Hello, Wordies!

It’s been such a long time since we’ve caught up, and I haven’t posted on here in what feels like forever, so I thought I would write a quick June recap to reconnect with you, this blog, and writing again. There is a lot I am excited to tell you about, and I have some reading inspiration for you as well!

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Read Caribbean Month

As a diverse reader, June is one of my favourite months of the year. Read Caribbean Month is intended to uplift literary voices from the Caribbean all month, all around the world! June is also National Caribbean American Heritage Month in the United States, and there is also Windrush Day in the UK (more on that in a moment). June is also Pride Month globally, so as you can imagine, Instagram was looking especially diverse and was bursting with lots of wonderful new titles to discover.

My reading choice for the month was The Island of Forgetting by Jasmine Sealy, a multigenerational novel about a family who run a beachfront hotel in Barbados. I chose this debut because it is set in Barbados and then Canada, two places I don’t hear enough about! I was also attracted by it being loosely based on Greek mythology, as well as it being a family saga with queer representation too.

As suspected, it was a captivating reading experience. I was lucky enough to get an e-book from my local library and enjoyed it alongside the audiobook (fabulous narrator, by the way). Themes include generational trauma, mental health, identity and belonging, the lasting impact of colonialism, sexuality, freedom and escape, and power dynamics within different types of relationships.

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Windrush Day Reading Pick

Windrush Day occurs on 22 June in the UK and commemorates the contributions of Caribbean members of the British Commonwealth who were invited to move to the UK in the wake of severe post-war labour shortages. The reason it’s celebrated on 22 June is because that is the day the HMT Empire Windrush arrived at the Port of Tilbury in Essex. Many of those who accepted the invitation were also veterans who fought for Britain in the Second World War.

While there were Black people in Britain before this time, the ship has become an important symbol in Black British history and culture. And after the many incorrect ideas I have seen about Black British people on the internet of late, this day is needed more than ever.

I had so many books to choose from that I would have to make another post about them. I actually didn’t read half as much as I had hoped in June, because life, but I did manage to read one title, which was the award-winning novella Assembly by Natasha Brown. In this story, a successful, unnamed Black British woman is preparing to attend a lavish garden party being held by her boyfriend’s family on their estate in the English countryside. Meanwhile, she is thinking about the various parts of herself and pondering a life-changing decision. It is a modern take on what it means to be Black British, a woman and a success, and the cost of assimilation. A hard-hitter.

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Daily Reading Update

Some of you may know that, at the start of the year, my goal was to read every day, even if it was just a page. I wasn’t beating myself up about missing the odd day, but I wanted it to become more of a consistent habit. I would say that it has mostly been working. Until June! I missed several days due to work commitments and life things. And you know what? I didn’t enjoy writing all those zeros into my reading journal, but I do think that the books I did read were real page-turners, so in that sense, I have still been enriched!

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Life Recap

I tried out a silent book club for the first time. It was actually at the end of May, but it was a fantastic experience. I joined the lovely folk at the Cosy London Bookclub for two hours of reading at a lovely Danish bakery. I also got these fun reading receipts, which I think you’ll agree are a perfect addition to any reading journal.

I also spent some time in an indie coffee shop, reading for hours and updating my journal. I appreciate being able to do this so much, especially in this post-lockdown era. There was a time when I thought we would never be able to spend whole afternoons sipping coffee and nibbling on treats in public establishments again. It felt glorious.

Do you carry a book when going to non-bookish activities too? I sure do! I attended Capital FM’s Summertime Ball at the start of June, where I had a blast. I did carry my Kindle along but didn’t get the chance to read it.

Here are some of the things I got up to in June:

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Competition Win

Wordies, I won a HUGE pile of books from UK publisher Solaris, who publish sci-fi and fantasy books and were celebrating reaching 10k followers. Strangely enough, my own account also hit 10k followers not long after I received the gorgeous bundle (five figures, WOW). As you can imagine, I was absolutely thrilled.

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That’s it for the recap. I hope you had a wholesome June and felt rewarded by your reading endeavours, whether you read one book or ten! Are you taking up any summer reading challenges? Remember that The Abundant Reading Curriculum is suitable for starting all year round and complements other reading challenges too! Check out the details here.

Let me know what your June highlights were, and make sure you stay tuned, as I have some exciting updates to share very soon!

Happy summer reading!

~ Steph