If June was a reminder that a full life is better than a full TBR, then July was a reminder that not every book is going to be my book.

On paper, the numbers aren’t particularly impressive. I finished two books, read 592 pages, and my average rating for the month was just 2.88 stars. It’s probably my lowest average rating in quite a while, and certainly not the sort of month that makes for a particularly exciting StoryGraph graphic.

The thing is, those numbers don’t tell the whole story.

I wasn’t reading less in July. I just wasn’t finishing very much.

Several books made it onto my bedside table, onto my Kindle, or into my handbag. I’d read a few chapters, put them down, pick something else up, then circle back again a week later. Some held my attention for an afternoon, some for a few days, and some quietly slipped back onto the shelf. That’s always been part of how I read, but it felt especially true this month. StoryGraph records the books you finish, not the ones you spend time with along the way.

The two books that did make it to the finish line were Rotten Romans by Terry Deary and My Nonidentical Twin by Evie Meg.

Neither was a disaster. They simply weren’t favourites.

Rotten Romans was exactly what I’d expect from a Horrible Histories book: quick, accessible and packed with interesting snippets. It was enjoyable enough, but not one that’s going to linger in my mind.

I went into My Nonidentical Twin with much higher expectations. The premise really appealed to me, and I was interested to read Evie Meg’s perspective. In the end, though, I found it didn’t quite deliver what I’d hoped. There was far more focus on anxiety, mental health and functional neurological disorder than on Tourette’s itself, which felt a little at odds with the subtitle, What I’d Like You to Know About Living with Tourette’s. It wasn’t a bad book; it just wasn’t quite the book I’d expected to read.

Oddly enough, I’m not disappointed by any of this.

One of the things I’ve been trying to do this year is separate reading from productivity. There was a time when I’d have looked at July and immediately started planning how to “make up for it” in August by reading more books or setting ambitious goals.

Now, I find myself thinking about the month as a whole instead.

There was plenty of tennis to enjoy as the grass-court season rolled on. I found myself completely pulled back into Palia, happily spending evenings tending my little corner of Kilima. Most excitingly of all, I started writing fanfiction again. After such a long break, rediscovering that creative spark felt much more significant than whether I’d finished two books or six.

When I look back at July, those are the moments I’ll remember.

The reading was part of the month, but it wasn’t the measure of it.

I’m also beginning to think there’s value in months like this. Not every book can be a favourite, and not every reading month needs to be exceptional. Sometimes you spend a few weeks discovering what doesn’t work for you, and that makes it all the sweeter when the next book comes along and reminds you exactly why you love reading in the first place.

So no, July wasn’t my strongest reading month.

But it was a month spent learning, creating, watching tennis, gaming, writing again, and living a life that happened to include books.

Looking at it that way, I think that’s a much more satisfying story than “I only read two books.”