books Here are the 14 books I read in September. I read a little of everything this month. I enjoyed ADHD For Smart Ass Women, Demystifying Disability, and A Work In Progress with a few others close behind.

Check out my various pages for ⭐️ ratings of these books:

I hope you find something that looks interesting to you. Below are a few notes on the books this month.

Total books for the year: 132

  1. 🎧 Witchcraft For Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix - Oh, this one was weird and twisted like most of his books, but I really enjoyed it! it takes place in the 70s in a Florida maternity home for pregnant teens. While there, under pseudonyms, they dabble in witchcraft. It was lots of fun.
  2. 🎧 The Dead Take The A Train by Cassandra Khaw & Richard Kadrey - 2. I really wanted to like this one. The cover is stunning, but I was distracted throughout the book and just not into it at all.
  3. 🎧 The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - The first book in a series of four books, this fun YA mystery/triller centers around teens with exceptional talents that are recruited and used to solve FBI cold cases. I loved the puzzle pieces on the cover and although this wasn’t my favorite book ever, I enjoyed it enough to check out the next book in the series.
  4. 🎧 Olivetti by Allie Millington - Such a cute premise with a typewriter having memories. It wasn’t the most captivating read, but I thought it was an ok book overall.
  5. 🎧 A Work In Progress by Jarrett Lerner - This was an excellent middle grade book about body dysmorphia, body image and self-acceptance. It was written in prose, verse, and illustrations. This story was based on the authors own experiences and was so incredibly well done!
  6. 🎧 In Other Worlds by Margaret Atwood - This was a really fasciniting book and very different than what I normally read. Atwood talks about her take on science fiction vs speculative fiction and where she feels she falls in those genres. The book contains various essays as well as some blubs and thoughts on some other books related to hers. My favorite quote from this book:

    “There’s been quite a lot of chatter about the shortcomings of mother nature, the dirty treacherous cow.”

  7. 🎧 Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson - Let me be honest - I remember listening to this one and enjoying it, but the details of why have exscaped me. Unless I write these few sentences right away, there’s a good chance I will completely forget about a book. SO I liked it, but can’t remmeber why. 🤪
  8. 🎧 Space Case by Stuart Gibbs - bought this series for my daughter a while ago and decided to start the series. Some kids will really enjoy the mystery aspect of these books done in a relatable-to-kids way. It reminded me of a space version of his animal series.
  9. 🎧 13 Ways To Say Goodbye by Kate Fussner - A novel in verse that deals with grief, love, sibling bonds and the main character learning to trust herself.
  10. 🎧 ADHD For Smart Ass Women by Tracey Otsuka - This one was a lot of fun. I’ve read a few ADHD books. This one didn’t have a bunch of new information or anything, I just liked how it was delivered and felt very relevant.
  11. 📱 The Stand-In Dad by Alex Summers - This was the first book pick for my new Pride book club The Beacon Book Club with some local friends. This book had such potential. I loved the premise of the book, but the writing was sub-par, bordering on terrible. I realized it was YA and I have NO idea why it was given that heading because the main characters were in their 30s and 50s. The only thing I can think of is because of the lack of intelligent writing. It really seemed either very juvenile or they should maybe fire their editor.
  12. 🎧 Cuckoo by Gretchen Felker-Martin - This was one messed up book. I actually loved the prologue and wish the rest of the book could have been more like that. The idea of sending these queer kids to a conversion camp and then having it be run by a human-eating alien, had promise, but kind of felt almost like an attack on the queers instead of empowering.
  13. 🎧 The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar - I was really excited about this one, but even as a short story (only 144 pages), I still couldn’t get into this one. It included Faeries and magic and I was sad I didn’t enjoy it more. I was intruiged by the blurb for the next book, so I won’t write this author off yet.
  14. 🎧 Demystifying Disability by Emily Ladau - This was a wonderful and educational book. Lots of great information for various aspects of life, ways to be a good ally, and a variety of ways to help make you a more understanding and inclusive person!

– Book Key –
🎧 - Audiobook
📖 - paperback/hardcover
📱 - ebook
👩‍👧‍👦 - read with kids

Andi

Bright Book Randomness