Books I read in October 2023

October reading was back on track! Woohoo! October had me all over the place - mentally, emotionally and actually physically. I read fiction and non fiction.

Becoming Trader Joe by Joe Coulombe, Patty Civalleri

I am a monthly Trader Joe disciple, I go there to get my burger patties and everything but the bagel seasoning. Mmmm. But I didn’t know how Joe became Trader Joe or Trader José. This book talks about the many phases of growth the company has gone through to sustainably grow into the cultural phenomenon that it is now! People from all over the world make it a point to visit Trader Joes when in the US and fill their check in luggage. Definitely a recommendation for business majors!

This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

I loved This Time Tomorrow just like I had Emma Straub’s other book - the Vacationers. Emma is able to relay parental relationships with such elegance it makes me wish I was closer to my parents. I love the relationships Alice has with her father and her best friend through the ages. They make me ache to hug my own friends. The book is about Alice, a veteran New Yorker coming up on her 40th birthday and thinking about her past, her ailing father in the hospital and the time travel of a turn her night takes! It’s definitely one of my top 10 books of the year! For the time travel, the images of New York and the friendships.

The Husbands by Chandler Baker

I have always heard and felt of the burden mothers take on of mentally running their, their partner’s and their children’s lives. My mother did that in our household and definitely didn’t get enough credit for that. The question to pose, what would you do to get your partner to help out more at home? What price are you willing to pay? What is too far? This thriller poses this question and I didn’t expect to love or be following this story as closely as I did. Definitely one that ought to be converted into a movie.