May Wrap-Up

I've been reading slower than usual these past couple months, so although I only finished a few books in May, two of them for book clubs, rest assured I've been doing a lot more reading! I have an upcoming post on some of the slower reading I've been doing soon.

Books I Finished This Month

1. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
2. Inheritance by Dani Shapiro
3. The Imperfects by Amy Meyerson

Favorite Books This Month

This was an emotionally tough read. I feel like everybody's been talking about it, which is why I was so taken aback when it was totally not what I was expecting. Based on the description of Eleanor's quirks, I thought this would be about a woman who was on the spectrum or otherwise just socially awkward. Instead, I was blindsided when it turned out to be a story about trauma and PTSD, which although I loved the book, I wish I had known ahead, because it was deeply triggering for me. Eleanor's story is a beautiful but painful one, and I felt too close to the character to be slightly objective, but even though it pulled no punches, I truly loved it.

I was so excited to win this book in an Instagram giveaway from Diamonds in the Library. It came with the sweetest note and inscription from the author, Amy Meyerson. I knew I would love this one right away from the plot description: a family inherits what turns out to be a priceless, MISSING historical diamond. This was very reminiscent of The Nest, with family drama tied up in inheritance but where you can still like the characters, and, in my opinion, much more interesting due to the history of the Florentine diamond and all the historical and genealogical research the characters end up doing. Plus, they travel to Vienna, which is a seriously underutilized travel destination in American books! I was also pleased to discover the family in the book, the Millers, is Jewish, and the funeral and shiva rituals were comfortingly familiar to read. The ending is quite surprising, and imperfect, just like the Millers, but ultimately illuminates what's truly important. Highly recommend.