
May was a busy month for me on between work & related commitments, hanging with friends, and yes, unsuccessfully obtaining Taylor Swift tickets for both venues that are close to me. I could write a whole blog post about how horrible Ticketmaster handled the tickets that weren’t sold in the original November presale, tickets magically popping up DURING the show, and how ridiculous scalpers/bots priced resales. Maybe there’s some world where I manage to get tickets for another Eras stop and travel there, but I’m probably at the point where I’ll have better luck waiting for the next tour.
I am so looking forward to this summer though between the beach, pool days, concerts (despite my TSwift sadness, I have 5 upcoming concerts planned and want to try & add a a few more), and plans with family & friends. I just spent this Memorial Day Weekend reading outside and I am more than ready to continue doing so. I have about three weeks of work left until the school year is out and have a few weeks off before my summer job beings, so we all know that means a lot of reading will be done!!!

Despite it being my busy season, I read 11 books. My FAVORITE to no one’s surprise is Emily Henry’s Happy Place, which is again, no surprise, my favorite book of 2023 so far. That being said, right after, I finally reread People We Meet on Vacation (5/5 stars, of course). I think after I reread Book Lovers, I’ll finally do an Emily Henry romance ranking. Another romance that was a complete winner is Christina Lauren’s The True Love Experiment. CLo’s books are either singles or homers for me, and their latest is a grand slam! I also loved Alexandra Robbins’s The Teachers: A Year Inside America’s Most Vulnerable, Important Profession. Even after a long day of teaching, all I wanted to do when I got home was dive into this account of three teachers’ experiences across different areas of the US and their challenges. 10/10 recommend that teachers and non-teachers read this one for an honest look and analysis of education in the US. Speaking of teaching, I read a middle grade favorite and award-winner, Jasmine Warga’s Other Words for Home. WOW, I so understand the praise and recognition for this lyrical novel following a Syrian teenager’s transition to the US.


