Book of the Month is a monthly book subscription box. Each month, five curators pick out their favorite new hardcover books, and you can choose which one you want to receive on the first of the month. You can also add up to two additional books for only $9.99 each. (This box was named one of the best subscriptions under $15 by MSA readers in the 2021 Subscription Box Awards.)
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
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About this Box
The Subscription Box: Book of the Month
The Cost: $14.99 per month
The Product: Subscribers get to pick from a selection of hardcover books each month. Skip any month you aren't interested in. Add up to two additional books for $9.99 each.
Ships to: The U.S. for free
Book of the Month July 2021 Review
These are the five book choices offered to subscribers this month.
1 of 2
The People We Keep by Allison Larkin - Retail Value $27.00 (On sale for $22.99)
Book Summary from Amazon:
Little River, New York, 1994: April Sawicki is living in a motorless motorhome that her father won in a poker game. Failing out of school, picking up shifts at Margo’s diner, she’s left fending for herself in a town where she’s never quite felt at home. When she “borrows” her neighbor’s car to perform at an open mic night, she realizes her life could be much bigger than where she came from. After a fight with her dad, April packs her stuff and leaves for good, setting off on a journey to find a life that’s all hers.
Driving without a chosen destination, she stops to rest in Ithaca. Her only plan is to survive, but as she looks for work, she finds a kindred sense of belonging at Cafe Decadence, the local coffee shop. Still, somehow, it doesn’t make sense to her that life could be this easy. The more she falls in love with her friends in Ithaca, the more she can’t shake the feeling that she’ll hurt them the way she’s been hurt.
As April moves through the world, meeting people who feel like home, she chronicles her life in the songs she writes and discovers that where she came from doesn’t dictate who she has to be.
This lyrical, unflinching tale is for anyone who has ever yearned for the fierce power of found family or to grasp the profound beauty of choosing to belong.
I didn't know what to expect from this book, but I loved it so much! April is a girl who has gotten a rough start in life and has learned how to survive on her own despite a mother who left her and a father who barely takes notice of her now that he has his new family. She has Margo at the local diner who takes care of her and a boyfriend whom she plans to marry, but when things finally blow up between her and her father, resulting in a smashed guitar, her one and only prized possession, April leaves and barely looks back. She is tough, full of grit, and finds a way to survive even though she has nothing but a car to get around, and even sleep in. She supports herself by finding work where she can whether it's working in a coffee shop or singing to a bar full of people, or making friends with men for the night so she has a couch to sleep on.
Along the way, April meets many people, some of who make a huge difference in her life and care about her deeply. Their stories and friendship are told in such an interesting way with so much heart behind them. I loved reading about these relationships and seeing how they developed and seeing what a loyal friend April became to them with her giving personality. Unfortunately, while April is kind to others, she's not kind to herself and she leaves these relationships behind thinking she is doing what is best for them. This leads to a lot of loneliness and heartbreak and sometimes it seems that she suffers more than she should for the decisions she makes.
April's story had no real direction and she didn't set any goals for herself beyond surviving in the moment. This made the story so much more interesting to me as she just let life happen to her and it was never clear where exactly her story would end up. In the end, I think it was a great story about how all of the people she met came together for her and while some were only significant in the moment, others, the people we keep, are the ones that really matter.
Each month, Book of the Month includes a bookmark.
If you picked this book this month, please let me know what you think of it!
Verdict: I really loved my Book of the Month pick this month. While April is so different from me, and I probably would have made some different decisions, she was a very likable character, selfless and giving, and just full of a will to survive. The story was unique and interesting and I loved following along on her journey. Let me know what you thought if you read this one, too!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this book if you sign up today? Yes, July 20th is the LAST DAY to sign up for Book of the Month to receive the July selections – learn more about the options here – but you may be able to choose this book later as an add-on.
Check out all of our Book of the Month reviews and see what other book subscriptions made our favorites list!
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