Everything I Read in June 2026

A very good reading month, definitely boosted by going on vacation.

1. A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon by Kevin Fedarko - This was really readable in interesting, but I found myself incredibly frustrated with the author and his....foolishness? I couldn't get past how irresponsible they were on this adventure and it was really grating. But the writing was propulsive, and it did make me want to visit the Grand Canyon.

2. The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter - a little simplistic, but I do think of it now honestly most days. When I get the urge to pull out my phone while I'm waiting in line or when I get the itch to order Doordash instead of going to grocery shop. It made me think which has been helpful.

3. Landline by Rainbow Rowell - This is my favorite romance book and I decided to kick off summer reading with this one. It does take place around Christmas...but Christmas is not the plot so I think it's fine. Some people really do not like this book but I just love it, and it holds up years after I read it for the first time.

4. The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century by Kirk Wallace Johnson - This is our book club pick for July and I really enjoyed this. It took a while to get going, but I was fascinated by the crime, by salmon-fly tying, and ultimately by the impact of obsession on the thief and the author. Also I learned more about birds than I could have imagined.

5. Katabasis by RF Kuang - Kuang has been hit & miss for me in the past so I was hesitant but man I really liked this one. Warnings that it has some very difficult content, but I liked the adventure, the discussion of the mind and the body, and the critiques of academia. Really though provoking fantasy.

6. No Matter What by Cara Bastone - My second romance novel of the summer - I would NOT call it a romcom. The story is about a married couple who have survived an accident. One year later, both of them are still deeply traumatized and their marriage very distant because of it. I liked that it wasn't miscommunication out of idiocy, but miscommunication for real legitimate reasons and something they are actively working through. I cried a fair amount and I liked it a lot.