SHOP THE POST

I’m excited to share this book with y’all and my review on a very popular recommendation amongst book clubs! For March’s book club selection, y’all chose In Five Years by Rebecca Serle. Check out the synopsis below and my overall review!

IN FIVE YEARS BY REBECCA SERLE

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Dannie Kohan lives her life by the numbers.

She is nothing like her lifelong best friend—the wild, whimsical, believes-in-fate Bella. Her meticulous planning seems to have paid off after she nails the most important job interview of her career and accepts her boyfriend’s marriage proposal in one fell swoop, falling asleep completely content.

But when she awakens, she’s suddenly in a different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and beside a very different man. Dannie spends one hour exactly five years in the future before she wakes again in her own home on the brink of midnight—but it is one hour she cannot shake.

I had a feeling that this book would win over the other choice because it has been so popular since its release. I added it to the list initially because I thought the story was unique, not too cliche and whimsical and had great reviews.

IN FIVE YEARS BY REBECCA SERLE
☆☆☆.5/5

I enjoyed this story and found the overall plot and concept really unique from any other books I’d read. I was intrigued from the beginning to find out how it was going to pan out and while I’m glad it didn’t go the sci-fi route with time travel or something lol, I was looking for a bit more, which is why I gave it a 3.5/5 rating. But, let’s get specific.

I had an initial connection and intrigue with the book because of how relatable I found it. My husband is an attorney and I found the dynamic between Dannie and her boyfriend familiar. As the story goes on I also felt like the character development and writing were great. However, as the book continued, I found the plot and overall direction to be predictable. With a few elements of surprise, I kept reading and was taken back into the story, but I came to dislike some of the characters quite a bit. The way they treated each other and were just bad friends… it became hard to want to support their decisions and story.

This book became highly recommended and had amazing reviews and while I agree, that it is a good book, it didn’t wow me like some other instant five-star reads I’ve experienced.

Have you read it? What did you think? Tell me in the comments below!

SHOP THE POST

As I’m typing this talking about books we’ve read in February, it’s almost the end of March and I feel like this year is flying by already! I am excited that Spring is finally here and things are looking green and warm again. For February’s book club, we read Green Lights by Matthew McConaughey.

GREENLIGHTS BY MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY

Using his unique perspective and iconic voice, Matthew McConaughey shares his past 50 years through stories, life lessons, a bit of autobiography, and an inside look at his rise to stardom. With personal, handwritten notes, diary entries, and scraps of paper containing five-second thoughts and poems, this reading experience is just like the author, unique.

Starting from his childhood and going all the way up to 2020, he shares tangible advice, mistakes he’s made, his faith, and what made him want to make a change in his career.

This first autobiography on the list, I knew I wanted to start with this one since I love most projects Matthew McConaughey attaches himself to. Sure, he is eccentric and a little weird, but I like the way he looks at things. I’ve been a fan of his movies, but when I found out he was the Creative Director for Wild Turkey Bourbon I took an even greater interest in his work. I loved the commercials he created and his ability to tell stories. That’s when I realized I didn’t know much about him personally, just his work. So, I added his book to the list and I’m really glad I did.

GREENLIGHTS BY MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY

☆☆☆☆/5

I already reviewed this a little on Instagram stories and I gave it a 3.5 there, but looking back I think I was a bit critical. This is definitely a book that you have to sit with and after having some time between finishing it and writing the review, I have changed my rating to a 4/5. McConaughey is an incredible storyteller, but it does take time and effort to get used to and enjoy his writing style.

Like I mentioned in the intro paragraph above about the book, he utilizes imagery of his handwritten notes, poems, and journal entries. Since I read it on a Kindle I think this made it even more difficult, but I enjoyed seeing the personal aspects and reading things in their original form. Some were from when he was in his 20s and he had saved them all this time. But, within that same vein, is his writing style and voice. We all know his iconic voice and you completely hear it while reading, but he doesn’t speak or write in the most common way.

The details he chooses to focus on or the stories he decides to tell are not what I expected to hear and I don’t mean that in a bad way, but if you’re looking for a tell-all on his Hollywood career or scandalous details of this long-time bachelor, you won’t get that. This book tells the story of how he became who he is and how he became ok with the man he was. I found the way he talked about his childhood to be really interesting and his perspective on the relationships in his life is actually quite relatable. I mentioned his eccentric personality above, but the same goes with other stories in the book - they are out there and you will probably ask yourself a few times: what the heck am I reading and what the heck is he talking about?

