I really loved Victoria Chang’s writing style and very much want to read more from her. Unfortunately, it’s one of those books that I personally didn’t connect with as much as I would have liked. I’ve talked before about how I personally have a hard time with books that revolve heavily around families or mother-child relationships (I have a terrible relationship with my own), and that’s what this one was. However, I do think anyone who likes books like Crying in H Mart might really enjoy this one. And I definitely want to check out more of Victoria Chang’s writing, I really enjoyed it.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain

I am very far down the introvert side of the spectrum, so I’ve been meaning to read this book for years. And I’m not sure if my expectations were too high because of that or because I’d heard people recommending this so much for so long, but this didn’t blow me away. It was interesting, sure. But I was kind of expecting it to provide some insight that I could use in my own life, and it didn’t really do that. I’m glad I finally read it, but a little sad that this wasn’t the five-star book I had hyped it up to be in my mind.

Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Centuty by Kim Fu

Creepy, weird books are my jam. We know this. And this is a book of really weird short stories. That, unfortunately, was not at all memorable for me. I don’t know exactly why, because I remember enjoying it while I was reading it – not a ton, but still – and I could not tell you what a single one of the stories was about if you asked me now. And it’s only been three weeks. Which is very unfortunate since the first line of the synopsis is claims this book contains “twelve unforgettable short stories”. Honestly, I don’t think it was bad at all, and I don’t remember disliking anything about it. But it really didn’t stick with me.

Kaleidoscope by Cecily Wong

I knew this was about family going in, so the fact that I gave this book three stars is probably my own fault. To be honest, I’m trying to finish the alphabet challenge this year, and made it harder on myself by trying to do it without using titles that start with “the” or “a”, etc. And I was having a hell of a time coming up with a K book I was both interested in and hadn’t already read. This one was a new release that sounded decent (and also short, which was great for a month where I was not having. good time with reading). But it felt too much like something I’d read before, and it’s already kind of blended with other books in my head. Not bad, but I didn’t love it.

Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

This book came about because I make terrible decisions after 10pm (yes, I am old). I was scrolling through Libby (an app where you can check out ebooks from your library) in bed one night, looking to see if they had a book I was interested in and couldn’t find. They did not, of course, but they did have several books that caught my eye. I couldn’t get this title out of my head, so I checked it out. It’s a really clever story about a town that makes certain letters illegal as they start falling off of a statue. Which I thought was very fun and clever. I enjoyed it. It was a solid three stars. I know there’s like a cult following for this book, so don’t come for me, but I thought it was just fine.

Briefly, a Delicious Life by Nell Stevens

This is a new release that’s been on my radar for a while. I even included it in the post I did back in June about LGBTQ+ new releases. It’s about a fourteen-year-old ghost who haunts a town that is one day visited by George Sand, her lover Chopin, and her children. And Blanca becomes utterly entranced by George, even though George can’t see her and doesn’t even know she exists. The ultimate unrequited love story. This wasn’t quite what I was expecting, but I still really liked it. I enjoyed the writing and the characters, and it was a nice historical fiction novel for fall.

To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

Finally, I picked up this one. Which was totally unplanned, but I was having trouble getting into the book I wanted to read for the Buzzword Reading Challenge in September (the prompt was “light” or “dark” in the title). I already had this audiobook, and never finished it. So I gave it another go. And it was fine. I got through it this time, but I didn’t love it. I think after I enjoyed Orlando so much earlier in the year, this one was just a little disappointing. Probably an unpopular Virginia Woolf opinion, but whatever. I didn’t hate it, but it’s my least favorite Virginia Woolf so far.

What I’m Currently Reading

Three Apples Fell from the Sky by Narine Abgaryan

I picked this up after learning about it when I put together my women in translation post back in August. I’ve only read a few pages and then the slumpyness started. I did really enjoy what I read so far, though, and I think this might have five-star potential. Hopefully I can pick it back up and finish it soon!

HHhH by Laurent Binet

I know WWII historical fiction isn’t the most original fall read, but this one seemed really interesting. It’s about a two men – a Czech and a Slovac – who were recruited by the British secret service and assassinated Reinhard Heydrich in broad daylight in the middle of Prague. It’s based on a true story, and I am very interested. Unfortunately, my brain cannot focus on almost anything right now, so it is on hold until I have the bandwidth to pay attention.

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson

One thing that is immune from my tiny attention span at the moment is murder. Don’t ask me why. So I moved on to this book, which is a true crime book about H. H. Holmes, who was basically America’s Jack the Ripper. He killed a suspected nine people in his murder castle (seriously, look it up, it’s crazy) as well as being convicted of fraud and three or four bigamous marriages. He was the subject of at least fifty lawsuits stemming from being a con man. So the perfect nonfiction pick for October.

What I Watched

Sins of Our Mother

I am definitely a bit of a true crime junkie. For the last few weeks, I have been relaxing after work by watching a show called Buried in the Backyard and playing Ooblets. For some reason, the combination of murder and cute little squishy creatures I can breed to manage my farm just makes my brain chill out. (I am fully aware that’s really weird, but I don’t even care because it works.) Anyway, when I saw this docuseries on Netflix, I had to watch it immediately.

In case you somehow missed it last year, this was about the massive news story that was Lori Vallow, who was charged with murdering her two children after joining a cult (and then marrying the leader – also charged). This was early 2021, when I was still avoiding outside like the plague (literally), so I followed this pretty closely. And it is both sad and fascinating. This series was super thorough, and I thought they did a really great job. If you like true crime, it’s a must-watch.

Don’t Worry Darling

Yes, I went to see the movie getting more attention for the behind-the-scenes drama than the film itself. Honestly, I wasn’t super excited about it, but one of my friends begged me to go, and I love Florence Pugh. So I went. And this movie was super weird. You all know I like weird things, but this one just didn’t quite work for me. It was like if The Stepford Wives met Midsommar kind of weird. And I do love The Stepford Wives, and I’d still choose to watch that over Don’t Worry Darling every time.

This movie just felt off somehow. Florence was great. And I do like open endings (because I know a lot of people don’t). But it was kind of meh. Also, the sound affects literally gave me a migraine so bad I almost vomited, so just a heads up if you have sinus issues – maybe don’t see this in theaters. I will say Harry Styles was better than I expected. Not saying much, because I had very low expectations, but I didn’t hate his acting. So there is that.

That’s it for September! Fingers crossed October is a better reading month! What was your favorite read of September?

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