Books Read in June 2026, Part 2

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Don’t Call It Art

By Austin Kleon, published 2026

“To waste time in the modern world is considered the greatest of sins, and idleness is looked upon with suspicion. To be thought of as productive, one needs to look busy. But you will not always look busy when you’re being creative. In fact, if you check in on creative people at different moments in the day, it will look like they are doing absolutely nothing, or doing the kinds of things kids get yelled at for in the classroom….” 

Austin Kleon’s little books are encouraging and fun. They are meant to help you continue in creative practices with a combination of advice, humor, quotes, and stories from Kleon’s own creative life. They are also best experienced by reading the books themselves to see the drawings and illustrations. 

This installment has a lot of reflections about art and his children, drawn from being an “art assistant” to them and remembering what it was like to create with the artistic freedom of a child whose inner critic has not yet developed into crippling insecurity. 

“The artist ventures into the unknown, making and doing things that no one has ever seen before.” Love it. Let’s go make some stuff! …But you don’t have to call it art. Just mess around and make something (a good word for a recovering perfectionist like me).

North Woods

By Daniel Mason, published 2023

This is a story about a particular yellow house in the—you guessed it—north woods of Massachusetts. The house is built by a young couple fleeing their town, and each section is a vignette of someone who lives in the house. 

The stories, though separate, start to converge in strange ways, the past affecting the present. The house is the only through line; though whispers of past inhabitants continue, sometimes through their decisions, sometimes as ghosts, and the house itself is unsettling to some. 

This was an interesting and weird book, as a result of the structure (following the house, not the characters). Some of the stories felt a little too much, and I think it would have been a stronger book if it was a little bit shorter. While I enjoyed it, I was ready to be done before the author was ready to be done, though I know not everyone had that reaction. Mason was clearly having a great time writing the vignettes and deciding where to go next though, and that came across to me reading it. I appreciated the ambition of following a place, not a person, even if I did not find it completely successful in paying off its promise. 

DNF (Did Not Finish) Pile

Yesteryear 

By Caro Claire Burke published 2026

This is an extremely polarizing book. While I loved the premise, I found the characters unconvincing and decided I’d rather just have conversations with people about tradwife influencers and Mom-culture than read the rest of this book. I think the execution didn’t line up with my expectations, and that was part of the problem (I expected an unlikeable narrator, but I found her a little…boring).

Since I didn’t finish the book it’s a bit of a cheat to write something about it, but I decided the book wasn’t for me even though I appreciated what Burke was trying to do and I find the discourse around it fascinating. I also wonder about the staying power of this book. It is everywhere this summer, but I’m curious if this is the type of book that is for this specific moment and then will fade, or if it will have a longer shelf-life.

Books Read in June 2026, Part 1

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The Everlasting

by Alix E. Harrow, published 2025

Owen Mallory is an academic who lives in a kingdom called Dominion, eking out an existence after fighting in one of Dominion’s many wars, and is a nobody in a university history department. 

He is obsessed with the legend of Sir Una Everlasting, the mythical(?) female knight who helped the first Queen of Dominion establish the country. One day he receives a book with the oldest version of the legend yet, and is tasked with translating it. 

He then finds himself traveling back through the book in time, to meet Una and write her story. He discovers the person behind the myth, falls in love, watches her die, works on his translation, and travels back again and again and again. 

While this is not exactly an Arthurian legend book, it also is sort of a gender-swapped Arthur (ahem, our protagonist’s name is Mallory, wink). The time travel and repeating history aspect is interesting, and I was rooting for Owen and Una. I enjoyed the way the time travel allowed the book to play with both real people living their lives and also historical record and the way that mythology (and sometimes also history) sands off the rough edges and those writing the history can tweak the story to fit a narrative that serves them. 

I left the book thinking about history and legend and national stories. America is a country that is less of an ethnic identity (no matter what some politicians will tell you), and more of an idea, a creed, a set of beliefs (see the Declaration of Independence and Frederick Douglass’s 4th of July speech for examples). The story we tell about ourselves and our national identity is important, and yet it is easy to only tell part of the truth about anything, to collapse the complicated truth to something simpler. 