Even though I felt this way a couple of times, I couldn’t put it down. I kept wanting to hear his learnings, or Greenlights, as he calls them. His outlook on turning challenge into an opportunity and the path he took from having a movie role with those famous three words ‘alright, alright, alright,” to an Oscar-winning actor is a fun one. Stories of traveling to Africa and the Amazon based on a wet dream (yes, that kind of wet dream) to what it was like growing up in Texas with a dynamic and somewhat toxic environment at home.

The only reason I gave this four stars instead of five was that it didn’t blow me away. It had some amazing notes and information that are very helpful and something I will definitely be referring back to, but I did expect a bit more from the autobiography side. Sometimes it felt more like a friend giving you self-help advice and while I didn’t dislike that, I wanted more about his story. So, it wasn’t bad - I’m just nosy. I still highly recommend you check it out for yourself and learn more about his story and outlook on life!

Hey, y’all! We’re over a month into 2022 and I’m loving moving into a new month! With that new month comes a new reading selection from the Books and Bubbly Reading club! As a refresher, I put together a list of 25 books to read in 2022 and each month, I ask my Instagram followers and TCB community to give their input on which of the two selections they’d like to read as a group. Check out the two January books and my reviews below and then see what everyone voted on for February (hint: it’s in the image hehe). As an FYI, I won’t be sharing any spoilers in the reviewz - just my overall thoughts and impressions!

ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE BY ANTHONY DOERR

Set in France and Germany during World War II, this historic and beautiful novel follows the story of two main characters, Marie-Laure, a blind girl living in Paris with her father, and Werner, an orphan who lives in a German mining town. As the war continues to build momentum, each character presses to find themselves.

As the Nazis occupy Paris, Marie-Laure and her father, who works at The Museum of Natural History, flee to her great uncle’s home in Saint-Malo and carry with them what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel. Werner is recruited to a Nazi school because of his expert ability at building and fixing radios and receivers. He is then instructed to use his talents to track down the Nazi resistance as a soldier.

How Anthony Doerr weaves these two stories and paints a haunting, beautiful, and informative narrative for readers is enticing.

SHOP THE POST

This book has been on my reading list for quite some time and I knew that it was going to be great based on the amazing reviews, awards (hello, Nobel Peace Prize #casual), and excitement I was hearing from others who had read it. I added it to the Books and Bubbly Reading List for 2022 because it was a different genre than I’m used to and I love learning about this time in history. While it feels like a different world to most of us alive today, in actuality, it wasn’t that long ago, which is pretty scary and haunting to think about.

Most of the World War II novels I’ve read focus on the Holocaust or share the story from a Jewish person’s perspective. While that experience and education of their stories are extremely important, I liked that this book took place in several locations and told stories that I hadn’t learned much about. While the actual novel is fiction, I can imagine that most of the situations are completely plausible and something the author drew from history. So, let’s get into it!

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
☆☆☆☆☆/5

As I mentioned above, the notoriety and awards this book has received is why I chose it. I knew the story would be compelling, the character development would be impeccable and the historical accuracy would be dependable. My rating of five stars reflects all of those things, but I’m not going to lie. This book is long and requires patience. You have to get through a good chunk of it before you truly appreciate the story, but because of that story-telling, character development, artistry in writing, and historical elements, you are enveloped in its pages.

I love when a book allows you to root for and not like a character at the same time, but this author does an incredible job at humanizing aspects of people we never want to see as humans. He writes in a way that helps you understand how difficult, complex and scary it must be to be blind. The heartbreak and emotion that filled those war-filled years and the notion that just because someone identifies in some way doesn’t blanket their entire being as being wholly defined that way.

Both Marie-Laure and Werner showcase that to the readers in different ways and you begin to understand that time, the attitude toward the war from all sides, and many aspects of the complexities of each side that are not often talked about. The chapters are short and the story alternates between Marie'-Laure and Werner so it keeps you interested throughout. It flips between certain times and you learn details from each perspective in a unique way that keeps you turning the page.

I definitely recommend checking this one out if you want to learn more about WWII, occupied France, and the different elements of war that the current generation have not witnessed or even know about today. As an important time in world history, this novel not only teaches us those lessons, but also to appreciate the most important aspects of life for us all: family, honor, and against all odds, to be part of the good in the world no matter your situation.

THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO BY TAYLOR JENKINS REID

One of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the golden age of movie-making, Evelyn Hugo, is now an aging and reclusive woman living in New York City. When an unknown magazine reporter, Monique Grant, receives an offer to tell her story from Evelyn herself, she’s stunned to understand the reasoning behind it.

Known for her seven marriages and life of glamour, Evelyn agrees to hold nothing back and share the stories of her life with Monique. As Evelyn shares the stories of how she made her way in Hollywood, her love life, and traumatic events in her past, Monique begins to understand that there is more to why she was picked to tell this story.

A goal of mine in 2022 is to read 25 books this year and in order to do that, I have to read about 2 books per month. This one was my second choice from the reading list and I LOVED it. An obvious departure from the WWII novel above, this story is enticing, clever, truly filled with star power.

THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO BY TAYLOR JENKINS REID
☆☆☆☆☆/5

This book was highly-rated and as a New York Times bestseller, I knew it was going to be a fun one. What I didn’t expect was how incredible this storytelling would be. One of my favorite things about the book is the deep and complex character development that the author spent time on. The reader truly understands every angle of the situations happening. You can love and hate the person at the same time, while also being surprised at what happens next. Filled with twists and turns, this story follows Evelyn’s life throughout the 1950s and into her late life. Switching between her stories as she tells them to Monique and Monique’s perspective interviewing Evelyn, as well as her own personal life, you are never bored.

This book is definitely one of the most well-written novels I’ve ever read and I was in awe of the human and complex nuances the author was able to bring through to the characters. You felt like you knew them, understood them, and felt their emotions as you were reading. It was genuinely magical. I also really appreciated the subject matter of this book. At first glance, you might think it’s all glamour, smut, and Hollywood phonies from the premise of the book, but you’ll be presently surprised to learn about what life was like for these characters in a time that was not as kind and glamorous as every movie makes it seem.

You’ll walk through issues of race, sexuality, morality, honesty, abuse, and public perception with these characters, and over the course of several decades, there are a lot of aspects of Evelyn to learn and witness. As I reached the end of the novel I found myself feeling there was a bit too much of those aspects in the story to make it as believable as I wanted it to be, but I suppose that’s what makes it fiction, right? Regardless of that small critique, this has been one of my favorite books in a long time!

I hope y’all like these reviews and can join in on the reading fun this year! Check out the 2022 Reading List and be sure to follow me on Instagram to keep up with The Books and Bubbly Book Club! We vote each month on the book we’re going to read from the list and share our thoughts together! February’s book was voted to be Greenlights by Matthew McCoughnahey. You can find it here! I’m really excited to have some autobiographies in this year’s list as I think we can learn so much from other’s people’s stories about our own selves. I hope you’ll join us! Happy Weekend, y’all!

Hey, y’all! I’m so excited to share the 2022 Books and Bubbly Reading list with you! One of my goals this year is to read 25 books by year-end. In 2020, I started the #BooksandBubbly Reading Club on Instagram and had great feedback from the community there that I wanted to officially bring it to the blog!

Here’s how it’ll work! Each month, I’ll share the two books listed below and everyone will vote on their pick for the month. I’ll be reading both to meet my goal so if yours doesn’t get picked, myself and maybe some others will still be reading it! The winner will be the Books and Bubbly Book of the Month and then we can find time to discuss (maybe a Zoom or group message?) and then I’ll share an overall review of the book!

To make it easy, I’ve added all the books for the year on this Amazon list! There are links for paperback, Kindle, Hardcover, etc. depending on how you like to read!

So, January’s Book of the Month is: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

• Over 39,000 five-star reviews: from Anthony Doerr, the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning author of Cloud Cuckoo Land, the beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II. *Soon to be a Netflix limited series from the producers of Stranger Things*

I’ve heard so many amazing things about this book! I’ve recently been wanting to expand my reading outside of mystery and murder/crime stories so this felt like a great transition given the history aspect, intertwining of stories and an opportunity to learn about a time that was so impactful for the world. I hope you’ll read it with me!

Check out the rest of the list below and let me know if you’ve read any of them! Can’t wait to have y’all in the #BooksandBubbly Book Club! Be sure to follow me over on Instagram to keep up with the group and check out reviews of past books.