susanna.fraser's 52 weeks of reading in her 52nd year of life

(1/1/23 is my 52nd birthday, hence the thread title.)

I'm Susanna (aka Susan--Susanna is my authorial pen name, but I go by both). I'm a writer with a day job in university research administration. I live in Seattle with my husband and our 18-year-old son, who is studying art at North Seattle College.

I'm an omnivorous reader, skewing heavily to science fiction, fantasy, and romance on the fiction side and history, science, and theology/religion for nonfiction. I plan to continue to read from various CATs and KITs and participate in TIOLI, but I'm not going to worry about missing a month or two here and there.

As for personal challenges, I want to:

1. Continue my streak of blackout in the Seattle Public Library Adult Summer Reading Bingo.
2. Continue to diversify my bookshelf with books by BIPOC and/or LGBTQIA authors.
3. Read at least ten of the Big Books currently gathering actual dust on my bookshelf or virtual dust on my Kindle.
4. Insofar as possible, meet TIOLI and KIT/CAT challenges from books I either already own or have logged on my Seattle Public Library account's "For Later" shelf. (Which typically gets at least 50 new titles each time NPR updates their "Books We Love" feature.)

I couldn't come up with a clever theme this year, so I'm just going to illustrate my log posts with whatever strikes my fancy and matches the category.

Reserved for Seattle Public Library Summer Book Bingo

1. Queerly Beloved (Includes a Recipe)
2. The Ruin of All Witches (ebook or audiobook)
3. Jesintel (Indigenous Author)
4. Aetherbound (Chosen by the Cover)
5. God Save the Queens (Hip Hop)
6. A Little Too Familiar (Local Author)
7. Summer Sons (BIPOC or LGBTQIA+ Horror)
8. Birdgirl (Recommended by an Independent Bookseller)
9. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris (Joyful)
10. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea (Sea Creatures)
11. Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings (BIPOC Poetry Collection)
12. Black Panther: World of Wakanda (Same Author, Different Genre #1)
13. Bad Feminist (Same Author, Different Genre #2)
14. There There (Seattle Reads)
15. Old Man's War (Older protagonist)
16. Backpacking Through Bedlam (Read With a Friend)
17. Deep Time: A journey through 4.5 billion years of our planet (Trans or Nonbinary Author)
18. Spill Zone (Manga or Graphic Novel)
19. Nature Obscura (Library Book List or Display)
20. Hell's Half-Acre (True Crime or Crime Fiction)
21. The Extraordinary Part (Translated)
22. Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America (Workers' Rights)
23. Tekebash & Saba (Debut Essays or Short Stories)
24. The Night Watchman (SAL speaker)

Books by BIPOC and LGBTQIA authors

January:
1. Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
2. Ballad & Dagger by Daniel Jose Older
3. Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland
4. Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong
5. The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia
6. You Just Need to Lose Weight by Aubrey Gordon
7. The Sweetest Charade by Jadesola James
8. Sailor's Delight by Rose Lerner
9. Preparing for War by Bradley Onishi

February:
1. When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
2. Siren Queen by Nghi Vo
3. A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djeli Clark
4. The Dating Playbook by Farrah Rochon
5. The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin

March:
1. The Porcupine Year by Louise Erdrich
2. Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
3. The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
4. Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington
5. The Last Dreamwalker by Rita Woods
6. Chickadee by Louise Erdrich
7. Makoons by Louise Erdrich
8. The Third Person by Emma Grove
9. Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke
10. To Kill a Necromancer by C.M. Alongi
11. Spear by Nicola Griffith
12. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

April:
1. Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
2. Death By Dumpling by Vivien Chien

May:
1. The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O'Neill
2. Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente
3. The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi
4. An Immense World by Ed Yong
5. Speak, Okinawa by Elizabeth Miki Brina
6. Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee
7. Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
8. Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond

June:
1. Spell Bound by F.T. Lukens
2. Jesintel by various Coast Salish authors
3. Aetherbound by E.K. Johnston
4. Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo
5. Birdgirl by Mya-Rose Craig
6. Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley

July:
1. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
2. Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings by Phillis Wheatley
3. Something Wild & Wonderful by Anita Kelly
4. Black Panther: World of Wakanda by Roxane Gay
5. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
6. There There by Tommy Orange
7. Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk
8. Deep Time: A journey through 4.5 billion years of our planet by Riley Black

August:
1. The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older
2. You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron
3. Tekebash & Saba by Saba Alemayoh
4. Better Living Through Birding by Christian Cooper
5. The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich

September:
1. Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan
2. He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

October:
1. A Hundred Vicious Turns by Lee Paige O'Brien
2. Africa Risen by Sheree Renee Thomas
3. A Bride's Story Vol. 14 by Kaoru Mori
4. Cassiel's Servant by Jacqueline Carey
5. Citadel by C.M. Alongi
6. Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park

November:
1. Sapiens: A Graphic History by Yuval Noah Harari
2. How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler
3. Vicious by V.E. Schwab
4. More to the Story by Hena Khan
5. To Catch a Raven by Beverly Jenkins

December:
1. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
2. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh by Rachael Lippincott
3. The Red Palace by June Hur
4. The Southernization of America by Frye Gaillard & Cynthia Tucker
5. Year of the Rabbit by Tian Veasna

A big cat for Big Books

Most of these big books are chunky works of nonfiction history that I've received as Christmas presents--presents I asked for on my wishlist, mind you--that I just don't get around to reading because they're such a time commitment.

1. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800
2. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
3. Weavers, Scribes, and Kings

My TBR pile rivals Mount Rainier

Books I already own as of 1/1/23

January:
1. Slow Birding
2. Mort
3. Alternate Peace
4. Ship Wrecked
5. Reaper Man
6. The Sweetest Charade
7. A Most Remarkable Creature
8. Sailor's Delight
9. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800

February:
10. The Last Folk Hero
11. The Stormbringer
12. The Dating Playbook
13. The World We Make
14. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream

March:
15. Concrete Rose

June:
16. Summer Sons

July:
17. Spill Zone

August:
18. The Night Watchman

October:
19. Africa Risen

November:
20. To Catch a Raven

December:
21. Hogfather

Books on my SPL "For Later" shelf

January:
1. Dancing Bears
2. The Daughters of Ys
3. Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929
4. The PLAIN Janes

February:
5. When the Angels Left the Old Country
6. A Dead Djinn in Cairo

March:
7. The Last Dreamwalker
8. The Third Person
9. The Measure of a Mountain

April:
10. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History

May:
11. Thistlefoot
12. Space Opera
13. Speak, Okinawa
14. Six Crimson Cranes

June:
15. Unconquerable Sun

July:
16. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea
17. There There
18. Old Man's War

August:
19. Hell's Half-Acre

September:
20. Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization

October
21. Prairie Lotus
22. The Good News Club

November:
23. Vicious
24. More to the Story

December:
25. The Red Palace
26. The Southernization of America
27. Bird Sense
28. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth
29. Year of the Rabbit

CATs

January:
1. Ballad & Dagger (SeriesCAT)
2. Dancing Bears (GeoCAT)
3. The Daughters of Ys (KiddyCAT)
4. The PLAIN Janes (KiddyCAT)

February:
1. A Dead Djinn in Cairo (GeoCAT)

March:
1. The Swiss Family Robinson (ClassicsCAT)
2. The Porcupine Year (SeriesCAT, KiddyCAT)
3. Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence (GeoCAT)
4. Chickadee (SeriesCAT, KiddyCAT)
5. Makoons (SeriesCAT, KiddyCAT)