Anyway, this is all to say that I enjoyed this book. 

Content: violence (because Sir Una is essentially a medieval knight), sex, language, death

Make Believe 

By Marc Barnett, published 2026

“Maybe more like 94.7% of kids’ books are crud. And that’s because kids’ books, unlike most writing, are made by people (adults) who are not members of their intended audience (kids). And children are in so many ways different from adults, though often not in the ways adults expect.” 

This small book was engaging, funny, and had a very definite point of view on children’s literature. My bookshop colleague led a discussion on it, which was a delight. 

Barnett thinks the best children’s book authors either have a lot of empathy with children, have a direct line back to their own childhood, or both. 

I will be thinking for a while about the ways the many children’s books are trying to Teach A Lesson and how this is often prioritized over just telling good stories that children would enjoy. Someone in the discussion said that many authors (of novels for grown-ups) are so busy working out their own stuff that they do not seem to care about their audience. This led to talking about authors whom we trust to handle material in a way that cares for their audience. Are there authors in whose hands you feel safe? Bad things may happen to the characters in their books, but they still have care for them and for you? 

I want this reading experience for both children and adults, and I agree with Barnett that we ought to take much more care in putting out books for children that try to tell good stories and take children seriously as humans. 

Books Read in May 2026, part 2

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The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

by C. S. Lewis, published 1952

Lucy, Edmund, and their unpleasant cousin Eustace visit Narnia via a painting of a ship and go on a voyage of adventure and growth. Features the best mouse and a great opening line. I enjoy the vignettes of the different islands they visit and my husband speculates that I picked up my horror of sitting with my back to an open door from this book: 

“[Lucy] would have to stand with her back to the door while she read [the magician’s book]. So at once she turned to shut the door. 

“It wouldn’t shut.

“Some people may disagree with Lucy about this, but I think she was quite right. She said she wouldn’t have minded if she could have shut the door, but that it was unpleasant to have to stand in a place like that with an open doorway right behind your back. I should have felt just the same.”

Exactly. The thought of being watched or surprised from behind unsettles me. 

Unlike Prince Caspian, this is in my top tier Narnia books. I enjoy meeting many new characters as the Dawn Treader visits many islands, and Eustace’s transformation is excellent.

Platform Decay

by Martha Wells, published 2026

Murderbot is back! This time, it’s on a mission to extract (rescue) some family members of its favorite human, Dr. Mensah, from a bad situation. 

As usual, Murderbot pairs is grumpy desire to just watch tv with its desire to be useful as an independent security consultant and a grudging member of a community of humans and bots. Murderbot may be grossed out by the inefficiencies and smells of humans, who require sustenance, lots of sleep, restroom “comfort” breaks, and who have emotional breakdowns at inconvenient moments, but Murderbot is also emotional about holding small humans, being respected, and being accepted as part of a team, much to its surprise.

Murderbot is also still dealing with the fact that it endured trauma (emotionally; Murderbot is nearly constantly enduring physical trauma in its security capacity) a couple books ago. So processing its emotions is…tricky. 

This was another fun installment of the series, no complaints. Perfect in novella form.

The Mystery of the Blue Train

By Agatha Christie, published 1928

A wealthy American purchases an enormous ruby necklace for his spoiled daughter, and she takes it with her on a train trip. What could possibly go wrong?

Meanwhile, Hercule Poirot, coincidentally traveling on the same train, meets a young woman who has come into some money and who is going to meet some relatives who hope she will share some of her newfound wealth with them.

When the American woman is discovered murdered and the necklace missing, Poirot must sort through the suspects to discover who killed her and why (the husband she was divorcing? his new mistress/girlfriend? a notorious jewel thief? someone else on the train who held a grudge against her/her father?).

This mystery felt a little more melancholy in tone than some other Christie mysteries, maybe partially because of the brutal murder but also because I felt sorry for the girl who inherited money but feels lonely and out of place. Money does not solve that predicament. I was not quite sure of her place in the story–maybe just to lighten it up a bit? But this was still a solid Poirot mystery.

