A winter read-aloud with my two boys that was just lovely! Terpsichore and her family make a new home in Palmer, Alaska, after the Great Depression. A charming little story of a family connecting and building community in hopes to make this raw and unfamiliar land and life into their new home. 🌲 💙🏔

Fireside reads are the best. ❤️ this one has been on my list for ever, but after reading and loving The Dutch House and These Precious Days, I knew it was time. ☺️

Entrancing. Creepy in the perfect amounts.

*adds more Backman to TBR list*

Darker than I expected for a book aimed at younger audiences. It took me a while to get into this but felt like I finally connected with the characters and enjoyed the unfolding of the story after the halfway point. This is my first book of Rowling‘s outside of HP, and while it was good, Harry Potter still takes the cake by far! I loved the illustrations done by readers and the story of how this book came to be!

I read the Christy Miller series in junior high and high school and blew through those books back then because I felt so seen in all the coming of age issues Robin Jones Gunn addressed. Hearing about the married and baby year series made my twelve year old heart fly and these sweet stories delivered! I love how scripture is laced through the ups and downs the couple encounters. Thank you @AvidReader25 for this lovely gift! ♥️

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one as it is not one of the first of Austen‘s works that is recommended. It was really so funny at times!! and what an interesting twist to have the narrator break the fourth wall!

A fascinating look at the Enneagram and enlightening to look at the various personality types and the different ways God made us. A perfect first book diving into this topic. I loved the way each number on the Enneagram was organized in the book and found the breakdown of how each personality manifests itself depending on environment, relationship, stress, security, and childhood so helpful!

Nothing like starting the new year with a dose of hygge. The hubs and I are embracing all things hygge this year and it brings such joy and warmth to an otherwise dark and dreary season. Loved all the tips in this book that helped round out a sometimes vague definition of the increasingly popular term.

What a reading year! I surpassed my reading goal by 51 books and read some wonderful stuff this year! It was so hard to pick a top 10! I think I settled on...

Circe
Hiding Place
Daisy Jones and Six
Bridges of Madison County
The Dutch House
Wylding Hall
The Red Tent
The Midnight Library
Persuasion
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil!
•and a few on the runners-up list were so good too!•

“In books, I have traveled, not only to other worlds, but into my own. I learned who I was and who I wanted to be, what I might aspire to, and what I might dare to dream about my world and myself.”

“A book—the book that was, for some reason, THE book— can be reread, unchanged. Only we have changed. And that makes all the difference.”

“Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home.”

A sweet sequel to Pride and Prejudice. It was so fun to jump back into the lives of the Bennet sisters and see life happen at Christmas time at Pemberley with middle sister, Mary, at the center of this quick, witty, and lovely play.

While relatable on some levels with COVID and the unknown these days, I did not like any of these characters and the plot fell flat for me. I feel like the author did make some great points about race, stereotypes, and the destructive nature of our habits on our world. Some interesting ideas, but felt lacking.

“...well of course, man. We Indians have LOST EVERYTHING. We lost our native land. We lost our languages, we lost our songs and our dances. We lost each other. We only know how to lose and be lost.”

“The world, even the smallest parts of it, is filled with things you don‘t know.”

It‘s been a few years since I read Night but do remember what a powerful punch the short book gave. I feel the same about Dawn. Such a tiny vignette into Elijah‘s life as a part of The Movement and the hard choices he had to make as he toils with the past, present, and immediate future, yet something that leaves you with that punch in the chest kind of feeling.

Meh. Just fine. A nice quick and easy, pallet-cleansing read. I found her other work more impressive, for sure. Kid Gloves is still probably my favorite.

What an interesting read! As a Bible reader, I found it fascinating how a few small chapters were drawn out (fictionally) in this novel to tell the story of Dinah, only daughter to Jacob and Leah. The red tent brought to life the struggles and irreplaceable bonds of women during this time period. Our book club is tackling it for our next read and I can‘t wait to discuss!

Our Pandemic Pages virtual book club read this recently and we all felt a little floored that we hadn‘t read it until now. Such a powerful story of strength and faith during even the hardest of trials. The bravery of Corrie and her family is astounding but the wisdom shared about trusting in God despite what we face is what will stick with me.

I wrapped up Sense and Sensibility before reading The Jane Austen Society and while it may not be my favorite of Austen‘s works, it was still an absolute treat. I loved the relationship between Marianne and Elinor ♥️

My hubs bought me a WordCloud Austen book set for Christmas last year and I‘ve been reading my way through them this year (I still have Mansfield Park and Northanger Abbey to look forward to!), so reading this sweet story layered with my latest encounters of Jane Austen‘s characters was fun! I wish the ending wasn‘t as rushed but was charmed by so many of these characters and loved seeing some Austen characters reflected in Jenner‘s.

A quick and creepy read. The full cast is nearly always a hit with me and this one delivered.

Health has been on my mind, as it probably is for many of us entering flu season during a global pandemic, and I remembered hearing this recommended a couple years back in a discussion about longevity. Very interesting and perfect for what my reader heart needed this month. Nonfiction was totally my jam for most of October and November!

A favorite. ❤️ It‘s hard to believe this is only my second reread since we watch the movies so often. I forgot how dark parts of this are, and how heartbreaking, too.

Outside of my typical genre choice, but still good. A couple “what?!!? 😲” moments which is definitely a perk with a thriller. The full cast audio pulled me in and reminded me of Daisy Jones and the Six where you are immediately immersed.

Reading has been in a weird lull the past couple months. I‘ve read almost only non-fiction and very light material. This book was the perfect companion for a road trip with kids. I could pick it up and put it down easily to help kiddos with car activities and it was such a fun way to read little snippets of a traveler‘s life through the lens of food.

