November Books

Transcription by Kate Atkinson
Ugh. This was a disappointment. I didn't finish it. I got maybe a quarter of the way in? There was nothing special about it. It didn't pull me in, it didn't push me to turn the pages, I didn't feel anything for the characters, etc.
Goodreads felt the same from what I can tell so I don't feel like too much of an outlier.

The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman
A fairy tale of sorts. Inventive enough and I don't have a strong history with fairy tales. The only canon of fairy tale I ever cared for was Once Upon A Time (until it jumped the shark when the whole cast quit). If you like Neil Gaiman, you might as well read it as you make your way through his backlog of books.

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas
I had trouble putting this one down. It definitely pulled me in with the very first line. I didn't see the ending coming. This is an example of YA that I liked. A lot of YA, these days, doesn't agree with me.

Watching You by Lisa Jewell
This was good. It didn't stick with me like Then She Was Gone, but was more along the lines of I Found You, where the past and the present really mix together. A classic Lisa Jewell mystery/thriller. She's pretty reliable and I think I've read all her books now. I read most of it in one sitting with a baby who wouldn't nap unless I held him. It's published later this month. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner
I used to read a lot of Dear America books when I was a tween/teen. This is like a Dear America book for adults. It's the journal of an 18 year old girl, as her family makes their way west in a wagon in the 1880s. It's kind of a sweeping family saga; it ends when she's in her mid-30s so it goes through a hugely important chunk of time for Sarah. I really cared about Sarah, her family, her friends, etc. There were plenty of moments when I was holding my breath as I waited for the narrator to get on with the story...some parts were incredibly suspenseful.
I ended up with the 14 hour audiobook because I saw it while I was browsing at the library. I had added it to my TBR two years ago after Modern Mrs. Darcy recommended it and I Capture the Castle in the same podcast. I Capture the Castle was one I tried last year and it was so incredibly boring and dumb (I think it was a DNF for me, and written, I thought, a lot like an Austen book and I don't do Austen books) that I think I put this one off as well, fearing the same.
But it was good. You should read it if you like historical fiction.

A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig
This is cute. I have a deep love and appreciation for Santa Claus origin stories. My favorite was one my 4th grade teacher read to us and I still remember it but, when I asked her about it after I became a 4th grade teacher myself, she said she remembered it but it was some obscure novella from a magazine in the early 90s and doubted if it could be tracked down again.
Anyway.
A Boy Called Christmas has great illustrations, so it'd make a perfect December read aloud for 2nd graders...I would read it aloud to 1st or 2nd. A 3rd grader might like it read aloud but they could definitely read it themselves.

I'll be back at the end of the month to wrap up what else I've read in December....that way I'm not dragging old books into a new year. I *want* to say I'm linking up today but I'm in Colorado and this post is written in advance so I'm probably not and will just catch up on all your book posts later in the week!

Linking up with Jana and Steph!