All the amazing Books I read in July 2022

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Hola, book lovers, how have you been? So I have had a better reading month in July as far as 2022 goes as I managed to read some good books and 7 of them.

But what is more important, did you get some reading done? If yes, let me know what books you loved and didn't love, as I would love some recommendations too.

On the personal front, I’m just a few weeks away from delivering my second kid, so I’ll be off work too very soon and probably off the blog as well for maybe a couple of weeks. But not to worry as I’ve already planned some amazing posts in advance and will be scheduling them for you by the end of this week so you don’t have to miss out on any interesting news in the literary world.

Among my posts in July definitely check out some latest Indian reads of 2022. Also a comprehensive summary with Infographics of Deep Work by Cal Newport and some interesting quotes by the revolutionary Bhagat Singh from Why I am an Atheist? All the posts linked below. 

Many of these books are also available on Kindle Unlimited. Try Kindle Unlimited Free for 30 days!

Recent Reads July 2022

The Perfect Neighborhood by Liz ALterman

We have the perfect couple, the Langley’s, living in the perfect small-town neighborhood. Allison is a successful actress and Christopher is a musician rock star. But is everything perfect like the neighbors think? Apparently not, because someone spots Allison leaving her house in the dead of the night, and disappears forever. And thus the gossip begins.

But then something out of the ordinary happens in the small town. A kindergarten boy goes missing on his way home from school with no trace of where he might be. Everyone initially blames the young babysitter who was late to receive the kid but the local police find no evidence for days and the case comes to a deadlock.

A fine domestic mystery underlining deep-seated problems in families.  Let me be honest and tell you that the mystery was not so much a mystery to me because I did guess the mischief-maker quite early in the story. And yet it is a very interesting, fast-paced one-time read for me.

The Maid by Nita Prose

Molly the Maid is obsessed with cleanliness and perfection. Although that may be a boon for the Regency Hotel it is a problem for Molly herself. Because her differentness leads to social awkwardness and she often judges others’ intentions wrong.

The only person who ever understood her was her Gran whom she lost to cancer recently and now Molly feels lost. Work is her only friend, but that too gets out of hand when Molly discovers a regular but notorious guest of the hotel Mr.Black dead in his room’s bed.

Her unusual behavior and social awkwardness make her the prime suspect. But she discovers unexpected friends during the crisis who help her get to the real culprit.

Quite an unexpectedly wonderful novel that explores characters who are different and traces their growth through life crises. The mystery is riveting no doubt but more than that the character development was what I enjoyed more about this novel.

A definite must-read for readers interested in a mystery with a human touch and connections of the heart.

If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha

We are transported to Seoul, Korea where four women are trying to make a fulfilling and successful life while living up to impossible beauty and social standards.

We have Ara who turned mute during a freak accident in her college and is working as a hair stylist in a salon. Then there is Sujin who desperately wants surgery to make herself beautiful and start work at a room salon where gorgeous Kyuri is the reigning queen. Miho is an upcoming artist whose life becomes entangled with super wealthy families. Last Wonna is the only one married and she and her husband are trying for a baby.

All of them live in the same building as neighbors and watch each other’s lives and try to be helpful to each other. The story shows the blooming of their friendship and bonding in a very unique way. We are taken through the horrors of their lives as well as the good parts.

In a society that is brutal to women, we see these women trying to live resilient lives and try and be independent and show a rare strength despite their young age and lack of experience.

Although the story was engaging, being narrated through the perspective of each of the characters, I felt a disconnect while reading it.

Readers looking for a glimpse into Korean social class system or an uplifting book about feminism or women power in general must pick this up.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Get ready to be transported to an era of Trojan Wars, Greek heroes and sea goddesses. A retelling of the gay love Greek story,  this is essentially the love story of Achilles, a great warrior, and Patroclus an exiled prince. Achilles and Patroclus become companions through accident but then they are inseparable. Until the war on Troy, when the have to go free Helen, touted to be the most beautiful woman in the world. But a terrifying prophecy threatens to split them apart at the same time assuring Achilles the title of the greatest warrior ever. What will they choose? Love or war?

The story is gripping from the word go. The elaborate battle scenes and the other misfortunes of war are clearly elaborated which give the story refreshing details. Although Achilles was mighty as a warrior, my favorite was Patroclus who had a heart of gold.

If you are a beginner looking to foray into reading, this would be an interesting story to make a start. Or if you are like me prone to reading slumps now and then, this story will definitely put you back in the groove.

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

We are in the midst of wilderness, at a luxury hotel in Caiette. Vincent a bartender there is about to meet the owner of the hotel, Alkaitis, who turns out to be her husband very soon. But someone has engraved a cryptic message on the hotel’s glass window – “Why don’t you swallow broken glass?” – meant for Alkaitis, but it has spooked out many others, especially a hotel guest Leon Prevant an executive of a shipping company.

Back in Manhattan Alkaitis has been arrested for running a Ponzi investment scheme and then becomes responsible for the bankruptcy of many of the characters in the story including a Saudi Prince, Leon Prevant, and some of his close friends. Vincent leaves Alkaitis to join a ship and never to return to land but mysteriously disappears one night.

Three quarters into the book and I had so many questions. But thankfully every loose end was tied securely and satisfactorily in the end. The author had a roundabout way of narrating all the incidents that happened by switching between years, places, and characters, which I thought made the storytelling a little complicated for me. But it was most definitely a captivating style of writing.

The story covers life in so many ways – luxurious, bankrupt, as a celebrity, as a prisoner, in prison, at a luxurious hotel, on a ship, etc., and reading about that added to the beauty of the story.

If you like atmospheric stories, I recommend this book by an NYT bestselling author.

The Sickle by Anita Agnihotri

Through the lives of peasants, migratory laborers, and activists in Marathwada and western Maharashtra, Agnihotri illuminates a series of interweaving and overlying emergencies feminine foeticide, and sexual violation, the violence of class, feudal labor relations, peasants' ’ suicides, and climate change in all its avatars.

From Vaishali, straining to rebuild her life after her spouse's suicide, to Yashwant, a Dhaba proprietor pushed to activism by his mother’s homicide, Agnihotri’s accusation of Indian society is predicated on individual lives.

Deep Work by Cal Newport

Do you use your intellectual capacity to its absolute fullest? Cal Newport says that to do this Deep Work is absolutely necessary. A distraction-free focus on what you are doing to do it as its absolute best is the need of the hour he mentions.

First, he persuades us why deep work is essential, valuable, rare but meaningful. Then he gives us the rules that when followed lead to intense focus like how to work deeply, its various method and strategies, then why we should embrace boredom and not quickly jump to checking our phones and social media. Then he talks about quitting social media and draining out shallow work from our routines.

Cal Newport convinces you of the power of intense focus and concentration and its need in today's social media-obsessed world. And for you to execute it in your life he offers an actionable framework. A must-read if you are looking to improve on yourself to produce flawless and fulfilling work.

Books on my August TBR

Happy reading!!