Hey, Bookish Friends!
We made it to 2021! I don’t know about you, but even though we’re still dealing with a lot of the crap 2020 threw at us, it feels good to be starting a new year. 🙂
In December, I realized that I was very close to reading 365 books for the year! So, I decided to read some picture books and shorter things to get me to that goal!
That being said, I filled my bullet journal to the very last page with reviews and comments, so I haven’t wrapped things up in the way I usually would to report out here! So, things will look a bit different. 🙂
Total Things Read: 43
Genres
Contemporary | Romance |Comics | Historical | Self-Help | Retelling | Picture Book | Thriller | Science Fiction | Fantasy | True Crime | Memoir | Dark Academia | Manga
Favorite Read
The Space Between Worlds | Micaiah Johnson
This was my first credit with Libro.fm, and I was not disappointed in my purchase! I loved the journey this story takes. The characters are engaging and interesting, and the plot is just twisty enough to keep you on your toes.
I particularly enjoyed the ending of this; I feel like it went in a different direction than a lot of science fiction novels take, and it was great to experience that kind of nuance.
I’m not sure who I would recommend this to, but I think it has a lot of crossover appeal to those who enjoy portal fantasy.
Least Favorite Read
Catherine House | Elisabeth Thomas
I gave this the good ol’ college try, and I have to say I’m with those who didn’t enjoy it. Catherine House has proven to be a very polarizing read, and so if you’ve enjoyed it this year, I’m very happy for you!
I’m thinking part of my issue with this book is the fact that it is dark academia; I have tried to read several dark academia books at this point, and haven’t enjoyed any of them. So, I’m starting to suspect that this genre isn’t for me!
Personally, I felt that the characters had weak motivations for the actions they took. I also felt that the ending came too slowly with little payoff.
I do the POPSUGAR challenge every year, and the 2021 challenge includes a prompt to read a dark academia book; so, I’ll have to give one more a try in this coming year! If you have recommendations (for things that are nothing like Catherine House), please leave them below! 😉
All Titles and Ratings
- The Last True Poets of the Sea | Julia Drake — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- This was a reread, and a GREAT time. I love this book so much, and I recommend it to everyone who likes 1) family stuff, 2) solving historical mysteries, 3) sapphics, and 4) retellings.
- Cemetery Boys | Aiden Thomas — ⭐⭐1/2
- PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE RATING WITH THIS TITLE! Unfortunately, Cemetery Boys missed a few of the marks for me. But that is on me and not the book. I still highly recommend this book to fans of fantasy, who also like romance, and who enjoy magic-driven stories. I think you’ll love it! 🙂
- The Wicker King | K. Ancrum — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Fantastic. Weird. Disturbing. K. Ancrum is an auto-buy author for me, from now on.
- How We Fight For Our Lives | Saeed Jones — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- (At this point, I thought it was going to be a fantastic reading month. Spoiler: It goes a bit downhill from here.) This book is excellent for anyone interested in social justice for Black and/or queer Americans.
- Let’s Talk About Love | Claire Kann — ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Another reread that was a fun time!
- Everything is Beautiful and I Am Not Afraid: A Baopu Collection | Yao Xiao — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- In Some Other World, Maybe | Shari Goldhagan — DNF
- After a very uncomfortable and unfortunate personal encounter with this author three years ago, I have tried time and again to pick this book up. But, whether its the actual writing or the bad memory, I can’t make myself get through it. I gave up and got rid of my personalized, signed copy, and I feel a lot better now.
- Ready Player Two | Ernest Cline — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- A good time, but not as good as the first one, and the efforts to be more inclusive really missed the mark.
- FLCL | Gainax — ⭐⭐
- What did I just read?
- You | Caroline Kepnes — ⭐1/2
- Nopedy Nope Nope Nope
- Catherine House | Elisabeth Thomas — ⭐
- (At this point I began to question if I even liked reading anymore. It was a very tumultuous month, tbh.)
