Books I Read In September (2022)
These are all the books I read in September! I read a mix of memoirs, sports fiction, and Greek mythology. Add me on Goodreads if you want to see what else I’m reading!
{RELATED: Books I Read In August (2022)}
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Know My Name by Chanel Miller
I remember hearing about the Brock Turner case all over the news but there was so much I didn’t know about his victim, Chanel Miller. Know My Name is an extremely well-written memoir about Chanel’s time during those tumultuous years.
Chanel describes the events of this case in excruciating detail, starting from the night she was raped to life after Brock’s sentencing. She recounts the confusion and horror of realizing what happened to her, the traumatic impact the event had on her family, and how she was able to move forward.
Like many others who have read this book, I was struck by Chanel’s extraordinary writing. She writes about the challenges assault victims endure so poetically. Reading this book felt like a gut punch at times but does end on a hopeful note!
Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
When this book was announced, I was thrilled since I had read Malibu Rising a few months ago. Carrie Soto makes a brief appearance in Malibu Rising as the scorned “other woman” but that’s all we know about her.
Carrie Soto is a world-class tennis player and by the time she retires, she’s broken every record and is the greatest player of all time. The book opens with Carrie and Javier Soto, her father and former coach, at the 1994 US Open six years after Carrie’s retirement. To her dismay, the fierce Nicki Chan takes the win and Carrie’s record, too. At 37 years old, Carrie makes the decision to come out of retirement to defend her record.
This book is a tennis book at its core. Reid takes us through practice sessions with Javier and gives us detailed play-by-plays of each of Carrie’s matches. I have recently taken up an interest in tennis after watching the 2022 US Open and the movie King Richard, so I read this book at the perfect time! To me, this was a departure from TJR’s other books – there wasn’t a huge focus on romance and the story was relatively straightforward.
Overall, this was definitely an entertaining read! If you have little interest in tennis or are looking for a juicy romance, another Taylor Jenkins Reid book may be a better fit for you.
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Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
This year I have been loving modern retellings of Greek mythology. I really enjoyed Circe and The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller so I was excited to try a book by Jennifer Saint!
Ariadne, Princess of Crete, has had a complicated childhood. When her mother Pasiphae births the Minotaur, Ariadne is torn between love for her brother and fear, for he is a monster who feeds on blood sacrifice. The Minotaur is trapped in a labyrinth designed by Daedalus, the master architect and craftsman bound to Crete by King Minos.
When Theseus, the Prince of Athens, arrives to kill the Minotaur and put an end to the human sacrifices, it is love at first sight for Ariadne. Though helping him kill the Minotaur means betraying her family and exile from Crete, she sees the opportunity for a happy life in Athens with Theseus and her younger sister, Phaedra. When Theseus turns out to not be the brave and honest man Ariadne thought he was, she has to figure out life on her own.
I enjoyed the feminist retelling of this story, though the beginning was stronger than the end for me. I almost liked the chapters with Phaedra’s perspective more than Ariadne’s. It was still a fascinating read and well-written. I look forward to reading more of Jennifer Saint’s novels!
The Family Law by Benjamin Law
I flew through The Family Law in two days because it was so entertaining! This book is a memoir of short vignettes from Benjamin Law’s life. He shares stories about growing up in Australia in an Asian household and being gay.
This book made me laugh out loud over and over. It was fun to find similarities between Benjamin’s Asian parents and mine. Each of his siblings and his parents play a big role in his life and Benjamin describes them so vividly. He was also somehow able to capture the complicated relationships children of immigrants can have with their parents perfectly – I related to him a lot in many ways.
They turned Benjamin’s book into a TV show! Though it originally aired in Australia, it’s available on Hulu too. I’m excited to watch!
That’s it for the books I read in September! Hopefully you found something to add to your reading list.
