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The Overstory by Richard Powers

“Until today, he has never planted anything. But Now, that next best of times, is long, and reunites everything.” There are good books, and then there are those that make you fall in love with reading all over again, that make you savor each word and feel for each character. The Overstory is one of those incredible books. This novel is structured like the concentric rings of a tree, starting…

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What I read in April (belatedly)

Somehow it’s already mid-May, and the reading outside season has fully begun where I live. I figured it was high time to chat about the books I read in April. Saving Time by Jenny Odell. I read Odell’s prior book How to Do Nothing a few years ago and loved it. While I didn’t enjoy Saving Time as much as How to Do Nothing, it was still an interesting read. Odell challenges the way we think about…

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THE BEST BOOKS I READ IN 2021

THE BEST BOOKS I READ IN 2021

Happy 2022! It’s been a while–just over an entire year since I last posted. But I couldn’t resist popping in for a classic “best books I read last year” list. Needless to say, 2021 was yet another tumultuous, topsy-turvy year. Thankfully, reading continued to be an incredible outlet for escape, release, comfort, and growth. I read a total of 63 books in 2021, and here are my top ten favorites…

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The best books I read in 2020

The best books I read in 2020

I thought making this list would be easy. Yet this year has gone by so quickly in hindsight (and so, so slowly in the moment) that somehow I forgot just how many fantastic books I read this year. In the midst of everything that became 2020, I managed to read 70 books, several of which have stuck with me through these chaotic, messy months. Here, in the order that I read them, are my favorites of…

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Dear Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen: a take on the Gothic novel

Dear Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen: a take on the Gothic novel

Dear Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen: After a bit of an Austen drought for me, I decided to listen to the audiobook version of you. I have been slowly working my way through Austen’s novels for years (besides you, I have read Pride & Prejudice, Persuasion, and Emma), so I was excited to finally read you. To be honest, I was a bit worried. Sometimes classics are harder to listen to rather than…

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Dear The Reivers by William Faulkner: a much-needed exhale

Dear The Reivers by William Faulkner: a much-needed exhale

Dear The Reivers by William Faulkner: After finishing what ended up being my most stressful semester of school yet (third semester of law school, it was a lot), I immediately knew what book I needed to pick up: you, the unread Faulkner book that had been waiting for me on my shelf for months. I’ve loved Faulkner as a writer for years, ever since I was assigned to read The Sound and the Fury in…

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a book for every song in Taylor Swift's album "evermore" | recommendations

a book for every song in Taylor Swift’s album “evermore” | recommendations

During my first listen through Taylor Swift’s recent album “evermore” I knew that I would eventually make this list. Each song so clearly and lyrically tells a story. It’s hard not to get swept up in the emotions of all these lost loves, lost chances, bittersweet memories, newfound feelings of contentment, and realizations of one’s sense of self. As a result of listening to this album on repeat…

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A little re-introduction

Hello, hello! It’s been a bit since I last posted, so I thought I would do a little re-introduction.

My name is Holly, and I’m a book-loving law student. I studied English literature in undergrad and studied abroad at the University of Oxford for a year. I’m allergic to nuts, hence the name of this blog.

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reminded me of how to be both by ali…

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Dear THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO by Alexandre Dumas: A gold star for this year's Big Book of the Summer

Dear THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO by Alexandre Dumas: A gold star for this year’s Big Book of the Summer

Dear The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas: 

For the past handful of summers, I’ve chosen a larger, more intimidating book to read over the summer months. Previous participants in this little challenge have been Moby Dick by Herman Melville, Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. For summer of 2020, I chose to tackle you, The Count of Monte Cristo. Al…

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Dear SUMMER CROSSING by Truman Capote: A triple-layered surprise

Dear SUMMER CROSSING by Truman Capote: A triple-layered surprise

Dear Summer Crossing by Truman Capote: 

Lately it seems as though I’ve acquired a knack for picking up the most recent book an author has written or published without ever having read any of their other work. Although you were the first novel ever written by Truman Capote, you weren’t published until over fifty years later in 2005, decades after Capote’s death. Merely by chance–your…

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books that were the most fun to review

Top Ten Tuesday: Books that were the most fun to review

Happy Tuesday!! This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic asks us to shared the books we loved but never reviewed. Since I’ve reviewed most of the books I’ve loved over the years, I thought it would be fun to share my ten favorite reviews that I’ve written.

1. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green.I’ve been a fan of John Green’s books and other projects since I was in middle school, so they hold…

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Dear DIGITAL MINIMALISM by Cal Newport: Interesting from a pandemic perspective

Dear DIGITAL MINIMALISM by Cal Newport: Interesting from a pandemic perspective

Dear Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport: 

Given the current pandemic and ensuing lockdown measures, it’s not an overstatement to say that the majority of my daily communication for the past few months has been digital. From online classes and Zoom lectures to work emails and phone calls, I’ve gotten used to going about my day from behind my laptop screen. This lack of face-to-face interaction…

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Colorful Titles

Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Colorful Titles

Happy Tuesday!! This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) is a pretty simple one: books with colors in their titles. At a first glance I expected this list to be a bit challenging to fill, but I was surprised to find that there are actually many more books with colors in their titles than I thought. This list ended up being a nice mix of books–I’ve linked my reviews…

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JULY 2020 | Wrap-Up

JULY 2020 | Wrap-Up

July was a busy month, but somehow I managed to still get quite a bit of reading done. Here’s what I was up to in July:

In July, I read a total of 10 books:

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett

Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport

Daisy Miller by Henry James

Summer Crossing by Truman Capote

Barracoon by Zora…

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Top Ten Tuesdays: My bookshop bucket list

Top Ten Tuesdays: My bookshop bucket list

Happy Tuesday!! This week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) asks us to share ten book events or festivals that we’d love to go to someday. Instead, I’d like to focus on ten bookshops I’d love to visit someday. (Can you tell that I miss visiting bookstores so much?!)

Strand | New York City, New York. I’ve always wanted to visit this iconic bookstore, but I’ve never…

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Reading Rush 2020 TBR

Reading Rush 2020 TBR

Get excited!! It’s that time of year again–the Reading Rush is here!! The Reading Rush is a weeklong readathon hosted by Ariel Bissett and Raeleen Lemay. This year the Reading Rush is taking place from July 20 to July 26. Check out their website for more information.

I’ve been participating in the Reading Rush (formerly known as the Booktube-a-thon) for years now, and it’s always a highlight…

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Dear LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE by Celeste Ng: What genre do you belong in?

Dear LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE by Celeste Ng: What genre do you belong in?

Dear Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng:

You’ve been one of the most recommended books on my TBR ever since I watched and enjoyed Big Little Lies a few years ago. I had never read anything by Celeste Ng up until this point, and numerous other bookworms recommended you both for your gripping story and your fantastic writing. Needless to say, my expectations were already a little high when I…