Misty's 2022 reading challenge

[Misty]

I just finished Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich. It is incredibly depressing, but that is due to the content. The book is very well written, and it's a valuable and important work. It's just really depressing.

[Misty]

Finding Me by Viola Davis is a fantastic book. She shares her story honestly, and, at times, it is incredibly raw. Her passion and resilience shine through in the book. I highly recommend this book.

#20BooksByBlackWomen - 18

[Misty]

I just finished In the Country of Others by Leila Slimani. I would love to say good things about it, but it was awful. It was a truly boring and cringe-worthy book. There wasn't a single character in it that I actually liked. Apparently, it is the first book of a trilogy. I don't know if all three are written, but I know this is the only one that is translated into English so far. I will not be reading the other two.

[Misty]

Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye (1) This book was the most violent book I have ever read. Honestly, it was too much. The last 40 pages of the book are the best, and even then I kept between "this book is awful" and "meh it's okay." I'm very frustrated that I read through the entire book, and the story didn't even end. There will be (or might already be) a sequel. I will absolutely not read it.

[Misty]

I just finished When the Ground Is Hard by Malla Nunn, and I really enjoyed it and would recommend it. It is set in the British Protectorate of Swaziland (now Eswatini). It is a story about a mixed race teenager who has a part-time father who is white (part-time because he has another family in South Africa). She was a part of the "in crowd" at boarding school until this year when her friends abandon her. She finds an unlikely ally and friend in her new roommate. It was really good.

[Misty]

I just finished My Real Name Is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih, and it was a beautiful and heartbreaking book. It is the story of a young woman and her family who are Jewish and living in Ukraine when the Germans invade in WWII. I was captivated by their story. It is loosely based on a real story. I listened to this one on Audible. The narrator did a great job. It had several unwarranted one star reviews because people were butt hurt that the author rightly compared Trump and the hatred he inspired to the beginnings of the Holocaust. This book is really fantastic. I want my kids to read it. It is geared toward a younger audience, but I am not young and am very glad I read it.

[Misty]

Life Among The Piutes: Their Wrongs And Claims by Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins is a heart rending account of the way Sarah's Native American tribe was treated by the US Government. Truly, our government was, at times, as bad as the Nazis. :(

[Misty]

I'm done with all my challenges for the year! Woo hoo! :)

I read The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan. It took a very long time to get into this book. I think this was her first book, and maybe it took a while to really get into the swing of the book. By the end I enjoyed it. I gave it four stars, but it is more of a 3.5. The ending was strong, so I would be willing to give the next one a shot. I like the premise of the story. It is historical fiction based on real characters.