June 2025 Reading Wrap-Up and July TBR
June Wrap-Up
I struggled with my reading this month. I’m gearing up for a big move to a new town in July, and one of my cats died, and my dog is sick, aaaaand yeah. I’ve had very little brain power to spend on reading. So the fact that I managed to read 11 books in June and review or analyze 9 feels like a huge accomplishment!
Since I’ve already posted about all but 2 of these books, I’ll just give brief thoughts here and links to my reviews where applicable. The titles are linked to each book’s Goodreads page. I’ve ranked them from my least favourite to my top favourite, but you might notice that none of them are rated below 4 stars. The simple reason for that is I was trigger-happy with the DNFs this month! I was feeling so low-energy mentally that if I wasn’t enjoying a book, I quit. That’s not something I want to make a habit of, but anyway, that’s why all my ratings are so high.
If you’re interested in my July TBR, it’s at the bottom of this post.
Least Favourite (with eternal apologies to the author)
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I feel so rude calling this my least-favourite read of the month. I really liked it! And I just watched Kim Thuy being awarded her membership to the Order of Canada at yesterday’s Canada Day celebrations! With tears in my eyes, dangit!! This book doesn’t deserve such a low status. But out of all the bangers I read this month, I did get the least amount of enjoyment out of this one. Still a banger, though. My review/analysis is here.
So-close-to-perfect reads
⭐⭐⭐⭐
As I said in my review, which is here, this book has some major problems. It’s choppy and sometimes implausible, so I can’t in good conscience give it 5 stars. But it’s still a fun scifi-horror ride.
Unearthing: A Story of Tangled Love and Family Secrets by Kyo Maclear
⭐⭐⭐⭐
This one is a unique, fascinating journey through the tangled web of the author’s family’s secrets and lies. There are so many twists and turns it could be a thriller. But it also has a lot to say about how memory works and what family really means. I really enjoyed it. My review/analysis is here.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Absolutely delightful. Funny, heartwarming, tear-jerking, thought-provoking. I had a few issues with the writing, but I was pretty close to declaring this a 5-star read. My full review is here.
What should you rate an ancient classic, anyway?
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Complete Papyrus of Ani
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I didn’t love every second of this. Honestly, parts of it were kind of dry. But I love the experience of reading something this ancient, you know? So I’m not quite sure where this lands ranking-wise, but I’ve put it here. My analysis of this one is here.
Writings from Ancient Egypt, compiled and translated by Toby Wilkinson
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I did legitimately enjoy a lot of this book. But there were a few inventory lists that put me to sleep a little bit. My analysis is here.
Maybe 4.5 to be honest
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I’ve questioned my 5-star rating for this one, because I did get annoyed in a few spots about lack of attention to detail. Doesn’t everyone know that first pregnancies are often premature? And that contractions aren’t a minute apart as soon as they begin? And why did a certain procedure at the hospital come as a shock to Fern when she’d seen a certain other character naked a couple days after giving birth there, and the evidence of it would have been obvious? Things like that. But otherwise, it was pretty near perfect. Full review here.
Reports of His Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated by James Goodhand
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Another pretty-near-perfect read. My only complaint was the swearing. It’s such a sweet, gentle, wholesome, uplifting read that f-bombs felt out of place and will only serve to limit its natural audience. But I still loved it. Full review here.
Best of the best
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is a Hungarian classic about the main character’s turbulent relationship with her weirdly captivating housekeeper. I had no idea what to expect when I picked up this book. What I got was an enchanting masterpiece.
The Road Years (a memoir continued) by Rick Mercer
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
In my last wrap-up, Rick Mercer’s first memoir, Talking to Canadians, made it to the very top of the list, so I couldn’t (and didn’t) wait to pick up the second installment. This one covers the years of his show, the Rick Mercer Report, and it’s more a collection of anecdotes and behind-the-scenes moments than a proper memoir. Still, it was an absolute delight, and I’m eager to read the third whenever he gets around to it. He’s a lovely soul who’s done so much for Canada. I love you, Rick!
Favourite read of the month
Hidden Treasure by Jessie Burton
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Maybe it was just that kind of month for me, but my favourite read of June was a magical middle-grade adventure book. It just felt like something I would have read and adored as a kid, you know? I grew up mostly reading classics, and Burton’s writing has a classics vibe to it. I loved every second of this book. Full review here.
So those were the books I read in June. Now for the books I plan to read in July…
July TBR
ARCs
Rope: How a Bundle of Twisted Fibers Became the Backbone of Civilization by Tim Queeney
The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen
Cedar Mills by Dylan James
African Folk Tales for the Young at Heart by Abubakar Yusuf Ibrahim
New Releases
Flashlight by Susan Choi
The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper
Reading Projects
Top 100 Canadian Books: Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis
Great Reads from Around the World: Our Last Best Chance by King Abdullah II (Jordan)
Miscellaneous
I could give a whole long list of other books I want to get to in July, but aside from the 8 books above, I want reading to be as low-pressure as possible while my life is in upheaval. I’m participating in Book Trek 2025 for Star Trek books, and also Summer Book Bingo, which I mentioned last month. That’s all I need to think about for now.
I hope you enjoyed my wrap-up and TBR. As always, if you’d like to support this blog and my book reviews, please consider using the link below to my shop on Bookshop.org. Any purchase made through that link will earn me a small commission, at no extra cost to you. And you’d also be supporting your local independent bookstores! But if you don’t want to or can’t because you’re not in a country Bookshop ships to, I totally understand. Thanks for checking out my blog!