Ep. 149: Summer 2023 Circle Back with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
Sarah Dickinson
4.7 • 785 Ratings
🗓️ 30 August 2023
⏱️ 50 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In Ep. 149, Catherine (@GilmoreGuide) and I revisit the 12 books released from June to mid-August that we featured in the Summer 2023 Book Preview. We update you on our reading stats for summer, chat about the books we've tackled or tried, and let you know which ones are worth adding to your list and which ones you can pass on.
This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).
Highlights
- Catherine and Sarah share their Summer 2023 reading stats and success rates.
- Catherine names a micro genre from one of Sarah's picks.
- Sarah and Catherine both come in with one 5-star book each!
- Plus, they name their best and worst books from the Summer 2023 Book Preview.
Books We Read Before the Preview [3:02]
Sarah's Picks:
- Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan (June 6) | Amazon
| Bookshop.org [3:34]
- The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue (June 27) | Amazon
Other Books Mentioned:
- Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan [3:39]
Summer 2023 Circle Back [7:54]
June
Sarah's Picks:
- My Murder by Katie Williams (June 6) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [11:55]
- Invisible Son by Kim Johnson (June 27) | Amazon
Catherine's Picks:
- Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See (June 6) | Amazon
- All the Sinners Bleed
by S. A. Cosby (June 6) | Amazon | Bookshop.org
- You Can't Stay Here Forever by Katherine Lin (June 13) | Amazon | Bookshop.org
Other Books Mentioned:
- Foe by Iain Reid [13:48]
- Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby [16:28]
- Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby [18:17]
- This Is My America by Kim Johnson [21:52]
- The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton [22:10]
August
Sarah's Picks:
- The Art of Scandal by Regina Black (August 1) | Amazon
- Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (August 1) | Amazon
Catherine's Picks:
- The Many Lives of Mama Love by Lara Love Hardin (August 1) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [33:18]
- Mobility by Lydia Kiesling (August 1) | Amazon
- Western Alliances by Wilton Barnhardt (August 1) | Amazon | Bookshop.org[45:20]
Other Books Mentioned:
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams [30:53]
- Our Town by Thornton Wilder [39:10]
- The Golden State by Lydia Kiesling [42:29]
Other Links
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to Sarah's Bookshelves Live. I'm Sarah of Sarah's Bookshelves. Each week, I talk with a bookish |
| 0:15.4 | guest about two old books they love, two new books they love, one book they do not love, and one new release |
| 0:22.0 | they're excited about. We're going to get real and sometimes a bit snarky about all things, |
| 0:26.8 | books. If you like the show, I'd love it if you follow the show in your podcast player, |
| 0:31.7 | spread the word to your reader friends, post about it on your social media, or support the show |
| 0:37.4 | on Patreon at patreon.com slash |
| 0:41.2 | Sarah's bookshelves. Supporting the show on Patreon gets you access to bonus podcast episodes and |
| 0:46.6 | lots of other goodies. There's also a link in the show notes and in my Instagram bio. Let's get rolling. |
| 0:53.2 | Welcome to the summer 2023 circle episode, where we share our thoughts on books we shared |
| 0:59.9 | in the summer preview now that we've had a chance to read them. |
| 1:03.8 | Catherine from Gilmer Guide to Books is joining me. |
| 1:06.6 | Welcome, Catherine. |
| 1:07.8 | Hi. |
| 1:08.7 | Happy to be back. |
| 1:12.6 | How did your summer reading turn out? |
| 1:20.4 | With trepidation, I ask. Yes, that's right. No, you know what? Regarding our preview picks, |
| 1:32.4 | I'm going to go with consistent. I am holding steady at a 50% success rate, and I had a five star and an almost five star novel. So I don't feel as bad about the two DNFs that I also had. How do you feel about having like a time period? |
| 1:40.2 | Because this just happened to me for my July reading, where you have multiple five-star books, |
| 1:44.8 | but then you also have multiple books you either DNFed or finished and did not like. |
| 1:50.7 | Whereas liking every book you read but having no five-star books, which would you choose? |
| 1:56.8 | Oh, my goodness. |
| 1:59.8 | I know, look, I'm going to totally stall out. |
... |
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