Books I Read in September!

This is the saddest reading month I’ve had since January. Only two books! I did get 98% through another but not even my sad little pile of two could make me read any faster. Luckily, I’m feeling really positive about October and my Autumn TBR even with my degree starting back up. And, of course, the Hallowreadathon!

Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth
Did I actually pick up a book from my Autumn TBR shortly after posting about it? I did! And I loved it. Honestly, I was surprised at how much I loved it because non-fiction generally isn’t something that keeps my attention. But the way this was written, in short chapters, made it an easy read to pick up whenever I had some spare time. I love the BBC show, midwifery and the 1950s in general so it was a win all round. It was so interesting seeing how things used to be done, I can’t imagine so many people having home births these days.
I saw a lot of comments on Goodreads about a chapter in the middle that got a little graphic when Worth described prostitution and maybe I’m desensitised after Asking For It but it was pretty tame in my opinion.
My one issue, and the reason I had to knock a star off my rating was actually how gosh darn negative Worth could be about people. While she had some really wonderful things to say about midwifery and the women who moved the occupation forward, she rarely said a nice thing about individuals. In fact, she could be downright mean about women’s appearance and that just makes me sad. Some of the things were downright cutting and everyone was so ugly from her point of view. I wouldn’t want to know her in real life if that’s the way she views people.
We midwives often had to pick our way through a forest of flapping linen to get to our patients.
✮✮✮✮

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
I listened to this on audiobook after seeing Ben Aaronovitch talk at YALC and my mother having the entire series on her Audible. I liked it! The narrator was good and I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to un-hear the bad guy, that shit is going to haunt me.
But the story didn’t really jump out to me. Again, I worry that this has to do with the fact that I read it in audiobook format but I just found some of it kind of- eh. The plot felt both busy, and not enough. I wasn’t hooked so despite the diverse characters, the cool magical system and how charming Ben Aaronovitch is, it took me a while to get through. I have already started the second audiobook though so it wasn’t all bad.
✮✮✮