Thanks for putting up with me posting only about once a week the last couple of weeks. It’s probably going to continue for the next few weeks, because tomorrow I’m flying out to see my baby sister and perfect bb nephews again (my flight is at 1 am I mean that’s fine right, I usually go to bed by like 9:30 but I should be able to stay up until 1 totally no problem), and then the week after is the camping trip (it’s still happening you guys, although the husband did say last week that he thought maybe he’d get an Airbnb for a few days of the trip, because he really is a nice guy trying to make a nice trip). All of this to say, put up with one scheduled post a week for the few weeks, and I’ll work on getting more content up after that!

Unclaimed Bagged, by Jen Doll
Goodreads ¦ Amazon¦ Barnes & Noble
Series?: No
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Release Date: September 18, 2018
Length: 384 pages
Source: ARC
Format: Paperback
Times Read: Once
Rating:     .75

Doris–a lone liberal in a conservative small town–has mostly kept to herself since the terrible waterslide incident a few years ago. Nell had to leave behind her best friends, perfect life, and too-good-to-be-true boyfriend in Chicago to move to Alabama. Grant was the star quarterback and epitome of “Mr. Popular” whose drinking problem has all but destroyed his life. What do these three have in common? A summer job working in a store called Unclaimed Baggage cataloging and selling other people’s lost luggage. Together they find that through friendship, they can unpack some of their own emotional baggage and move on into the future.

What I Liked:  Hi I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH more than I thought I would. It’s very romance-light but it was so beautiful that I didn’t even really mind.

♥ Doris, Nell, and Grant. Awful names; the best people. Nell is sweet and kind. Grant is the fallen football star who’s losing time, blacking out, getting drunk. And Doris, finder of anything, is one of the town’s few proud liberals.

♥ Where do I find a job like Unclaimed Baggage, where I can go through people’s lost or discarded luggage? And are there actually stores that sell the contents of said luggage in real life?

♥ Almost a slow-burn look at politics and religion, particularly in the South. It was a gentle but thorough exploration that included racism, religion, drinking, addiction, slut shaming, bullying, sexual assault, boys will be boys, and rape mentality. There was a lot packed in, but to me, and my liberal heart, it wasn’t preachy or heavy-handed. Should you be a reader who is religious and believes that girls showing their shoulders are enticing boys and therefore “encouraging” them, you may find yourself offended.

What I Didn’t: I know I said I didn’t mind, and really I didn’t, but MOAR ROMANCE PLS

⊗ I mean mostly I don’t understand the cover. It’s adorable, there’s just nothing that has to do with a squirrel that I can remember from the story.