- The Meaning of Birds | Jaye Robin Brown — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- Fierce, Free, and Full of Fire: The Guide to Being Glorious You | Jen Hatmaker — ⭐⭐1/2
- I felt that this was a bit too much “dream it and you will do it,” and lacking some practical advice and applications. It was also sad to read about how happy Jen was in her marriage while writing this book, having picked it up post-July 2020.
- Know My Name | Chanel Miller — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- All. The. Rage.
- Five Total Strangers | Natalie D. Richards — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- This book gave me full-on anxiety attacks during some of the snowy-road scenes.
- Where Dreams Descend | Janella Angeles — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- I’ll Be Home for Christmas | Mason Deaver — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- SO adorable!
- The Berenstain Bears Meet Santa Bear | Stan and Jan Berenstain — ⭐⭐⭐
- Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls | Ann M. Martin — ⭐⭐⭐/12
- People Like Us | Dana Mele — ⭐⭐1/2
- I feel like the culprit was a bit too obvious in this mystery, but I would also pick up another Mele book.
- This is All Your Fault | Aminah Mae Safi — ⭐⭐⭐
- I thought this book was fun, but I also agree with a lot of the negative reviews that complain that this book is just a plagiarized “Empire Records.” I would have liked to have seen the author change some of the key plot points of the film into something different for her story. I also would have liked for the three main characters to be a bit different from their movie counterparts, considering some of the unfortunate misogyny and male-gaze-type-things the film contains. BUT! If you don’t mind reading novelizations of films, I think you’ll enjoy this! 🙂
- The Space Between Worlds | Micaiah Johnson — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- My Cousin Rachel | Daphne Du Maurier — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- I liked this more than Rebecca, and I am so happy to have read it!
- I Promise | LeBron James and Nina Mata — ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- We Don’t Eat Our Classmates | Ryan T. Higgins — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Rain School | James Rumford — ⭐⭐
- Antiracist Baby | Ibram X. Kendi
- Withholding my review of this, because it is not positive. My biggest complaint? This doesn’t read like a story a small child would sit still for. The words are GIGANTIC, the subtext isn’t explained, and the images are actually fairly difficult to intuit. I just don’t see this as having the desired effect.
- The Market Bowl | Jim Averbeck — ⭐⭐1/2
- Hair Love | Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost | Foxglove Lee — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- I needed a short and fun Christmas audiobook to listen to on the 25th while I made cookies, and this fit the bill perfectly! I think I’ll make it a tradition to reread annually while making sugary festive treats.
- Merry Christmas, Curious George | Margret Rey et al — ⭐⭐⭐
- The Golden Christmas Tree | Jan Wahl — ⭐1/2
- Where in the world is this Christmas tree supposed to be located???
- The Mitten | Jan Brett — ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- The Legend of the Christmas Cookie: Sharing the True Meaning of Christmas | Dandi Daley Mackall and Richard Cowdrey — ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- An Early American Christmas | Tomie dePaola — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- Ten Rules of the Birthday Wish | Beth Ferry and Tom Litchenheld — ⭐⭐⭐
- The Neverland Wars | Audrey Greathouse — ⭐⭐⭐
- Sparrow Girl | Sara Pennypacker and Yoko Tanaka — ⭐⭐⭐
- Friendshipping: The Art of Finding Friends, Being Friends, and Keeping Friends | Jenn Bane and Trin Garritano and Jean Wei — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- This is a great reference text for anyone interested in confronting the difficulties of adult friendships.
- You Bring the Distant Near | Mitali Perkins — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
- Avatar: The Last Airbender — The Promise, Part 1 | Gene Luen Yang et al — ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
- Radical Encounters | Radclyffe — ⭐⭐⭐
- Late to the Party | Kelly Quindlen — ⭐⭐⭐1/2
There it goes!
It feels good to end the year with so many books read. I’ll have some more end-of-year content coming out soon, but for now, I’m off to read something new for 2021!
Cheers!
Waiting for the Second Star 