Happy English books (Emma M. Lion), sad Irish books (recommended by Maggie O’Farrell on the Culture Study podcast with Anne Helen Petersen), and much on the topic of decluttering and tidying, from picture books (Everything Grandma Needs) to – who else – Marie Kondo. Here are the standouts from the books I read in July.

Picture Books

• The Haircut (board book) by Theo Heras and Renne Benoit
• Pufflings Fly Free by Colleen Paeff and Linda Olafsdottir
• The Wise Pickle by Sarah Howden andSabina Hahn
• The Long Hike: The Story of the First Appalachian Thru-Hike by Meghan McCarthy
• Everything Grandma Needs by Molly Beth Griffin and Anait Semirdhzyan

Middle Grade

• Where Ella Went by Laurie Morrison
• A Potion, A Powder, A Little Bit of Magic by Philip Stead
• Midsummer Sisters by Niki Smith

Adult

• The Sleepwalker’s Guide to Dancing by Mira Jacob
• An Accident of Dragons by Cheri Radke
• Kurashi at Home by Marie Kondo
• I’m A Lot by Alison Leiby (recommended by Josh Gondelman)
• The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion (vol. 4 & 5) by Beth Brower
• Advice No One Asked for by Jenny Hagel
• Making Space, Clutter Free by Tracy McCubbin
• The Unicorn Hunters by Katherine Arden