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​Another record!!! and something I hadn’t done in a while!!! I read five books this month!!! I definitely disconnected, and believe me I am super behind with grading... but if I have to choose between reading a bunch of essays and reading fiction, I will definitely choose any fiction book, even if it’s a bad one... and I’m sad to say, that this month I read a couple of bad ones; this is mostly my fault for listening to recommendations from #bookstragram. Since I read a lot, I’m going to try to make this reviews short for you. Here we go... 

The Spanish Love Deception
I know this is a very popular book, so you might not agree with me, but... I didn’t love it. It was very poorly written. It was hot, spicy... and I see why people get excited to read it, but it’s annoying that the author explains every single Spanish terminology at the beginning and that a professional engineer is described in a such immature manner at the beginning of the book; it just seems unrealistic. I don’t know what it is with the las few romance novels I’ve read or with the trendy ones that they portray the guys in such an unrealistic way... is that what women fantasize about? does that not make me a women? LOL
I think this is a quick read, definitely escapist, so if you just need to unplug this would be good. I give it a 3.5 rating.
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This was a busy month! but not so much for my reading list, to be honest... But, I’m still ahead of my goal and I’m really proud of that. I love that I have found great books and great recommendations, but above all I love that I have re-found my love for books, and this year is stronger than ever!!!
​I already have a lot of different TBR lists and I started a new one... I created a list of TBR books that includes ALL the Alfaguara winers. I had already read a couple and I loved them!!! So, I thought I would read all the other books... Alfaguara hasn't failed me with their recommendations so far, so I am committed to read as many of those as I can. I started the month with one of them and here is what I thought:
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Contigo a la distancia:
This is an Alfaguara winner for a reason... I LOVED IT!! Gave it five stars and would definitely recommend. It is a little bit elitist and I wouldn’t read it with my class because there are a lot of references they wouldn’t probably get. Because it includes so many referenced to other authors, painters, museums, etc I think the author is very selective with their readers. Almost as if the author has chosen who is qualified to read this and that makes me feel especial, because I got a lot of the references... it makes me feel like such a nerd!! but a good kind of nerd!! I also think, that because of this, this book might get boring for some people.

I read 4 books in one week this month! That's crazy! I don’t believe it!!! How did I find the time?!!
When I was growing up, I found that the best way for me to isolate and ignore all my problems was to read a book. I would spend every weekend in bed or on the couch reading and I wouldn’t even feel hungry because I was so caught up in the stories I read. It was such a wonderful feeling... books always made me feel safe. They truly were a safe haven. Books are a wonderful place to scape to when there are things we don't want to face... So.. that first week in February I hid in my books again and I loved it!! It felt so energizing and I felt so much joy!!! Don't ask me what I was escaping from, because as I write this I can't even remember... I was probably hiding from work... LOL... Obviously there were some books better than others, so here is a list of my recommendations:
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Life’s too short
Full honesty, I got this book because it was recommended after reading “Love Hypothesis” and I was in desperate need for something that wasn’t as toxic. Romance books are a feel good kind of story, we know we will get the happy ending even before we start the book and it’s always a quick read. I have nothing against a good romance novel, but this one was hard to read... the narrative style wasn’t great and when I thought it was gettin better it got very unrealistic.
I have the same thought about this book as I had with The Love Hypothesis... it’s toxic to set unrealistic expectations for teenager!

I was very sad that last year I didn’t reach my goal... I read 22 books, but my goal was 24! I know, I know... I was close and I shouldn’t be too hard on myself because I have actually been very active and intentional with my reading. I had stopped for a while because I was so overwhelmed and honestly bored with all the readings for my Master’s program that I just didn’t find joy in reading anymore. It felt like a task. Reading is something I have enjoyed since I was little. It was a way for me to escape my reality and hide from the grownups. ​

I'm very happy that I have found my love for reading again... and this year I plan to be even more intentional about it and make more time for the things I love and fulfill me.