April:
1. Striding Folly (ClassicsCAT)
2. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History (GeoCAT)
3. Cinderella is Dead (KiddyCAT)
4. Scythe (KiddyCAT)
5. Death By Dumpling (SeriesCAT)

May:
1. Up a Road Slowly (ClassicsCAT, KiddyCAT)
2. The Tea Dragon Society (SeriesCAT)
3. An Immense World (GeoCAT)
4. The Last Days of St. Pierre (GeoCAT)

June:
1. Unconquerable Sun (SeriesCAT)

July:
1. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris (GeoCAT)
2. Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings (ClassicsCAT)

September:
1. He Who Drowned the World (for October SeriesCAT)

October:
1. A Hundred Vicious Turns (GeoCAT)
2. Africa Risen (GeoCAT, catching up for September)

November:
1. To Catch a Raven (SeriesCAT)

December:
1. The Red Palace (GeoCAT)

KITs
January:
1. Slow Birding (AlphaKIT)
2. Rest Is Resistance (AlphaKIT)
3. Saga Vol. 7 (AlphaKIT)
4. Tokyo Rose - Zero Hour (AlphaKIT)
5. Mort (SFFKit)
6. Dancing Bears (AlphaKIT)
7. Saga Vol. 8 (AlphaKIT)
8. Alternate Peace (RandomKIT)
9. Rust in the Root (AlphaKIT)
10. Ship Wrecked (AlphaKIT)
11. Reaper Man (SFFKit)
12. The Sweetest Charade (AlphaKIT)
13. Saga Vol. 9 (AlphaKIT)
14. Sailor's Delight (AlphaKIT)
15. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800 (AlphaKIT)

February:
1. What If? 2 (RandomKIT)
2. The Last Folk Hero (AlphaKIT)
3. The Stormbringer (SFFKit)
4. The Dating Playbook (AlphaKIT)
5. The World We Make (AlphaKIT)
6. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream (AlphaKIT)
7. The Escape Artist (AlphaKIT)

March:
1. Concrete Rose (AlphaKIT)
2. The Sunbearer Trials (AlphaKIT)
3. The Last Dreamwalker (SFFKit, RandomKIT)
4. The Third Person (AlphaKIT)
5. To Kill a Necromancer (AlphaKIT)
6. Spear (AlphaKIT)
7. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi (AlphaKIT)

April:
1. Striding Folly (AlphaKIT)
2. Poverty, By America (AlphaKIT)
3. The Wrath to Come (AlphaKIT)
4. Hell Bent (RandomKIT)
5. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History (AlphaKIT)
6. The Jane Austen Project (SFFKit)
7. Death By Dumpling (AlphaKIT)

May:
1. Up a Road Slowly (AlphaKIT)
2. Space Opera (SFFKit)
3. The Lies of the Ajungo (AlphaKIT)
4. Speak, Okinawa (RandomKIT)
5. Untethered Sky (AlphaKIT)
6. Six Crimson Cranes (AlphaKIT, RandomKIT)
7. The Last Days of St. Pierre (AlphaKIT)

June:
1. Spell Bound (AlphaKIT)
2. Aetherbound (AlphaKIT)
3. God Save the Queens (AlphaKIT)
4. Men Who Hate Women (AlphaKIT)
5. Birdgirl (AlphaKIT)
6. Warrior Girl Unearthed (AlphaKIT)

July:
1. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris (AlphaKIT)
2. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea (SFFKit)
3. Something Wild & Wonderful (RandomKIT)
4. Black Panther: World of Wakanda (AlphaKIT)
5. There There (AlphaKIT)
6. Old Man's War (AlphaKIT, SFFKit)
7. Even Though I Knew the End (AlphaKIT)
8. Furious Heaven (SFFKit)
9. Spill Zone (AlphaKIT)

August:
1. Nature Obscura (RandomKIT)
2. The Mimicking of Known Successes (AlphaKIT)
3. Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right Wing Extremism (AlphaKIT)

September:
1. Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I (AlphaKIT)
2. The Broken Vow (AlphaKIT)

October:
1. A Hundred Vicious Turns (AlphaKIT)
2. Cassiel's Servant (RandomKIT)
3. Where the Drowned Girls Go (SFFKit)
4. The Woman They Wanted (AlphaKIT)

November:
1. How Far the Light Reaches (AlphaKIT)
2. Imagining a Sermon (AlphaKIT)
3. Were- (SFFKit)

December:
1. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh (AlphaKIT)
2. The Red Palace (AlphaKIT)
3. A Study in Drowning (AlphaKIT)
4. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth (AlphaKIT, RandomKIT)
5. Year of the Rabbit (AlphaKIT)

BingoDOG



1. (art or craft related) The Crane Husband
2. (Popular author's first book) Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
3. (Topic you don't usually read) The Last Folk Hero
4. (Taught You Something) Slow Birding
6. (STEM topic) The Measure of a Mountain
7. (Author under 30) A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
8. (Number in the title) What If? 2
9. (Shares my zodiac sign) Backpacking Through Bedlam
10. (Inn or hotel) Son of a Sailor: A Cozy Pirate Tale
11. (Next in a series) Saga. Vol. 7
12. (Features music or a musician) Ballad & Dagger
14. (Small town or rural setting) The Porcupine Year
15. (features journalist/journalism) On the Clock
16. (set on train, plane, or ship) The Sweetest Charade
17. (memoir) The Third Person
18. (features a cat) Starter Villain
19. (>1000 copies on LT) Mort
21. (Book on the cover) Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings
22. (4+ LT Rating) Rest is Resistance
23. (switched/stolen identities) Siren Queen
24. (local or regional author) Flight Paths
25. (plant in title) Concrete Rose

Science Fiction and Fantasy

Combining them into one category this year because sometimes it really is hard to draw the line.

1. Saga Vol. 7
2. Ballad & Dagger
3. Mort
4. The Daughters of Ys
5. Saga Vol. 8
6. Alternate Peace
7. Rust in the Root
8. The Bruising of Qilwa
9. Reaper Man
10. Saga Vol. 9
11. When the Angels Left the Old Country
12. Saint Death's Daughter
13. Siren Queen
14. A Dead Djinn in Cairo
16. The Stormbringer
17. The World We Make
18. The Sunbearer Trials
19. The Last Dreamwalker
20. Saga Vol. 10
21. To Kill a Necromancer
22. Spear
23. Arch-Conspirator
24. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi
25. The Crane Husband
26. Hell Bent
27. Cinderella is Dead
28. The Jane Austen Project
29. Scythe
30. The Tea Dragon Society
31. Thistlefoot
32. Space Opera
33. The Lies of the Ajungo
34. Untethered Sky
35. Six Crimson Cranes
36. Spell Bound
37. Thunderhead
38. Aetherbound
39. Unconquerable Sun
40. A Little Too Familiar
41. Summer Sons
42. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea
43. Black Panther: World of Wakanda
44. Old Man's War
45. Backpacking Through Bedlam
46. The Toll
47. Even Though I Knew the End
48. Furious Heaven
49. Spill Zone
50. The Extraordinary Part: Book One: Orsay's Hands
51. The Mimicking of Known Successes
52. You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight
53. The Broken Vow
54. Thornhedge
55. He Who Drowned the World
56. Winter's Gifts
57. Son of a Sailor: A Cozy Pirate Tale
58. A Hundred Vicious Turns
59. Africa Risen
60. Cassiel's Servant
61. Citadel
62. Where the Drowned Girls Go
63. Vicious
64. System Collapse
65. Starter Villain
66. Were-
67. Godkiller
68. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy
69. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
70. Bookshops & Bonedust
71. A Study in Drowning
72. Rivers of London, Vol. 11: Here Be Dragons
73. Paladin's Faith
74. Hogfather

