Happy August y’all! How was your July? Mine wasn’t too bad, given I had two mini-vacations and one regular one. Due to my downtime (and traveling), I didn’t accomplish as much in July as I had hoped. But I don’t think it was too bad, either. That said, let’s look at my July 2023 wrap-up and August 2023 plans.
July 2023 Reading Wrap-Up & August 2023 TBR
Let’s flashback to my June 2023 Wrap-Up for a glimpse at what I had planned to read in July.
- The Door-to-Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn (ARC)
- Hello Stranger by Katherine Center (ARC)
- Someone Just Like You by Meredith Schorr (ARC)
- The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise (Buzzwordathon)
Of the four books on my TBR, I finished three and did start the fourth.
Books Read in July 2023
The Door-to-Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn (review) | A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna | Fan Fiction by Brent Spiner
Hello Stranger by Katherine Center (review) | Homicide and Halo-Halo by Mia P. Manasala
Someone Just Like You by Meredith Schorr (review) | Spy x Family Vol 1 by Tatsuya Endo
I Was Told It Would Get Easier by Abbi Waxman
Hands down, my favorite book of July was The Door-To-Door Bookstore. I think it may be the perfect read, definitely a snuggle down and read kind of book. My husband enjoyed Fan Fiction as we listened to the audiobook while driving. And I have to say, if you do read it, go with the audiobook for a bit of Star Trek TNG nostalgia. Homicide and Halo-Halo was his foray into the cozy mystery genre, and while he enjoyed it doesn’t think it’s a genre he’ll turn to regularly.
August 2023 TBR
I have three ARCs to read for August, plus one for July that was added at the last minute. The only other book I’m hoping to get done this month is for a year-long challenge. The challenge I’m doing this year is Buzzwordathon from Kayla at Books and Lala. Five books may be a long TBR, but hopefully, one I can complete with ease!
- The Housekeepers by Alex Hay (ARC)
- The African Samurai by Craig Shreve (ARC)
- The Sunset Years of Agnes Sharp (ARC)
- Board to Death by CJ Connor (ARC)
- The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod (Buzzwordathon)
Blogging Wrap-Up and Plans
July wasn’t a terrible month for blogging, as I managed to get eight posts. Of those eight posts, 2 were Top Ten Tuesday posts, and three were reviews. There was also a Mid-Year wrap-up along with the June wrap-up. I haven’t done much in the way of food content this year, but I have a cookbook review scheduled for Friday, August 4.
The most popular post from July was Travel Around Canada in Books. The most popular post overall from July was one I posted in September 2022, Ten Book Titles Starting with the Letter A. As the Letter A post has consistently been popular, I should work on the rest of the alphabet!
July Life Updates
In July, I had two mini-vacations and one regular one. The first mini-vacation was more of an extra long weekend at home. The second was a whirlwind road trip for my youngest daughter and me to attend a family reunion. The regular vacation was a trip down to Virginia to see my mom and help her get stuff out of the house. She’s been hoping to clear the house out so she can sell, and as we lived with her for several years, it was only fitting we go through our stuff that was still there. We managed to get through about 2/3rds of it. But we’ve agreed, if needed, she can get rid of the bit we didn’t go through.
August has another long weekend in stock. We will probably focus on ensuring our youngest is ready for the coming school year. There’s a little bit of work we want to do around the house as well. Fingers crossed, though, that we can have some fun! I also need to find some energy and motivation to start exercising. I have orders from the doctor to lose weight before I see her again at the end of September.
That is my July 2023 wrap-up and August 2023 plans. How was your July? Did you read any good books? What are your plans for August?
Looking for some more ideas to read? Check out my other monthly reading wrap-ups.
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Sounds like you had a pretty awesome July 🙂 I had a mini-vacation too and it was so very needed! It also looks like you read some interesting books. I’ve been wanting to try Manasala’s books and have heard good things about them. Mandanna’s book has also been on my TBR for ages and I can’t wait to get to it. Hope you have an amazing August!
The Door-To-Door Bookstore sounds like a really good book. I’m waiting for my hold to arrive from the library!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!