Hello, everyone, my name is Olivia, and welcome to another Books and Brews episode. This is a series
on my channel where I tell you about a couple of books I have read recently while I drink
a cup of coffee-- or a version of coffee. Today I have a mocha frappuccino with oat milk in it
because I can't digest regular dairy, so let's get right into it so I can tell you about five
books that I've read recently that I've really enjoyed and want to recommend to you all.
So the first one that I want to talk about is one of my favorite reads of 2021. This is one of my singular
five-star reads that I have given out this year, and I think you all know what it will be if you've
seen a couple of videos before this one. And it is The Stationery Shop by Marjan Kamali. We
follow our main character, Roya. She is living in 1950s Iran and there's a lot of political
upheaval during that time, so she finds solace in a stationery shop. She visits that shop frequently
and there she meets Bahman. Bahman is a man who is said to change the world and they quickly begin
a romance with one another, and one day Roya is going to meet Bahman in a town square when
violence erupts and there is a coup happening in Iran. And Roya quickly has to get away from
the scene and she tries to contact Bahman but he never answers. And Roya just kind of settles in
her heart and realizes that she's never going to see him again until 60 years later-- this is not
a spoiler, it's in the synopsis-- 60 years later she has the opportunity to meet Bahman again and
ask him--
*train blares in the distance*
The train interrupted me and I cannot remember where I last left off.
I think I said that Roya got to see Bahman 60 years later and
ask him why he left her, why he never contacted her again, and just ask those unanswered questions
that have been sitting in her heart for 60 years.
This novel takes place over the course of Roya's entire lifetime,
from her teenage years to her elderly years,
and it is just such a fantastically written novel.
It's lyrical. It's beautiful. It's heartbreaking.
I always like to say, if you are a fan of Evelyn Hugo and A Little Life
in the way that it spans a long course of time
so you get to travel along with this character for years upon years,
you will love The Stationery Shop. It deals a lot with Iran's politics,
Roya's family life, how she's trying to make a name for herself, and how she's trying to move
on from this love. So this is like a bittersweet, star-crossed lovers type of historical fiction
that I think everyone should read. It completely blew me away. I listened to it on audiobook,
loved it so much, I wanted to get a physical copy for myself because this book is probably one of my
new favorite books of all time, and I will always recommend it, so get used to it because this book
is underrated. I want more people to read it. It's amazing. You have to pick it up. Now, moving on
from this heartbreaking and just beautiful novel, we have a very wholesome read that I listen to
also on audiobook, and it is Kiki's Delivery Service. I had no idea that Kiki's Delivery
Service was based off of a book, and I immediately picked it up, once I saw it, and it was just such
a wholesome and wonderful read if you are looking for a pick-me-up. Kiki's Delivery Service is
a middle-grade fantasy novel following our main character, Kiki. She is a teenage witch who turns
13, and by that age, she moves away from her house and decides to find a new town to live in with
her magical talking cat, Gigi. And she decides to create a business where she will deliver things to
different people around town, using her flying broom. And it is just such a wholesome, just
wonderful read. There's not a lot happening. It's like-- it's like a book where it's like, “No plot,
just vibes,” you know? It's just calm, cute, whimsical vibes if you are looking for something
that is light and doesn't have a lot of drama in it. This is simply following Kiki as she
deals with different customers, as she talks to her magical cat, Gigi,
as she makes friends in this new town, and it's a very wholesome read. It was very much
character-based, and I just loved reading about Kiki's little adventures. And if you love Studio
Ghibli and you didn't know that it was based off of a book, go read Kiki's Delivery Service
because it's adorable and it feels like the movie is playing in your mind. And if you have
not seen Kiki's Delivery Service, it's my favorite Studio Ghibli film. It's the first one that I saw,
and it is just adorable and just like the book, as well. The next book that I read was recommended by
Grace over at GK Reads, and she read Open Water in one of her reading vlogs, and the way that
she described it was just so fascinating that I decided to pick it up from my library. So
Open Water is a very quick contemporary read following two people who meet in South London
and fall in love with each other. They are both artists and this novel just deals with
their romance, their life, and their reactions to things happening in London. It's lyrical. It's
heartbreaking. It deals a lot with class and race and what it's like to be Black in London, and it
was just such a beautiful read. I highlighted that book endlessly because every single line was just
so poignant and beautifully constructed. And it just effortlessly captured the feeling of falling
in love with someone. And it's also written in second person point-of-view, which I thought was
really unique and cool, and I liked the structure of the novel that way. And I think everyone should
pick it up. I think it's really good. The next two novels I read in the same reading vlog,
so I'll be sure to link that down below if you want to see that if you have not seen it before.