I shipped it: A log of love stories

1. Love on the Brain
2. Ship Wrecked
3. The Sweetest Charade
4. Sailor's Delight
5. The Stormbringer
6. The Dating Playbook
7. Queerly Beloved
8. Spell Bound
9. A Little Too Familiar
10. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris
11. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea
12. Something Wild & Wonderful
13. To Catch a Raven
14. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
15. Paladin's Faith
16. The Quarantine Princess Diaries

Adults read kids' books too: The YA/kidlit log

1. Ballad & Dagger
2. The Daughters of Ys
3. Rust in the Root
4. The PLAIN Janes
5. When the Angels Left the Old Country
6. The Swiss Family Robinson
7. The Porcupine Year
8. Concrete Rose
9. The Sunbearer Trials
10. Chickadee
11. Makoons
12. Cinderella is Dead
13. A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
14. Scythe
15. Up a Road Slowly
16. The Tea Dragon Society
17. Six Crimson Cranes
18. Spell Bound
19. Thunderhead
20. Aetherbound
21. Warrior Girl Unearthed
22. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea
23. Spill Zone
24. You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight
25. Prairie Lotus
26. More to the Story
27. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy
28. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
29. The Red Palace
30. A Study in Drowning

Nonfiction history (a good place to find men on horseback)

1. Tokyo Rose - Zero Hour
2. Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929
3. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800
4. Preparing for War
5. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
6. The Escape Artist
7. Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence
8. Butts: A Backstory
9. The Wrath to Come
10. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History
11. Be of Good Mind
12. Speak, Okinawa
13. The Last Days of St. Pierre
14. The Ruin of All Witches
15. Jesintel
16. God Save the Queens
17. Hell's Half-Acre
18. Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right Wing Extremism
19. Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich
20. Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I
21. Persian Fire
22. Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization
23. Weavers, Scribes, and Kings
24. The Southernization of America
25. Year of the Rabbit

All things scientific

1. Slow Birding
2. A Most Remarkable Creature
3. What If? 2
4. The Measure of a Mountain
5. An Immense World
6. Flight Paths
7. The Last Days of St. Pierre
8. Birdgirl
9. Deep Time: A journey through 4.5 billion years of our planet
10. Nature Obscura
11. Better Living Through Birding
12. Otherlands
13. Misbelief
14. Sapiens: A Graphic History
15. How Far the Light Reaches
16. Bird Sense
17. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth

All things theological

1. Rest is Resistance
2. Preparing for War
3. The Ruin of All Witches
4. The Witness of Preaching
5. The Good News Club
6. The Woman They Wanted
7. Imagining a Sermon
8. American Idolatry
9. Accompany Them With Singing

Q1 log

January:
1. Slow Birding
2. Rest is Resistance
3. Saga Vol. 7
4. Ballad & Dagger
5. Tokyo Rose - Zero Hour
6. Mort
7. Dancing Bears
8. The Daughters of Ys
9. Saga Vol. 8
10. Alternate Peace
11. Rust in the Root
12. Minor Feelings
13. The Bruising of Qilwa
14. Love on the Brain
15. You Just Need to Lose Weight
16. Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929
17. The PLAIN Janes
18. Ship Wrecked
19. On the Clock
20. Reaper Man
21. A Most Remarkable Creature
22. The Sweetest Charade
23. Saga Vol. 9
24. Sailor's Delight
25. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800
26. Preparing for War

February:
1. When the Angels Left the Old Country
2. Saint Death's Daughter
3. What If? 2
4. Siren Queen
5. The Last Folk Hero
6. A Dead Djinn in Cairo
7. The Stormbringer
8. The Dating Playbook
9. The World We Make
10. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream
11. The Escape Artist

March:
1. The Swiss Family Robinson
2. The Porcupine Year
3. Concrete Rose
4. The Sunbearer Trials
5. Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence
6. The Last Dreamwalker
7. Chickadee
8. Makoons
9. The Third Person
10. Saga Vol. 10
11. Butts: A Backstory
12. To Kill a Necromancer
13. Spear
14. The Measure of a Mountain
15. Arch-Conspirator
16. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi

Q2 log

April:
1. Striding Folly
2. Poverty, By America
3. The Crane Husband
4. The Wrath to Come
5. Hell Bent
6. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History
7. Cinderella is Dead
8. The Jane Austen Project
9. A Good Girl's Guide to Murder
10. Scythe
11. Be of Good Mind
12. Death By Dumpling

May:
1. Up a Road Slowly
2. The Tea Dragon Society
3. Thistlefoot
4. Space Opera
5. The Lies of the Ajungo
6. An Immense World
7. Speak, Okinawa
8. Rough Sleepers
9. Untethered Sky
10. Six Crimson Cranes
11. Flight Paths
12. The Last Days of St. Pierre
13. Queerly Beloved

June:
1. The Ruin of All Witches
2. Spell Bound
3. Jesintel
4. Thunderhead
5. Aetherbound
6. God Save the Queens
7. Unconquerable Sun
8. Men Who Hate Women
9. A Little Too Familiar
10. Summer Sons
11. The Undertow: Scenes From a Slow Civil War
12. Birdgirl
13. Warrior Girl Unearthed

Q3 log

July:
1. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris
2. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea
3. Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings
4. Something Wild & Wonderful
5. Black Panther: World of Wakanda
6. Bad Feminist
7. There There
8. Old Man's War
9. Backpacking Through Bedlam
10. The Toll
11. Even Though I Knew the End
12. Furious Heaven
13. Deep Time: A journey through 4.5 billion years of our planet
14. Spill Zone

August:
1. Nature Obscura
2. Hell's Half-Acre
3. The Extraordinary Part: Book One: Orsay's Hands
4. Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America
5. The Mimicking of Known Successes
6. You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight
7. Tekebash & Saba
8. Gentle Writing Advice
9. Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right Wing Extremism
10. Better Living Through Birding
11. The Night Watchman
12. Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich

September:
1. Burn It Down
2. Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I
3. The Broken Vow
4. Thornhedge
5. Persian Fire
6. Otherlands
7. Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization
8. He Who Drowned the World
9. Winter's Gifts
10. Son of a Sailor: A Cozy Pirate Tale
11. Misbelief

Q4 log

October:
1. A Hundred Vicious Turns
2. Africa Risen
3. A Bride's Story Vol. 14
4. Weavers, Scribes, and Kings
5. Cassiel's Servant
6. Citadel
7. Where the Drowned Girls Go
8. The Witness of Preaching
9. Prairie Lotus
10. The Good News Club
11. The Woman They Wanted

November:
1. Sapiens: A Graphic History
2. How Far the Light Reaches
3. Vicious
4. Paved Paradise
5. Imagining a Sermon
6. Murder in Williamstown
7. System Collapse
8. American Idolatry
9. Starter Villain
10. More to the Story
11. Were-
12. Godkiller

December
1. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy
2. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
3. The Red Palace
4. The Southernization of America
5. Bookshops & Bonedust
6. Bird Sense
7. A Study in Drowning
8. Accompany Them With Singing
9. Rivers of London, Vol. 11: Here Be Dragons
10. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth
11. Year of the Rabbit
12. Paladin's Faith
13. The Conspiracy to End America
14. The Quarantine Princess Diaries
15. Hogfather

Happy reading in 2023. The black kitty is adorable!

