Welcome to Quick Lit, where I share short and sweet reviews of what I’ve been reading lately on (or around) the 15th of the month, and invite you to do the same.
I’d intended to share a slightly longer round-up with you, but it’s all hands on deck this week as my team and my household are getting ready for our 2026 Fall Book Preview! (Yes, I definitely could have finished these short and sweet reviews as I finished each book, but despite my best intentions, I still haven’t figured out how to bake that step into my reading rhythm. I think something in me clings to the incubation time that comes between the reading and the writing.)
Last night and today I’m helping Will Bogel pack and ship 1000+ Fall Book Preview physical lookbooks, plus a whole bunch of stickers, sweatshirts, hats, and journals to go with them. It’s weirdly satisfying for someone who usually works with intangible words to pack up all these physical goodies and send them out the door. If I’m sending good stuff your way, know that I’m thinking of you as I’m packing it up!
If you want our original (digital only) Fall Book Preview experience—that includes our digital PDF lookbook + Unboxing access—your moment is now: click here for the lowdown and to get in on the action. Unboxing is Thursday, September 17 at 8:00pm EDT, and not unlike an extended, chatty version of Quick Lit, but 100% focused on 43+ forthcoming fall new releases. We’d love to have you join us live, but if you can’t or are not so inclined, no worries: the Unboxing session will be available to watch on your schedule after that night. (You can also save a few bucks and bundle our original digital experience with our physical lookbook. We’ve got options for you!)
But now for the new and notable books I’ve been reading lately: this month’s edition of Quick Lit—while not as long as it could be—includes a healthy variety including a nonfiction work in translation (Hwang Bo-Reum’s Every Day I Read), a phenomenal audiobook that packs a big punch in just a little over five hours (Benjamin Wood’s Seascraper), a debut short story collection with ties to a 2026 MMD Minimalist Summer Reading Guide pick (Shannon Sanders’s Company), and, come to think of it, two slim 1960s classics I’ve been meaning to read forever (Joan Didion’s Slouching Towards Bethlehem and S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders).
I’ll save the coffee table book and backlist French classic for next month.
I hope you enjoy this month’s selections, and that you find something that looks intriguing for your TBR here. As always, I can’t wait to hear what you’ve been reading lately! Thanks in advance for sharing your short and sweet book reviews with us.
I've been meaning to read this slim 1967 classic for ages and finally blew through it this month, spurred by the touring Broadway musical coming through town. If you read my recent "things I haven't been instagramming" newsletter, you know I finished it in the car on the way to the show! I would tell you it was worth it, and it was, but it really would have been worth finishing this book a long time ago. The West Side Story-esque tale is set in 1960s Tulsa, Oklahoma, where two groups of teens—the haves and the have-nots—are more or less at war. Over the course of a few short autumn weeks, the conflict dramatically escalates—culminating in the "rumble" you've perhaps heard about—and the lives of these teens and their families are changed forever. Over the years I've learned so much about this book (and the 1983 film adaptation) and have heard it quoted numerous times ("stay gold, Ponyboy"): I'm so glad I finally read it for myself. More info →
I've read some Didion but this was my first time through this collection, which I came to right now via a writing book I enjoyed (and will share more about soon) that contained a captivating excerpt from her essay "John Wayne: A Love Song," published in this collection. Didion drew her title from the W.B. Yeats poem “The Second Coming” (“things fall apart; the centre cannot hold”) and wrestles throughout with the disruption and unease she sees at work in the culture around her in the mid-1960s. I've never read anything like Joan Didion's voice, at once forthright and precise and almost confessional-feeling, even though she tells you directly in her preface to be wary: "That is one last thing to remember: writers are always selling somebody out." (If you've read much Didion, tell me your favorites?) More info →
I welcomed this into my reading life because I'd heard good things, because I needed a change of pace, because I love books about books. In 53 short essays (one for each week of a year, plus a bonus), international bestselling author Bo-Reum (author of the hit Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop) explores a broad variety of approaches and experiments to take in your reading life. I was tickled by the way many of these ideas directly conflicted with each other: read short, read long. Read old, read new. Read at whim, plan your reading. I was charmed—and look forward to discussing this book and its discussion-generators with my reading pals. We just announced this as our December pick for Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club. Translated from the Korean by Shanna Tan. More info →
I've been meaning to read this Booker longlisted novel since it came out last year, as readers told me it had a lot in common with Ben Shattuck's The History of Sound, which was one of my favorites of 2025. I'm glad to report I finally listened to the audio and am so glad I did. The protagonist is twenty-year-old Thomas, who lives a quiet life with his mother on England's northern coast, making his living from the sea. Then a stranger comes to town—and, despite Thomas's initial skepticism about what the stranger has to offer, everything will soon be changed. I really enjoyed this, and strongly recommend the audiobook version, as read by the author. Thomas's private desire to write folk songs features prominently in this story, and the book ends with a dazzling performance. More info →
Maybe this entry is actually a two-fer. First I re-read 2026 Minimalist Summer Reading Guide pick The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders, this time on audio as narrated by Keylor Leigh, in preparation to talk to Shannon in Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club. Then, during our conversation when Shannon mentioned that her debut short story collection features characters from the same family as in The Great Wherever, I knew I had to read it next. The book's first pages contain a family tree showing who's who; then, in each of thirteen stories, we read about a different family member receiving a visitor. In other words, having company. I LOVED this collection: these were independent stories, but the sense of continuity provided by the characters in common propelled me through in a way I don't often experience with short stories. More info →
What have YOU been reading lately? Tell us about your recent reads—or share the link to a blog or instagram post about them—in comments.