What Grows in Weary Lands

by Tish Harrison Warren, published 2026

“This is a middle-of-life book, for “what our culture–and what the church–tends to lack are stories of a long, steady continuation of faith…we don’t have categories for the prolonged middle, for the slog.”

So this is a book about the middle. It is for people who are in the midst of life, busy with responsibilities and find themselves weary or restless, unsure about continuing on the same road they have been traveling. Maybe they are not sure they can continue in their spiritual life and it feels easier or better to give up.

Warren looks to the Christian desert fathers and mothers (basically proto-monks) who had much to say about faith in difficult circumstances.

Some of the advice is hard, some of it is necessary for surviving a world with an onslaught of distractions, notifications, inhuman technology and extractive economics, and some of it is encouraging (maybe try softer; be honest; don’t try to “gut it out” alone).

A wise and helpful book. Put one foot in front of the other, but be gentle with yourself and resist the urge to numb or flame out. “To go deep means looking with unflinching honesty at the truth of things–the pain in our lives, the sins and weaknesses in ourselves and those around us.” I found it comforting and encouraging, as I am in the middle of life and finding that I cannot rely on a shallow faith to sustain me. I read this book quickly, but I think it would benefit from slow reading to really take it in. I will probably read it again and much more slowly next time.

Books Read in May 2026, part 1

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Prince Caspian

by C. S. Lewis, published 1951

Lucy and her siblings return to Narnia just in time to help the titular prince claim his throne. It’s been a year since their adventure through the wardrobe, but hundreds of years in Narnian time, so no one expects them. “It was as if King Arthur came back to Britain, as some people say he will. And I say the sooner the better.” 

Not quite as magical as The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, but there’s still plenty of magic, a fun adventure, and Caspian is easy to root for. I enjoyed it but it’s not in my top three Narnia books (a ranking I made up just now and worry this will create more work for me later. No matter).

Murder in Mesopotamia

by Agatha Christie, published 1936 

Hercule Poirot detects again! 

This book is told from the point of view of a witness, Amy Leatheran, who is “encouraged to tell the story” of a murder at an archaeological dig. 

Nurse Leatheran was called in to attend Louise Leidner, the wife of the main archaeologist at a dig in Iraq, who has been suffering from “nerves.” 

Leatheran sees right away that the vibes are off, and Louise’s somewhat magnetic and strong personality have upset the team’s equilibrium. When Louise is murdered, it seems impossible: everyone has an alibi…or do they? 

Poirot must unravel the mystery of who killed her and why. Honestly, I cannot see that anyone would have figured out the labyrinthine conclusion, so I just enjoyed the ride (and if you did figure out the ending before you got there, please let me know; your mind sounds like a fascinating place). Not completely top tier Christie, but a solid entry in the top half maybe. Nurse Leatheran is a stand in for a Dr. Watson or Capt. Hastings character who is telling the story and admiring the detective as he reconstructs the crime, and I thought that worked pretty well.

Unreasonable Hospitality

by Will Guidara, published 2022

Most restaurants that aspire to greatness are led by a chef and the restaurant “back of house,” while the “front of house” staff just tries to keep up. Guidara was a “front” guy who paired with a “back” chef to try to marry a hospitality focus with a culinary focus. Their ambition: to be the best restaurant in the world (no big deal). Their ambition drove them hard, which opens its own set of questions, but it led them to innovate in extraordinary ways. 

While you don’t need to aim to be the best _____ (fill in the blank with your own field), there is so much in this book that is applicable to anyone in a service industry, not just the restaurant industry. And many people are in some kind of service industry, even if they don’t view it that way. Many jobs have some sort of customer / client, and many jobs have more than one employee with some sort of hierarchy/ management structure in place. 

I’m not always big on “business books” and I have limited tolerance for the “self help” section, but I thought this book was good. 

Guidara’s idea is this: treat employees well and treat customers / clients really well, and your business will thrive. If your staff feels supported and encouraged to go above and beyond for their customers, they will find ways to surprise and delight the people who come through your doors. It is sort of an argument for treating humans humanely, which I appreciate. So many businesses are focused on the next quarterly earnings statement, and anyone pushing back against extractive business is something I am interested in. Speaking of extraction….

