June reading wrap-up

This month I prioritized 7th and 8th grade reads, building up the book list + home library for my oldest. I felt like I struck a decent balance, still enjoyed my own reads (some which are fine for our high school list, too) but made a good dent in our middle school library!

GROWN-UP READS
📖 Bible study: Still worked on Old Testament commandments, orthodoxy, etc. until the 29th when I finally got the answers I was looking for!
📖 Bearing God's Name (Christian,  nonfiction)... this was such a great read because of my Bible study interest at the time! I don't think I'd have been interested if I had ever tried to read it before now, though.
📖 It Had to Be You (Christian,  fiction)... This is book 2 of the Christiansen Family series. I was not super interested for the first two chapters but then it of course grew on me and I will definitely read book 3, too. I am not interested in the book 2 storyline but I know I'll end up liking it anyway :)
📖 Missing (Christian, Amish fiction)... I'm trying to read more Amish fiction since my daughter asked me to find good ones and fill up her reading lists with Amish fiction. I didn't adore this Amish murder mystery but I did enjoy it and added it to the high school list. Trigger warning- a young woman does say a boy had attempted to force himself on her but he is not successful and nothing is graphic.
📖  The Sacred Slow (Christian, nonfiction)... I loved this morning read, which actually worked well with my Bible study focus at times, too! God is the coolest guy.

📚 Plus applicable sections of The No-Cry Nap Solution // What to Expect: The First Year (This book has felt legitimately worthless the last three months but I was glad for it in the beginning so I'll keep at it) // The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding // The Wonder Weeks

YA & MIDDLE GRADE READS
📖  Bad Badger (secular, fiction, lower middle grade)... This one was fun and cute but not the biggest hit around here.
📖 Beware Your Bias (secular,  middle grade, nonfiction)... great read on biases and avoiding them for the sake of better decision making!
📖 The Boy Who Fell From the Stars (Christian,  upper middle grade, speculative fiction)... this is like the jackpot for one of my kids- dystopian sci-fi fantasy. I enjoyed it and will read book 2 very soon.
📖 Christmas is Coming (secular,  nonfiction)... We really enjoyed this look at various Christmas traditions around the world!
📖  The Gate, the Girl, and the Dragon (secular,  upper middle grade, fiction)... we have loved Grace Lin's previous Chinese folklore stories and this one was a hit, too.
📖  The Hadley Academy for the Unprobably Gifted (Christian, fiction, upper middle grade)... this middle school book was so fun! We're on a sci-fi/dystopian kick around here and this one worked.
📖  The Hiding Place: A Graphic Novel (Christian, YA, nonfiction, graphic novel)... Corrie ten Boom's story, but in graphic novel format! I love her writing but the graphic novel version was still great.
📖 Lightfall 2 and 3(secular, middle grade, fiction, fantasy, graphic novel)... Still hirs, look forward to book 4!
📖  The Lost Property Office (secular but by a Christian author, middle grade, fiction fantasy)... This was a fun one! Looking forward to books 2 and 3 after reading this review.
📖 Louder Than Words (secular, middle grade, historical fiction,  TGTB book list)... I love WWII fiction and so does one of my kids. This is our third read from this author and we are definitely fans.
📖 The School of Music (secular, middle grade, nonfiction)... excellent source for music theory basics
📖 The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden (secular,  middle grade, fiction)... I was happy with this sequel and will check out the third book, too.
📖  Village of Scoundrels (secular,  middle grade, historical fiction)... again, I always love a good WWII novel!
📖  Who Was Roberto Clemente (secular,  middle grade, nonfiction)... I never knew anything about Roberto Clemente until recently but I really liked his story.

PICTURE BOOKS WE LOVED: The Bug Girl // Harriet's Ruffled Feathers // How High is Heaven? // Jam & Jelly by Holly & Nellie // Listening to the Quiet // Many: The Diversity of Life on Earth // Pippa and the Singing Tree // Ready to Fly // Summer of the Tree Army