Thanks for sharing about “Every Day I Read.” I love books about books too!
This month I did a short review of “Yesteryear.” I have mixed feelings about it. I also read a lot of nonfiction. Two of my favorites are “The Inner Work of Age” and “How to Defend Books and Why.”
It wasn’t my best reading month, with three highly anticipated novels proving to be disappointments. But there were some bright spots including two nonfiction books that I am really happy to have read, as well as one 4.5-star novel that was absolutely as wonderful as I hoped it might be (thank you Ann Patchett for a story that saved my reading this month, and thank you Anne Bogel for recommending it!).
If I didn’t write down my little reviews right after I read a book I would never remember. For the most part as soon as I finish a book it’s gone.
Here are my reviews from August, the best reading month of the year so far!
Thanks for the nudge on The Outsiders. It has been on my TBR for far too long. A good reminder that it is never too late to pick up the book you’ve been meaning to read!
The only Joan Didion novel I have read–The Year of Magical Thinking. It was memorable. Slouching Towards Bethlehem is now on my To Be Read List. Thank you.
I recently read The Outsiders for the first time too, when it was assigned to my middle-schooler. I’d heard the same quote you mentioned (“Stay gold, Ponyboy”) without any context since I’ve never watched the movie either. I was surprised at how emotional and insightful it was. My daughter was not impressed, but I could see how this is considered a classic.
I recently read The Outsiders too because my 7th grader was assigned it in class and loved it. I thought it was good, but also think there are far more modern books that would be better suited for today’s kids. And there was SO MUCH SMOKING!!
I loved both Seascraper and History of Sound, and if I could add a 3rd book to that shelf, I would recommend The Ferryman and His Wife-these books strike me as in conversation with each other somehow. Maybe it’s the tone?
I love when anyone reads The Outsiders! I read it with my 8th grade students for years and literally cried the year of COVID when we couldn’t. This book hits me every time, and I’ve literally read it about 50 times! Everyone should have this experience!
I have been trying to be more intentional about picking up older books that I’ve missed, and Joan Didion is a name I have to look into! Thanks for the recommendation.
I am so glad that you enjoyed Seascraper. Like the very best of prize nominated books, it told a good story, brought a specific time/place to life, was beautiful at the sentence level, but was still poignant with Thomas’ yearning. It is a slip of a book and a definite audio-simply excellent in that format. I am currently obsessed with Switzy. Not that I have ever wanted to be a writer but I would like to be able to do that. Using a close 3rd POV, you are in David’s head and you feel each loss. It is almost claustrophobic but I cannot get enough. Like Elena Knows (with Parkinson’s) and Hunchback (with chronic illness requiring round the clock care), the author made me feel the onset and advance of Alzheimer’s. It wasn’t sympathy or even empathy it was as close to understanding as I could get without actually having an illness myself.
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25 comments
Thanks for sharing about “Every Day I Read.” I love books about books too!
This month I did a short review of “Yesteryear.” I have mixed feelings about it. I also read a lot of nonfiction. Two of my favorites are “The Inner Work of Age” and “How to Defend Books and Why.”
All 7 books I recommend in September are here:
https://lisanotes.com/september-book-recommendations-2026/
I have a variety of fun romances and exciting thrillers to share this month! See what books you should read and skip!
https://neverenoughnovels.com/2026/09/14/september-2026-book-reviews/
Hi Rachel. I noticed on your page that you have the library lanterns. I just got mine. Aren’t they so cute?!
In this month’s LITERARY CHATTER, the book I didn’t know I needed on forgiveneness and discernment.
Plus a forgiveness workbook and scads of Kindle deals by our favorite authors.
https://lindastoll.substack.com/p/cultivating-forgiveness-discernment
Looking into Seascraper. That cover is gorgeous.
