I came across “The Wife Upstairs” as a suggestion from Overdrive on a Friday evening, and although I wouldn’t normally gravitate towards a thriller, I also cannot resist anything “Jane Eyre” related, so I decided to give it a chance. Fast forward to Sunday evening, and I had devoured it — definitely one of my fastest finishing-a-book times in the past few years, as a mom of young children. But with all the plot twists and turns, I just could not bear to put it down!

It is by no means a perfect book or an enduring classic, but that’s okay — I think it does what it intends to do: entertains in its own right while hearkening back to the original. My favorite bits were the well-known quotes from the classic novel, modified and spiced up with modern curse words — absolutely delightful! I also enjoyed the self-referential bits, as when Jane finds herself “creeping around the upstairs like I’m in a gothic novel or a bad horror movie.”

Three words that describe this book: twisty-turny, Southern gothic, classic-based

You might want to pick this book up if: You are looking for a quick summer read and enjoy thrillers and/or “Jane Eyre,” but don’t hold the classic up on such a pedestal that vulgarized quotes from it will upset you. Other retellings that you might enjoy (I know I did!) are “Jane Steele” by Lyndsay Faye and “Brightly Burning” by Alexa Donne.

-Erin

This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading 2022. We will continue to share these throughout the year.

The book “Chasing Science at Sea” is filled with the experiences of many, many scientists and researchers whose work brings them to the coast, the shorelines, the open seas, and underwater to coral reefs, ocean trenches and other fascinating places. In lay language, Prager helps to illuminate what these scientists are doing, and why science at sea matters to so many different fields within science. Their true stories are as gripping as any sea novel or movie. Some of the stories are funny, some are alarming, and they opened my eyes to how challenging it must be to work in these environments.

Three words that describe this book: Lively, surprising, humorous

You might want to pick this book up if: You are a Midwesterner (or anybody) wondering what it would be like to explore the oceans in real life.

-Lynn

This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. Submit your own book review here for a chance to have it featured on the Adults Blog. 

I learned about “The Correspondents” from an A Mighty Girl post about journalist Clare Hollingworth, and it has proven to be a fascinating and compelling listen. The book follows six American and British women journalists (five writers and one photographer) as they reported on WWII. Not only is it the story of their adventures, travels and reports, but it also follows the difficulties they faced as female reporters as they battled the hesitancy of their newspapers to hire women as war correspondents and restrictions, particularly by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, on women in combat zones. The book was not always an easy listen, particularly as it traced each woman’s response to and reports on the liberation of concentration camps near the end of the war, but those experiences seemed a part of the larger whole as the author broke down the reasons why these women continued for 6+ years to report the realities of war.

Three words that describe this book: Can’t stop listening

You might want to pick this book up if: You are interested in women’s history, WWII, journalism, or the everyday experiences of women in a conflict zone.

-Alexis

This reader review was submitted as part of Adult Summer Reading. Submit your own book review here for a chance to have it featured on the Adults Blog.