July 2019 Wrap-Up || the one where Lauren doesn’t shut up about Queen

Hi friends, and happy Wednesday! I genuinely can’t believe I’m already writing this monthly wrap-up and tomorrow is August. Honestly, where is all of this time going? It’s almost as if you could say “another one bites the dust.” Right?

I’m sorry but the puns are just going to happen. It’s natural.

me trying to not laugh at my own joke.

If you’ve read any of my past wrap-ups (May and June specifically), the summer got off to a really rocky start for me. But, it’s been getting better each day, and I am so here for it. Not to mention, July has been pretty stellar—I’ve been reading and blogging more, and (not to mention) I saw my favorite band to ever exist (ever).

But you already probably knew that because I haven’t shut up about it.

In my June wrap-up, I was over-the-moon excited about how great of a reading month it was, and July is no different! Albeit, my overall enjoyment of the books this past month kind of tanked, but I’ve been having a lot of fun nonetheless.

I also finally got my library card renewed, and it’s already making a WORLD of a difference in attacking my TBR.

11/22/63 by Stephen King-★★★★★. !!!!!!!! I could 100% talk about this book for hours on end. I’ve thought about it almost every single day since I’ve finished it, so it doesn’t even seem like I read it just this month. Stephen King never fails to amaze me with his ability to write across genres and explore new territories. But, I’ve already gushed about this book enough it its full review, so you can read that here!

Warcross by Marie Lu-★★★☆☆. I bought Warcross sometime last year after being told time and time again that I would absolutely love it. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get into the book as much as I would’ve liked to. I didn’t particularly care about the characters all that much, including their individual stories. Although, I will admit, the plot itself is interesting.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin-★★★☆☆. Okay, here’s the thing. I’ve owned this book for years upon years and wasn’t necessarily planning on it anytime soon. But, because of the Down the TBR Hole meme I’ve just started up, I’ve been revisiting some books I added to my TBR years ago. Despite the fact that I finished this book in a day and it kept my attention, it didn’t really grab me. I do understand how Mara Dyer was such a popular series about four or five years ago and I may have enjoyed it back then, but it didn’t really suit me now.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz-★★★★★. Did you mean one of my favorite books of all time? I first read this book two years ago, and it felt about time to revisit these lovely characters. The book itself and all of the elements included hold a special place in my heart, and they always will. I even wrote a post about why I loved it so much and why you should read it this summer.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid-★★★★☆. Let’s all say hello to the one book everyone was gushing about online! I really loved this story and had a hard time believing the characters weren’t real. Unfortunately though, I did find myself piecing together the ending pretty early on and figuring it out. That said, I still really loved the story. You can read my full review of Evelyn Hugo here!

On Writing by Stephen King-★★★★★. When I read a small excerpt from this book back in college for a writing class, I knew that instant that I’d have to read the whole book. Learning about Stephen King’s childhood and how he grew into the writer he is was nothing short of remarkable, and all of his writing suggestions were pretty sound; now I can’t not think about the fact that, according to Mr. King, I use way too many -ly words.

Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid-★★★☆☆. What’s really interesting about Taylor Jenkins Reid is that she’s really come to light since publishing Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones; it’s as if she’s on everyone’s radar now. And, about two years ago, I read two of her earlier novels and really fell in love with them. Pair that with my new library card, and I was ready to tackle my TJR TBR. Unfortunately though, Maybe in Another Life didn’t intrigue me the way her more recent novels have.

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart-★★★☆☆. Thanks to the TBR meme (again), I realized that I had yet to read this book. But, I didn’t love it the way I was expecting to. I couldn’t connect with any of the characters, and I wasn’t necessarily attached to the story. The plot twist also fell a bit short for me, especially after all I had heard about how insane of a plot twist it is. I will say though, I can see how people have fallen in love with this one! It just wasn’t for me.

Currently reading: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson. A Morgan Matson contemporary just feels so right for the summertime, doesn’t it? I’m over halfway done with The Unexpected Everything, and I’m not totally in love with it. Don’t get me wrong: it’s a quick read and keeping my attention, but it’s nothing out-of-the-ordinary special for me, yet.

