My summer reading list was filled with crippity-crup, but there were a few gems in there. Here’s what I’ve read since July — at least, what I remembered to write down in my reading journal.

“The Chamber,” by John Grisham.
I read this back in July, when we were at my uncle’s cabin. He’s been staying at the same little lakeside resort for decades, and it’s just lovely. I thought, “It would be great to have a family reunion or something here.” Which is how I found out that the cabin reservations are standing and someone basically has to die and then their kids have to not want to take over their week before there’s an opening. So much for that plan. What does this have to do with “The Chamber”? Very little. Except that there are hundreds of books in the resort’s office, and “The Chamber” was one of them.

“The Hollow,” by Nora Roberts.
This, along with the first of the trilogy, was on my dad’s bookshelf. And so I read it, and I wrote in my reading journal: “I can’t believe I read this.” That’s about all I have to say about that.

“The Education of Little Tree,” by Forrest Carter.
This is a really good book. It was also on Dad’s shelf.

The “Harry Potter” books, by JK Rowling.
I’d read the first three (maybe four) of the Harry Potter books. When I saw a bunch of them at Dad’s, I thought I’d reread them and then finish the series. I read the ones he had while we were there this summer, then I got the rest from the library once we’d returned. There were a few little things I wish would’ve been included in the final book, but all in all the series was enjoyable.

“P is for Peril,” by Sue Grafton.

“Black and White and Dead All Over,” by John Darnton.

“Out of Sight,” by Elmore Leonard.
Exceptional dialogue.

“The Orchard Keeper,” by Cormac McCarthy.
Rockford loves Cormac McCarthy. I’ve read a few of his books and enjoyed a few of them, but this one? Not so much.

“The Cider House Rules,” by John Irving.
This is one of my favorites, and it’s one of the reasons I find his disappointing books so disappointing.

“Carter Beats the Devil” and “Sunnyside” by Glen David Gold.
“Carter” was pretty good, but “Sunnyside” nearly bored me to tears.

“American Wife,” by Curtis Sittenfeld.
I really enjoyed this, but I can’t remember why exactly. And I didn’t write anything down about it.

“Run,” by Ann Patchett.
I started this after Rockford and the kids had left for my brother’s wedding last month. The house was absolutely silent, and the book was lovely.

“What Was Lost”
I read this last week, and I already don’t remember anything about it. Hm.

“A Thousand Splendid Suns,” by Khaled Hosseini.
This book is well written and crushingly sad. It made me so grateful to have been born in the United States.

“Something Missing,” by Matthew Dicks.
This is a strange little book about a thief who … I’m not going to try to explain it. It’s not a perfect book, but the main character is compelling enough to make it worthwhile.