Natalie's Nook

Most people that know me know that I’m an avid reader. I mean, read 15-plus books a year type of reader. In 2019 I read 16/12 books, in 2020 I read 28/20 books (shoutout to the pandemic and having to be quarantined). In 2021 I read, but I didn’t even read half of my goal— 14/30; however, last year (2022), I was in the WORST reading slump an avid reader could ever imagine. I thought being in that slump was the end of my most favorite hobby.

I read one book at the beginning of the year. It was the third book in the “YOU” series by Caroline Kepnes— “You Love Me”. I feel like I force read the book: 1. I read the other two books, so I had to keep the series going, and 2. There was a point where I felt like I should have stopped reading—or what readers call Did Not Finish (DNF)—the book.

My rating for the book:

Thinking back, I want to say I felt that way because I watched season three before I read the book and the show was surprisingly better….in certain ways. I loved the direction the story went in with Love and Joe on screen versus what Kepnes wrote. Don’t get me wrong, she is an excellent writer and those first two books were bangers—*SPOILERS AHEAD*—but there was just something about Love staying in the picture and accepting Joe for who he was and all that he did, her and Joe getting married after having their first child together, moving to a small town and practically starting over; all of which wasn’t in the book. Watching the way Joe realize his and Love’s relationship was very unhealthy as she committed the same crimes he did (in the name of love of course) and him basically meeting his match, did it for me and kept the story interesting. I would like to thank Netflix for still keeping me interested and engaged!

After that book was read, I tried moving on to the next one and the next one and I think one more; until I gave in and decided that I wasn’t interested in reading. The worst part is this lasted for months. I picked up and started to read a few books that I just DNF. I simply couldn’t find a book worth reading, one that could just keep my interest long enough for me to finish. Until…

On August 9, 2022, former child actress Jennette McCurdy published her debut memoir “I’m Glad My Mom Died”. I had been seeing plenty of reviews on social media (especially TikTok) and clips of her on talk shows being interviewed about the truths of her upbringing as a child actress— specifically her relationship with her mother and the Nickelodeon network. As a young adult that grew up watching her onscreen, on top of the videos/interviews I watched and the tweets I read, not to mention the cover of the book; all of that was enough to convince me that I needed to get out of my reading slump and read this woman’s life story!

At this time, I wasn’t investing much money in books. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to buy a physical copy because who was to say that even after all the hype, I’d be one of those people who enjoys it. But then, with one look at my bank account and the recent transactions at the time; I was reminded of my monthly investment in the book app titled Scribd. With this app, and my fingers being crossed, I only hoped that her book would be on there and it was— both e-book and audio. For the first time in a long time, I was inclined to listen to the book, simply because in this case the author was the narrator too.

After almost two months of listening to Jennette narrate her story, I absorbed and learned about her struggles as a child actress forced into the industry, her eating disorder and alcohol addiction, and the main thing that led her to write this memoir— her complicated relationship with her needy, control freak, and sob story of an ungrateful mother. That was a harsh description and I really hate to word it like that (because we should all want to speak highly and lovingly of our mothers) but in Jennette’s case; her mother was a selfishly vile human being that simply wanted to make Jennette’s live a living hell all for her own gain. I would like to read more real and raw memoirs (like this one) written by celebrities that got their stardom at such a young age, and how it all might have gone to shit for them as they got older.

My rating for the book:

Once I had finished reading her story, I just knew I was FINALLY out of my reading slump, and I was itching to pick up a new read! Someone dearest to me had been getting through book after book, and I felt a bit behind, but after reading my first book in over 8 months I was simply glad to be reading again. I was interested in what they were reading, and after listening to them share with me about their read at the time I knew I needed to listen to that book.

They were reading the thriller “Sometimes I Lie” by Alice Feeny. I’m a sucker for a good thriller and THAT book was the best thriller novel I’ve listened to/read since “YOU”. With plot twist after plot twist, the time jumps between the past and present, and THAT ENDING— talk about a cold cliffhanger. I also simply enjoyed having someone with a British accent read to me.

My rating for the book:

After thoroughly enjoying one of her novels, I needed to read more by Feeny. My friend and I decided to give another novel of hers a read. We read “I Know Who You Are” 2018. Again, Feeny did her THING when writing this thriller! I have really come to love her style of writing, especially with jumping back and forth between past and present settings. It perfectly helps the reader shape a better understanding of the character(s) that we’re introduced to, and the different versions of them. Feeney is wanting her readers to picture how the characters got from point A to point B as the story scaringly unfolds. I can say this novel had a lot more depth to the story than “Sometimes I Lie“, and the plot twists were just a shocking.

My rating for the book:

Since reading, or rather listening, to those books towards the end of the year; I realized that I needed to start my reading habit for this new year off strong! I set a reading goal/challenge on Goodreads for 13 books. As of this blog post, I have listened to three books and have miraculously picked up (and am currently finishing) one PHYSICAL book since early 2021. I’ve jumped from thrillers— “Brother” 2015 by Ania Ahlborn to, YA (young adult) Apocalyptic-Romance— “They Both Die at the End”2017 by Adam Silvera, to MA (mature adult) Romance— “The One Night” 2021 by Meghan Quinn.

The physical book I’m reading has been very……enlightening; it’ll probably be one of the heaviest (as far as content) and real books I will read this year. It’s one of those books that you read a few times, especially if you can still relate to the material. What is this book you might ask? It is “The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter–And How to Make the Most of Them Now” Updated edition 2021. This book here deserves its own post. This book here has made me hopeful for a lot but has also scared me a lot.

All of these books have allowed me to get back into my love for reading.

What shall I listen to next?