And the first one that I want to mention is The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba by Chanel Cleeton.
This is a hefty historical fiction, in terms of all the history that's woven into this story.
We follow three different women during the 1800s. One lives in America: she's an up-and-coming
journalist. Then we follow Evangelina Cisneros. She's an actual Cuban historical figure who fought
against Spanish oppression in Cuba when they colonized the island. And then we follow Marina,
who is trying to help Evangelina who gets arrested by the Spaniards and she tries to help her break
out of that prison. And I say this is a hefty historical fiction because I did not know anything
about the Spanish colonization of Cuba in the 1800s, and Chanel Cleeton really dives into
that history and highlights the horrific actions that the Spaniards did against the Cubans. And it
is just such an eye-opening read that I took a while to get through because the writing style
wasn't as gripping as Next Year in Havana, which is a book that Chanel Cleeton wrote, which is one
of my favorite books of all time, but this one was still so fascinating and taught me so much about
Cuban history that I never knew about beforehand. And it was just such a wonderful read that I am so
grateful for because it taught me so much, and I feel like I'll always hold this book close to
my heart because, while it did not blow me away, the history that is packed into this story is just
wild. The last book that I want to highlight is One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston. This is a New
Adult romance following August and Jane. August recently moved to New York City, and she is trying
to find a place for herself in friend groups, in her job. She's just very displaced right now,
and she finds comfort in a woman named Jane on the subway until she starts to realize that Jane
is from the 70s. So this is a New Adult romance that has a hint of magic woven into it. It has the
found family trope. It is just full of adorable dialogue and amazing chemistry between August and
Jane, and it is just such a wonderful romance that put a smile onto my face and I really connected
to because August doesn't really know her place in the world yet. And she's trying to figure out what
she wants out of life, and I feel like that's so relatable for 20 something-year-olds who are just
trying to figure out what they want in life and who they want to hang out with and what family
means to them. So I love the friend groups that were created in this novel. I loved how much they
bonded with one another and how kind they were to one another, and I loved August and Jane.
Their chemistry was palpable, and I just loved their banter back and forth because Jane is a
really cool character. She wears a leather jacket. She just has so much swagger to her,
and then August is a clumsy, fun, soft character. And their personalities are very different but
they just blend so well together. So, I loved that story, and I had so much fun listening to it. I
listened to it on audiobook, and it was amazing and I just love Casey McQuiston's writing because
they write such amazing dialogue and their banter is just something to be admired. So if you have
read Red, White, and Royal Blue, you have to read One Last Stop because it's just as good, and I
feel like I might like One Last Stop a little bit more. I remember when I was reading Red, White,
and Royal Blue, I had a lot of trouble getting into that writing style but One Last Stop I got
into immediately when I was listening to it, and I just really loved this story, so I would highly
recommend that one as well. So those are five books that I recently read and really enjoyed.
My reading year is getting so much better y'all. It is getting so good. I remember I told you,
at the beginning of this year, that I'm just reading three-star reads, everything is terrible,
nothing is good, but I have so many good books to recommend to you all. And I cannot wait to
film another Books and Brews because I've been reading consistently four-star reads, which is
really nice for me. So if you want to connect with me anywhere else, all my social media links will
be down below. I am having a lot of fun on TikTok, by the way, so if you have not followed my TikTok,
it's also @StoriesForCoffee. I'm just creating really light-hearted content
over there and it really brings me a lot of joy, so go follow me over there because
I'm having a blast, and I hope other people have a blast there too. I also have one thing
I want to mention. If you have video ideas for me or like concepts that you want me to film,
please put them down below because I would love to take your video ideas into account because you
guys always seem to have the best ideas, so I love hearing them. So be sure to put them down below.
If you have read any of these books before and if you have any thoughts that you want to share
with me, put them down below because I would love to discuss them. And these are just all amazing
reads that I want you all to read. I feel like we have something of everything in here. We have New
Adult romance, historical fictions, a cute little middle-grade, and a wonderful contemporary romance
that was just beautifully written. So I feel like there's something for everyone in here, except,
like, fantasy lovers because I don't really read fantasy, but sorry about that. If you have made
it this far in this video, comment down a green heart emojI to match my whole getup. So thank
you so much for spending time with me, and I will be sure to see you around very soon. Bye~