Archive for category: Reading

Hi! I’m Helen Gambarota and I am delighted to be back with Jo’s Weekly Workout Family to share my love of books with you.

I am a total book nerd and an avid reader and a compulsive book buyer. I started reviewing books on Instagram as @BestBookFoward almost 5 years ago and I love chatting about books and sharing my passion for reading.

If you’d like more book inspiration you can find my reviews on my Instagram account which is @BestBookForward, on Facebook or on my website bestbookforward.org

Some people find picking their perfect holiday wardrobe stressful, for me that’s easy – comfort all the way thank you very much. What I do find hard is packing my perfect reads; I always want to bring books that I’m going to love and then I start to stress in case there’s no bookshop near where we’re staying.

If you can relate to this and your still trying to decide what you should be reading this summer, I’ve got some great recommendations for you..

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Sandwich by Catherine Newman – Spend a week in Cape Cod with Rocky and her family. You’ll laugh and cry and be totally addicted to this one.

Diva by Daisy Goodwin – Dive into the glamorous world of Maria Callas in this brilliant portrayal of her life. This one has it all high drama, scandalous love affairs but at the heart of it all is a powerful woman finding her place in what was very much a man’s world.

Sweetness in the Skin by Ishi Robinson – Over now to Jamaica where we meet Pumpkin Patterson and her complicated family. This is a really beautiful coming of age story that will have routing for Pumpkin (and craving her sweet treats).

The Silence in Between by Josie Ferguson – One of my favourite reads of the year so far. An emotional historical fiction about a family separated by the Berlin Wall and the strength and resilience of women.

You Are Here by David Nicholls – Probably one of the most feel-good hopeful, romantic reads that I’ve picked up in a long time (and no it’s not as sad as One Day).

The Measure by Nikki Erlick – This is an older title and one that I think about all the time. Thought-provoking, heart-breaking, compelling and unforgettable.

The Girl With The Louding Voice by Abi Daré – Now to Nigeria where we meet Adunni a character who leaps off the page. I’m reading this one again this summer as Abi’s new book And So I Soar comes out later this summer and I cannot wait.

Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid – I’m a bit late with the Wimbledon recommendation but this book just screams summer to me (in fact all of Taylor Jenkins-Reid’s books make great summer reads).

Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors – Another one of my top reads of the year so far. I read this with my book club recently and everyone loved it. A deeply moving read that will make you want to hug your sister.

I really hope there’ll be on on this list that you’ll love. Have a wonderful summer and I’ll be back with another recommendation for you in September.

You can support me, and independent bookshops, by buying your copy here and you’ll also find links for all my previous recommendations for Jo’s Workout Family too.

 

Hi! I’m Helen Gambarota and I am delighted to be back with Jo’s Weekly Workout Family to share my love of books with you.

I am a total book nerd and an avid reader and a compulsive book buyer, although I do need to slow down on the book buying as there are piles of books all around the house. I started reviewing books on Instagram as @BestBookFoward almost 5 years ago and I love chatting about books and sharing my passion for reading.

Each month I bring you my recommendation of a must-read book. I read a variety of genres so it could be anything from fiction, non-fiction, romance, historical fiction or a thriller and I really hope that you’ll enjoy each of them as much as I do.

If you’d like more book inspiration you can find my reviews on my Instagram account which is @BestBookForward, on Facebook or on my website bestbookforward.org

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Last month I recommended a brilliant yet quite difficult read for you and I hope you loved it as much as I did. When planning for my June read I wanted to bright you something lighter and really quite wonderful so the obvious choice had to be The Other Side of Mrs Wood by Lucy Barker.

The Other Side of Mrs Wood is a historical comedy about London’s most celebrated Medium, who you will absolutely love. When Mrs Wood hears the horrifying sound of a yawn one night at her Séance she knows it is time to shakes things up.

Enter Miss Finch, Mrs Wood’s first student but is she as innocent as she seems or has Mrs Wood just invited trouble in?

