Ramona the Brave by Beverly Cleary

Once again, re-reading Ramona with Graham and Lucy. I actually got choked up at one part in this book, where Ramona is so angry and upset that she's crying face-down on the couch, and her mom comes over and says, "Ramona, what are we going to do with you?" And Ramona says, "Love me!" That was just such a poignant answer, especially now as a parent where I've had my children doing that same thing, throwing that same tantrum and having a meltdown--and just seeing that they're begging for love. Ramona feels so real to me. 

Rage Against the Minivan by Kristen Howerton

I actually really liked this parenting book. It was kind of an anti-parenting book, not one that gives actual techniques and advice about what to do, but one that tells you how to chill and stop stressing so much about things that don't matter. Kristen Howerton seems like a fun person I'd love to hang out with sometime, and her realism was really refreshing and entertaining. I was laughing out loud at her story of the ants being all over her bag when she was running to teach a class and how she was picking ants off of herself while teaching. I also have no idea how she did it, having four children in four years (two by birth, two through adoption). Pretty amazing.

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

This book was an interesting idea, which kind of reminded me of Dark Matter, with the whole "infinite possibilities of lives in the multiverse" kind of thing. Except in this book, you get to be more intentional about which life you choose. The book is about a girl who has nothing but regrets and choices she wishes she hadn't made, so she tries to end her life. After she does, she wakes up in a giant library, with millions of books that each have a different life she can try to enter. Like what would her life be like if she had ended up marrying that guy? Or if she had tried to go all in on her band? Or her Olympic swimming career? It was interesting seeing what she learned from each life she visited and how she realized each one was disappointing in different ways--none of them were totally perfect. It ended in a good way, where she went back to her original life and tried to make it better, make it actually hers. I thought it was pretty good but kind of long.

Better than the Movies by Lynn Painter

I loved this book so much I read it twice in a row. I blazed through it in one day/night, and then read it again the next day. It was a super adorable YA romance with all the right cute and tender moments, about a high school senior who falls in love with her next door neighbor who has always been there, but who she's always thought was a goofball kind of jerk. It was sweet, cute, clean, and fun. Definitely one I would re-read and possibly even buy for myself. 

What We Talk about When We Talk about Books: The History and Future of Reading by Leah Price

I moderately enjoyed this one when I read it, but I'm going to be honest: I don't remember anything from it now that I'm writing this review three months later. So, maybe not my favorite book ever. 

Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary

I realized that Graham had never heard the Ramona books before, so I started reading these to him and Lucy. They absolutely love them. They are always begging me to read one more chapter to them. The thing I love about Ramona is how real her emotions are and how relatable. I think she and Graham are really similar in their personalities so I love him being able to listen to her story. These are some of my favorite read-alouds. 

The Actor's Life: A Survival Guide by Jenna Fischer

I love The Office. Also, I have been listening to the Office Ladies podcast for a year or more now, and I love listening to Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey talk about their experiences on The Office. And they mentioned that Jenna wrote a book about being an actor, and even though I have literally less than zero desire to act ever, in any place, at all, I thought it would be fun to read this book to hear more about what it's like to be an actor and to hear more about Jenna's personal experiences going from being a nobody to being relatively famous from being on The Office. I love a good celebrity memoir! And this isn't really a memoir, but it was close. And I did find it fascinating to learn about a lot of different things that actors have to go through to work in that field. I had no idea how much time and energy they put into auditioning and how little time the average actor actually spends acting in comparison. And I had no idea how little the average actor makes. It was interesting, but not necessarily something I maybe should have bothered reading. Kind of a waste of time for me, but it would be an awesome wealth of knowledge for someone who actually cares.