Top reads of May

Here are my top reads of May!

  1. Aru Shah and The Nectar of Immortality by Roshani Chokshi
    This was the final book in the Aru Shah series. Aru and her friends are closer than ever to finding the maze, but they’re also farther than ever without their celestial weapons, especially as that’s the only way to open the labyrinth. The only other way is to find the Syamantaka gem, which has been split up. As the Potatoes work together to find the parts of the gem, they realize who they truly are and can be and make sacrifices they’d never known about before. I really enjoyed this series and totally recommend it to you. I cannot wait for the graphic novels!
  2. The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill
    This was a great book! The Mayor has always claimed to be an answer to all the problems in Stone-in-the-Glen. When a child goes missing though, the Mayor turns on the Ogress, who has been living at the edge of the town. The children in the Orphanage know that can’t be, especially since the Ogress is the one who leaves everyone in the town a gift every morning. As the town turns against the Ogress, the Orphans work with her to help save the town. This was such a wholesome read and I loved every minute of it. This is such a great book!
  3. Galatea by Madeline Miller
    This was such an amazing short story. In Greek mythology, there is the myth of Galatea, a sculpture who was granted life by the goddess Aphrodite after the carver begged to the goddess for her to become real. In the myth, life goes well for them after that, but in this short story, that changes. After Pygmalion, her husband, abuses her, she runs away, only for him to find her and put her in the hospital. The story picks up from there. I loved the descriptiveness of the story and the way that the original myth had been reimagined in a slightly darker way. It’s a great book and I totally recommend it to you.
  4. Girl Giant and the Monkey King by Van Hoang
    This was a great book inspired by Chinese mythology. Thom is really strong and at first, that wasn’t a problem. But now, whenever she wants to do anything, her strength comes out, unrestrained. When she goes to the temple that evening, she finds what looks like a pin. Curious, she picks it up…and releases the Monkey King, the trickster. Soon though, the Monkey King proves himself a good friend. But Kai, her neighbor, disagrees. I really enjoyed this story and its plot. I’ve also read and enjoyed the second book and I totally recommend this series to you!
  5. The Mysterious Benedict Society (reread) by Trenton Lee Stewart
    I’ve always loved this series and it’s like a classic to me. When Reynie Muldoon sees an ad in the paper asking for gifted kids, he decides to take the tests and try his hardest. Along the journey, he meets Kate and Sticky and forms a quick friendship. Soon they meet Constance and form The Mysterious Benedict Society. Their mission is to act as students at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened (LIVE) and pass along information to the team. Their journey starts off well, but as they discover new information, things change quickly. Again, I’ve always loved this series and it was a perfect re-read!

Top Books of January: click here
Top Books of February: click here
Top Books of March: click here
Top Books of April: click here

K: Kate Wetherall

Kate Wetherall is a character from the Mysterious Benedict Society series by Trenton Lee Stewart.

I love how resourceful she is. Wherever she goes, she carries a bright red bucket, which carries many useful things, including string, extra strength glue, a flashlight, and more. These objects have helped her out in many tricky situations and are a great help to everyone when the Society (Reynie, Sticky, Kate, and Constance) go adventuring. I also loved learning about Kate’s backstory and how her character gets developed.

This is a post for the A-Z April Blogging Challenge 2021. You can read the other posts here.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

These are other characters whose names start with K who I enjoyed reading about.

Kate (The Silver Arrow- Lev Grossman)

Kiranmala (Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond series- Sayantani DasGupta)

Kyle Keeley (Mr. Lemoncello’s Library series- Chris Grabenstein)