Monthly Book Review: December 2017

I read 35 books this year. My top 5 of 2017 are:
A Gentleman in Moscow
A Man Called Ove
Breakfast with Buddha
Where’d You Go Bernadette
The Secret Life of Violet Grant

This month’s reads:
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena - this is another variation on the theme that you can’t judge a book by its cover ... things aren’t always as they seem and our secrets and biases keep us from seeing what’s right in front of us. I give it a B-.

The Dry by Jane Harper - a murder mystery set in a drought-stricken Australia town. A man goes to his boyhood hometown for the funeral of his childhood best friend, his wife and son - an apparent murder suicide no one could have ever imagined. But He and the local policeman have a feeling that there’s something else. I give it a B.

Up next:
Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari
The Map of Heaven by Eben Alexander
Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

Winter wonderland

I heart Christmas. My happy place is in the kitchen baking with the fireplace going and traditional Christmas music on full force. My new space is significantly smaller than my previous plus I purged like nobody’s business during the move so I was honestly curious about what I’d be doing to make the joint festive. I'm pleased to say that I made it work!

 

We always had real trees in the past and while I loved the smell of fresh pine or balsam, I didn’t love the fear of a house fire and constant monitoring of furry kids so it didn’t topple or dry out (my admonishments that the base was not an additional water dish were surprisingly ignored). I bought a 6’ pre-lit artificial tree from Target so I could reuse year after year and am pleasantly surprised that the size is just right and that I'd kept just enough ornaments to make it look full.

Of course my kitten thinks many of the ornaments are there for her #goodthingsheissostinkingcute

 

Monthly Book Review: November 2017

Though I only read two books last month, finishing the second just moments ago, they were long (19  and 13 hrs) so I still feel accomplished.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles - I think this is the best book I’ve read all year and it’s a tight race. It follows the life of Count Alexander Rostov from his first day of house arrest in 1922 to his last. A true gentleman, Alexander lives a rich, purposeful life he could never have imagined within the confines of the Metropol hotel.

The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey - I don’t want to give too much away because it had me guessing for the first several chapters and it was an interesting surprise when plot was fully revealed. I will say that it’s a creative good vs evil story with well developed characters that have you vacillating between empathy and disdain.

I intended to join a book club; however, I got through a third of the book and didn’t like it, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J. D. Vance, so returned it and bowed out. I may join next cycle, but not sure their tastes are aligned with mine.