What I Read in June
📍 Norwalk, CT

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I made a goal of reading 24 books in 2024 (AKA 2 books per month). Although having a reading goal has become an annual tradition, I always lose steam in the summertime. Happily, I’ve already reached my original goal and decided to push it to reach 50. It’s becoming a bit of a challenge as a busy season is pulling me in every direction. To help you achieve your own reading goals this year, here’s what I read in June.

Bright Young Women

This book should be required reading for any true crime fan. Bright Young Women tells a fictionalized aftermath of Teddy Bundy’s attacks at Florida State University in 1978. While the story focuses largely on Chi Omega’s president, Pamela, it also flashes back to include other women impacted by Bundy. It was a very powerful book and may be one of my favorite reads of the entire year. I highly recommend! 

Wives Like Us

Wives Like Us welcomes you to the pristine destination of the Cotswolds. This collection of villages, under two hours away from London, is home to incredibly posh and historic families. With Executive Butler, Ian Palmer, as our main protagonist, we learn that the grass isn’t always greener beyond the pristine hedges. This was such a fun read to really kick off the summer season.

All the Beauty in the World

I often share my deep love for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, AKA the Met. I’ve even gone to call it my happy place. All the Beauty in the World was a relatively quick read for me, only 239 pages, but was nonetheless poignant. Author Patrick Brinkley took a security guard position at the MET upon the death of his brother. Through the halls of the museum, he tackles his own grief with the help of art from around the world. As a frequent visitor to the MET, I have a deeper respect for the men and women who work there. 

Summer Darlings

A fun summer read meets Martha’s Vineyard in 1964. I’ve been a fan of Brooke Lea Foster’s historical fiction since I read On Gin Lane last year. Summer Darlings is her first novel, and such a wild ride. You’ll love the main character, Heddy, as she navigates high society as the island’s newest nanny. Like Foster’s other novels, Summer Darlings has so many unexpected twists and turns that will leave you guessing until the final page!

Bringing Up Bébé

Consider me yet another new mom who read Bringing Up Bébé and loved it. I had some anxieties ahead of getting pregnant about parenthood and how life would change. I love our little one more than words can say, and reading this book has helped me create a balanced lifestyle. Inside, I’ve highlighted the French’s strategy on sleeping through the night, introducing new foods, and other little tidbits. While I won’t make this book my entire parenting philosophy, I really recommend it for any parents-to-be.

Chanel’s Riviera

I originally grabbed this book based on the cover, hoping to learn about the life of famed designer Coco Chanel. While her life story is sprinkled throughout the book, Chanel’s Riviera also focuses on the changing times of the Cote d’Azur in the 1930s and 1940s. France’s southern coast was a meeting place for some of the most notorious names, including the Duke of Windsor, Picasso, and Hemingway. This book dives into Chanel’s relationships with those people, and other lesser known aspects of her life. 

Now that it’s July, I have a few more books from my local library that I can’t wait to read. I’m just a few pages into Dogland , and I’m already hooked. I can’t wait to tell you more about it in next month’s round up. Keep me on track, and I’ll share all the great books in next month’s review. Until then, happy reading!

Love from Connecticut,
Katie

Thanks for stopping by! To keep up with all things about my travels and style, be sure to visit throughout the week! Be sure to check out my exclusive adventures in NYC and New England. 

What I Read in May
📍 Greenwich, CT

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I made a goal of reading 24 books in 2024 (AKA 2 books per month). Although having a reading goal has become an annual tradition, I always lose major steam in the summertime. I can’t believe it, but I’ve already reached my goal. Even though Baby Brennan has been keeping me extra busy, I’ve found some reading time while I pump several times a day. Let’s see if I can push myself to get to 50 this year. To help you reach your own reading goals this year, here’s what I read in May.

The Swans of Fifth Avenue

My interest in Truman Capote is still piqued thanks to the latest season of Feud. The Swans of Fifth Avenue is a novelized version of the blowout that happened between him and the socialites of 1960s Manhattan. Like in real life, the story focuses on Babe Paley, who was known to be Truman’s favorite, his closest confidante, yet she is also the one he betrayed the most. We’ll never truly understand what compelled Truman to air the darkest secrets of the women who considered him to be a friend. Still, Melanie Benjamin’s retelling may be our safest bet. 

Fake

My eyes were opened to the world of art replicas by reading Fake. In short, museums and high art collectors may commission high-end replicas in order to help ensure their investment. Some may want to have something to display while the art is being cleaned, while others use the replica long-term while the original is kept safe in storage. Emma is such a painter, and she’s one of the best. Once she becomes a freelancer, she quickly sees the thin line between legal replicas and illegal forgeries. 

My Year of Rest of Relaxation

Because of my new, exhausting status as ‘mom”, My Year of Rest and Relaxation hit a little close to home. Through a combination of endless prescriptions, the world’s worst psychiatrists, and sheer willpower, our narrator aspires to take a full year away from society. Literally, all she wants to do is sleep. Not for medical reasons or anything; she just wants to. While it sounds like the storyline would be a drag, it’s a wild ride with a wicked sense of humor. I’m now officially intrigued by the author’s writing style and want to read more about what Ottessa Moshfegh has to offer. 

