January 31, 2022
January 2022 Reading Wrap Up
How was your January reading?
My January reading started 2022 off with a bang!
Out of 9 books completed, I had seven (!) 4.5-5-star reads, one 4-star read, and one 3-star read. Sadly, I’m adding one DNF to the monthly stats.
The most compelling fiction read of the month is Black Cake (although all my 4.5-5 star reads were memorable).
Did we read any of the same books?
***This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
Titles are Amazon affiliate links or my linked reviews.
ARC=Advanced Readers Copy (complimentary copy for review before pub date)
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
5 Stars. (Reread) Contemporary Fiction. My review of Eleanor.
(I loved it just as much the second time!)
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
4.5-5 Stars. (ARC) Historical Fiction, Compelling Family Drama, Siblings. My review of Black Cake here.
Arborview by Karen Guzman
4.5-5 Stars. (complimentary copy) Contemporary Women’s Fiction. Loved it! My review of Arborview here.
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
4.5-5 Stars. Nonfiction. I feel seen! Review coming soon!
Ghost by Jason Reynolds
5 Stars. (reread) Middle Grade Contemporary Fiction, Diverse Read. (review coming in March)
Home by Marilynne Robinson
4.5 Stars. #2 in the Gilead collection. Historical Literary Fiction, Family Drama.
(although well written and poignant, I enjoyed Gilead a bit more) Review coming soon.
The Last Grand Duchess by Bryn Turnbull
5 Stars. (ARC) Historical Fiction. The Romanovs. Russia. Review coming 2/7.
A Spring Surprise for the Cornish Midwife by Jo Bartlett
4 Stars. #4 in a Series. Contemporary Fiction, England. (not reviewed)
A Good Measure by Nan Rossiter
3 Stars. (ARC) Contemporary Women’s Fiction. Reviewcoming 4/12/2022.
DNF: Before We Visit the Goddess by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
2 Stars. (DNF 68%) Lost interest but others have loved it.
QOTD:
What was your favorite January read?
Did we read any of the same books?
Which of these books is on your TBR?
ICYMI:
January Blog Posts:
The Holley Sisters of Thornthwaite (“Vicarage” series)
The Winemaker’s Wife
Books About Books and The Reading List Review
Arborview
Top 5 Books That Changed My Reading Life
The Printed Letter Bookshop
Best of the Best: 2015-2021
Big Lies in a Small Town
Top 5 Most Anticipated Reads Q1 2022
A Wedding at Hedgehog Hollow
Lovely War
Top 5 Bookish Resolutions
#6Degrees of Separation: Rules of Civility to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Happy Reading Book Buddies!
“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text
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Book covers are credited to Amazon.
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My copy of Eleanor Oliphant left the house unread sorry. I tried a few chapters but didn’t the style.
Quiet sounds interesting……
Awwww…but that’s understandable…..not every book is for every reader.
So true
Carol, I love so many of your picks. LOVED Eleanor Oliphant, and Marilynne Robinson is one of my favorite authors.
January was good to me! ❤️ brave Eleanor ❤️ I’m determined to get through the Gilead collection this year. She’s a fabulous writer!
I was curious about Black Cake.
Wishing you a fabulous February!
Thanks Shelleyrae! There’s lots to appreciate about Black Cake….working on my review now.
This looked like a great reading month for you!
January treated me well! Hope yours was great, too!
You had a lot of books that you enjoyed this month, Carol. I love seeing those ratings. I was invited to read Black Cake and did not accept, now I wish I had. I will have to see if my library has it.
I as the sure but I ended up really enjoying it. I fall hard for family drama! I think you’ll like it!
Another great reading month it looks like!
January was good to me….hoping it sets an example for the other months! 😂
I’m glad you had such a great reading month.
My favorite this month was Empire of Traitors!
Thanks for sharing your fav! 🙌
My favourite January read was The Killing Kind by Jane Casey.
I haven’t read any of your books and none are on my read for review list, but I really do want to read Elinor Oliphant one day . . . Happy reading Carol. ❤📚
Thanks for sharing your fav Sandy! I’d love you to meet brave Eleanor!
I will. I don’t have her on my shelf so she will have to be a library read. ❤📚
Last Grand Duchess! Oh I’m so jealous, I’ve been eyeing for awhile now!
It was a difficult read knowing how the story ends 💔💔💔
You’ve read a variety of genres over January. I’m happy that most of them were 4-5 star reads.
I had a really brilliant month reading 7 books and listening to 11 audiobooks. I watched no TV and used my podcast time for audiobooks. My reads ticked four of my reading goals for the year. It doesn’t get better than that!
Highlights include A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny, the second in the Three Pines series. Now that characters have been developed, I’m looking forward to reading more in the series. I also read Guncle by Steven Rowley. A unique and refreshing read.
There were two standout audiobooks. I loved Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Lin-Manuel Miranda did an excellent job with the narration. The other was What Unites Us by Dan Rather. This is the sort of book where you want to read a chapter a day and reflect on his thoughts. Dan Rather narrated the audiobook, and it took me back to the days when I watched him on the evening news. I borrowed both from Hoopla, my new favorite site.
Thanks Adrienne! January has set the bar high for the year! Sounds like your January was great also! 🙌 I’ve read the 3 🌲🌲🌲 series! Enjoy!
I haven’t read any of these books expect for Quiet. I read that books a few years ago.
I’m late to the game for Quiet! 😂
I just bought a box-set of Ghost and the other books in that series as well. Glad you loved it!
Thanks for sharing! I love his Ghost series! Enjoy!
If you loved Eleanor, then I bet you would love Molly in The Maid that Anne Bogel mentioned. I loved both books.
Oh thanks for the rec Stacie! I’ll try it! 🙌