February 2022 Reads

This was a tough reading month for me. I false started on 4-5 books in between the two below titles. It took a lot to reel me in apparently, and I am grateful for these two books! Tell me what you have read and loved lately!

I don't read a ton of male authors (sorry dudes, I just feel like you get plenty of cookies already) but someone recommended "The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven" by Nathaniel Ian Miller highly and I was intrigued by the premise. I loved Miller's style of prose and humor and found myself becoming increasingly moved by the discovery of unexpected tenderness in relationships and the need to accept uncertainty in those who choose to drift or depart. This was a beautiful read and I actually whimpered a little when I read its final pages.

If I needed to describe "L. A. Weather" by María Amparo Escandón in one word it would be "unraveling." It is a story that resonated deeply for me in its layering around family, secrets, struggles, and striving. And it was an unusual book in that I found myself rooting for each of the family members at one point or other to find their way. As a lifelong East Coaster the depiction of the L. A. landscape was also compelling, as was all of the descriptions related to food!