One of the greatest parts about working in education are the breaks.
It’s not why I got into my profession…but it doesn’t hurt.

One of my favorite things to do during breaks is binge read.

There’s nothing like curling up on the couch in a warm blanket, drinking a glass of wine, and savoring an incredible book.
Reading for work and reading for pleasure are two different things. Unfortunately when school is in session, I just don’t have a chance to read for pleasure as much as I’d like.

With now being the time of year you’re traveling and off of work,  I wanted to share four books that will have you laid out and in need of recovery after each one.

I’m definitely not cool enough to receive any sort of compensation for the following. I just really think you should buy/rent these books and enjoy!

WARNING:

These books are NOT to be read immediately after each other. You will be emotionally spent. I’m talking laid out contemplating all that’s wrong–and right–with the world.

You need to put some space between these gems.

Keep reading to find out what happened to me by the time I got to the last book on the list.

The Mothers by Brit Bennett

When we meet Nadia Turner, she is a teenager struggling with the suicide of her mother and keeping an incredibly heavy secret. Pregnant by her not-so-serious boyfriend, Luke, she has decided to terminate the pregnancy. This secret is one she keeps from everyone, including her best friend Aubrey. Brought back together years later as adults Nadia, Luke, and Aubrey will be faced with the consequences of uncovering of this secret and so much more. They will be forced to ask themselves if the choices they made as teenagers will haunt them for the rest of their lives. Bennett writes this book from the perspective of “The Mothers” the elders in the local church and in doing so creates a voice that so many of us know. One much older, wiser, and more faith filled than our own. I walked away from this book thinking about the power of prayer, women’s intuition, and our choices even in our teens and just how much the choices we make at any age impact our life outcomes.  (Buy it here)

Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis Benn

Set on the beautiful island of Jamaica, Benn describes the dark underbelly of the tourism industry through her main character, Margot. Margot realizes she can make much more selling her body to the guests of the luxury resort at which she works. Plagued by their own desires and demons, Margot’s mother and younger sister Thandi do not see the secrets Margot hides at work and in her personal life. When a new resort threatens their home, Margot realizes there is an opportunity like never before. Tackling the issues of colorism, abuse, lesbianism, and so much more Here Comes the Sun will make you question what you are willing to do to support the people you love and  how far you are willing to go to achieve what you think will make you happy. As a frequent traveler to tropical destinations, I thought a lot about the differences in the experiences we have as visitors versus the ones locals have as employees in sometimes harsh working conditions.  Although the patois in this novel is tricky to read at first if you are unfamiliar, you will soon become so enveloped in the story that you’ll read with ease. (Buy it here)

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

Ruth is a black labor and delivery nurse who has done her job for decades without spot or blemish and is doing her job when she meets a family of white supremacists who demand she not treat their baby. The hospital grants the family’s request and the next day their baby goes into cardiac arrest. Ruth is the only nurse available. While she treats the child, Ruth hesitates causing her to lose her job and to have criminal charges brought against her. Ruth must put her fate in the hands of a white woman public defender. One who believes bringing up race in the courtroom is a surefire way to lose the case. There were parts of this novel in which I could have easily replaced Ruth’s name with my own. The research and listening that went into the creation of this novel is unparalleled. (Buy it here)

 

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Honesty hour: I’m starting with this book again during this break. I tried to read it immediately following Small Great Things and almost ended up in a corner rocking back and forth. Effia and Esi are half sisters who are born into the Fante and Asante tribes in Ghana during the slave trade. Effia marries an Englishmen and lives a rather comfortable life. Esi is captured and sold into slavery in America. This book follows the girls and their descendants from the 18th century up until the Jazz Age. This is as much as I know, but I will follow up after reading! (Buy it here).

What are your thoughts on these reads and what would you add to the list?

Also, let me know if you’d like a list of “light reads” for the time in between these books. Trust me, you’ll need it!

 

There’s magic in our musings,
Nicole