August was NUTS with returning from India, getting the kids ready for school, and starting up all of our fall activities. Plus late August/ early September is the busiest time of year for my job, when I’m supposed to be working 20 hours, but have to work hard to keep it under 40.

I used reading as self-care this month, abandoning a couple of books* I was struggling with, and stocking up on easy reads for the weekends when I had a free moment.

Easy to pick a non-fiction favorite this month, since I only finished one: But Sara Hagerty’s Unseen would have been my favorite even if I’d read 20 nonfiction books.

I loved all of the fiction I read this month, but The Almost Sisters was probably at the top of the list, it felt like a just-for-me book, and was just what I needed in the midst of the busiest week of my year.

Read on for more specifics about 5 really great reads (I think these might have all been 5 star books for me – that’s a great month!) Read more