I managed to read 22 books in January, but 12 of them were from the Chalet School series. I was determined to complete the set of 58 and very pleased I got that done in January.
My favourite book this month was The Burning Grounds by Abir Mukherjee. This is book 6 in the Wyndham & Bannerjee series, which starts off in 1920 Calcutta. Highly recommended.
Great list! Kristin Weed is a good friend of mine and I loved her book also. Felt very nostalgic of a time when we could expect civil servants to be civil and have the country’s best interests at heart. And her dad was definitely a very special man.
After reading this post, I experimented with Claude to create a reading plan... WOA. I loved that experience way more than I thought I would. I'm curious to see how long I stick with the plan; Sarah, I would love to know how often you end up checking back in with Claude about modifications to your plan!
I think I would feel bossed around by an AI reading plan (full disclosure: I feel that way about plans that I create for myself!) Just bought Common Sense from the bookstore this morning.
I had a good reading month in January. My two favorites were: Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (short and sweet) and The Book of Hope by Jane Goodall (my bookclub had such a good discussion). AND I started reading The Count of Monte Cristo with my sons!
I read Culpability by Holzinger…what a discussable book! It’s about how AI affects the lives of modern families today. It has many twists and turns…5 stars! Then I read Heart the Lover by King…a touching book about friendship set in the 70’s and beyond. Also highly recommend. Re-read The Correspondent for book club, and thoroughly loved it. She’s a tremendously good storyteller.
I’m so relieved and happy you loved The Correspondent as much as I did. I LOVED this book. It had me obvious crying in public. I’m so excited to lead the discussion of this book with my work book club later this month. ❤️
I am slowly working my way through a My Life in Books project that was ostensibly for my 40th birthday, where I read one book published in each year of my life. I'm turning 42 this year and I'm only 12 years into the project, but I'm ok with that. In January, I finished my selection for 1996, The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. Holy moly - a new lifetime favorite. Sarah, I actually think you in particular would really love this one.
Here's my review (copied/pasted from my Storygraph):
"Matthew ten, verse twenty-nine," Vincenzo Giulliani said quietly. "Not one sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it."
"But the sparrow still falls," Felipe said.
A dual timeline novel set in near-future 2019 and 2060, The Sparrow is, on its surface, about Jesuits in space. When a receiving station in Puerto Rico picks up radio waves from a planet in the Alpha Centauri system, a group of Jesuit priests, an anthropologist, linguist, doctor, engineer, and artist go on a mission to Rakhat to make first contact with the sentient life there. Only one person, Emilio Sandoz, returns to tell the tale, emotionally and physically destroyed.
Russell is exploring themes of faith/doubt, sociology, community, betrayal, sexuality, and humanity. It is so deeply layered and beautifully written, and these richly developed characters will stay with me for a long time. This is a science fiction modern classic for a reason and I absolutely loved it.
I'm impressed with your amount of reading! Hunchback (I loved it) and The Stand (I'm also loving this new-to-me slow reading format) dominated my reading in January. I also traveled to Alta, Norway, and I love reading translated books i pick up along the way, so I read Will & Testament by Vigdis Hjorth. I've read one of her other books and I there streaming of consciousness style.
Also read Snow Treasure by McSwingen with my kids to prepare for Norway and The Labyrinth House Murders, translated from Japanese, and a off-the-wall and my typical reading Christmas gift.
Loved The Correspondent. Made me get out my stationary and write some letters. Something I had wanted to do since reading Romantic Outlaws last year and realizing how much we know about people in history because of the letters they wrote.
Also, loved I See You’ve Called in Dead. I know it is cliche to say — “I laughed, I cried.” But, I did. Just really enjoyed this one.
I managed to read 22 books in January, but 12 of them were from the Chalet School series. I was determined to complete the set of 58 and very pleased I got that done in January.
My favourite book this month was The Burning Grounds by Abir Mukherjee. This is book 6 in the Wyndham & Bannerjee series, which starts off in 1920 Calcutta. Highly recommended.
