If You Only Read One: June 2020

We know that we read — and review — a lot of books. It definitely helps that there are three of us, in that regard. So with this feature, we want to tell you our favorite read of the month - if we only recommend one book to pick up, what would it be?

Moira

I am very late to the game, but while I read some great books this month (“All Adults Here” being the closest runner up), “Long Bright River” (Bookshop | Kindle) was my favorite book of the month, and possibly the year so far. While I love crime novels, I generally don’t go for police procedurals, but this totally subverts the genre. Liz Moore’s story of two sisters leading very different lives in North Philadelphia is simultaneously scary, heartbreaking, heartwarming, incredibly suspenseful, and perfectly paced.

Elizabeth

As you all know, this was an incredibly weird and sad and heartbreaking month — not just for America, but for me personally. As frequently happens, I turned to books for comfort and solace, and I found myself delving into both serious works and a lot of rom-coms. Maybe too many rom coms? Though I haven’t been able to write my review for it yet (it’s coming next week! I promise!), “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi (Bookshop | Kindle) is absolutely the best book I read this month, and easily, one of the best books I can remember reading. I am embarrassed to say that I’ve had it at home since it was released years ago, and I made it two chapters in on my first attempt — but this time, I was swept up in this cross-generational, global family saga. It’s amazing, and challenging, and ultimately, really uplifting.

Shannon

I somehow had an amazing month of reading (11 books—who am i?!?!), so it’s hard to pick just one. But, I highly, highly recommend “This Will Be My Undoing” by Morgan Jerkins (Bookshop | Kindle). My full review is here, but this book of essays is essential reading for anyone wants to ensure their feminism is intersectional (so, that should be everybody). Memoirs by Black women are not only important reading for understanding a worldview different from mine (as a white woman), but also just highly enjoyable reading! Love, love, loved it.

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