When I Should Be Studying

Reasons For Reading This Book: On the book and reading social media accounts that I follow I saw the cover of Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult circling around a while back and when I saw it at the local book sale I picked it up. I have had it on the shelf for months now and chose to read it to check it off my list, because I was traveling and did not want to take a library book with me and to be honest because I was too exhausted to think about looking, choosing, and picking up another book from the library. With this book I did not read the summary and had no idea what it was about when I started reading it. I dove, pun intended, head first into it.   Content of This Book: Diana has always had a plan for her life and has never really straid from it until she becomes stranded on the Glapolos Islands during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Back in New York City her boyfriend has left his role as a surgical resident to meet the demand of COVID patients in the ICU. He’s stuck in the thick of...

Reasons for Reading This Book: I was at the library looking in the stacks for a different book I was about to check out when I found the teaching/learning/studying section. As someone who loved school and has a mom who was a teacher and a sister who is about to start her first year of teaching, I started looking at the titles in this section. I have always been curious about school systems, types of learning and other topics related to education. The title Learning America by Luma Mufleh stood out to me on the shelf. I read the summary and knew that I would like it so I put it on my to read list and went back and picked it up a couple of weeks later. I was intrigued by this book because it intertwined two different topics, the American education system and refugees’. The summary peaked my interest and I couldn’t wait to start reading it.   Content of This Book: One evening Luma Mufleh, a Muslim, gay, refugee woman from hyper-conservative Jordan- finds herself in a pickup soccer ga...

Reasons for Reading This Book: I read Advika and the Hollywood Wives in participation with the Readhead’s June 2023 podcast episode. Going into reading this book I knew it was Jackie’s choice and that it was a new book because I could not get it at my library so I had to purchase it. Going into it I had a feeling it would give Taylor Jenkins-Reid vibes with it being about Hollywood and celebrities. I had no real expectations going in but was excited to read about a book that was set in Hollywood and about the entertainment industry as I have enjoyed books similar to this in the past.   Content of This Book: Advika is an Indian-American 27 year-old who has never succeeded the way she hoped she would in her dream of being a successful screenwriter. Dealing with her grief and the changing dynamics in her relationships following the tragic death of her twin-sister, she was not yet able to achieve what she wanted to. While working odd jobs in Hollywood to pay rent, Advika meets award-...

Reasons For Reading This Book: One of my favorite book Instagram accounts to follow and take recommendations from is @halpreads . Emily Halp runs this amazing account. Whenever I am looking for a new book to read I turn to her account for recommendations. While on her account I came across her 5 star review of Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma . One of my preferred genres of books is nonfiction memoirs. As someone who has personally dealt with disability discrimination, I was so excited to read this book and both relate to her struggles and learn more as we have very different disabilities. Content of This Book: Haben Girma was born deaf-blind to two immigrants from Eritrean and Ethiopia. She grew up with enough vision to see when someone was in front of her and enough hearing to hear when someone close to her was talking. What challenged her was reading facial expressions and distinguishing people in group conversations. From a young age, Haben ne...

Reasons For Reading This Book: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt has been on my to read list since it was published last year. This specific book came as a recommendation from my best friend. After finally getting my hands on a library copy I was able to read it in March 2023. As someone who has a degree in environmental studies and a love for ocean life, I was excited to read this book for the story and interpretation of an octopus as a narrator. I avoided reading the description of the book as I wanted to go into it with little expectations of the story. Before starting I was told by my best friend that she loved it and when she tells others about this book it sounds like a child’s book but is not.   Content of This Book: Tova is a lonely widow, Cameron is a down on his luck young man, and Marcellus is a giant Pacific octopus. These three contrasting characters’ lives become intertwined cleverlyin a story that is heartwarming, charming, and oh so unconventional....