January Book Report

I dove hard into my goals this month. One of them is to read 52 books this year. I took off a good chunk of that goal by reading 5 books this month and starting a 6th (which I'll be reading all year long). 

The first book I read was A Great Reckoning by Louise Penny. I've long been a fan of Chief Inspector Gamache and this book did not disappoint. The book starts with Chief Inspector Gamache as he takes over charge of the Sûreté academy and continues as all these books do with a mystery to solve. The underlying current of sadness and hope belays Penny's personal dealings as she deals with her husband's dementia and what that means for their life together. I highly recommend starting with Still Life, Penny's first novel and reading through to this, the 12th installment of Gamache.

I'm taking part in Coffee & Crumb's Year of Creativity this year. January was spent on Inspiration and a few books were recommended to us. One was Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. I listened to this last year and had to listen to it again. Her words are inspirational and always get me thinking. We listened to part of this on a road trip and even Scott was intrigued. I believe everyone should read this book to open up their lives. 

My next book was The Trespasser by Tana French. I've been reading French's books for years and always get sucked into them. The Trespasser is told from the viewpoint of Murder Detective Antoinette Conway. It starts out slow and honestly could have had about 20% cut but I really dug the story. Her case looks like a simple domestic violence murder but quickly starts to twist and turn before the stunning conclusion. 

Gillian Flynn wrote a short little book called, The Grownup which I devoured in one evening. We were in a hotel and I couldn't read my book due to all the lights being off so our kids could sleep. I, however had The Grownup on my Kindle app and got to reading. This is another thriller (I seem to have had a theme in January) where the tale takes you on a windy road. I'm hoping that Flynn is busy at work on another book because I'm ready for it! 

Stephen King's On Writing was another recommended piece in the Year of Creativity. I've had this book on my bookshelf for a few months so I was more than ready to dive into it. I loved hearing how King's childhood shaped his writer life and made him into who he is today. I also loved reading his advice. It was pretty eye-opening to hear that he edits his pieces just a few times. I always get this impression that writers are editing and re-editing their pieces which is just not my style. I'm a write a crappy first draft, edit and then turn it in kind of writer. 

I heard about the book, Year Between Friends: 3191 Miles Apart by Maria Alexandra Vettese and Stephanie Congdon Barnes in a podcast while we were vacationing in Hawaii last December and quickly put it on my wish list. My best friend saw this and sent it to me for my birthday. The writers said they hoped people would read the book as each month came so that is what I've decided to do. I read January in January and will be reading February in February, etc. I won't be writing about this book every month. The stories across 3191 miles always touch me. They remind me of my other best friend who lived in England when we began writing each other and now resides in Arkansas. This book is my way of keeping both my best friends in my heart and hopefully will inspire me to send them more snail mail. 

Yearly Book Total: 5/52

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