en-US Wed, 02 Jul 2025 20:20:19 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg ReadStatus9620114972 Wed, 02 Jul 2025 20:20:19 -0700 /review/show/7705335215 Lexy wants to read Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar by Katie Yee
]]> ReadStatus9620108382 Wed, 02 Jul 2025 20:18:21 -0700 /review/show/7698802979 Lexy started reading Among Friends by Hal Ebbott
]]> ReadStatus9611018307 Mon, 30 Jun 2025 18:38:48 -0700 /review/show/7698802979 Lexy wants to read Among Friends by Hal Ebbott
]]> Review4027165921 Sun, 29 Jun 2025 17:19:14 -0700 /review/show/4027165921 Lexy gave 4 stars to Home Stretch (Hardcover) by Graham Norton
bookshelves: 2025
]]> Review184490496 Sun, 29 Jun 2025 17:18:52 -0700 /review/show/184490496 Lexy gave 4 stars to The Art of Fielding (Hardcover) by Chad Harbach
bookshelves: tbr-not-owned, 2025
3.5 stars rounded up ]]> Review184490496 Sun, 29 Jun 2025 17:18:39 -0700 /review/show/184490496 Lexy gave 4 stars to The Art of Fielding (Hardcover) by Chad Harbach
bookshelves: tbr-not-owned, 2025
3.5 stars rounded up ]]> Review7691823645 Sat, 28 Jun 2025 13:16:23 -0700 /review/show/7691823645 Lexy gave 4 stars to Fulfillment (Hardcover) by Lee Cole
Fulfillment, Lee Cole’s sophomore novel, follows Emmett, as he stumbles through life, working at an order fulfillment center, living in small town Kentucky, and dreaming of (but not actually pursuing) becoming a screenwriter. Through Emmett’s story, Cole explores themes about capitalism, sibling rivalry, the South, American politics, small towns, and what it means to be successful and, more importantly, fulfilled.

Emmett exemplifies the stereotypical failed-to-launch millennial, and when his successful author/professor brother Joel returns home to Kentucky with his wife Alice, Emmett’s old resentments about his brother’s success are brought to the forefront. We see old family dramas play out, but we also learn that Joel’s life may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

Emmett, Joel, and Alice all struggle to find purpose in their lives, and Alice and Emmett are drawn to each other as they shrink next to Joel’s success. Readers who need likeable characters may struggle to find one to root for in this book, but the characters all felt authentic. Side characters added dark humor (Kathy, the men’s Fox News watching mom; Kaleb, Emmett’s shady co-worker; and Fuzzy, a childhood friend/drug dealer, were my favorites), and small details about the characters’ speech patterns, mannerisms, and homes really brought them to life.

While I sometimes felt that the social and political commentary in Fulfillment was a little heavy handed, I do think Cole wove together the deeper themes nicely. Readers who enjoy slower, introspective, character-driven stories with sharp social insight will like this one.

Thanks to Knopf for providing me with a review copy of the book.

3.5 stars, rounded up ]]> ReadStatus9600569533 Sat, 28 Jun 2025 07:23:09 -0700 /review/show/7691512228 Lexy wants to read The Möbius Book by Catherine Lacey
]]> Review184490496 Wed, 25 Jun 2025 18:47:19 -0700 /review/show/184490496 Lexy gave 4 stars to The Art of Fielding (Hardcover) by Chad Harbach
bookshelves: tbr-not-owned, 2025
3.5 stars rounded up ]]> ReadStatus9584774507 Tue, 24 Jun 2025 06:20:56 -0700 /review/show/7680479386 Lexy wants to read A Change of Habit: Leaving Behind My Husband, Career, and Everything I Owned to Become a Nun by Sister Monica Clare
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