My first read of July was Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde, an author I had been wanting to read for some time.



Zami: A New Spelling of my Name is a refreshingly honest and thought-provoking piece of autobiographical writing. Audre Lorde writes concisely yet beautifully about (near enough) everything. I have to admit that there were moments which I felt dragged a little, especially in the length of time spent on Lorde's childhood, which are the reason for that missing fifth star.

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After this came The Heart of a Dog by Mikhail Bulgakov.



The Heart of a Dog has some very funny moments, and you can't help but admire the outrageous premise, in which a rich, successful professor transplants the the testicles and pituitary gland of a recently deceased man into a stray dog and accidentally creates a worryingly human animal. I also loved the way Mikhail Bulgakov told the story; the way he varied the narrative format and perspective, and the wry humour evident in his third-person narration.

However, I wasn't completely hooked on this one from the start. As a result, it took me a few days to get through a very slim book. I also think that some of the references to the Russian Revolution were lost on me, which means that my three-star rating is more a reflection of my experience of reading The Heart of a Dog than it is of the book itself.

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Next up was the much-hyped Animal by Lisa Taddeo.



I appreciated what this book was trying to do, and I liked what it had to say about the attitude of men towards women. I liked its honesty, which is something I often appreciate in fiction, and I liked its focus on an unlikable woman. But these, like Animal's details of luxury lifestyles, felt like little features, where I wanted something bigger. It didn't help that the flat tone of the writing wasn't always appropriate for the tone of the story. I did like the back-and-to structure of Animal, drawing out details of the story and toying with the reader by withholding information, but I was suspicious of the book trying to explain Jean's entire personality as if it had one single cause.

I'm definitely glad that I read this one; it's a really interesting story, and I liked a lot of what it was trying to do. But, ultimately, I think I wanted more from it.

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The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris was one of those books I immediately added to my to-read list.



The Other Black Girl is a whipsmart debut, which is part office satire, part thriller with a twist. Zakiya Dalila Harris does an excellent job of putting us inside the mind of Nella, an editorial assistant at Wagner Books who is finally no longer the only Black person in the office. This is a brilliantly insidious story, which slowly turns up the tension notch by notch, as Nella realises she has more to contend with than racist microagressions and workplace politics. I love the way Harris writes about contemporary life, and she has so much to say that is worth hearing. I also love the twist when it comes, which is I think is rather brilliant.

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My next read was African Europeans: An Untold History by Olivette Otélé.



This book was everything I was hoping it would be.

As with all non-fiction that tackles a large topic, African Europeans: An Untold History leaves the reader wanting to know more, but a lot of thought has clearly gone into the structure of this book, and it does an excellent job of covering as much ground as possible in as much detail as possible. I also loved the way Olivette Otélé toggles between the past and the present, demonstrating that African Europeans is not only an important book for its understanding of the past, but also for its illumination of the present.

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After this came Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.



I'm afraid this one didn't quite work for me. As much as I enjoyed the creation of the underground man, I found Notes from Underground a slog to get through. Perhaps this is one to return to one day.

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Everyone seemed to be talking about Falling by T.J. Newman, so I thought I'd see what all the fuss was about.



Everyone seems to be talking about this book at the moment, and I can see why. Falling is one of those books you don't want to put down. I loved the claustrophobic setting of a plane flight, and the way the chapters flick between characters really helps to build tension. T.J. Newman is a master at telling a story with maximum drama, and I found myself genuinely invested in how this story turned out. Falling isn't without its clichés, but if you're looking for a summer blockbuster, look no further.

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July was the month I finally got around to reading Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld.



I love the idea of a book that asks 'what if' Hillary Rodham had never married Bill Clinton. Marriage remains a complicated issue for women, and Curtis Sittenfeld does an excellent job of exploring its nuances. My favourite aspect of Rodham was definitely the way it tackled interesting and important topics, such as female ambition, white feminism, and the #metoo movement. On the downside, I thought that Rodham was perhaps a little too long; it covers an enormous stretch of time, and includes numerous flashbacks. I also think that this book might be more interesting (although perhaps also more uncomfortable) for people better acquainted with the actual history of Hillary and Bill Clinton. I felt, at times, like I was missing some of the book's references, even some of what the book was trying to say, because I'm not familiar with this history.

Rodham won't end up being one of my favourite books, but I am very glad that I finally read it.

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Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and Belonging by Afua Hirsch is another book that I put off reading for too long.



Brit(ish) was much better than I was expecting it to be. Afua Hirsch is an excellent writer (unsurprising when you learn that she is a journalist), and the way she has written Brit(ish) really worked for me. I thought that the book flowed nicely from topic to topic, and Hirsch's choices of section headings made a lot of sense. I also liked how personal the writing is. Although Brit(ish) includes a lot of facts, they always felt relevant to the story Hirsch was telling. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I learnt from Brit(ish) - never just pure facts, but always a way of looking at, or thinking about, things.

