May 2025 TBR
Here we are at the last day of April. I have sort of looked at options for reading in May. Let's see if we can work it out together.
Avid Reader: A Life by Robert Gottlieb - I'm halfway through this, but it will not get finished today. This will be the fifth book read from my 10 Oldest Books list. It is also from my Books about Books shelf which will be my May shelf of the Month.
Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel - I have read a bit of this and it is wonderful. It is my lunch reading at work, when I don't have a library book that is pressuring me. I started this as an April Shelf of the Month pick, but it won't be finished in April.
The Quiet Librarian by Allen Eskens - This is my current lunch reading because it came in and I need to get it read. It is very good. The librarian in question was a Bosnian refugee in the 1990s. She has made herself invisible in this town in America, but it looks like her past is catching up to her.
Other books from the Book about Books shelf that have possibility are:
A Reader's Delight by Noel Perrin - Not only is this a very short book about books, it has also been on my TBR for a long time. It is a collection of articles he wrote for the Washington Post. I may or may not have ever heard about the books. Or I may find a new favorite to try.
Reading with Patrick: A Teacher, A Student, and a Life-Changing Friendship by Michelle Kuo - This is a memoir. I put it in books and reading because the author was a Teach For America teacher in a rural town in Arkansas who taught this kid to read.
What You Are Looking For Is In the Library by Michiko Aoyama - Doesn't this look fantastic? I don't even care what it is.
Am I Alone Here?: Notes on Living to Read and Reading to Live by Peter Orner - I am pretty sure I picked this up once before and wasn't smart enough to follow it. I remember nothing about it, just the feeling of stupidity. I love the cover though, so I'll give it another go.
Harry Potter's Bookshelf: The Great Books Behind the Hogwarts Adventures by John Granger - This looks like fun. I'm not here for supporting J.K. Rowling but I'm 99% sure she gets no money from this book, and if she did, she got it many years ago.
I might see a couple of library books in May, so I'll put those on here as well:
Bibliotherapy: Books to Guide You Through Every Chapter of Life by Molly Masters - I heard about this on a podcast this week. It came out in January, so I immediately requested it at the library. Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles (name that musical) it was not checked out. I expect to get that on Friday.
Don't Sleep With the Dead by Nghi Vo - I'm number three on the list and the website says it has made it to processing. There is a chance it might actually come in.
I feel like that is a pretty lofty set of expectations for a month that is usually fraught with chaos. We'll leave it there.
What are your reading plans for May?