Jen here – I’m linking up today with one of my favorite bloggers, Anne @ Modern Mrs. Darcy who hosts a monthly link up called Quick Lit. The goal is simply to share what you’ve been reading lately in the form of mini book reviews or simply a conversational post about what you’ve been reading.

I’ve only finished two books in the past month but I’ve been reading a lot. Here’s how it’s all shaken down:

In the past month I’ve finished reading:

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

This book was heartbreaking and inspiring and really well written. I did occasionally feel like the author was skipping around a bit, but I suspect that his transitions would have been clearer in written form. I’m not the most attentive audio book listener. Overall, I highly recommend.

“Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship—and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.”

The Summer Before (Babysitters Club #0) by Ann M. Martin

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a Baby Sitters Club book so this was definitely a walk down memory lane! I thought the prequel concept was a great idea, it was cool to read about the girls before the BSC became a reality and before some of them had even met!

“Before there was the Baby-Sitters Club, there were four girls named Kristy Thomas, Mary Anne Spier, Claudia Kishi, and Stacey McGill. As they start the summer before seventh grade (also before they start the BSC), each of them is on the cusp of a big change. Kristy is still hung up on hoping that her father will return to her family. Mary Anne has to prove to her father that she’s no longer a little girl who needs hundreds of rules. Claudia is navigating her first major crush on a boy. And Stacey is leaving her entire New York City life behind…”

Right now I am reading:

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

My book club will be discussing this towards the end of the month. I’m only about halfway through the book which has me quite a bit behind my personal goal, but I am very much enjoying this book which has gotten a lot of hype which I would say is well deserved. I’m not one to hop on every book bandwagon and most award winning books do not tend to win my praise as I seem to be a somewhat selfish reader. I am very much in it for my own personal enjoyment at the end of the day – but this book is VERY good.

“[This is a] beautiful, stunningly ambitious instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.”

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

I’ve been reading this one aloud to my children. I chose this one because it was originally written in French which means it totally qualifies as a book that was originally written in a different language, which is one of the categories I still need to check off in Anne’s 2015 Reading Challenge. In addition to helping me finish my challenge, this book is quite simply adorable. It is a really fun book to read aloud to my kids, the writing is a bit tongue and cheek and has that kind of timeless humor that makes my English major heart cry tears of joy. If you haven’t read this one yet, you need to.

Ancient Times: From the Earliest Nomads to the Last Roman Emperor by Susan Wise Bauer

This is another book that I have been slowly reading aloud with the kids. This one might sound a little bit dry for a read aloud, but it’s actually very accessible and not nearly as boring as it might look based on the cover. But let’s back up a little.

When I was in college I took a history class that kind of opened my eyes to history for sadly the first time. Until that moment, history class was that super dry boring hour in which I was forced to memorize supposedly important dates and names. Nobody had ever taught history to me in a way that felt accessible or interesting. I made a mental note back then to make sure my kids were exposed to history in an interesting way so that they’d be more likely to WANT to learn more.

I heard about this book series through a homeschooling parent (can’t remember who) and decided to take a chance and buy a used copy of the first book (which is about Ancient Times, so far we’ve been reading about Egyptians and older) online. I have been tremendously pleased with it and both of my children (yes, even the six year old) are enjoying it and actually request it as a read aloud. I don’t read it every night or even every week. It’s one of the many books that sit on our coffee table as a potential read aloud when we have time and usually I pick it up because it’s been requested. So the fact that we’re still reading it speaks highly enough in my opinion. The fact that I’m GLAD when they request it says even more.

What have you been reading?