Very good! It did remind me of Clap When You Land a bit (which I really loved!) in how the stories were told from both girls‘ perspectives. Wonderful dimension was added in this way!

A slightly slower reading month for this year, but rocking for my overall past reading life! It was so hard to pick a favorite this month. It‘s been a wonderful reading year filled with tons of great books!

I can‘t put my finger on why I liked this one so much— was it the relationship between siblings, the spanning of decades, the intrigue of the home, the juxtaposition of the poor and the rich, or the voice of Tom Hanks? Quite possibly, it was all of these and more. It felt real, steady, and, as other readers put it, like a palate-cleanser. Soft and beautifully written.

Whew. Tear-jerker... especially being a mom, parts of this were hard to take in. So good. So heartbreaking.

Definitely a pick!! Having read Circe first, I still like that one more, but Miller has a way with the vivid and relatable retelling of Greek myths and you‘re pulled in from the start. This book made refinishing our kitchen cabinets fly by!! Wonderful on audio!

My second experience with Acevedo‘s work, and I‘m hooked. I read the physical copy of Clap When You Land, which was gorgeous and gave me a chance to appreciate the structure of her poetry, but listening to the author read her own work in The Poet X brings another level, a different angle, and unfailingly, a beautiful story.

This year has been my biggest reading year yet and one of many comforting rereads. Harry Potter will always be that for me, I think, and the third book never disappoints. I also just love Jim Dale as narrator on the audio version. 😊

I started this book out thinking they were a real band 🤦🏼‍♀️— it felt so real, especially the way it‘s written as an oral history/ interview. About half way through reading this hard copy, my audiobook library hold came in and I gave it a go and whoa!!! So incredibly well done! I was brought to tears a couple times throughout this book, but especially while hearing the emotion in the voices of the full cast!

A sweet story that really pulled me in. Told by Greek gods on a mock trial, two love stories intersect during World War I. I couldn‘t put it down. 💗

Reading with my tiny reader and his tiny toes 🥰

The author does an amazing job capturing the heart and characters of Savannah. A fascinating non-fiction story that reads like fiction, delves into an interesting location and culture, AND centers around a murder... sign me up. A great read!!

What fun to read about this happy culture during a pandemic with our virtual book club, while travel is impossible! The author was so comedically refreshing and I loved her take on her plunge into Danish Living.

I‘m between a so-so and a pick for this one. I enjoyed it while reading and never found myself feeling burdened by reading it but I did find the wrap-up lackluster in my opinion. Personal issues for the narrator were well-developed and intriguing but the big reveal didn‘t provide shock or awe. Disclaimer: sometimes listening to fiction on audio totally downgrades my experience. 🤷🏼‍♀️

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I feel grateful to have special people in my life to share books with me that open up other worlds and experiences. I felt for these two narrators and was drawn in! Beautifully written in free verse poetry that reads like a novel! The way the author played with stanzas to demonstrate narrator and to elicit emotion was wonderful. Props again to @AvidReader25 whose book recommendation are always a treasure. ☺️

Wowza! I loved this book so much that I‘m afraid to pick up my next book knowing it will probably be a disappointment in comparison. Greek mythology was interesting to me reading it in high school, but Miller‘s storytelling absolutely captivated me. The female perspective and strength deepen the humanity of these tales and I just couldn‘t put it down. A perfect birthday gift from @AvidReader25 Thank you!! ❤️

Just an incredible novel and one that I‘ll be replaying in my head for a long time, thinking about the characters and the beautifully woven story! This book is a keeper and one I know I will return to in the future. I also happened to be reading this book when the author sadly passed away last week, and having that knowledge as I wrapped up my journey with Shadow of the Wind gave it a bittersweet ending. Definitely adding his other works to my TBR

“Their goal wasn‘t to stand out because of their differences; it was to fit in because of their talent.” A total pick and a wonderful gift to the world to hear the story of these women‘s lives — their struggle against racism and sexism, and their incredibly important contribution to engineering and space travel.

I really enjoyed this one on audio. She had a lot of powerful things to say but intertwined her important message with the perfect dose of comedy. I learned a lot, I laughed, and I immediately read her second book.

It feels wrong to give an L.M.M. novel a so-so, but this was my least favorite in the series so far. Maybe it‘s because I listened on audio and my mind has been so distracted the last couple weeks, but I felt a disconnect from Anne and the other characters at Windy Poplars. I missed more frequent interactions with characters I‘ve so dearly loved in the previous three novels. On to Anne‘s House of Dreams!

A good book to dive into with older children to help take action toward an anti-racist world we all so desperately need! I loved the activities and thought-provoking questions at the end of each chapter. The content was presented in a simple and concrete way. I‘m glad I‘ll have this on hand as my kids get older to continue the conversation in a meaningful and action-based way.

I kept wanting to pick up this book, which is a must in my reading life right now as a busy mom. There was so much I really enjoyed about this dive into such contrasting characters and lives, but something also a bit anticlimactic about parts of it. Overall, definitely a pick. I keep thinking about some of the hard topics it addressed which always makes me feel like a book is worthwhile!

Our zoom-held book club, Pandemic Pages, finished I Capture the Castle this week! A wonderful read, especially considering I had forgotten a majority of plot points since reading it in 2014! The charming narration by Cassandra through her coming-of-age tale is what I remembered most from the first read, but on my second read, I found I wanted to know more about the characters and felt for ones I‘d overlooked in the past.

Disturbing yet thought-provoking, but also slow, and overall, not my favorite. I am glad I read it though. I was particularly interested in Huxley‘s foreword written in 1952, in which he reflects on how, in some ways, our society is closer to this than he could have ever imagined.

What a lovely journey to delve into these books during this time. 💕