Great personal reading goals! I especially like the tiger, such a good idea to use this picture for that category.

Good luck with the challenge! I hope the reading is wonderful. And early happy birthday.

LOLed at the church sign! Looking forward to seeing what you read.

Good luck with your 2023 reading! Loved the church pic!

Looking forward to seeing how you fill your reading year!

I love all your pictures, particularly the very good dogs! I'm sure I'll pick up plenty of BBs from you, I usually do!

Keeping an eye on your Log of Love Stories.

Beautiful picture of Mount Rainier!

Good luck with your reading

Great theme! I am already 52, so a little older than you. Enjoy your year of reading!

I always look forward to your TIOLI challenge with the Seattle Public Library Bingo Card. Have a great reading year!

Good luck on your reading. I did like the church message.

Looking forward to following your reading for another year.

Stopping by with best wishes for your 2023 reading.

Happy 2023 reading!

Finished my first two books this afternoon!



1. Slow Birding by Joan E. Strassmann

Basically, this is about the kind of birding I'm already doing, since it was my pandemic hobby--I've mostly been paying attention to birds where I live rather than chasing them around the countryside--but it did give me ideas for learning more. (Note that this book is mostly of interest to North American readers, given that the author focuses heavily on the species she observes around her St. Louis home--I even found myself wishing for a similar book focused on birds west of the Rockies, because while some of her birds also show up in my neighborhood, we don't have cardinals or blue jays out here.)



2. Rest Is Resistance by Tricia Hersey

I liked this book's lessons on stepping away from toxic capitalism and grind culture to choose rest, though the framing was a bit poetic and woo-woo for my taste in spots.

So I currently have a ton of graphic novels out from the library, which is going to get my reading year off to a quick start...



3. Saga Vol. 7 by Brian K. Vaughan

This one managed to simultaneously be one of the most charming and one of the darkest in the series so far.

>35 susanna.fraser: The bird book sounds interesting. I enjoy watching birds, but I'm not going to wade through swamps and such to see them--at least not on a regular basis.

4. Ballad & Dagger by Daniel Jose Older

YA fantasy about refugees from a recently sunken Caribbean island settled by pirates, escaped slaves, and Jews fleeing the Inquisition. It turns out their heritage is even more complicated than they thought...

You’re getting off to a good start in your reading.

Happy New Year! Seconding >39 hailelib:, it looks like you had a good start! Both the concepts of slow birding and of rest as resistance make sense and sound meaningful to me.

5. Tokyo Rose - Zero Hour by Andre R Frattino

A biography in graphic novel form about the WWII experiences and subsequent trial of Iva Toguri, a Japanese-American woman who found herself in an untenable situation when WWII started while she was visiting relatives in Japan.

>41 susanna.fraser: Have been meaning to find something to read about Tokyo Rose for years. This is going on my "list."

>42 Tess_W: I knew next to nothing about her going in, and I found her story pretty fascinating.



6. Mort by Terry Pratchett

So I'm still on pace to read 365 books this year! It can't last, but I wonder how long it'll take me to settle back to my normal reading pace. Anyway, it's nice to get back to Pratchett.

>43 susanna.fraser: Well knock me down with a feather at 365 books in a year.
And I love Mort; it was my first Pratchett, and I think there's an element of nostalgia in my favouritism.

>44 Helenliz: I read the Tiffany Aching books first, and they're still my favorites, so you're probably right about nostalgia and the joy of initial discovery.



7. Dancing Bears by Witold Szablowski

A fascinating book, where the author uses the difficulty of rehabbing bears rescued from captivity as dancing bears as a lens and a metaphor for how poorly the post-Communist transition in various mostly East European states has gone. (Content warning: Either the author or the translator consistently uses the popular slur term for the Roma people.)

Oh dear - this is going to be a very dangerous thread for me. I'm going to have to pick up your first two non-fiction books of the year - both look great.

>45 susanna.fraser: I found the discussion of the Roma people very interesting. There was a lot of xenophobia there, and a lack of empathy.

Anyway, dropping off a star from a fellow Seattleite.

It turns out I actually have a copy of Mort and I'm thinking about trying some Pratchett.

>46 dreamweaver529: >47 hailelib: I'm always, always glad to provide book bullets.



8. The Daughters of Ys by M.T. Anderson & Jo Rioux

This YA graphic novel based on a Breton folktale was way more grimdark than I was expecting.

>48 susanna.fraser: Another one? Seriously? You are dangerous. Well, at least it's available at the library. There goes Libby hold 105.

>49 dreamweaver529: I hope you like it--it was a bit more grim than I was expecting or looking for, but it's interesting.



9. Saga Vol. 8 by Brian K. Vaughan

Whereas with this series I know it's going to be strange and grim, though this entry had a good share of heartwarming adorable kid moments in between the weirdness, gore, and gory weirdness.

10. Alternate Peace ed. by Steven H. Silver and Joshua Palmatier

An anthology of alternative history short stories where the branching point is based in a peacetime change (or in some cases, in averting events that led to war in our timeline) rather than your typical "What if Losing Army had won that war?" scenario.

Eventually I'll read fiction in a genre other than science fiction/fantasy this year, but I'm not sure when...

11. Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland

Continuing in an alternative history vein with a YA fantasy novel set in a version of 1930s America where magic is intertwined with everyday life and industry, for good and for ill. I really enjoyed this one and hope Ireland writes more in this world.

>45 susanna.fraser: The book title made me think of Captain Kangaroo! "Dancing Bear" was a favorite of mine on the show.

>52 susanna.fraser: If you don't stop this, I may not be able to come visit. Another BB, geez louise. ;)

I am too tired to describe the books I've been reading thus far in my recovery from breast reduction surgery on Monday. If you're curious about one, please ask, and I'll respond when I'm less fatigued!



12. Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong



13. The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia



14. Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood



15. You Just Need to Lose Weight by Aubrey Gordon



16. Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929 by Maury Klein

Wishing you a speedy recovery! Slow birding and Bruising of Qilwa are the ones that appeal to me.

Hoping your recovery is short and painless!

Hope the surgery went well and that you're recovering nicely! I'd love to know what you thought of Love on the Brain.

Wishing you a speedy and entirely uneventful recovery!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery! I hope the books have been just what you need to help you rest and relax.

I hope you have a quick recovery!

I'm intrigued by Rust in the Root. I had enjoyed Dread Nation, though I've not gotten around to reading the sequel yet.

>56 markon: I recommend them both!

>58 christina_reads: I was fairly "meh" on Love on the Brain, though that may have been more me than the book.

>61 mathgirl40: It's very good--I thought it was stronger than Dread Nation, especially in terms of the world building.

Another catchup list of a week's recuperation reading:



17. The PLAIN Janes by Cecil Castellucci



18. Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade



19. On the Clock by Emily Guendelsberger



20. Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett

>62 susanna.fraser: I also had mixed feelings. Most people seem to love it or hate it.

Hope you're continuing to improve.

>65 Helenliz: I'm doing OK, and finding plenty of time to read! Eventually I'll start logging books individually again...



21. A Most Remarkable Creature by Jonathan Meiburg



22. The Sweetest Charade by Jadesola James



23. Saga Vol. 9 by Brian K. Vaughan



24. Sailor's Delight by Rose Lerner

25. An Illustrated Guide to London, 1800 by Mary Cathcart Borer

A nice overview of London 200+ years ago, though I'd only recommend it for someone researching a novel with a Regency London setting or something along those lines.

