January Reading Wrap-Up

I managed to read 15 books this month. I had lots of time to read since my kids were on winter break until January 9th, and I didn't start my semester of grad school until a couple of days ago. Even so, that's a lot for one month for me! Here are the ones I really enjoyed.

* Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - this was our nightly read aloud book for the past couple months. It's over 500 pages but it's a very compelling story about a man who can read things into reality if he reads out loud. Chaos ensues, obviously, and we're enjoying the second of this series right now.

* As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley (Flavia de Luce #7), and Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd by Alan Bradley (Flavia de Luce #8) - Flavia is such a fun character to follow. I enjoyed #8 more than #7, but these are cozy-ish mysteries so they don't have much gore or actual terror/grossness/grit in them. It's a great series.

* Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris - David Sedaris is a wonderful writer. This is a collection of holiday stories that had me laughing to myself each time I opened it up. He's irreverent and clever, which meant some of the stories were quite biting and may have been edited differently had they been published today. Having read his most recent collection last year (Calypso) it's fun to see how Sedaris has evolved and grown as a writer. I love his style nonetheless and am enjoying working my way through his backlist while waiting for the new stuff.

* We're Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union (Audiobook) - I was quite impressed with the honesty of this memoir. Union presents her life without apology and I was fascinated by how she was able to recognize her own growth, her mistakes, and by how decidedly herself she lives her life. There are many times that this audiobook was difficult to listen to, but as a white woman, those are things I need to examine and hear and look at.

* My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren - I'm going to write a post about how the romance genre gets undeserved side-eye (which I used to very much dish out), but let me just say this book was fun. It's like a rom-com and was the perfect easy read I needed. There are some pretty steamy parts, so if that's something you like to know ahead of time, now you know (though honestly, I've never blushed more than when I listened to Outlander and this is nowhere close to that - and it's all consensual so that's a plus). The characters in Christina Lauren's books continue to be some of my favorites. They are compelling and fully written and the banter is top-notch. What could be better? Did you know Christina Lauren is actually two people? It's a fact.

* The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory - Another romance you may have heard about, as Reese Witherspoon just picked this for her Hello Sunshine book club February read. This is a fun story of a woman who's boyfriend proposes marriage on a jumbo-tron at a baseball game, after only 5 months of casual dating, and spells her name wrong. Two people sitting nearby (Carlos and his sister Angela) end up helping the main character, Nik, out of the awkwardness that ensues and she becomes involved with Carlos. I also enjoyed this novel, which has plenty of steamy scenes as well, but another wonderful cast of characters with compelling lives and motives. I haven't read The Wedding Date (also by Guillory) yet, but will be picking it up to read next when I need something light and rom-com-esque!

* The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell (Audiobook) - Narrated by David Tennant (need I say more?!) this is a phenomenal audiobook of middlegrade fiction by the author of the How to Train your Dragon series. Everyone in my family loved listening to this during two weekends full of driving this month and we're excited to get the next one in the series. The story follows two young members of opposing groups. Those with magic (the wizards) and those without (the warriors). Involves prophecies, giants, a delightful enchanted spoon, and witches of the most terrible iteration I've ever read. I'm consistently impressed with what Cowell is able to create, and the narration of Tennant is incredible!

* Messenger of Truth by Jaqueline Winspear (Maisie Dobbs #4) - I enjoyed this installment of the Maisie Dobbs series much more than some of the others. It dealt with the death of a young artist and was more compelling to me than the more WWI centered books that came before this. Don't get me wrong though, it's still very much in the history and time where WWI is unavoidably present, but I think I enjoyed it more now that Maisie's backstory is more in the back and something the reader already understands by this point in the series. I enjoy the narrator's soothing voice and accent very much, and will continue with the series.

Also read:
Ayiti by Roxanne Gay (Audiobook)
Atomic Marriage by Curtis Sittenfeld (audible original - like a short story almost)

I also reviewed these four books that I read this month in this post.
French Exit by Patrick DeWitt
Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran
Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams
Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pierce

Did you read anything great last month?