You Watch a Lot of "House Hunters"
Hi friends,
Welcome to August and congrats to those of you who’ve already submitted your Summer Reading Bingo card. I always love seeing what you all are reading.
If you haven’t completed your card yet, don’t fret. They’re due Friday, September 11, and one lucky player will win a $50 gift card to Bookshop.org.
And, now what to read if …
You Spend a Lot of Time Zillow Stalking, Part 2
Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
At least three times a week, I ask the dog to take a break on our walk so I can look up a house we’re passing on Zillow. Am I looking to buy a house? No. Do I love seeing pictures of other people’s houses? Yes. If you share my real estate curiosity, you’ll want to check out Best Offer Wins, a thriller about house hunting gone bad.
After eighteen months of house tours and 11 failed bidding wars, 37-year-old publicist Margo Miyake is desperate to get out of her tiny D.C. apartment and finally start a family with her husband. So, when she hears about the perfect home in her dream neighborhood before it’s publicly listed, she decides to do whatever it takes to make it her own. It starts with a casual swing by the house, then Margo “accidentally” runs into one of the owners at yoga class and befriends him. From there, her house search — and obsession — grows to a shocking apex that I won’t spoil.
I read a lot of thrillers so it’s hard for a book to really surprise me and Best Offer Wins did. My jaw dropped, and I texted a friend who had already read it saying, “Oh my God. That reveal.” If you’re house hunting, it might be stressful or cathartic. Everyone else, put this at the top of your list.
Reminder rec: The Means by Amy Fusselman is another real estate will make you mad book.
You’ve Got a Little One to Read To — or Play With
Number Train by Jonathan Emmett
Whenever I see my toddler niece, I bring her a new book. This is part selfless (books are good for kids) and part selfish (I want to be able to talk to her about books when she’s older). So, I’m always on the hunt for fun kids’ books beyond the classics and the ones I read when I was little. If that’s you too, grab a copy of Number Train for the toddlers in your life.
At first glance, Number Train appears to be a classic count-the-animals book with rhyming prose and colorful, whimsical illustrations, but it’s so much more. It features wheels that spin, pages that unfold to make a giant train and lift-the-flaps. I thought just one of those features would be enticing to a toddler, let alone all three. I gave it to my niece last week, and she spent more than an hour playing with it —a lot of time for a nearly two-year-old. There are perhaps some purists who would say Number Train is more of a toy than a book. To that I say, I love the idea of teaching kids that books are a source of joy and fun.
One other note: I’ve bought other lift-the-flap books from Nosy Crow, Number Train’s publisher, and have found them all surprisingly sturdy. Not as strong as the Indestructibles (kids’ books that are … indestructible), but tougher than many that fall to toddler hands.
You Still Know All the Words to “Oops! … I Did it Again”
Hit Girls by Nora Princiotti
In addition to Number Train, I spent a good chunk of last week introducing my niece to 2000s pop (as well as some 90s stuff to explain the Spice Girls t-shirt I bought her). She loves a dance party, and few things get me moving like what Nora Princiotti calls “pop’s shiniest decade.”
Princiotti, a journalist and podcast host, recounts how stars such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and Rihanna rose to fame, transformed the music industry and laid the groundwork for Olivia Rodrigo, Dua Lipa and, yes, Taylor Swift. Her chapter on Kelly Clarkson explores how pop music began taking more cues from indie rock, while the installment on Beyoncé documents the fusion between R&B, hip hop and pop.
I think Princiotti and I are roughly the same age, so I appreciated the nostalgic vibe she brought to the book. She’s spent years reporting on the music industry on her podcast, Every Album Ever, and her expertise shows. Anyone who considered “TRL” appointment viewing won’t want to miss this one.
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