One of my favorite additions to our summer rhythm has been our weekly library trips.
I want our summer to feel slower, so naturally our local library has become one of the anchors to that plan. The kids fill up their tote bags with picture books and chapter books, we usually stay for a little while to browse, and I always wander over to the adult fiction shelves to see what catches my eye.
Spoiler: I choose my books like I choose my wines at Straubs — what’s featured by the librarians, and by a pretty book jacket.
I genuinely believe public libraries are one of our greatest community resources. Beyond the endless shelves of books, ours offers story times, craft days, STEM activities, and all kinds of free programming for children. It’s become one of the highlights of our week.
One unexpected benefit of borrowing instead of buying is that I’ve become a much more adventurous reader. If I purchase a book, I often feel obligated to finish it—even if I’m not enjoying it. But when it’s borrowed? I have no problem returning it halfway through, if it’s not working. That freedom has made reading really light this summer.
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve worked my way through quite a stack. Some were fantastic. Some were simply okay. And a few…well…they went right back into the return bin. I wanted to share those lists with you today + quick 1-2 sentence reviews.
Returned Early
- A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson – Nothing about this story made me want to keep going. I was having a hard time getting invested, and around the 50% mark, returned.
- Banyan Moon by Thao Thai – Enjoyed at first, but it was slow, meandering, and I began to despise the characters. I returned after reading roughly 80% of the book.
- A Better World by Sarah Langan – This surprised me, since I really liked Good Neighbors, but this felt like it moved so slowly, and eventually, I stopped caring. It was an interesting premise though!
- Sandwich by Catherine Newman – I didn’t enjoy the writing, it fell very flat for me, and I don’t think I’m in the right season of life to appreciate the book.
None of these were objectively “bad” books—they just weren’t books I wanted to spend more time with. And honestly, I love that the library gives me permission to make that decision without guilt.
Worth Borrowing (But Not Buying)
These all had something worthwhile, even if they weren’t five-star reads.
- The Names by Florence Knapp – I wanted to like this more than I did. I didn’t agree with a lot of choices and decisions, nor did I care for many of our characters. I did find myself finishing it in under a week, so there’s something to be said for that.
- Exiles by Jane Harper – As with all Jane Harpers other books, it was a very complicated plot, that ended up having a very clean and simple solution. There were some pretty slow parts though, and wanted to give up a handful of times, but glad I powered through.
- The Float Test by Lynn Steger Strong – umm. This was oddly very enjoyable, but ultimately not a great book, characters were awful. But I couldn’t put it down either. So I don’t know.
- The Rest of Our Lives by Ben Markovitz. Oddly, despite everything, I really enjoyed this book. I had no idea where it was going, but it captivated me from the very first page.
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. A re-read, and glad I did!
- The Chosen by Chaim Potok – Wow, this was fantastic. I finished this past Shabbat. My soul cried for this book. I had to sit in silence afterwards to process it (the irony – if you know, you know), and then re-read the last chapter out-loud to my husband, so he could sit there and cry with me, while sitting in silence, again.
- The Unsinkable Gretta James by Jennifer E. Smith – Only at the 50% mark, but so far, it’s a decent read. Deals with the grief of a dead parent.
If you’re looking for books to borrow on your next library trip, I’d happily recommend any of these. Some were slow burns, some surprised me, and some were worth revisiting in a different format.
Not for Me
- Dopamine Nation by Anna Lembke. The only non-fiction on my summer haul. It simply wasn’t the book I expected it to be, and that’s okay. I wish I could un-read some of the stories in this book, and that’s not OK. I read a hilarious review on GR, about how they’re having a hard time taking anything serious from someone whose read the Twilight series 3x over, and I laughed so hard at that, and totally agree.
Why I Love the Library
The older I get, the more I appreciate the freedom the library gives me. I’m no longer trying to force myself through books simply because I paid for them. Instead, I’m reading more widely, discovering new authors, revisiting classics, and feeling perfectly comfortable returning something unfinished if it isn’t resonating.
Reading has become less about checking books off a list and more about enjoying the process. I’d love to know—what have you borrowed from the library lately? Any five-star recommendations I should add to my next tote bag?