November was a rotten month, for a few reasons. In addition to deep disappointment in the outcome of the elections, I’m also looking at possibly having surgery, and my dad has been in the hospital with pneumonia (he’s out of immediate danger, thankfully).
In times of stress, I read, and this month I’ve had hours of sitting in the hospital so I’ve had lots of reading time. I also participated in Nonfiction November and I completed the 52 Book Challenge.
I also signed up for Bluesky, so if you’re there, please follow me at curlygeek.bsky.social.
What I read in November:
- skin & bones by Renee Watson
- The Secret Place by Tana French (audio)
- Shy Creatures by Clare Chambers
- Cultish by Amanda Montell (audio)
- A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli (audio)
- Sparks Like Stars by Nadia Hashimi
- How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang
- The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
- Three Card Murder by J.L. Blackhurst (audio)
- The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum
My favorite reads:
I’ve alredy written about Cultish and Shy Creatures, both excellent reads.
skin & bones was a standout, a book about race, weight, relationships, religion, and parenting. Lena is a single mother in her 40’s who’s getting ready for her wedding when a poorly timed confession from her fiance throws her life into chaos. She has to deal with her own trust issues while also managing a major work project spotlighting black history in Portland, Oregon. She’s trying to support positive body image for her daughter while struggling with the way the world treats plus-sized black women. It’s a beautifully written book.
I kind of expected The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry to be disappointing since it seems like one of those over-hyped books. But I love a good “walking” story, and I wouldn’t entirely describe this book as “feel good”, though Fry’s growth as a character is certainly inspiring. If you haven’t read it, it’s about an older retired man in the South of England who finds out a good friend is in hospice with untreatable cancer. On the spur of the moment, he decides that if he can walk the whole way, she’ll live until he gets there.
Disappointing reads:
Holly Jolly Diwali and How to End a Love Story won’t be among my favorites. I’m not sure I found either of the romances particularly convincing, though I liked other aspects of both books. I enjoyed Diwali for it’s setting of Mumbai and Goa and the main character’s exploration of the meaning of Diwali. I enjoyed Love Story for its in-depth look at Hollywood screenwriting (clearly the background of the author). Both books feature troubled sibling relationships and one sister who feels she has to be the “good daughter” which I can identify with.
On the blog:
I posted reviews of Shy Creatures, The Lost Princess of Oz, and Cultish, and for Nonfiction November I posted about nonfiction books I’ve added to my TBR. I wrote about comfort reading following the election and I also posted about the oldest books on my TBR.
Books for challenges:
- Nonfiction: Cultish
- Rereads/Backlist/Ozathon: The Tin Woodman of Oz, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Sparks Like Stars, Cultish, The Secret Place
- Books Around the World: Sparks Like Stars, A Holly Jolly Diwali
- The 52 Book Club: Sparks Like Stars (a landlocked country); The Secret Place (an academic thriller); A Holly Jolly Diwali (a holiday I don’t celebrate); and Harold Fry (a Booker Prize nominee)
What I’m reading now:
I’m reading The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan, and The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo.
What’s coming up:
I have one ARC, Eddie Winston’s Looking for Love by Marianne Cronin, who wrote The Hundred Years of Lenni and Margo. December is also Dean Street December, so I’m hoping to read a couple of their “Furrowed Middlebrow” books, which are classics by women. And for Ozathon we’ll be reading The Magic of Oz, a book I didn’t care for as a child so it will be interesting how I experience it now. I’ve wrapped up my other challenges, so in December I’ll start thinking about 2025 challenges to sign up for. Let me know in the comments if you have one you’d like to share.
Added to my TBR:
I already wrote about the nonfiction I’ve added to my TBR from Nonfiction November. I also added a lot of books from the New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2024. I was surprised to find I hadn’t read a single one from their list this year, so it will be interesting to look at which 2024 books I read this year. Some of the ones I added to my TBR are: Colored Television by Danzy Senna, Good Material by Dolly Alderton, Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner, The Empusium by Olga Tokarczuk, Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten, Cue the Sun! by Emily Nussbaum, and A Walk in the Park by Kevin Fedarko.
That’s my November. Wishing you all a very happy holiday season, whatever you might be celebrating. As we go into the LAST month of 2024, what are your reading priorities?
