Reading Recap: December 2023

 Here's what I read (and listened to!) in December! Not too bad a month... I was trying to catch up to my goal!

Becoming by Michelle Obama: I listened to the audiobook, read by the author and enjoyed it A LOT. She tells stories from her childhood, through all the schooling she had, how she met her husband, and following him on his path to the White House. And how she made a name for herself all the way there too. Great stories and lots of fun to listen to. Five stars! 

The Quiet Little Woman: A Christmas Story by Louisa May Alcott: Cute compilation of three short stories for kids that the author wrote for a magazine back in the day, started by some girls who were inspired be her Little Women story. They sat unknown somewhere until someone found them and compiled them into this cute little volume... three lovely Christmas tales for kids. Four stars!

The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict: Our Christmas book club book, about a girl whose aunt has called her and all her cousins to come to the mansion in the country at Christmastime to play game to see who will inherit the house. The aunt, dead of course, has figured out all the clues and rules ahead of time. As the game progresses, nearly everyone gets murdered! And so her girl has to survive till the end and hopefully get the house, even though she really doesn't want it...lol. This one was weirdly written which took me out of the story a lot. Strange stuff, this one is. Two stars.

If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin: A very angsty and very sad YA story about a girl who is in love with a dude who has been her friend her whole life. We learn from the first page that he dies, and then we learn what lead up to that. Sad heart wrenching stuff, but so good! Four stars.

Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham: another memoir I listened to while finishing my Christmas crafting... so fun to have her tell a bunch of Gilmore Girl stories and other tales from the business. I really enjoyed it. Five stars!

The Name Drop by Susan Lee: A cute YA (ish... a bit older than YA actually) about these two kids who are both headed to a huge company in NY for their summer jobs. But their names get mixed up and they end up at each other's spots. One is a post exec job, and the other a lowly intern job. Even though they figure it out, they decide to stay put and learn from the experience. And fall in love at the same time. Fun! Four stars!

Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood: Another YA-ish romance (I guess new adult is not a thing anymore? These would be NA if it was a thing!) about a girl who loves to play chess, but has sworn it off, until she ends up in a competition, and then in a job... where she has to play chess. She needs the money so why not? And the dude is the champion to beat, which she does. But she is oddly drawn to him too, so how to navigate THAT? What to do! I enjoyed it a lot and managed to finish it just before New Years so it counted as my 50th book of the year. Go me! Four stars!

Now on to 2024! I've committed to 60 books this year. Any bets on if I can make it???

(If you want to watch me discussing all these books on the channel, here's the link!)