Stone Cold Fox

Stone Cold Fox was the kind of book I just couldn’t put down. Bea is a con artist who is striving to marry her way into one of the wealthiest families in NYC. She’s manipulative, cunning, and incredibly vein. How is it possible that I was still rooting for her? That’s because her arch nemesis, Gale, her fiancé’s best friend, is even worse. Gale comes from the same world of old money and has no problem openly reminding Bea that she doesn’t belong. That she’s not good enough. This level of classism is not a good look on anyone but is a friendly reminder that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. If you liked The Guest or Pineapple Street, you’ll definitely love this book!

Parachute Women

Each month, I try to keep a well-balanced reading diet by alternating between fiction and non-fiction. Since adjusting to motherhood, I’ve wanted books that were more about escapism than new information. Parachute Women was my lone biography this month, and it was such a great choice! You know it will be good when the librarian says, “I’m going to read this when you check it back in.” While we all know The Rolling Stones, unless you have no musical taste, the incredible stories of the women who supported them are almost always overshadowed. This book is a deep dive into music history while reading with the ease and intrigue of a novel. 

The Paris Novel

Don’t you love it when you find a book that really speaks to your soul? That’s what The Paris Novel is for me. Stella has always felt like she’s been living in her mother’s shadow. Because of a traumatic event when she was a child, she absorbed herself in a world of order, schedules, and predictability. When her mother passes away, she receives a small inheritance, a one-way ticket to Paris, and a rare opportunity to find herself. With an incredible cast of characters, Ruth Reichl helps you dive into Paris’s moveable feast. This novel is an extra dose of inspiration to revisit this culinary haven.

Although we’re barely into June, I just finished Bright Young Women. It could possibly be one of favorite books of the year and I can’t wait to tell you all about it in next month’s round up. Summer is always my busiest season, but I’m so excited to keep making progress to 50 books. I’ve already read more books this year than I did in 2023, but I’m ready to keep going! Keep me on track and I’ll share all the great books in next month’s review. Until then, happy reading!

Love from Connecticut
Katie

Thanks for stopping by! To keep up with all things about my travels and style, be sure to visit throughout the week! Be sure to check out my exclusive adventures in NYC and New England. 

What I Read in March
📍Greenwich, Connecticut

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I made a goal of reading 24 books in 2024 (AKA 2 books per month). Although having a reading goal has become an annual tradition, I always lose major steam in the summertime. This year, I’m sticking to it! In March, I was able to keep working towards my goal with these 6 incredible books I devoured. Oh, the perks of getting a library card! I feel empowered and unstoppable in the book department. To help you reach your own reading goals this year, here’s what I read in March.

The Margot Affair

The Margot Affair was on my reading list based on looks alone. I’m so happy to have judged a book by its cover. In Sanaë Lemoine’s debut novel, we dive into the life of Margot Louve. As the secret daughter of a rising French politician, she has long had to balance the relationship between her father and her mother. When she meets a journalist, the house of cards her unconventional family has built begins to tumble. If you a fan of Parisian drama, similar to French Exit, then you’ll love this book!

The Chelsea Girls

A few years ago, when I read The Dollhouse, I knew I had found a new go-to author. Fiona Davis specializes in what I can only described as NYC historical fiction, which just happens to be my favorite genre. The Chelsea Girls is set mainly in 1950s Manhattan, when the Red Scare is beginning to plague a post World War II world. Coincidentally, a lot of the books I’ve recently been reading have dipped their toe into McCarthyism and I found this fictitious story to be particularly captivating.

Girly Drinks

Just because I can’t have any fun cocktails doesn’t mean I can’t wet my whistle in a different sense. Girly Drinks is a girl-power fueled book, making for a perfect read during Women’s History Month. It plots out the long-standing relationship between women and alcohol throughout the centuries. You may be surprised to find just how little credit women get for some of the biggest innovations. I learned so much from this book and can’t wait to read more from Mallory O’Meara.

Pineapple Street

So many people have recommended this book to me, I can’t believe it took me this long to dive into. Welcome to Pineapple Street, an ultra exclusive address in one of Brooklyn’s most prominent neighbors. This story is told from the perspective of three different family members: two sisters from the old-money Stockton family and their sister-in-law who comes from more humble roots. Family dynamics are always complicated, as I’m sure we’ve all felt before, but when generations of wealth are involved, things quickly become more complicated.

Small Admissions

March very quickly became the month for revisiting previously read authors. I absolutely loved Amy Poeppel’s Limelight and made a mental note to read the rest of her books. Better late than never! When I worked at a private school in the Upper East Side, I learned all about the stresses of the Manhattan admissions season. Because of that Small Admissions was a little difficult for me to read, but I loved it anyway. I never had to endure what the main character, Kate, went through, but heart constantly went out to her. This novel has wonderful character development, something I think the author always excels at telling.

When Women Invented Television

This month was filled with more novels than usual, which is why I specifically chose to read When Women Invented Television. Similar to Girly Drinks, this another piece that sings of the unsung heroes in women’s history… specifically the women who truly pioneered the television industry. Whenever there is uncharted territory, women have always been there to make their mark. Many of these women are sadly, virtually unknown, but their contribution to the entertainment industry was absolutely crucial.

Currently, I’m halfway through The Swans of Fifth Avenue. How many books will I be able to fit in about Truman Capote and his socialites this year? We’ll just have to wait and see. I have an ever-growing number of books on hold at the local library and can’t wait to dive into them all. Before I get ahead of myself, you can expect a mini-review in my next issue of What I Read. Until then, happy reading!

Love from Connecticut,
Katie

Thanks for stopping by! To keep up with all things about my travels and style, be sure to visit throughout the week! Be sure to check out my exclusive adventures in NYC and New England.