So I got I finished one more book for January. 26 books in a month isn't a record I expect to beat anytime soon!



26. Preparing for War by Bradley Onishi

I discovered this book because I listen to the author's podcast (Straight White American Jesus). Here he uses his own background as a teen convert to right wing Christianity in Orange County, CA in the 1990s, eventually becoming a youth pastor himself before eventually growing disaffected with the faith, as a gateway for looking at the history of American religious extremism from the 1960s through the J6 insurrection and beyond.

Wow, 26 books is impressive!

>69 christina_reads: It's only because I've been off work for the past 2.5 weeks recovering from surgery! I'm going back to work on Monday, and in a few weeks more I won't be restricted as to how much I can lift and carry, so I'll be back to doing my share of chores and housework.



27. When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

This book is just SO delightful. For an elevator pitch, I'd describe it as Jewish Good Omens in early 20th century New York.

>68 susanna.fraser: I've added that to my wishlist, it looks really interesting.

28. Saint Death's Daughter by C.S.E. Cooney

A rather long and twisty fantasy novel about a rather sunny-natured necromancer with a literal allergy to violence who nonetheless has to find a way to fight and protect herself and those she loves.

29. What If? 2 by Randall Munroe

Fun popular science.

30. Siren Queen by Nghi Vo

This book makes me 3-for-3 on finding really excellent fantasy novels to read this month.

31. The Last Folk Hero by Jeff Pearlman

As predicted, my reading pace has slowed now that I'm back at work!

A biography of legendary Auburn Heisman Trophy winner Bo Jackson (yes, he had NFL and MLB careers, but I'm Auburn Family adjacent, so that's always going to be how I identify him), full of gossipy clubhouse detail.

32. A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djeli Clark

A charming novelette (i.e. long short story or short novella) set in an alternate fantasy steampunk version of early 20th century Cairo.

>76 susanna.fraser: Woo, this looks interesting. Onto the list it goes.

33. The Stormbringer by Isabel Cooper

Fantasy romance, skewed a bit to the fantasy side of that particular balance, with dense worldbuilding and a lot of combat.

34. The Dating Playbook by Farrah Rochon

Contemporary romance where the hero is an injured football player trying to rehab himself back into the NFL, which resonated in interesting ways with my having recently finished that Bo Jackson bio.

35. The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin

The author admits in her afterword that the Trump presidency and covid pandemic got in the way of her original plans to make this series a trilogy (as a much more minor author who hasn't finished a novel-length work of fiction since 2016, I can ENTIRELY relate). Instead, she made this story of New York as a Great City that has come to life with humans-turned-demigods representing each borough into a duology, and the ending DID feel a bit rushed. I still entirely loved the story and the concept.

36. Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream by Doris Kearns Goodwin

You don't become president without being a little strange, IMHO--most of us don't have the combination of arrogance, ambition, and drive it takes to A) think we CAN do the job and B) actually make it through the process to get there. Much depends, I think, on whether a given POTUS has the self-awareness and stability needed to balance all that out. In most cases that's something of a binary, IMHO. LBJ, however, at least as portrayed in this book, was a deeply needy and broken man, who still was able to accomplish some great things...up to a point.

37. The Escape Artist by Jonathan Freedland

The story of a man who survived 2 years in Auschwitz in his late teens, then concocted a daring escape in the hope that if he told the world what was happening, it would make a difference. (And it did...though not as quickly or decisively as he'd hoped.) The biography also goes into his post-WWII life, which certainly had its challenges but also its share of joy and accomplishment.

38. The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss

I remember loving this book as a child, but I think I had one of the later versions that edited some of the preachiness out of it and went more into what happened once the kids grew up. This original English translation from circa 1818 or so was painfully didactic and dry, and I'm speaking as someone who reads a fair amount of 19th century fiction and generally has no trouble dealing with a certain preachiness as part of its time.



39. The Porcupine Year by Louise Erdrich

This book, on the other hand, was wholly delightful. It's third in a series about a 19th century Ojibwe girl and her family struggling to survive and thrive amid White encroachment.

>83 susanna.fraser:: re: Erdrich - I listened to the first one in that series, but haven't yet gotten back to it. Sounds like I should plan to.

40. Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas

Prequel to The Hate U Give, focusing on that book's protagonist's father back when he was a teenager himself.

41. The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas

I enjoyed this book, albeit not quite as much as Thomas's debut book Cemetery Boys. One of the LT reviews describes this book as Percy Jackson meets The Hunger Games, which sounds about right.

42. Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington

The author recounts the true story of how her mother and two of her cousins escaped from a boarding school designed to separate them from their Aboriginal Australian families and culture.

43. The Last Dreamwalker by Rita Woods

Now that was a seriously creepy book.

44. Chickadee by Louise Erdrich

After the previous book I needed something (relatively) cozy and heartwarming, and this delivered.

45. Makoons by Louise Erdrich

And with this book, I'm now caught up on this series.

>79 susanna.fraser: I added this to my audible WL.

>85 susanna.fraser: I did not know that there was a prequel to The Hate U Give. That one is still waiting on my shelf, but good to know about the prequel!

>87 susanna.fraser: Rabbit-Proof Fence was the first novel ever I read by an indigenous author. Although the writing style did not exactly grip me, I think that the story itself is so powerful.

>89 susanna.fraser: >90 susanna.fraser: Although I have read two Louise Erdrich novels and plan to read more, I was not aware of this series. I am taking note. The covers are beautiful.

>91 MissBrangwen: It's always fun to be the bearer of book bullets!



46. The Third Person by Emma Grove

Memoir in graphic novel format by a transgender woman who dealt with dissociative identity disorder due to childhood trauma and abuse. It focuses on her time in therapy (with good therapists and bad) as she sorts out what's actually going on with her and how it started.

47. Saga Vol. 10 by Brian K. Vaughan

With this read, I'm now fully caught up on the series.

48. Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke

A cultural history of the female butt, focusing on the last 250 years or so up to the present day.

49. To Kill a Necromancer by C.M. Alongi

I read this novella because I follow the author on TikTok, where she has a charming series called CaFae Latte about a fae-run coffeeshop. This story of a necromancer and a paladin teaming up despite enmity between their groups doesn't have the same cozy fantasy vibe, but it was an enjoyable Friday night read.

50. Spear by Nicola Griffith

Novella-length sapphic Arthurian retelling.

51. The Measure of a Mountain by Bruce Barcott

This book is roughly half memoir of the author's obsession with Mount Rainier and half a well-researched overview of the mountain's history and geology. It's also 25 years old, which makes it weirdly dated for a story about a geographic feature--Barcott references the Kingdome and the World Trade Center as extant structures, refers to tectonic plate theory as something that was considered crank science less than 50 years before, etc.

52. Arch-Conspirator by Veronica Roth

Post-apocalyptic dystopian retelling of Antigone, and one that works quite well IMO.

53. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

Such swashbuckling good fun, featuring a 40-something lady pirate pulled out of retirement to search for a former colleague's missing daughter.

54. Striding Folly by Dorothy L Sayers

I really wish I'd skipped this one. These three short stories don't feel as polished as her full-length novels, to the point where even familiar characters like Peter and Harriet feel sketched with a broad brush. Also, while I don't hold classic authors to current standards of morality and social justice as long as I don't get an actively hateful vibe from them, I really could've done without the stereotypical Jew in the first story, the repeated n-word in the second, and the defense of spanking children as a major plot point in the third.

55. Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond

A readable, comprehensive examination of the causes of poverty in contemporary America with recommendations for combatting it.

