In a recent conversation over book types someone said “I don’t really enjoy the ones that are just about relationships” which is about the exact moment I realized that’s most of what I read. The Most Fun We Ever Had is no exception. Marilyn Connolly and David Sorenson share a love that nauseates their children…
Author: Grace Peterson
The Wedding People
My 2% readers, I feel we’ve reached a milestone together as I’m able to say that I’ve read a bandwagon bestseller at the time it’s still relevant rather than waiting my requisite two years before touching it. I went in expecting (and ready for) the standard chick-lit tropes I had come to expect from any…
Still Life
I’ve recently had my notion of a “good” book challenged and realized the criteria I had been using focused on quick, dynamic plots, compelling character arcs, and big twists. I’m glad that I read this book during my process of re-evaluation because it would not have stacked up to my previous criteria, and the book is…
Tom Lake
Ann Patchett, in my experience from reading Commonwealth and The Dutch House, is a queen of narratives centered around relationships, and Tom Lake is no exception. Set on a cherry orchard in Northern Michigan in the spring of 2020, Lara is coaxed by her three grown daughters to, once again, regale them with the tale…
Lessons in Chemistry
My dear 2% reader, I come to you with my head hung low. I have ~once again~ dismissed a title due to its buzz and bandwagon-ness, only to discover two years after the fact that the buzz was worthwhile and I love it. Will I ever learn and get over my fear of the bandwagon?…
Good Material
As a fan of Dolly Alderton’s other works – namely Everything I Know about Love and Ghosts – I was incredibly disappointed to discover that this book did not live up to its title. Andy, a middling comic who is in love with Jen is thrown a curveball when she breaks up with him upon…
The Lincoln Highway
The 2% Readers’ “Pick for Review” from 2024 was none other than The Lincoln Highway, an endearing tale about two brothers’ quest for a new start after the passing of their father. The book comes in at 576 pages, and it is a hefty yet worthwhile narrative. Emmett returns home to the family farm after…
Infamy: The Shocking Story of the Japanese American Internment in World War II
The first time I registered the weight of the Japanese American internment was in a high school history class, when a classmate brought in a letter his grandfather had received. It was an apology from a former president; an apology for the impact and harm that had been caused by the internment. While jarring at…
The Anthropocene Reviewed
And yes, home is that house where you no longer live. Home is before and you live in after. But home is also what you’re building and maintaining today… Away from his standard fiction titles (you might know him from The Fault in Our Stars and Looking for Alaska), The Anthropocene Reviewed is a collection…
Funny Story
I have been rather harsh on chick-lits (and Emily Henry) recently, for which I do not apologize because I meant every word, but I’m a big enough person to admit that I feel Henry really showed her stuff with this one. I thought Funny Story – while still following a lot of chick-lit tropes –…