Reading Wrap-Up: March 24-30, 2025

It's officially spring break for my school district, which meant I made a very conscious effort this past weekend to step away from the computer and relax for a bit.

Finished Reading:

• Cincinnati Lee, Curse Breaker by Heidi Heilig - This was an advance copy of a middle grade novel featuring a tweenage girl whose family is cursed thanks to her archeologist great great grandfather. The only way to break the curse? To return the artifacts he collected from around the world to their rightful homes. Good thing her mom works at a world-class New York museum, but between bullies, bosses, and her big plans leaving others in a lurch, can Cincinnati pull it off? I thought this was a fun, fast-paced novel clearly meant for City Spies and Charlie Thorne readers. I must say, there were at least a few moments when the author brought up politics or Christianity in such a way that felt, ironically, preachy and could definitely make some readers feel like their personal beliefs make them un-fit to be part of this adventure. Maybe if it hadn't been so on the nose? It was pretty heavy handed and I'm not saying there isn't a time and place for those discussions in books for this age group, but like, come on, this book is about breaking a curse.

• The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie - This is only my second ever Agatha Christie novel and while I didn't love it, I get the hype! It took me a little while to figure out who the narrator was, and now that the convention is established, I feel like I could read any of the other Hercule Poirot books easily enough. I for sure want to explore a Ms. Marple book in the future.

• Free: My Search for Meaning by Amanda Knox - It was the crime talked about around the world in the 2000s, the one where everyone thought they knew what was going on and had an opinion. But as Knox shares here is this open faced memoir, her trial by the world's media was in many ways just as harrowing and harmful as her ordeal in the Italian court system serving four years for a crime she did not commit. Readers are brought into her jail cell and the darkest corners of her mind as Knox tried to make sense of what was happening to her both while she was in prison and once she got out in her efforts to rebuild her life. I found the honesty to be incredibly moving, and the narrative well-written.

Currently Reading:

• The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami - Set in a not too distant future, this book has definite Minority Report vibes as it follows Sara, a woman who has been retained by a government agency when her the contents of her dreams determine she is at high-risk for causing harm to her husband. Therefore she must submit to a mandated 21 day retention in what is technically not a prison (but absolutely feels like a prison) and any infraction as determined by any guard on duty can result in additional time added to your observation. It is not a spoiler to say that when readers first meet Sara, it has been FAR more than those 21 days. I think the concept of this book is compelling (especially given reading it along side Knox's memoir), but I'm now 2/3 of the way through, it's taken a sharp left turn, and I don't know where it's going (and I don't think I mean that in a good way, more like a "this feels like a totally different book" way).