Stranger Things 3. Can you hear me crying? Honestly, all of my anticipation of this new season was SO worth it. The show itself was cinematically stunning, and I fell even more in love with Steve Harrington; who knew that was even possible?! Truthfully, I’d watch a whole show based on the Scoops Troop. Although, even though I finished the whole season before it had been out for a full week, the ending was spoiled for me, so that definitely ruined some of the fun.

Queer Eye, season 4. Queer Eye has become my go-to show to watch while I’m working out, but this season nearly has me crying on the treadmill with every single episode. Also, I’m not sure that I’ve ever related so much to someone as I did when Antoni ignored a person and went straight to their dog.

Toy Story 4. It’s not like I’m even close to being surprised, but Toy Story 4 was BEYOND adorable. It tugs at your heart strings, like most Pixar and Disney movies do, but it also makes you stupidly happy to watch some of your childhood favorites on screen again. There were so many new toys introduced—I honestly probably could’ve gone without the creepy dummies, thank you—and they were (mostly) awesome additions. Also, Bo Peep has gained some huge respect points from me.

Queen + Adam Lambert. Okay. Okay, okay, okay. I’m calm. Was that convincing? I sure hope so. Never once in my life did I imagine I would be able to see Queen perform live. I’m still not fully convinced that it even happened. As cheesy as it sounds, once the first track started, I immediately felt like I was home. Their music and personalities have done more for me than I can even put into words, so I’m not even going to attempt that here. I’m just happy that I wore waterproof mascara.

July has been, in my opinion, an incredible month for twenty-seven letters. I’ve been blogging more, feeling more inspired to blog, and I even changed up some of my graphics a little bit. During this past month, I’ve really started to feel a lot more comfortable in the bookish community and with my writing voice in general. Not to mention, I’ve finally started taking part in a weekly meme!

• Book Review || 11/22/63 by Stephen King (I have a lot of feelings)
• Down the TBR Hole #1 || my goodreads is the actual definition of a “mess”
• Why you should read Aristotle and Dante immediately this summer || notes from my re-readBook Review || 11/22/63 by Stephen King (I have a lot of feelings)
• Down the TBR Hole #2 || join me as I try to get my (reading) life together
• Book Review || The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (how is Evelyn Hugo not a real person??)
• The Thank U, Next Book Tag!
• Down the TBR Hole #3 || the one where I’m actually decisive and get rid of some books

I’m fairly certain that I am the worst human being when it comes to blog-hopping, but that doesn’t mean that I haven’t found some amazing posts that I think you would love!

Lauren from Narrative Paradise shares the reasons of why she DNFs a book, and let me tell you: it’s super reassuring.

Kelly from Another Book in the Wall discusses homeschool misrepresentations in books which I absolutely LOVED because, as someone with no knowledge of what being homeschooled is actually like, I learned a lot more about their book representation.

Haley from Fangirl Fury talks about the specific books that she won’t ever lend out, and I agree with every single one of her reasons.

C.J. from Paper Fury shares ways to stay motivated when writing your book, and even though I’m not writing a book, I know that these reasons will help anyone that is. It surely has helped me in keeping up with my blog!

Xandra at Starry Sky Books talks about what happens when you’re a mood reader, and it really just made me feel SO validated. (Xandra also shared a post about discussion topics she wants to see bloggers talk about, and I know I’m going to use it.)

Caitlin over at Caitlin Althea wrote probably one of the most helpful blog posts I’ve ever read in which she shares the reasons why you should never compare your blogging statistics to other bloggers. As a newer blogger, this post is a total life-saver.

Olivia from Purely Olivia shares five things that no one tells you about blogging, and (again) the post reassured me in ways I didn’t even think I needed to be reassured.

Malka and Chana from Paper Procrastinators discussed their book buying habits, from simply perusing a bookstore to attending author events to online book buying!

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And that’s another month wrapped up! I’m excited to see all of the blogging and reading fun that comes with August, but even more excited that we’re getting closer to Fall and Halloween every day.

How was your July? What books did you read this month? Do you have any new favorites? Did you find a new TV show that you’ve been binging? Have you gone to see a concert? Let’s chat!