I love this book so much, it was one of the reads that had me sneaking off to read just one more page as it is so wonderfully told.

Ultimately it is about two Victorian women doing their utmost to maintain their independence, while navigating their way through complexities of female friendships and rivalries.

This week I was lucky enough to go along to the publication party for Mrs Wood and I went along to a Victorian Séance, which was quite an experience.

Afterwards Lucy talked about her book and her inspiration behind it. It was clear to see how passionate and interested she is in the subject, I could have listened to her talk about it all night. On the way home, I thought that it is a combination of Lucy’s research and passion coupled with her incredible storytelling that has made this book so special.

When I read it earlier this year I remember thinking that I could feel how much she enjoyed writing it as it was so fun to read.

Lucy Barker has managed to create a wonderfully atmospheric read, that is fun and witty. One of my favourite things about this book is that she has a wonderful way of allowing her characters to be mischievous. There are some really funny scenes.

The Other Side of Mrs Wood kept guessing throughout and found it to be a thoroughly entertaining and fun read, one that I would happily pick up again. I really hope that you will enjoy it as much as I did and I hope that you will love these characters, as they really are quite special.

You can support Helen, by buying the book from this link.

See you next month.

 

Hi! I’m Helen Gambarota and I am delighted to be back with Jo’s Weekly Workout Family to share my love of books with you.

I am a total book nerd and an avid reader and a compulsive book buyer, although I do need to slow down on the book buying as there are piles of books all around the house. I started reviewing books on Instagram as @BestBookFoward almost 5 years ago and I love chatting about books and sharing my passion for reading.

Each month I bring you my recommendation of a must-read book. I read a variety of genres so it could be anything from fiction, non-fiction, romance, historical fiction or a thriller and I really hope that you’ll enjoy each of them as much as I do.

If you’d like more book inspiration you can find my reviews on my Instagram account which is @BestBookForward, on Facebook or on my website bestbookforward.org

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I am so hoping that I can convince you to pick up my March book choice because I really do think this a book that everyone should read. It is Driving Forwards by Sophie Morgan.

You may know Sophie from TV, she’s a regular host on ITV’s Loose Women, but reading her book really shows just how remarkable she is.

Sophie starts her book by talking about the car crash she had when she was just 18 years old which left her with life changing injuries. I will say that that the beginning of the book is quite a difficult read as what she went through was just unimaginable. She talks about the effect her crash had on her and her family and friends.

When you stop and think about what happened, it hits very hard when you realise that this could happen to anyone of us. When I think of myself as an 18 year old driver I can see how it could have just have easily been me.

Throughout the book Sophie talks about how she has strived to come to terms with her injuries and the impact on her life, her body and her relationships. When Sophie shares her experiences I found myself stopping and challenging myself to really think about my own perceptions about disability. I have to say I learned a lot from this book, I truly believe that books can bring us together as learn about other people’s life experience and I think Sophie sharing her story the way she has is so important as I feel we all really need to learn from it.

Driving Forwards is available in paperback now.

I have included the link to my Bookshop.org account.

Buying from Bookshop.org helps to support local bookshops with a donation from each sale going directly to independent bookshops (and an even smaller percentage to me!) You’ll also be able to find my favourite reads of the year so far here.

 

Hi! I’m Helen Gambarota and I am delighted to be back with Jo’s Weekly Workout Family to share my love of books with you.

I am a total book nerd and an avid reader and a compulsive book buyer, although I do need to slow down on the book buying as there are piles of books all around the house. I started reviewing books on Instagram as @BestBookFoward almost 4 years ago and I love chatting about books and sharing my passion for reading.

Each month I bring you my recommendation of a must-read book. I read a variety of genres so it could be anything from fiction, non-fiction, romance, historical fiction or a thriller and I really hope that you’ll enjoy each of them as much as I do.