I’ve got an interesting mix of reads from last month. Stop by! https://carolinestarrrose.com/ultra-quick-lit-what-ive-been-reading-lately/
It wasn’t my best reading month, with three highly anticipated novels proving to be disappointments. But there were some bright spots including two nonfiction books that I am really happy to have read, as well as one 4.5-star novel that was absolutely as wonderful as I hoped it might be (thank you Ann Patchett for a story that saved my reading this month, and thank you Anne Bogel for recommending it!).
https://kendranicole.substack.com/p/quick-lit-september-2026
Love Ann Patchett’s work. She’s a writer who makes me want to read AND write!
If I didn’t write down my little reviews right after I read a book I would never remember. For the most part as soon as I finish a book it’s gone.
Here are my reviews from August, the best reading month of the year so far!
https://substack.com/home/post/p-215645508
My current books:
The Apostles after Acts, Thomas E. Schmidt
When Christians Were Jews, Paula Fredriksen
Moonglow, Michael Chabon
Spymaster, Brad Thor
When Christians Were Jews is such a great, intriguing title! Just added it to my reading list on Libby.
Books #82-92 of 2026: https://thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com/2026/09/reading-update.html
Thanks for the nudge on The Outsiders. It has been on my TBR for far too long. A good reminder that it is never too late to pick up the book you’ve been meaning to read!
https://ourlittlebookcollection.substack.com/p/two-books-a-very-full-month-and-my
The only Joan Didion novel I have read–The Year of Magical Thinking. It was memorable. Slouching Towards Bethlehem is now on my To Be Read List. Thank you.
I recently read The Outsiders for the first time too, when it was assigned to my middle-schooler. I’d heard the same quote you mentioned (“Stay gold, Ponyboy”) without any context since I’ve never watched the movie either. I was surprised at how emotional and insightful it was. My daughter was not impressed, but I could see how this is considered a classic.
Here’s what I’ve been reading: https://readeatrepeat.net/2026/09/books-in-progress-september-2026/
I recently read The Outsiders too because my 7th grader was assigned it in class and loved it. I thought it was good, but also think there are far more modern books that would be better suited for today’s kids. And there was SO MUCH SMOKING!!
I loved both Seascraper and History of Sound, and if I could add a 3rd book to that shelf, I would recommend The Ferryman and His Wife-these books strike me as in conversation with each other somehow. Maybe it’s the tone?
I love these as a trio! And agree on the tone. Perhaps also the element/sense of haunting?
I haven’t read The Outsiders in decades — it might be time for a reread!
My past month had a lot of solidly 4-star reads, which made for overall a pretty good reading month! https://cocoonofbooks.blogspot.com/2026/09/what-ive-been-reading-lately-quick-lit.html
My reading was a bit sparse but look forward to reading more this fall.
https://myviewofthehoneypot.blogspot.com/2026/09/what-i-read-in-september.html
Thank you for sharing! I wrote about my recent reads here. https://afewgoodthings.substack.com/p/august-reads?r=8xng3o&utm_medium=ios
I love when anyone reads The Outsiders! I read it with my 8th grade students for years and literally cried the year of COVID when we couldn’t. This book hits me every time, and I’ve literally read it about 50 times! Everyone should have this experience!
I have been trying to be more intentional about picking up older books that I’ve missed, and Joan Didion is a name I have to look into! Thanks for the recommendation.
This month, I caught up on sharing some Book Briefs that got lost over the summer. https://michelemorin.substack.com/p/heaven-is-much-more-than-a-consolation
My August reading wrap up…
https://readingladies.com/2026/08/31/august-2026-reading-wrap-up-amreading-blogger-bookblogger-bookx-booksky-augustreading-readinglife/
This month wasn’t the biggest month of reading for me because of school starting back up, but I did read my first Freida McFadden and third Emily Henry!
https://booksandpickles.substack.com/p/recent-reads-aug-sep-26
I am so glad that you enjoyed Seascraper. Like the very best of prize nominated books, it told a good story, brought a specific time/place to life, was beautiful at the sentence level, but was still poignant with Thomas’ yearning. It is a slip of a book and a definite audio-simply excellent in that format. I am currently obsessed with Switzy. Not that I have ever wanted to be a writer but I would like to be able to do that. Using a close 3rd POV, you are in David’s head and you feel each loss. It is almost claustrophobic but I cannot get enough. Like Elena Knows (with Parkinson’s) and Hunchback (with chronic illness requiring round the clock care), the author made me feel the onset and advance of Alzheimer’s. It wasn’t sympathy or even empathy it was as close to understanding as I could get without actually having an illness myself.