1. Dear Child by Romy Hausmann (tr. by Jamie Bulloch) (Mystery) - This was a slow-burn mystery and character study, translated from its original German. I found it to be an interesting book, and a sad story. This dealt with the aftermath of trauma and different interpretations by different characters. I'm curious about how life would turn out for Jonathan and Hannah (two children) after the events of this novel.
2. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood (Romance) - This was a cute story that plays with romance tropes, including fake dating. The ending is obvious from the beginning, but the journey is the important part. I enjoyed how kind Adam was to Olive, while having a reputation for being a tough professor. I like that this book also showed important issues in the STEM field and academia. I am a high school science teacher, so I enjoyed reading the science and lab references in the book. This book also dealt realistically with some of Olive's fears and anxieties in academia, including being able to public-speak about her research.
3. The Sweetest Remedy by Jane Igharo (Contemporary Fiction) - This was a thoroughly enjoyable read! I loved getting to see Hannah explore her Nigerian culture and get to know her half-siblings. While there was a strong romance in the book, I think the book was also a lot about family and Hannah's personal growth. I liked the love interest, Lawrence, but I do think the book confessed to potentially falling in love too quickly given the timeline of the story. The story dealt realistically with the family issues. I also liked that this book explored a side of Africa that I don't see as much in stories.
4. The Woman in the Purple Skirt by Natsuko Imamura (tr. by Lucy North) (Contemporary Fiction) - While this is advertised as a thriller, I saw it as more of a contemporary with suspenseful elements. As the narrator follows the "woman in the purple skirt," the reader will wonder what is going on with her and why she is doing this. It was a quiet story, but a quick read with some suspense as to what would eventually happen that kept me turning the pages. The ending was surprising and took an unexpected turn.
5. Hao by Ye Chun (Short Story Collection) - This was a really great collection of stories. Most of these were pretty short, in the 10-15 page range. This collection has some stories about people in China and some about immigrants to the United States. Some stories are contemporary, while some are historical. Many of the stories touched on themes of motherhood, told from the perspective of the mothers. I liked how I learned some things I didn't know about the history of China from this collection. I was drawn to Google some history after reading a story about the Cultural Revolution. A well-written collection!
6. Beautiful Country by Qian Julie Wang (Memoir) - This was a moving memoir about a childhood as an immigrant from China living in poverty in New York. I am sad for what Qian went through as a young girl, but am happy that she is in a good place now. Her love for her family shines through in the pages of this book.
7. Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha (Contemporary Fiction) - I wasn't really sure what genre to categorize this as, because there is a mystery in the book, but it is really more about the characters and relationships. I guessed the answer to the mystery portion before it was revealed in the book. This story is based around a true story from the 1990s. This explores race relations between Black and Korean Americans in LA. This book follows two families, whose lives intersect through multiple tragedies. There are no easy answers in this novel. I felt that it was an excellent and compelling read, exploring moral complexity.
8. How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa (Short Story Collection) - I gradually read these stories throughout the summer and just finished the last few this month. This collection focused on immigrants to Canada from Laos. I have never read any book by a Laotian author before, so I think this was a worthwhile perspective to read. The stories are a mix of narration by adults and children. Many of them are adults reflecting back on their childhood from the child's perspective.
9. Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn (Contemporary Fiction) - This started as a slow-burn of a novel, and gradually, I became fully invested in the characters. Once invested, I could not put this story down. The characters are complex and imperfect, especially Margot. She was a complicated character, because she cares about her sister, Thandi, yet she doesn't always want what Thandi wants for herself. She does some questionable things morally. I enjoyed the exploration of the Jamaican culture in the story.
