Five picks for August

Buzz Reads is a column about books by reviewer Cindy Burnett. Each month, Cindy recommends five recently or soon-to-be released titles.

Elizabeth of East Hampton by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding (romantic comedy) – Jane Austen retellings are all the rage currently, and Elizabeth of East Hampton is one of the best that I have read in a while. It is an engaging and refreshing take on Pride & Prejudice that demonstrates why Austen’s stories still resonate with readers today. The authors do a wonderful job of loosely following the original but modernizing the story and adding some of their own elements as well. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a fabulously crafted retelling and an engaging romance with a fun summer setting. And for those who like to know, there is some steam in this one. For readers headed to the beach or pool and those who love Jane Austen.

The Faculty Lounge by Jennifer Mathieu (contemporary fiction) – Houstonian and high school teacher Jennifer Mathieu’s adult debut is a timely and relevant glimpse at today’s issues in schools and a tribute to educators. The story follows a large cast of teachers, administrators, and staff at Baldwin High School, a Texas high school that feels remarkably like Bellaire High School. Infused with heart and hilarity, The Faculty Lounge addresses what it is like to teach at a high school in 2024 – helicopter parents commenting on curriculum choices, school shootings and lockdown drills, social media, book bannings, and more. I really enjoyed the format of The Faculty Lounge; each chapter is told from the point of view of someone working at the school. It was a delight to see how their lives connected as the story unfolds. For readers who like stories infused with humor and heart as well as those who like current events. (Read a Q&A with the author in this Page Turners.)

The Genius of Judy: How Judy Blume Rewrote Childhood for All of Us by Rachelle Bergstein (nonfiction) – Judy Blume is a household name, and her books have sold tens of millions of copies. In this book, Bergstein demonstrates how important Blume’s legacy is today and the impact she has had on generations of young women. The Genius of Judy explores Blume’s more cutting-edge titles, sharing the stories of each book’s inspiration, the plotlines, and reader reception, while also relaying the story of Blume’s life throughout the years; from a suburban housewife who longed to do more to a free speech activist defending her works. Her books gave young women a mechanism for understanding and taking control of their bodies at a time when this was a novel concept. Against the backdrop of the burgeoning women’s rights movement, she explored what it meant for women to have careers, balanced relationships, and bodily autonomy. While her books were rigorously banned in the 1980s, they withstood the culture wars of earlier decades and are providing a road map for a new generation of young women as book banning is on the rise as well as attempts to restrict female autonomy grow. For readers who like books about books and/or current events or those who grew up reading Judy Blume.

My Mother Cursed My Name by Anamely Salgado Reyes (magical realism) – My Mother Cursed My Name is a sweet and heartfelt tale that focuses on the bonds between mothers and daughters, and the ways in which those bonds shape and define us throughout our lives. Three generations of strong and independent Mexican-American women work to shed the scars from past trauma while facing grief and attempting to determine the true meaning of home. I enjoyed the author’s exploration of what happens when issues are not addressed head on and instead are left to fester and grow, and the way in which attempts to protect children from secrets actually harm them more. She weaves in insights and details related to Mexican culture and families, which was fascinating to me. For fans of multi-generational stories and tales about a particular culture.

The Wedding People by Alison Espach (contemporary fiction) – Phoebe Stone shows up at a hotel and mistakenly gets swept up into wedding festivities right when she is at her lowest. She starts her day thinking that it will be the last day of her life and instead she starts down a totally different path with the help of an unexpected group of people. In this character-driven and touching tale, Espach tackles so many issues that people deal with today: marriage, infidelity, infertility, loneliness, death, friendship, and disappointment. While these issues can be heavy, the book is so engaging, heartwarming, thought-provoking, and hilarious, and it often went in directions I was not expecting. I loved everything about it – the characters, the plot, the intergenerational friendship, and the book’s resolution; this will be one of my top reads of the year. For fans of well-written books with a lot of humor and heart.

Editor’s note: Southside Place resident Cindy Burnett also writes our weekly Page Turners column at thebuzzmagazines.com. She hosts the award-winning Thoughts from a Page Podcast, is co-creator of the Houston literary event series Conversations from the Page, runs the Instagram account @thoughtsfromapage, and regularly speaks to groups about books.