56. The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill

A creepily evocative fairy tale retelling

57. The Wrath to Come by Sarah Churchwell

A look at America through the lens of Gone With the Wind, from the Civil War up to and including the January 6th insurrection.

58. Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

Second in a twisty dark academic urban fantasy series. It took me awhile and some internet searching to remember everything that happened in the first book, but after that I couldn't put it down.

59. Haiti: The Aftershocks of History by Laurent Dubois

I learned the early part of Haitian history from Mike Duncan's Revolutions podcast; this caught me up roughly to the point of the 2010 earthquake. It's heartbreaking history more often than not, but I'm left admiring the persistence and spirit of the Haitian people.

60. Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron

A YA riff on the Cinderella story in the "teenagers fight authoritarian patriarchy" subgenre. I thought the premise was interesting, but the worldbuilding and character development didn't quite work for me.

61. The Jane Austen Project by Kathleen A. Flynn

Time travel novel with two researchers from the not-so-distant future sent on a mission to try to ingratiate themselves with the Austen family to answer some questions about the author's life and maybe find a missing manuscript or two, hopefully without altering the timeline TOO much.

>107 susanna.fraser: I remember liking that one, especially the scene where Jane Austen found the time-traveling woman snooping through her papers and accused her of being a French spy!

>99 susanna.fraser: The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi looks fun!

>87 susanna.fraser: Have you seen the 2002 movie with the same name?

>81 susanna.fraser: If you want a really interesting set of biographies on Lyndon Johnson, try Robert Caro's series. (I've only read the first one, Means of Ascent so far.)

>108 christina_reads: I enjoyed it, though the romance subplot didn't quite work for me.

>109 markon: I haven't seen the movie, though I remember when it came out. And I'll keep the Caro books in mind if I want to read more about LBJ at some point.



62. A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

A YA mystery, so a bit different from my usual reading choices, but I enjoyed it a lot.

63. Scythe by Neal Shusterman

YA and death is definitely my reading theme for the weekend, in this case the story of a future where natural causes of death have been all but eliminated, so society has appointed gleaners playing angel of death to keep the population in check. Two teens are thrown into an unwilling competition to be the next gleaner of their region.

64. Be of Good Mind ed. by Bruce Granville Miller

This volume of anthropological essays on the Coast Salish peoples of Washington State and British Columbia was a bit too dry and academic to read from cover to cover, but I spent enough time on it as part of my research for my current novel-in-progress that I decided to count it toward my books read.

65. Death By Dumpling by Vivien Chien

This mystery was OK, but the characters weren't engaging enough for me to want to continue with the series.

66. Up a Road Slowly by Irene Hunt

I figured a Newbery winner from over 50 years ago qualified as a children's/YA classics and thereby fed 2 CATs for the month of May.

67. The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O'Neill

Such a lovely little cozy fantasy graphic novel.

68. Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

This twist on the Baba Yaga legend is dense, twisting, and often dark, but I found it well worth the work of reading it.

69. Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente

Eurovision in space. So far my reading for the weekend is all about the weird SFF.

>117 susanna.fraser: Eurovision in space. Sold!!

70. The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi

Fantasy novella with the feel of a dark folktale.

71. An Immense World by Ed Yong

A fascinating exploration of the world as other animals sense it.

72. Speak, Okinawa by Elizabeth Miki Brina

Moving, candid memoir about the daughter of a American father and an Okinawan mother and how she came to a better understanding of her mother and herself.

73. Rough Sleepers by Tracy Kidder

By turns harrowing, heartbreaking, and inspiring, this book follows a Boston doctor who devoted his career to working with the city's homeless population.

74. Untethered Sky by Fonda Lee

A lovely fantasy novella set in a secondary world clearly influenced by ancient Persian empires where rocs are trained to fight the manticores that prey on the people of the countryside. The heroine becomes a roc handler after losing her mother and brother to a manticore. The story has a lot of action while still having quiet, human-scale stakes, and the falconry is beautifully done. I'd say if you enjoy fantasy and enjoyed H Is for Hawk, this book is for you.



75. Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim

A solid YA fairytale retelling, this one set in an Asian-inspired secondary world. I've already put the next book in the series on hold at my library.

76. Flight Paths by Rebecca Heisman

I hadn't really planned on reading three more or less bird-themed books in a row, but that's what the library hold gods offered me.

This book provides an overview of how scientists over the past 150 years or so have studied bird migration. It's a bit more about the research techniques and less about the birds themselves than I'd hoped for, but it's still an interesting read.

77. The Last Days of St. Pierre by Ernest Zebrowski

I tracked down this book after listening to a podcast about the 1902 Mount Pelee eruption. If you're interested in volcanoes or disasters in history, you'd probably like it.

78. Queerly Beloved by Susie Dumond

A lovely romance, one of whose heroines is a baker, set in Tulsa (my husband's hometown), so I had the extra fun of recognizing the setting.

79. The Ruin of All Witches by Malcolm Gaskill

I picked up this book because I heard the author interviewed on The Rest is History podcast. It's an interesting look at a witch trial in Springfield, MA that took place about 40 years before the famous events in Salem.

80. Spell Bound by F.T. Lukens

Just an adorable cozy YA fantasy with strong romantic elements.

81. Jesintel edited by Darrell Hillaire and Natasha Frey

This book includes 16 elders from various Native American and First Nations communities in western Washington and southwest British Columbia talking about their lives and experiences. Overall, it’s a testament to cultural resilience and endurance.

82. Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman

Second in a dystopian YA trilogy about teen grim reaper apprentices.

83. Aetherbound by E.K. Johnston

YA space fantasy coming-of-age story. I enjoyed the main character's resilience in the face of abuse and adversity.

84. God Save the Queens by Kathy Iandoli

I read this more slowly than I usually do because I kept going over to YouTube to look up songs by artists I either didn’t know or couldn’t remember. Mainly I just feel old that a musical genre that’s younger than I am has so much history!

85. Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott

Gender-bent Alexander the Great In! Space!

86. Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates

Interesting and important subject matter, though I think the book could've been improved by some tightening and by breaking up walls of text with the occasional line break and new subject header.

87. A Little Too Familiar by Lish McBride

Paranormal romance with a werewolf hero whose behavior is closer to actual alpha wolf than the romance stereotype thereof—i.e. when his alpha side is ascendant he becomes an anxiously diligent provider and caretaker.

88. Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

Horror is not one of my usual genres, but I enjoyed this one once the protagonist actually started trusting and working with some of the other characters.

89. The Undertow: Scenes From a Slow Civil War by Jeff Sharlet

A series of journalistic and literary meditations on the fractured state of American culture and politics, focused on but not exclusively about the aftermath of the Trump presidency and the J6 insurrection.

90. Birdgirl by Mya-Rose Craig

A memoir by a young biracial British birder—very young, just 2 years older than my recent high school graduate son—who’s already become an advocate for climate justice.

>138 susanna.fraser: I read this book recently too. She's certainly very impressive. The US book cover is very different to the UK one!

>139 Jackie_K: One of my lifetime goals is to visit all the continents except Antarctica, though so far I've only managed North America and Europe, and she managed all the continents including Antarctica by age 20!



91. Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley

A sequel to the author's debut Firekeeper's Daughter, set ten years later but featuring some of the same characters. This time the protagonist is a 16-year-old girl reluctantly dragged into a summer internship program which leads her to become an activist fighting for the repatriation of her Native American ancestors' bodies and belongings from museums and private collectors.

Halfway through the year already! How did THAT happen?