The Age of Extraction

by Tim Wu, published 2025

There’s a lot of overlap here with Enshittification by Cory Doctorow here, but with a slightly different focus. 

“‘The conviction was universal that the country was in real danger from another kind of slavery sought to be fastened on the American people, namely, the slavery that would result from aggregations of capital in the hands of a few individuals and corporations controlling, for their own profit and advantage exclusively, the entire business of the country.’” This was Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan in 1911, but it feels extremely modern. 

Wu argues that tech platforms have dominated modern life in ways that drive our economy and their unfettered access to data, attention, and money have meant that they are extremely extractive and harming us all. They are largely unregulated, and they control vast amounts of capital that allow them to put their finger on the scale to their benefit. 

While it is depressing to read about all the ways that tech platforms and the AI race are plundering humanity and the planet, Wu does remind us that we emerged from the early-20th century Gilded Age and there are things that can be done to restrain the current tech overlords. 

He posits that the economy is not inherently self-balancing, and government needs to intervene sometimes to help balance it, especially by being anti-monopoly, creating neutrality rules, and treating some platforms like utilities. He also notes that union/ worker power is also at a low, and that can help to restrain companies and create a balance if re-established. 

All of this would take political will to push through, and while it would be a tough road, it is not impossible. The question is just whether there are people in power who are willing to use that power for restraint instead of self-dealing. 

Books Read in April 2026

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The Magician’s Nephew 

by C. S. Lewis, published 1955

Two children are sent to another world by magic. They witness the creation of the land of Narnia, where animals can talk and the great lion Aslan watches over its fate. A lovely creation myth. While this is the first in the Chronicles of Narnia chronologically, it is really a prequel and not the best introduction to the series. 

Because I was listening to the audio book, I listened in chronological order but I will die (maybe not literally?) on the hill that for first-time readers you really should start with the first published book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. 

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall 

by Anne Brontë, published 1848

The final installment in my Brontë book club! Don’t sleep on this one: it is such an interesting exploration of marriage and female interior life (for the upper middle class anyway) in 19th century England. 

The structure of this is interesting: it starts as a letter from a young man, Gilbert Markham, to his brother-in-law, looking back on when he met the titular tenant. We then transition to Helen (said tenant) and hear about her life from her diaries, which she shares with Gilbert. 

Helen is an early “I can fix him!” girl. She married a young man who was young, exciting, and attractive (as opposed to the old, boring, but wealthy men with whom her aunt tries to set her up). However, she discovers that when it comes to character and virtue, these attributes are important and non-transferable. 

She perseveres, but for the sake of her young son, whom she does not want to see corrupted, she decides she needs to leave. Women in the 19th century did not have rights to their own property or children, so she needs to flee in secret and go into hiding.

This is an exploration of relationships, moral character (and lack thereof), and is (as someone pointed out in our book club) more of a story of manners a la Jane Austen (though tonally quite different) than either Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre. We get a glimpse of a section of society and the ways that humans fail or help each other. 

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

by C. S. Lewis, published 1950

The proper introduction to Narnia, a magical world that certainly captured my imagination as a child. Lewis is a good storyteller, and I enjoyed wandering back into that world. 

Lucy walks through a wardrobe into the land of Narnia, where she and her siblings are immediately drawn into a power struggle for the fate of this magical world. Features poor choices in desserts, the most charming beaver couple, and descriptions that make you long to walk through a wardrobe yourself to visit a magical place.

This might be my favorite of the Narnia books? I’ll check back in on that once I finish them all. 

The Horse and His Boy

by C. S. Lewis, published 1954

Two children and two talking horses set off on an escape to Narnia. Chases, disguises, mistaken identities, and fighting ensues. While there are Eastern stereotypes at play that don’t all age well, this is still a great adventure tale. 

Might start addressing my Mom like the Calormen do: “Oh my mother and oh the delight of my eyes….” Should have made that my Mother’s Day greeting. Maybe next year.