the best books I read this month

Another month (almost) gone, another batch of books read. Once again I read quite a few books this month and you can check out them all here, but here I will be talking about some of the best books I read this month. Some of them are brand new and others are a few years old, but they all get my seal of approval.

The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After by Clemantine Wamariya
This was such a fascinating, engulfing, inspirational book. I have read books about the Rwandan genocide before but the way this book was laid out with the time jumps from Clemantine’s journey throughout Africa and to her time spent in the United States was very easy to read. I found the writing style very enjoyable and while the topics discussed are not easy to read I found that they were told in a way that conveyed the harsh reality, but it wasn’t too disturbing
Locavore: From Farmers’ Fields to Rooftop Gardens – How Canadians Are Changing the Way We Eat by Sarah Elton
As I am becoming more eco-conscious and concerned about the waste that I am making I have started thinking about where my food comes from and how to support local farmers and creators. This book really taught me a lot about why we don’t see more Canadian food in our grocery stores even when it is being grown and how to support local. I loved that this book had a Canadian focus and it made me think about what I buy and how to be more thoughtful in my purchases.
What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
This book was on my holds list at the library for a very long time, I believe since September when it originally came out, but it was very worth the wait. This book made me feel like I was sitting down for a conversation with Hillary as it was informal but also very informative about her life, the campaign, and her thoughts now on how everything played out. This book gave me an insight into the complicated world of politics and I have already convinced both my husband and mom to read it.
The Brightest Sun by Adrienne Benson
This is a book about mothers, all sorts of mothers in a variety of locations throughout Africa and in a variety of ways. Although I am not a mother I was truly touched by the stories and how they weaved together through good times and bad times. I don’t read too many books set in Africa and enjoyed the variety of perspectives and cultures that were brought together through the experience of motherhood, friendship, and family.
Sleeping Giants (Themis Files, #1) by Sylvain Neuvel
I am not generally a fan of science fiction novels, but when I had to read this book in order to get to one of my selections for the Goodreads Challenge I ended up really loving this story and the things it made me think about. The premise of the novel starts like this, “A girl named Rose is riding her new bike near her home in Deadwood, South Dakota, when she falls through the earth. She wakes up at the bottom of a square hole, its walls glowing with intricate carvings. But the firemen who come to save her peer down upon something even stranger: a little girl in the palm of a giant metal hand.” The novel takes place 17 years later with this same girl now researching this strange hand and finding more gigantic body parts. There are a lot of questions about humanity, aliens, and our place in the world that mad me think.
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Wells
I know, I know; I am the last person to read this book, but for some reason I never got around to it. I decided to make it my selection for Women’s History Month this month however and I am so glad I finally got around to reading it. Though this book is hard to read at some points because of the painful and hard things that Jeannette goes through it is a very poignant look into a life that was very different than mine. I am excited to watch the movie now and see how it compares, but if you haven’t gotten around to this book yet I highly suggest that you do.