92. A Manhattan Heiress in Paris by Amanda McCabe

A lovely historical romance set in Jazz Age Paris. Both the hero and heroine were such fundamentally good and decent people that it was a pleasure to see them find each other.

93. The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

An interesting YA pirate fantasy with a strong romantic subplot involving a girl and a genderfluid character.

94. Phillis Wheatley: Complete Writings by Phillis Wheatley

Wheatley was abducted in Africa and sold into enslavement in Massachusetts (since slavery was still legal in all the then-colonies) as a girl of about 8. She went from not knowing English to reading and writing it with advanced fluency within two years, and her poetic skills were taken as a demonstration that intellectual prowess knows no racial limits. (Eventually the family that purchased her emancipated her, though only after she'd gained fame and publication as a poet.)

The poetry is very 18th century--packed with classical and Biblical allusions, with many, many poems of consolation to people mourning a child, a spouse, or a sibling. I didn't get much sense of her personality, though she was clearly scholarly and gifted to write. Most of the poems were written when she was in her teens or very early 20s. (She was only around 30 when she died.)

95. Something Wild & Wonderful by Anita Kelly

This gay romance is possibly the most heartwarming thing I've read all year.

96. Black Panther: World of Wakanda by Roxane Gay

I read this to meet a library book bingo category, and it was tough to follow at times, given that my knowledge of the Black Panther is almost exclusively the MCU version.

97. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

Another library bingo read, since one of the requirements is two books in different genres by the same author. Interesting, often thought-provoking essays published in 2014, which led me to reflect on just how much has happened in the past 9 years.

98. There There by Tommy Orange

This was from another library bingo category, where we had to choose a book that had been a selection for Seattle Reads, a One Book, One City program that’s been going for 25 years now. And for the most part it’s just not the kind of books I read of my own free will. (I found a few exceptions on the list, notably Persepolis and Homegoing, both of which I’d already read.) Anyway, I can tell this is a GOOD book and an INTERESTING one, but I can’t say I enjoyed it exactly.

99. Old Man's War by John Scalzi

Nice escapist space opera. I'll probably eventually read the rest of the series.

100. Backpacking Through Bedlam by Seanan McGuire

And I hit the century mark for the year's reading with the most recent entry in one of my favorite series.

Wow, congratulations on the 100! That's quite the achievement! (I'm on about 1/4 of that!)

Congrats on reaching 100! I love Wayward Children so should probably take a look at this series as well.

>150 Jackie_K: I'm way behind on my personal goal of reading long books I already own, though!

>151 JayneCM: I think you'd enjoy it, though it's much lighter in tone.



101. The Toll by Neal Shusterman

Finishing off this trilogy with a mostly satisfying finale.

>152 susanna.fraser: Another fabulous series! I have yet to read Gleanings though.

>153 JayneCM: I haven't read it yet either.



102. Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk

Noir fantasy-romance with angels, demons, and murder in 1941 Chicago.

103. Furious Heaven by Kate Elliott

Second in a trilogy with a gender-bent Alexander the Great In! Space!

104. Deep Time: A journey through 4.5 billion years of our planet by Riley Black

I picked this book because I enjoyed the author’s The Last Days of the Dinosaurs. I didn’t like this book quite as much because it was more of a coffee table book overview than an intensive popular science narrative, and it had rather more physics and astronomy and less trilobites, dinosaurs, and mammoths than I was hoping for.

105. Spill Zone by Scott Westerfeld

Seriously creepy and ended on a cliffhanger that’s making me put the sequel on hold at the library right away.

106. Nature Obscura by Kelly Brenner

All about being an urban naturalist, and since the author is based in Seattle it’s as close to home as can be.

107. Hell's Half-Acre by Susan Jonusas

A serial killer family in 1870s Kansas who murdered at least 11 people and fled when it was clear the community was finally on to them.

108. The Extraordinary Part: Book One: Orsay's Hands by Florent Ruppert

A science fiction graphic novel translated from French. Weird but interesting.

>158 susanna.fraser: That one's already on my wishlist, I've heard good things about it.

>159 susanna.fraser: This book is on my husband's wish list. Is it a good story of the Benders or is it not worth the time?

>162 lowelibrary: I found it interesting, though it doesn't give a lot of insight into the Benders' backgrounds or what drove them to their crimes, I think largely because trying to do so would be pure speculation.



109. Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America by Eyal Press

About the people who do the work we’d rather not think about, often because they have few to no other options.

>163 susanna.fraser: Thank you.

110. The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older

After my last several books, I wanted something short and fun. This sapphic cozy academia mystery set on Jupiter fit the escapist bill.

111. You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron

An homage to slasher horror movies set in a summer camp designed to mimic a horror movie. Our heroine plays the "final girl" who survives to the end and enjoys her job until the death gets real.

112. Tekebash & Saba by Saba Alemayoh

About a mother and daughter who moved to Australia from the Tigray region of Ethiopia and opened a restaurant. Frankly, I wouldn't have read it if I hadn't needed it for a summer library bingo category, but I do know more about Tigray and Ethiopia/East Africa in general than I did going in.

113. Gentle Writing Advice by Chuck Wendig

The exact writing advice book I needed right now, as I'm trying to meet an end-of-summer word count goal and plan a NaNoWriMo novel when my record of finishing books or short stories has been dire for the past several years.

114. Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right Wing Extremism by Jeffrey Toobin

A detailed look at McVeigh's life, the radicalization that led to the Oklahoma City bombing, and his subsequent trial and execution, all while showing him as part of a trend of right-wing extremism that has long outlived him rather than an isolated madman.

I'm glad I read it. Obviously I was alive then and remember the events well, but I was out of the country for a big chunk of 1996-97, so I didn't pay close attention to the trial and aftermath. With that said, there were two copyediting/fact-checking errors that stood out enough that I have to mention them here:

1. Priests give last RITES, not last RIGHTS.

2. McAlester (which happens to be my MIL's hometown) is NOT in western Oklahoma:

115. Better Living Through Birding by Christian Cooper

Memoir by the Black birder who went viral in 2020 after a Central Park argument with a woman who was violating the park's leash laws led to her calling the cops and playing the race card. It's definitely more memoir than birding book, though it still held my interest because Cooper has led a varied, fascinating life (writing for Marvel Comics! traveling the world!).

>170 susanna.fraser: I've just added that to my wishlist, sounds right up my street!

116. The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich

Louise Erdrich is becoming one of my go-to authors despite not writing in my go-to genres, and this book did not disappoint.

117. Aftermath: Life in the Fallout of the Third Reich by Harald Jahner

Translated from German, this is a look at life and culture in Germany (especially West Germany) in the decade after WWII (especially 1945-50). Since most of the post-WWII European history I've read has focused on concentration camp survivors, this was unfamiliar ground for me, and interesting for that reason, though I'm sure I would've gotten more out of it if I was German, or if I'd spent time in Germany.

118. Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan

A look at the dark side of movie and television production--the racism, sexism, and abuse that have been all too common on sets and in writers' rooms. I was most interested in the chapter about Sleepy Hollow, since I was deeply involved in that fandom, wow, was it really 10 years ago now?

119. Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I by Tracy Borman

A fairly quick read that looks at familiar Tudor history from a different angle.

120. The Broken Vow by Scott Westerfeld

I'm glad I finished this series for closure, though it was a like not a love for me.

121. Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher

A Sleeping Beauty retelling with a twist, and as lovely and heartening as Kingfisher's fantasy tends to be.