Great list! Kristin Weed is a good friend of mine and I loved her book also. Felt very nostalgic of a time when we could expect civil servants to be civil and have the country’s best interests at heart. And her dad was definitely a very special man.
After reading this post, I experimented with Claude to create a reading plan... WOA. I loved that experience way more than I thought I would. I'm curious to see how long I stick with the plan; Sarah, I would love to know how often you end up checking back in with Claude about modifications to your plan!
I think I would feel bossed around by an AI reading plan (full disclosure: I feel that way about plans that I create for myself!) Just bought Common Sense from the bookstore this morning.
I had a good reading month in January. My two favorites were: Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz (short and sweet) and The Book of Hope by Jane Goodall (my bookclub had such a good discussion). AND I started reading The Count of Monte Cristo with my sons!
I read Culpability by Holzinger…what a discussable book! It’s about how AI affects the lives of modern families today. It has many twists and turns…5 stars! Then I read Heart the Lover by King…a touching book about friendship set in the 70’s and beyond. Also highly recommend. Re-read The Correspondent for book club, and thoroughly loved it. She’s a tremendously good storyteller.
Culpability is on my book club's list for next month - I'm glad it's so discussable!
I’m so relieved and happy you loved The Correspondent as much as I did. I LOVED this book. It had me obvious crying in public. I’m so excited to lead the discussion of this book with my work book club later this month. ❤️
I am slowly working my way through a My Life in Books project that was ostensibly for my 40th birthday, where I read one book published in each year of my life. I'm turning 42 this year and I'm only 12 years into the project, but I'm ok with that. In January, I finished my selection for 1996, The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. Holy moly - a new lifetime favorite. Sarah, I actually think you in particular would really love this one.
Here's my review (copied/pasted from my Storygraph):
"Matthew ten, verse twenty-nine," Vincenzo Giulliani said quietly. "Not one sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it."
"But the sparrow still falls," Felipe said.
A dual timeline novel set in near-future 2019 and 2060, The Sparrow is, on its surface, about Jesuits in space. When a receiving station in Puerto Rico picks up radio waves from a planet in the Alpha Centauri system, a group of Jesuit priests, an anthropologist, linguist, doctor, engineer, and artist go on a mission to Rakhat to make first contact with the sentient life there. Only one person, Emilio Sandoz, returns to tell the tale, emotionally and physically destroyed.
Russell is exploring themes of faith/doubt, sociology, community, betrayal, sexuality, and humanity. It is so deeply layered and beautifully written, and these richly developed characters will stay with me for a long time. This is a science fiction modern classic for a reason and I absolutely loved it.
I'm impressed with your amount of reading! Hunchback (I loved it) and The Stand (I'm also loving this new-to-me slow reading format) dominated my reading in January. I also traveled to Alta, Norway, and I love reading translated books i pick up along the way, so I read Will & Testament by Vigdis Hjorth. I've read one of her other books and I there streaming of consciousness style.
Also read Snow Treasure by McSwingen with my kids to prepare for Norway and The Labyrinth House Murders, translated from Japanese, and a off-the-wall and my typical reading Christmas gift.
North Woods (Daniel Mason)
The River is Waiting (Wally Lamb)
I See You’ve Called in Dead (John Kenney)
Twice (Mitch Albom)
The Correspondent
Theo of Golden (Allen Levi)
Strong Ground (Brene Brown)
The Paris Wife (Paula McClain)
A Bit Much (Lindsay Rush)
Loved The Correspondent. Made me get out my stationary and write some letters. Something I had wanted to do since reading Romantic Outlaws last year and realizing how much we know about people in history because of the letters they wrote.
Also, loved I See You’ve Called in Dead. I know it is cliche to say — “I laughed, I cried.” But, I did. Just really enjoyed this one.
The River Has Roots,
A Very Punchable Face (Colin Jost)
Finish With Zero
Middlesex
I loved The River Has Roots. Such a beautiful story.