What I Read This Summer

The summer is almost over. Every student is going back to school soon. Many of them are sad, and many are very excited. To me, I don’t know. It’s just returning to school, and I must do my best to graduate this semester. I failed last time, you know. But I will not mention that anymore. I decided to put it in the past now. One of the ways I tried to recover, besides traveling, is by reading books. I’m really amazed of myself that I read many books this summer. Of course, the number of books I read cannot compare to other book lovers. But it looked a lot to me. I call myself a picky person when choosing a book to read. Some of my friends and colleagues recommended many books—however, I did not have many of those recommendations I chose to read. Today, I would like to share with you all the books that I read this summer from the end of May to August 1st. Besides all the books I shared with you today, there are some Vietnamese books that I read, and I will share with you in the next post. Now, let’s dig in.

The Shining by Stephen King (Re-read)

This is the book that introduced me to the world of Stephen King. I used to share with you that he is one of my favorite authors of all time. In June, some cousins of mine asked me for my Max account to watch The Shining. I was surprised because they never watched any old movies before and they wanted to watch The Shining. I thought they had not known what was in The Shining. One of them told me that they were watching Ready Player One the other night and saw the reference of The Shining in that movie, and they were curious. I said ok. So together, we watched The Shining. As I expected, they were covering their eyes each time there was a scary scene. I laughed inside me. After rewatching The Shining, I felt like I have to read this book again. The Shining is always on my bookshelf in the Stephen King section. The Shining book is far different from The Shining movie. Both have their best versions. The Shining book should only stay for read, and The Shining movie should only for watch. The Shining is really scary in many levels. When I reread it, my feeling is still the same. I was scared and unprepared for what could happen next. You don’t need to wait until Halloween to read The Shining. You can read it any time you want, and I can guarantee you that you will have the best experience ever.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty (Re-read)

This is the book that I reread every summer. I first read it in the Summer of 2018, after I finished the Big Little Lies series. Since then, I have been addicted to this book and decided to reread it every year. OMG, I love that show so much. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty is perfect for every mom with first-grade children. The war between parents in a public school is always the best topic to write about. There are many things to say about this book. It is the book that talks about parents’ secret, perfect life, and perfect lies, and everything you see in this book is the glorious life of every family who doesn’t want people to see there is a rotten thing inside. They created a perfect cover to hide the dark truth. And just like that, there is a murder happened. Who was killed? You have to read to figure it out. You will never expect what would happen each time you turn the pages.

All The Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby

This is the book that I saw a lady in the park reading. I asked her if the book was good. She looked at me and said it was the best book she had read. The title of this book made me skeptical at first because I thought it must be a book about Christianity. But she said it was not about religion. It was a thriller book full of notorious and suspicion. I decided to buy a copy at Barnes and Noble. I was immediately hooked up with this book. All The Sinners Bleed is an excellent balance between social issues and social justice. For a long time, I have loved reading any book about small-town secrets, and if you are a big fan of that genre, this book is definitely for you. I learned last week that Former President Barack Obama read this book in the summer too.

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

This is the book that was on my bookshelf for a while. I haven’t had a chance to read it. I didn’t know why. It wasn’t until I came to the Viet Book Fest and covered the event that I met author Viet Thanh Nguyen. He talked to me about this book. I interviewed him for my story. Two days after meeting him, I flew to Washington, D.C., and spent time on the plane reading The Sympathizer. I finished the book after only five days in D.C. and New York. This is a book about the Vietnam War and the life of Vietnamese refugees after April 30, 1975, in America. It seemed like they could never forget what happened in Vietnam and wanted to get their life in Vietnam back. The story was told from the point of view of a Communist sleeper. Viet Thanh Nguyen studied the history of the Vietnamese community carefully to write this book in the best way possible. When reading this book, I could understand what used to happen in the Vietnamese community in America, and it made it easier for me to read. This is a great book you should read if you want something new.

It by Stephen King

This is the longest book that I have ever read. Over 1,000 pages. It took me ten days to finish it. It was scary. Stephen King always knew how to exploit the fear of each person. The image of Pennywise as a clown was the metaphor for what you fear the most under the cover of the funniest character of every child. It is also about a beautiful friendship among the Loser Club. I always believe that things that come to our lives have a purpose. This book is not an exception. I read it while recovering from the pain that occurred to me in May. I learned from the book that the only thing to defeat your fear is to face it. I realize I have tried to escape that bad thing, but I never thought of dealing with it once and for all. By this time, I faced it one time and finished it. I found the strength to continue and will surely defeat it this time. It would be best to read this book whenever you are stuck with something you are always afraid to face.

Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen

This is the book I wanted to read, but I always got bored when I read classics (except Crime and Punishment). However, after watching a video on Facebook when Mr. Darcy talked to Elizabeth with some sweet words that only come from fairy tales, I decided to give this book a chance. Actually, a friend of mine recommended Pride and Prejudice before, but I didn’t read it. This book has proved the talent of Jane Austen in writing romance genre. She didn’t need to use many fancy words to put it on a scene. She made it simple for everyone to enjoy a love story inspired and beloved by many readers about true love.

Those are six books that I read this summer. I hope that after this list, you can find these books to read or reread. Lastly, I hope you had a great summer and good luck in this new school year.