Nerd Out With Me!

Here is my complete summer reading log, plus my top five faves.

In a post back in June (which already feels like a year ago?!), I declared it was going to be Word Nerd Summer. All the reading, all the writing, all the words! GIVE THEM TO ME NOM NOM NOM.

The farther out I get from my wine mom days, the more insatiable my thirst for reading becomes. Being sober is sometimes joyful and sometimes a grind. Because of our new puppy—

You’re welcome.

—I have not slept past 6:03am since June. (Yes, 6:03. Every. Effing. Morning. HOW DOES SHE KNOW?!!) I am pooped, y’all. So by the end of the day, even if I’ve stayed hydrated and eaten lots of protein and exercised and done all the things to maximize my energy, I am ZONKED. I love my life, I love my family, but all I want to do at night is escape into somebody else’s life. Maybe it’s their love life, maybe it’s their family drama, maybe it’s their adventures in some other time or world, it depends on my mood. But I need that escape. I crave it. And I’m proud of myself for making the once-impossible-seeming transition of escaping into a book instead of a bottle of wine.

I have also discovered the joy of connecting with other word nerds. I have started following more authors and bookstagrammers on Insta (here’s a great one who is also a friend!). On our family trips this summer, I ducked into every bookstore I could find. I joined Zibby’s Book Club and even nudged myself into asking the author a question at each meeting.

After a lifetime of slogging through the guilt induced by indulging in detrimental habits (primarily drinking and junk food, with a dash of promiscuity in my early 20s), being obsessed with books and reading feels, well, really nice. It simply feels good to love doing something that’s beneficial for you.

So, without further ado, here is my Word Nerd Summer in review, my complete summer reading log, and my top five favorite books from the list.

Number of fiction books read: 12

Number of memoirs read: 2

Number of personal development books read: 0 [Lesson learned: my brain needs a break in the summer! And that is okay!]

Number of audio books listened to: 1

Special bonus stat! Number of words in my memoir draft thus far: 34,415

Those of you with eagle eyes will notice I removed the rating column. Now that I am writing my own book, I can’t help but feel for the authors whose books I did not enjoy (and there are a few on this list!). I have a better understanding now of how important reviews are for all authors to keep their books trending and selling and how detrimental a bad review can be. So I am keeping it positive here!

Of those books, here are my favorite five (in alphabetical order):

Emily Henry is the current queen of romance, and I am here for it. Her character development is second to none. This book was a joy to read.

This is how I want to age. A beautiful and inspiring reflection.

So I read all of Reid’s novels out of order, but I still love them all. This one was twisty and intriguing and particularly un-put-downable.

Monaghan’s writing gets better with every book. I love her sweet stories so much.

The August Zibby’s Book Club pick! One of my favorite books of 2024 and worth the hype. An original story that is creatively developed. So, so good.

What were your favorite summer reads? I want to know! (Seriously, I do. Please nerd out with me!)

Now that we are heading into fall, I am feeling the need for heavier reads. I’m planning on less romance and more historical fiction and literary fiction. I’ll share my fall TBR (that’s the lingo for “to be read,” or, basically, a reading list) soon. What’s on yours? Leave a comment or drop me an email or DM to let me know!