If you’d like more book inspiration you can find my reviews on my Instagram account which is @BestBookForward, on Facebook or on my website bestbookforward.org

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If you’re anything like me you’ll be finding this month slightly tough and so I really wanted to pick out a book that would bring you some joy and banish those January blues so allow me to recommend Becoming Ted by Matt Cain (Out 19 Jan). Let me tell you a little bit about it.

Ted Ainsworth has always worked at his family’s ice-cream business in the quiet Lancashire town of St Luke’s on-Sea.

But the truth is, he’s never wanted to work for the family firm p- he doesn’t even like ice-cream, though he’s never told his parents that. When Ted’s husband suddenly leaves him, the bottom falls out of his world.

But what if this could be an opportunity to put what he wants first? This could be the chance to finally follow his secret dream: something Ted has never told anyone.

I read this back in September around the time that the Queen died and I was feeling really sad, but every time I picked this book up I felt calm and happy and I found it actually quite healing.

Ted’s story is about following your dreams, finding yourself and learning to love again and is an absolute joy to read. I have loved all of Matt’s books and I always keep an eye out for what is coming next as I think he just has such an incredible talent for creating characters you’ll love and stories that will warm your heart.

I really hope that you’ll love Ted as much as I did, I’m going to leave you with one of my favourite quotes, it just makes me feel happy when I think of this…

“For now – even if it’s only for an hour – I am a goddess! And I’m going to enjoy every minute of it!”

You can buy your copy from Amazon here, or from all good bookshops.

 

Hi! I’m Helen Gambarota and I am delighted to be back with Jo’s Weekly Workout Family to share my love of books with you.

I am a total book nerd and an avid reader and a compulsive book buyer, although I do need to slow down on the book buying as there are piles of books all around the house. I started reviewing books on Instagram as @BestBookFoward almost 4 years ago and I love chatting about books and sharing my passion for reading.

Each month I bring you my recommendation of a must-read book. I read a variety of genres so it could be anything from fiction, non-fiction, romance, historical fiction or a thriller and I really hope that you’ll enjoy each of them as much as I do.

If you’d like more book inspiration you can find my reviews on my Instagram account which is @BestBookForward, on Facebook or on my website bestbookforward.org

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I know we’re not officially in autumn but for me as soon as the calendar flips over to 1st September its autumn vibes all the way.  You just can’t beat curling up with a cosy blanket, a cup of tea and a really great read and I have a cracking recommendation for you this month.  It’s The Measure by Nikki Erlick (out now in hardback) and I really hope you’ll love it as much as I did.

This is the story of eight ordinary people in an extraordinary new world.

The story starts with the world waking up to every adult receiving the same box on their doorstep one morning.  Inside the box is a piece of string and the length of that string determines how long you will live. Nobody knows where the boxes have come from but as news spreads people are faced with the questions, what do they mean and should they open their box?

Over the coming weeks, with data gathered scientists confirm that the strings are accurate and create a website that will tell you, given the length of your string how long you have left to live.

Now you’re probably thinking this sounds pretty grim, and I’ll admit that when I first heard the premise I wasn’t sure whether it would be one for me but it is a brilliant read, so utterly unique and compelling.  I have read a lot of dystopian novels recently but this one stood out.

I love the way Nikki explores the impact the strings have on people’s lives, relationships and in society.  It really gives you a lot to think about and even a month after reading it I find myself wondering if I’d open the box and find out the measure of my life, or how I would cope if it was short string.

The Measure is a brilliant debut, it’s gone straight onto my favourites of the year. I was glued to the pages and found it really quite moving, especially the ending.  Definitely one not to be missed and I think its a great one to read with a friend or a group because believe me this is a novel you’ll want to talk about.

I hope you enjoy it and I’ll see you in October for another choice.

(Please note the book cover in the picture is of the proof and not the final on-sale cover).

You can buy your copy from Amazon here, or from all good bookshops.