i like the idea of these monthly reading updates, so here you have all the books i read this month.

pancakes in paris by craig carlson. this food memoir came in my first shipment from mybookbox, and it explores carlson’s quest to open the first all-american diner in paris. as a struggling hollywood screenwriter with mounting debt and an abiding love for france, carlson decided to give it all up and finally pursue his dream, and his book discusses all of the setbacks and pitfalls he experienced along the way. the portions where he discusses dealing with ridiculous french labor laws are particularly entertaining // 3 out of 5

you sit down to dinner and life as you know it ends.

the year of magical thinking by joan didion. i wasn’t sure what to expect from didion’s memoir of the first year following the death of her husband, john gregory dunne, but it certainly went above-and-beyond any expectations i might have had. the rawness and vulnerability that didion expresses at finding herself suddenly having to navigate the world on her own after being married for nearly 40 years is touching and heartbreaking and haunting and also life-affirming. this is a truly beautiful book // 4 out of 5

the bookshop book by jen campbell. the bookshop book is a collection of stories about wonderful bookshops around the world, but it is also a book about the wonder that bookshops can hold and the incredible place they hold in the lives of so many. there are bookshops that are known the world over, such as shakespeare and co in paris and powell’s in portland, but there are also mentions of the traveling libraries in peru and italy that carry books to places where there are no bookshops. i now harbor dreams of moving to scotland and opening up a second-hand bookshop, i have yet more titles to add to my to-read list, and i have so many new wonderful quotes about how awesome books and bookshops are. i’ll come back to this one many times in the years to come // 4.5 out of 5

currently reading: my brilliant friend, the first book in elena ferrante’s best-selling neapolitan series. so far it is an engaging and interesting read, and i look forward to making my way through the four-book series in the coming months.

did you read anything interesting this month? i’d love to hear about it!

xx