Only three books read in November, which is not terrible considering what a packed month November was. But, I have cross the threshold of 50 books this year – I think I might be closer to 60 books for this year, depending on how December shakes out.
Hopefully I’ll get to do a 2024 reading recap of favorite reads soon – I always want to do this every year, and never find the time….
The Unlikely Thru-Hiker: An Appalachian Trail Journey by Derick Lugo – Whenever I read about someone doing some kind of thru hiking achievement, it makes me want to also take five months of my life to do the same thing. Especially when it’s someone like Lugo who, when he set out to hike the AT, had very little experience hiking, and no experience at all camping. I always think, “Hey if he can do it so can I!” The “Unlikely” part of the title refers to the fact that Lugo is Black and there are very few Black people thru hiking the AT, something that led to the occasional comment to him while on the trail. Lugo’s memoir is a pretty fast and easy read – his recounts his time on the AT with humor and a sense of ease – I would almost called relaxed, even when he isn’t sure he is going to make it. Lugo doesn’t focus on the hardships of the trail – though he does go into details about those – rather he focuses on the kindness and friendships he encounters as he makes his way from Georgia to Maine. This book is also a good reminder for me why time outside is so important with this:
”Out here, I’m able to have long and complete thoughts. When I”m in the city, if a creative idea pops into my head… there always seems to be interruptions. I’m often up late working on them because one, the new ideas keep me up like a hungry newborn baby, and two, that’s the time when I have the fewest distractions. But out here in the great outdoors, nothing is pressing, nothing is more important than walking on the trail. Out here all I do is hik and think, think and hike.”
The Impossible Us by Sarah Lotz – This novel came up on a list on the site Five Books: “The Best Romance Books with a Twist.” The premise of this book is that Nick writes and angry email that accidentally ends up in Bee’s inbox. The two start corresponding, growing more and more attracted to each other. When they finally agree to meet, however, it becomes clear that something is a little off. Turns out Nick and Bee exist in parallel universes, only able to communicate via email because of some time/space glitch. There were times when I thought Nick and Bee, while likeably and charming characters, were making some truly terrible and selfish life choices, but over all there was a lot I liked about this book – the epistolary nature of it, the angsty impossible relationship, the humors writing, the details of the paralleled universes – in Nick’s universe, men can take a vasectomy subsidy when they no longer want to have kids. Bee lives in our universe and Nick is flabergasted about the whole Trump is President thing. (The book came out in 2022, and there was one bit where Bee says something to the effect of “Don’t worry, Trump is leaving office” which I think landed quite differently in mid-November for me than Lotz clearly expected/hoped it to.) The other thing, though – and this might be a bit of a spoiler – is that this book is marketed as a romance novel, and it really wasn’t in that there wasn’t really a Happily Ever After ending. Or not one that feels like it’s part of the story the novel is telling. So actually this book made me think a lot about what exactly a romance novel is and why so much of the genre hinges on the HEA ending.
Waiting for the Flood by Alexis Hall, read by Will Watt – I was looking for a cozy romance novel on audiobook for my commute, I had loved Will Watt reading Hall’s Ten Things That Never Happened (Still love that book, Engie!). So when I saw this book, the same author/reader paring, I immediately borrowed it. It’s actually a short novella that tells the story of how heartbroken Edwin, mourning a breakup, meets and falls in love with emergency aid worker Adam during a gigantic rainstorm. It’s a really sweet story, and I love how Watt blends the humor and vulnerability of the characters. There was another book included with this audiobook, Chasing the LIght about the man who broke Edwin’s heart, but I didn’t finish that one yet.
Bibliophile Diverse Spines by Jamie’s Harper and Jane Mount– This was a visually beautiful book:
This is a book created with the hope of encouraging people to pick upmore books by diverse authors. It features book lists by genre as well as reading recommendations from BIPOC writers themselves. Actually this book is where I found out about The Unlikely Thru Hiker. I don’t know if I would count this as a book I “read” because I didn’t pick it up and read every word cover to cover. Rather, I would leaf through it every so often, jotting down ideas of books to read, putting things on hold when they sounded good. I got so many good book recs from this book that I didn’t want to ever return it. I would highly recommend this book if you like beautiful illustrations, but even more so if you are looking to read more books by undereepresented voices.
On My Proverbial Book Shelf:
Green Island by Shawna Yang Ryan – novel about a family in Taiwan that is torn apart by the brutal 2/28 uprising of 1947, an anti-government rebellion against the Chinese government occupying the Island. My parents have often talked about this massacre, a brutal suppression of the Taiwanese people that has been often described officially as merely an “incident”, if it is even talked about at all.
The Harmony Silk Factory by Tash Aw – novel set in 1940s Malaysia when it was under British rule.
My Season of Scandal by Julie Anne Long – Part of the Palace of Rogues series that I’ve been binging this month.