May 2019 Wrap Up

May has been a pretty crazy month for me. I got to go to Disneyland at the beginning, which was amazing. About a week ago (or so), I was in Pittsburgh which was another new place for me. Then June 1st was the anniversary of Sprite's death and the day that I left to visit New Mexico. That's why this post is a little bit late, sorry!

However, I read several great books last month!

Title: The Overdue Life of Amy Byler
Author: Kelly Harms

Thoughts: I believe this was from the Amazon Prime First Reads. While on vacation I was craving some contemporary fiction so I picked this one out of my Kindle library. It is about a woman who has been abandoned by her husband and forced to find a way to be a single mom. But when he comes back years later, she's not sure she wants to share her life. Her friends help encourage her to allow her ex to take care of the kids while she goes to a conference in New York and re-discovers herself on her "Momspringa."

I wasn't sure how much I would like this book, but I found it surprisingly enjoyable. It's always good to remember that there is more to life than just the hard stuff!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Title: Leah on the Offbeat
Author: Becky Albertalli

Thoughts: A young adult contemporary this time by an author I have loved in the past. This is the story of high school student Leah and how she navigates her way through trying to be a friend, drummer, daughter, student, artist, and maybe girlfriend? As high school is drawing to an end, she knows her life will be changing forever, whether she likes it or not.

I really enjoyed her book the Upside of Unrequited and I liked Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and I liked this one, too. I was so heartbroken for her when she found her prom dress and her mom was less than enthusiastic. But I liked the story and it was a great vacation read.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Title: Aru Shah and the Song of Death
Author: Roshani Chokshi
Narrator: Soneela Nankani

Thoughts: Book two of the Pandava Quartet and I enjoyed it just as much as the first one. The adventures of Aru and Mini continue. They meet another Pandava sister, Brynne, and other allies and must recover the bow and arrow for the god of love before they are banned from the Otherworld forever.

I am generally a sucker for mythology and mythological re-tellings. While my knowledge of Hindu mythologies and the Pandava stories are not the strongest, this series has been great so far.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Title: There's Something About Sweetie
Author: Sandhya Menon

Thoughts: Another young adult contemporary that I ordered as soon as it came out. This is about Ashish who is still recovering from a bad breakup and allows his parents to arrange some dates with an Indian-American girl of their choosing. And they choose Sweetie who is an accomplished singer, great student, and a track star. And she is fat. She is ok with all of these things, but she is never sure if other people are. Like her mother. Despite everything, Sweetie and Ashish find love.

This was a sweet, feel-good book. I really liked her book From Twinkle, With Love (though I didn't enjoy When Dimple Met Rishi as much). I think Sandhya Menon's books just keep getting better. And this is a wonderful summer romantic read!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Title: I'm Fine and Neither Are You
Author: Camille Pagán

Thoughts: Penelope is left reeling from the death of her best friend, who seemed like she had the perfect life. As Penelope discovers that this is not the case, she decides it's time to fix things in her own hectic life. And she has a list and a husband who is willing to help work on their marriage and help encourage Penelope to be honest about what she needs and how she feels. While the tasks often seem insurmountable to her, she does start managing to make small changes and improvements to her life.

I got this for my Kindle on sale a while back and picked it up in the midst of my book hangover from The Overdue Life of Amy Byler (which was another book hangover pick from Matchmaking for Beginners that I read a few months ago and wanted more of). I'm starting to see weird patterns in my adult contemporary novel picks! But I did enjoy this one and I cried a few times. A lot of it felt like it could be very real and it made me think.

Rating: 3 1/2-4 stars out of 5


Did I give all of my reads this month 4 out of 5 stars (or nearly)? Yes. It was a good month for reading! Even if I didn't finish my Biology MCAT book like I promised myself. Sometimes that's just the way life goes. I didn't feel like studying while I was on my vacations and ultimately I am very happy with the books I got to read this month.

I also have an idea rolling around in my head for this blog. I am passionate about science and I have posted a couple little things in the past that are science related. I was listening to a podcast episode recently (the second half of the vaccine episode of This Podcast Will Kill You, which is an awesome podcast and you should totally listen to it). They talked some about science and how the general public doesn't understand science and how scientists make information inaccessible to people who aren't, well, scientists. It got me thinking that I might want to contribute to the science community. Maybe I can help make some of this knowledge more accessible? I wish I were an expert on all science (ie: global warming), but I'm not. I do know infectious diseases though. I'm not sure if there is much interest out there for this, but it is something I have been thinking about trying. I will try to start putting something together within the next month or two. Please let me know if you have questions or suggestions!

I can't recall any other big news or developments in my life. Except maybe that I got to see the new Aladdin movie and I recommend it!

Happy summer! Hope you read something amazing!