Books I'm Carrying Around: The Sleepwalkers Guide to Dancing

The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing by Mira Jacob
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I've had this book on my shelf for a year. And I bought a second copy!  Anyway.... I should've read it sooner.  This is another book that I picked up because of the title, though I'm still figuring out it's meaning.

This long tale of a family and all it's secrets, a thirty-something still trying to find her way and figure out who she is, in relation to her parents and her own self, is a great story. Jacob does a great job in weaving in the family culture as part of the story and illustrating who they are. (In so many "diverse" books, the culture becomes the central character, rather than the background.)

Amina deals with not only the loss of her brother and impending loss of her father, but also all of the "rules" and customs that make it not acceptable to talk about it all. Her and her mother have that kind of strained, not close relationship, built on duty rather than any commonality, other than being family.  The family shares unconditional love, although no one will say the words.  But when it comes to all the important things and needful times, they come together to support each other.

I read the first half of the book in a rare day that I found some quiet hours, then was wrestling to find the time to finish the rest over the next week or so.  In my writing group, we've been talking about the proper length for a debut novel. This comes in at 498 pages - way above any recommended length.  Which proves that you can break the rules when you make it worth it.


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Summer To-Read Pile (#1)

This weekend marks the unofficial beginning of summer.  All those hours relaxing by the pool: hat, sunglasses, nice cold sweet drink, while the kids frolic happily on the way far other end.  Those days lazing on the beach, toes in the sand.  Those cool evenings, swinging in the hammock.

(Or more likely...) The mornings, afternoons, and evenings sitting poolside waiting for your swimmer kid to finish his one event in the 3-hour meet, running your own kid camp - summer school - sports practice - Vacation Bible School - friend's house bus route, or trying to keep one eye on your kid who just ran to the far other end of the playground and hoping you don't get arrested on suspicion of being a free-range parent.

Whatever the summer plans, we still have our to-read pile. That stack that - if the sun aligns just right with our sweet tea - we'll be able to get through by the end of August.  Here's the start of mine (more to be added, of course) - and a warning if you've never read my to-read pile selections before - I'm not promising I actually know what the book is about. It's either been recommended to me by someone I trust to make a good book selection or the cover and/or title is intriguing.

Everything I Never Told You, Celeste Ng
"Lydia is dead. But they don't this yet." That's the first line - what else do you need?

The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins
Keep seeing it on must-read lists, so well, I guess I have to read it.

The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing, Mira Jacob
This just sounds like a fun title.

Queen Bee Moms & Kingpin Dads, Rosalind Wiseman
What happens to those middle and high school mean girls when they grow up?


Children's Books
I generally don't read too many children's books for myself, but I have picked up these two.  They happen to be free verse novels - stories told in a series of poems. Note too, if you are looking for diverse books - these are both African-American authors.

The Crossover, Kwame Alexander
Alexander was the guest reader for my school's PTA Family Reading Night.  My high schooler (my avid reader and basketball player) read it and loved it, though it's written for a younger age, so it's a good intro to poetry for the little people.

Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson
I read so many "must read" reviews on this and then realized it was a children's book. It's a memoir of the author's childhood in the 1960s and '70s.


Still looking for more suggestions - what's on your summer to-read list? 

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*and keep up on my reading pile on Goodreads