July Reading Wrap-Up and August Plans
Hello! Welcome to my 2025 July reading wrap-up. I’ll be up front with you guys – July was a BEAR of a month for me. I moved to another town, and almost everything that could go wrong with that process went spectacularly wrong. Still cleaning up a lot of that mess. Because of that, I barely read anything for a couple weeks, and I fell way behind with my review schedule. So, I hope you understand if this wrap-up is quick and not very detailed.
My August plans are at the end of the post. Basically, I’ll be playing major catch-up!
(Goodreads links in titles)
July’s 3-star reads
The Fear Street Saga #2: The Secret by R.L. Stine
So, not my favourite of the saga. But I still love those nostalgic R.L. Stine vibes.
A fun romp for anyone who loves creature horror. I reviewed it here.
July’s 4-star reads
Beautifully written, informative, engaging, and full of complex (if insufferable) characters. A definite awards contender. I reviewed it here.
African Folktales for the Young at Heart by Abubakar Yusuf Ibrahim
This is a nice collection of traditional Nigerian folk tales for children and the young at heart. If you’re at all interested in folk tales and/or African literature, definitely check it out! I reviewed it here.
Rope: How a Bundle of Twisted Fibers Became the Backbone of Civilization by Tim Queeney
Skillfully researched and written, this is the fascinating history and potential future of one of humanity’s most innovative inventions: rope. I highly recommend it to any nonfiction lover. I reviewed it here.
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
As an agoraphobe myself, I have to say, it’s nice to get some semi-accurate representation once in a while. I really enjoyed this book (and the movie) for that, and the mystery had plenty of twists and turns to keep me interested, too. There were just a few weak spots in the writing and the plot that kept it from 5-star status. But for a debut novel, I was impressed.
July’s 5-star reads
Our Last Best Chance: The Pursuit of Peace in a Time of Peril by King Abdullah II of Jordan
This was part of my Great Reads from Around the World project, representing Jordan. Excellent memoir. I discussed it here.
Around the World in 80 Trees by Jonathan Drori
My favourite read of the month, and so far of the year! I have a deep and abiding love for trees, and this book is full of fascinating and fun information on trees from all over the world. If it had been 800 trees instead of 80, I still would have been enthralled by every page.
August Plans
As for August, I don’t want to commit myself to too much, since I’m still dealing with a lot of real-life drama. I really need to focus on reading and reviewing ARCs, since I’ve fallen behind with those, so expect one or two of those per week. I’m putting my World LiteraTour project on hold for another month, and probably my Great Reads from Around the World project as well, but I got halfway through a Top 100 Canadian Reads book last month, so I’m hoping to finish that.
Beyond that, I’ll review whatever new releases I can get my hands on (and have time for). And I just have a handful of squares left to fill on my Summer Book Bingo board. I can still make it!
Happy last-weeks-of-summer reading, everybody!