Shaina Reads

It feels like it was just yesterday that I was clamoring for July to get here already, and we're already saying goodbye. Time flies when you're having fun and being a snail of a reader, apparently. Today, my interns fly the coop (sniff, sniff) and I prepare to enter the calm of August before the storm of the new academic year. My boss...

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I'm not sure what it is about putting the word "girl" in a book title, but it's been all the rage for the last year or so. In June and July, I read no fewer than three that did so. Of the three books featured here, only one of them was actually about a girl (read: a female child). One of the storylines...

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It's been a while since I've shared anything non-bookish with you all. As you've probably gleaned, I'm back safe and sound from (and already nostalgic for) my vacation in Oregon. My boyfriend and I took a lot of photos, and I hope to dedicate a post to our adventures soon. Expect plenty of trees, colorful, festival goodness, and lake-soaked Golden retrievers (this last...

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Nope. Not happening. My name is Shaina, and I have a confession to make: I've never listened to an audiobook, and a part of me never wants to. All right, so I'm fudging a bit here. I've definitely heard an audiobook before, but this was back in the day when my grandma used to rent cassettes and CDs from the library to play...

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Lately, I've been into some pretty atmospheric reads. Google defines atmospheric as "creating a distinctive mood, typically of romance, mystery, or nostalgia," and these three (one forthcoming, two backlist) fit the bill. The next time you're hankering for a book with a setting that's a character in and of itself, consider giving one of these a shot. The Beautiful Bureaucrat, by Helen Phillips...

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Brief, unexpected Weekend Cooking post ahoy! Weekend Cooking is a weekly feature hosted by Beth Fish Reads. As a Latina (more specifically, a Jewban from South Florida), I've got a long, storied history with beans. Ask me what I miss most about living near Miami, and I will invariably wax poetic about Pollo Tropical's pulled pork (sadly out of reach now, due to...

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Today, the #BlumeAlong draws to a close. Through June and July, I got to dive back into the world of boys, bras and periods with Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret (and thank all my lucky stars that I'm done with puberty for good) as well as navigate the twists and turns of long-term female friendship in Summer Sisters. Thanks again to Kerry...

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Have you guys ever regretted one of your book reviews? I'm not talking about wondering if your gushing, lukewarm or downright bad feelings about a book were wrong because of all the glowing or scathing reviews out there that disagree with you. That's different: it's called impostor syndrome, and it's actually something I've covered before! I'm talking about looking back on old writing and...

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All covers from Goodreads. Clockwise: 1, 2, 3 Diving into Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret for this summer's #BlumeAlong really brought me back to my childhood reading days. I've been devouring books since I was a wee thing, and it was a lot of fun to go back to an old favorite—one I undoubtedly read and re-read until the spine cracked...

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Do you guys know Heather of Bits n Books? She's always reading books that are totally off my radar, and her excitement for the ones she loves shines brilliantly through her reviews and gets my TBR pile growing every time. Plus, she's from Australia, and now I can say that I have a friend in Australia. All this is to say: check her...

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Dang, y'all. Are we really already in July? I can't complain much (it is my birth month, after all), but I can't believe how quickly summer is flying by. Before I know it, I'll be boxing up my sun dresses and breaking out the boots and scarves again. That's right around when I'll ask myself, not for the first time, why I chose...

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