Don't be put off by how many non-fiction books have been written in recent years about race. Brit(ish) has something new to add to the conversation, especially if you're a British reader, and is definitely worth a read.

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More non-fiction followed with Jews Don’t Count by David Baddiel.



This is a fantastic book.

Of course I have always stood against antisemitism, but before reading Jews Don't Count I never fully understood the extent of the problem. Reading this book, for me, was comparable to realising the need to be antiracist, as opposed to simply not being racist. David Baddiel does talk about overt, active forms of antisemitism, but the focus of his book is more subtle, passive forms. Jews Don't Count is particularly interested in the fact that many people who fight for diversity and inclusion don't see antisemitism as racism. Baddiel does, and by the end of this book I did too.

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I was late to the party with Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney, which I read next.



Conversations with Friends reminded me a lot of Normal People, so I went back to read my review before writing this and was surprised to see that I'd given Normal People five stars. I don't think I enjoyed Conversations with Friends as much.

I found Conversations with Friends to be a compulsive read, which I also remember to be true of Normal People. I think this is partly a result of how close both books come to soapiness, and partly a result of how well Sally Rooney inhabits the minds of her characters. The characters she creates are certainly compelling, if not always likable, just as the situations they find themselves in tend to be worth reading about even when they lean a little heavily into clichés. My review of Normal People testifies as to how much I loved reading it, but now, only just over a year later, I can only remember bits and pieces. I think that my experience of Conversations with Friends will be similar - a book which absorbed me in the moment, but which ultimately is a little forgettable.

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No Second Chance by Harlan Coben felt like the perfect choice for a lazy day of reading in the garden.



Harlan Coben is an author I can usually rely on to deliver an entertaining and page-turning thriller, and No Second Chance was no exception. This book has been sat on my to-read shelf for a long time, but as soon as I read the opening sentence I was hooked. The action-packed plot kept me guessing until the end, and Coben's realistic characterisation kept the story grounded even at its most dramatic. I loved the intimate, first-person narration of No Second Chance, and Coben's signature sense of humour shines throughout.

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I decided to stay on the thriller-train with The House on the Lake by Nuala Ellwood.



I was immediately intrigued by the premise of The House on the Lake, and Nuala Ellwood does a great job of making the setting integral to the story, which I always love. This is my second book from Ellwood, my first being Day of the Accident, and both are compulsive reads that I didn't want to put down. The plot of The House on the Lake is an interesting one, and, like in Day of the Accident, I appreciated Ellwood's eye for detail. I also loved the way Ellwood played with the trope of the unreliable narrator, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat until the end. However, as with Day of the Accident, I just wasn't convinced by Ellwood's style of writing - hence three stars rather than four.

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On the Road by Jack Kerouac was one of those books I had at the back of my mind to read at some point, when I spied this rather lovely edition in my local library.



On the Road feels very much of its time, and I often felt as if Sal Paradise were an old man, relating the stories of his youth to the reader. This meant that I felt slightly detached as a reader, not overly invested in what happened to the fantastic cast of characters who people these adventures. But I enjoyed the stories nonetheless, especially since Jack Kerouac writes so vividly and with such vivacity that the writing really comes alive. Kerouac's prose is fascinating, and, much like Sal, I felt torn between wanting to tear through the book and wanting to savour every moment.

I found On the Road a little repetitive, and, like a lot of out-dated fiction, there were moments when I didn't care for what was happening or being said. But I'm definitely glad to have crossed this one off my to-read list.

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Up next was Faithless in Death by J.D. Robb, the latest in the In Death series.



J.D. Robb's In Death series is the only book series I could imagine sticking with for 52 books (and counting)! I love the way Robb writes, and her books never fail to make me laugh. The series is anchored around a memorable set of characters, who I can't help but love, but each story presents a new case to solve. Faithless in Death captures just the right balance between old and new, and I appreciated the fact that it moves some of the characters' storylines forward.

I particularly liked the way Faithless in Death engages with contemporary issues, even while displaying Robb's remarkable skill at worldbuilding. Lt. Eve Dallas' latest outing was a page-turning read, which confirmed my love for the series she stars in.

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After reading Transcendent Kingdom last month, I decided to try Yaa Gyasi's first novel, Homegoing.



I was struck by the writing style from the first sentence; every bit as beautiful as that cover. It made Homegoing such a joy to read. Each chapter focuses on a different character, moving the story forward from generation to generation. The story of each character feels whole and complete, but also a part of something much bigger. I really loved the way Gyasi shows how black slave labour didn't immediately end with the abolition of the slave trade. She uses the epic structure of Homegoing to highlight the presence of racism and colonialism through time, growing less evident with every generation, but still very much alive in contemporary society. Gyasi is a skilled storyteller, and her command of this ambitious debut is masterful.

This will definitely be one of my books of the year.

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