So... here is a recap of the three books I read this month.

Never Split the Difference
I think this book is AMAZING!!!…. I am honestly not the type of person to read non-fiction, I cannot keep my eyes open, so I decided to listen to this audiobook. The strategies the author shares work!! I started listening to this audiobook in hopes to prepare for serious negotiations with my car insurance. Someone had crashed my car (it was parked, I’m okay) and the 

​​I have been reading a lot lately... summer break does that to me; it allows me to focus on things I love that help me relax. I was behind my reading goal for this year, because between January and May life was stressful, unpredictable and just overall chaotic. I know I'm not the only teacher that had a rough last year, especially end of the school year. 
But I used my time during the summer to catch up, so here is my review of the books I read... 

​¡¡¡Este libro fue sensacional!!! Desde que comencé a leerlo se me hizo raro, y como dije en mis 'stories' en Instagram "it was a good kind of weird"... El formato de esta novela es confuso desde el inicio y esto tiene una relación que conecta con el tema del texto. Me encanta cuando el estilo narrativo apoya el mensaje porque le da otro tono a la trama. 
Desde que comencé a leer no sabía qué pasaba y eso es exactamente lo que le sucede a uno de los personajes, Aguilar, que no sabe qué pasa con su esposa e intenta pero intenta averiguarlo.

En este proceso de investigación por parte de Aguilar y el estilo narrativo de entrevista, encontramos diferentes voces, en las que cada una cuenta su historia. Sabemos de la locura de Agustina, de la corrupción que existe en el círculo de amigos del hermano, de la historia de los abuelos, de la dinámica familiar cuando ella era niña, de los secretos escondidos por la familia, de la importancia de las apariencias. 

Es este quizás el tema que más me llamó la atención... la verdad es que todos son interesantes y Laura Restrepo los elabora de una manera magnífica... pero, quizás por experiencia, me interesa mucho más explorar esto de las apariencias. 

This is probably the BEST non-fiction book I have read so far. It's funny, and I can hear Trevor Noah's voice and intonation as I read each chapter which makes it even more relatable. 
It has a lot of tough stories, but very real and raw stories that no one can ever imagine when we look at a funny guy on a stage or on T.V. This books tells the amazing story of resilience of the author, but also of the people of South Africa. His insight on the development of the identity of the country is inspiring and heartbreaking. 

​Most of the time, we hear that society, culture and family play a big role in shaping our identities, which is true, but... how many times is our identity shaped by the history of the country we live on and we don't know about it? 

This book really defines the importance of knowing, understanding and listening to your surroundings. The easiest example to understand is how Trevor Noah blends in with different people, white, black, mixed, etc because of his knowledge and ability to communicate with everyone. His understanding of cultures and languages helps him navigate a society that has purposefully instigated hate amongst each tribe to separate them. This quote from Nelson Mandela, mentioned in the book, stood out the most: "If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart." I truly believe the book is filled with a message of communication, understanding and love.

​There are a lot of things I liked about this book... so I will start with the good and then I'll talk about all the bad (there are quite a few things too)... But before I dig into the specifics of this text, I have a question... why is it that all the historical fiction novels that I have read lately have multiple timelines? Is it me picking the same format over and over? or is it trendy to have two parallel story lines, one where the main character is a descendant of the other main character and somehow their stories intertwine? The plot might be different but the romance story that develops as the main character is trying to put the pieces together of her ancestors is cliché. I feel like I've read it before... however, if you like an easy to read, cute, lighthearted romance novel.. this is it! 

But... let's get into the good stuff about this novel:

• I really liked how both sides of the Cuban Revolution were portrayed. It showed the real spirit of the revolution, and it also showed the flaws of it that later on became what we know as Castro's dictatorship. 
• I liked the perspective of the immigrants who came to the U.S. not by choice but running away from harm. The exiles have a different perspective on what it is and how it feels to migrate. It's a unique and traumatic experience and I think that this book really portrayed the psychological aspects of each character. ​