Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme started by @Lauren’s Page Turners but is currently hosted by Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog. This meme is quite easy to follow – just randomly pick a book from your to-be-read list and explain why you want to read it. It is that simple.

This week’s book:

The Women by Kristin Hannah

Blurb from Goodreads

Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these words, it is a revelation. Raised in the sun-drenched, idyllic world of Southern California and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing. But in 1965, the world is changing, and she suddenly dares to imagine a different future for herself. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.

As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war. Each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, she meets—and becomes one of—the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost.

But war is just the beginning for Frankie and her veteran friends. The real battle lies in coming home to a changed and divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam.

The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on all women who put themselves in harm’s way and whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has too often been forgotten. A novel about deep friendships and bold patriotism, The Women is a richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose idealism and courage under fire will come to define an era.

Why I Want To Read It

It is that dreaded day of the week again! Happy Monday everyone! At least I hope that everyone is having a high time welcoming the first day of the week. I know, I know. Monday is nearly everyone’s least favorite day of the week. Take note, everyone including me. Thankfully, today is a holiday here in the Philippines to commemorate our National Heroes’ Day. Basically, we had four days off because last Friday was also a holiday. It has both good and bad implications. Tomorrow, most of us will definitely feel sluggish. Everyone will definitely be suffering from the weekend hangover. Nevertheless, I hope everyone started the workweek on a high note. I hope that the rest of the week will go great.

I just realized today is the last Monday of August. How time flies! In a few days, Christmas songs will permeate the Philippine radio waves and malls; we do start our Holiday season the moment we enter the “-ber” months. I do hope that the remainder of the year will shower all of us with blessings, positive energy, and good news. More importantly, I hope everyone will be healthy, in mind, body, and spirit. As has been customary, I am commencing another blogging week with a fresh Goodreads Monday update. After pondering, I opted to read recently published works that I have been looking forward to. I am currently reading Akwaeke Emezi’s most recent novel, Little Rot. With this, I have been featuring recently published novels that I have been looking forward to.

Earlier today, I bought a copy of Kristin Hannah’s latest novel, The Women. I am not sure when I learned about her releases. I guess it was while searching for books to include in my 2024 Top 10 Books I Look Forward To List. Nevertheless, this got me looking forward to her latest novel. To be honest, I was not impressed with Hannah when I first encountered her over a decade ago. My opinion of her writing changed when I read The Four Winds; I have also been reading commendations for her recent books which made me look forward to The Four Winds. Now, I can’t wait to read The Women which, apparently, is a book many have been looking forward to. It currently has over 600,000 ratings on Goodreads and despite this large number, its average rating is 4.64. I guess this means that the book has impressed several readers. I sure hope it won’t also disappoint me.

Again, the novel is a work of historical fiction and it touches on a seminal and familiar territory in the ambit of American literature: the Vietnam War and the role of the United States. This means that the book would be a little different compared to The Four Winds. Nevertheless, I am excited to read the book which I just might before the month ends. How about you fellow reader? How was your Monday? What books have you added to your reading list? Do drop it in the comment box. For now, happy Monday and, as always, happy reading!