122. Persian Fire by Tom Holland

A very good popular history of the Greco-Persian Wars, and one that's quite even-handed about the merits, failings, and historical importance of both sides. (In simplest terms, both the Greeks--Athens more than Sparta--and the Persians were innovative cultures whose impacts are still with us today.)

123. Otherlands by Thomas Halliday

A look at the history of life on Earth in snapshots taken going back in time.

124. Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization by Paul Kriwaczek

A sweeping overview of two thousand years or so of ancient history--almost TOO sweeping, insofar as I would've liked a little more focus on people and how they lived.

125. He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

Second in a fantasy duology heavily based on the founding of the Ming dynasty in 14th century China. A page turner, albeit one with a Game of Thrones level of grimdark. Lately I’ve been reading books in the order they’re due back at the library, but I think I need to pause that for a nice romance or cozy fantasy soon. There’s plenty enough grimdark in real life!

126. Winter's Gifts by Ben Aaronovitch

Ah, this is the short, comforting read I was looking for. It’s a novella in the Rivers of London series, but set mostly in Wisconsin and starring Peter’s FBI friend Kimberley Reynolds. I enjoyed it, and despite sundry Britishisms creeping in (Kimberley would say soy or soybeans, not soya, f’rinstance), Aaronovitch clearly did his homework and also clearly put more thought into what a magical America would look like based on cultures, history, and settlement patterns than certain other British authors I could name.

127. Son of a Sailor: A Cozy Pirate Tale by Marshall J. Moore

Continuing my turn to light reading with this quite lighthearted and gentle pirate story by an author I discovered on TikTok.

128. Misbelief by Dan Ariely

On conspiracy theories, why people buy into them, and why it’s so hard to break free once you’re committed to one.

129. A Hundred Vicious Turns by Lee Paige O'Brien

Q4 already! Insert usual cliche about the year flying by.

Dark academia set in a magical university, twisty and intriguing despite the fact it took me most of the book to warm up to the protagonist. First in a series, and if book 2 was released today I'd probably read it.

130. Africa Risen ed. by Sheree Renee Thomas

A multi-author SFF anthology, with the usual variability in style, topic, and appeal.

I'm on vacation this week, and hoping to catch up what has so far been a slow reading month.



131. A Bride's Story Vol. 14 by Kaori Mori

A somewhat slight entry in this long-running series--the author admitted the plot line was largely an excuse to draw a lot of horses--but it made a good book to read at the gate waiting for my flight to board. Also, I love horses too!



132. Weavers, Scribes, and Kings by Amanda H. Podany

An unusually engaging and deep work of popular history, with the author using the extensive texts of the cuneiform era (all 3000 years or so of it!) to make the culture and humanity of the time come to life.

133. Cassiel's Servant by Jacqueline Carey

I'd only recommend this book to people who've read and loved Kushiel's Dart, since it retells that story from Joscelin's POV. But if you're in that group, I recommend it highly indeed. It's been over a decade since I read the other books set in this world, so it managed to feel familiar yet fresh to revisit it this way.

134. Citadel by C.M. Alongi

Science fiction novel by an author I discovered via TikTok, where she has a charming ongoing story called CaFae Latte. This work was different in tone, set in something of a post-apocalyptic world where the survivors of a crash-landed spaceship have, centuries later, forgotten their true origins and set up a theocratic city-state.

Finally got myself back on pace with my reading for the month on my last night of vacation and then my long flight home today:



135. Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire

Latest in McGuire's Wayward Children series, of which I've only read one or two. I should go back and catch up.

136. The Witness of Preaching by Thomas G. Long

This one was homework, basically, since I'm in training to be a licensed lay preacher in the Episcopal Church.

137. Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park

This quick middle grade/YA novel is obviously the author in dialogue with the Little House books, with a 14-year-old biracial daughter of a Chinese immigrant woman and a white American-born man trying to find a place for herself in a Dakota Territory town.

138. The Good News Club by Katherine Stewart

A look at how the Religious Right has found ways to sneak indoctrination into American public schools. Originally published in 2012, it seems all the more prescient eleven years later.

139. The Woman They Wanted by Shannon Harris

My second book in a row about the problematic nature of the Religious Right, this one a memoir by Shannon Harris, ex-wife of Joshua Harris of I Kissed Dating Goodbye fame. This is a very personal book, the author's tale of how she lost herself in trying to be the woman the church wanted her to be and then rediscovered her true self and claimed her autonomy two decades later, not the sort of shocking half-gossipy tell-all I very much expected and frankly kinda wanted it to be.

140. Sapiens: A Graphic History by Yuval Noah Harari

A graphic novel adaptation of Harari's best-known work. I found it interesting, but I also noted that the work is already outdated in several regards--most notably, it seems we finally have solid evidence confirming that humans reached the Americas significantly earlier than the ~14K years ago Harari cites.

141. How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler

This book is something of a hybrid, an equal mix of the science of sea creatures and essays/memoir where Imbler draws insights into their own life and experiences around gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and community.

142. Vicious by V.E. Schwab

A grimly fascinating fantasy novel, though the grim part is inclining me away from continuing with the series for now.

143. Paved Paradise by Henry Grabar

A surprisingly interesting look at parking policy and its impact on (primarily American) urban life, with calls for reform.

144. Imagining a Sermon by Thomas H. Troeger

More homework for my lay preacher licensing class. It was interesting, though in some spots Troeger's idea of imaginative was my idea of cloying and sentimental.

145. Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood

Not the strongest outing in the series, but it's always nice to visit Phryne and her found family.

146. System Collapse by Martha Wells

I could pretty much quote the previous summary for this one, replacing "Phryne" with "Murderbot," though while lesser Phryne is still thoroughly enjoyable, lesser Murderbot is still thoroughly awesome.

147. American Idolatry by Andrew Whitehead

I read this because I listened to the author's podcast on the same topic...and really, I could've just stuck with the podcast, because there wasn't anything especially new.

148. Starter Villain by John Scalzi

Now this book was just plain fun.

149. More to the Story by Hena Khan

A retelling of Little Women set in a modern-day Pakistani-American family. It's middle grade, so the characters are all aged down a year or two, and it only covers the first half of the original story, so none of the section that's in Good Wives in the UK version.

>203 susanna.fraser: I have wanted to read this since I saw that cover!

>205 JayneCM: I think you'll enjoy it!



150. Were- ed. by Patricia Bray & Joshua Palmatier

A short story anthology that's full of were-creatures, but not werewolves.

>203 susanna.fraser: Glad to hear you enjoyed Starter Villain. I'm eager to read it but there's a long wait for it at my library. Scalzi's books are always fun.

151. Godkiller by Hannah Kaner

A debut fantasy novel with compelling characters in a fascinating world. I'll definitely be reading the sequel when it comes out.

FYI, for anyone who wants to keep following me into 2024, I set up my new thread yesterday: https://www.librarything.com/topic/355464#n8293185

152. To Catch a Raven by Beverly Jenkins

Historical romance/caper story set in late 19th century America.

153. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Sequel to The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea, which wrapped up most of the loose ends with satisfying tidiness.

154. Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh by Rachael Lippincott

Time travel YA romance. Extremely light and frothy--I had to set aside my urge for historical nitpicking more than normal in the 1812 section of the story, which was most of it--but it was an enjoyable, relaxing read for a day where I'm off work recuperating from oral surgery.

155. The Red Palace by June Hur

Continuing my streak of YA reading with an atmospheric mystery set in 18th century Korea.

156. The Southernization of America by Frye Gaillard and Cynthia Tucker

A sort of political history in essays covering the South's role in American politics from the 1970s through the present--i.e. my lifetime--from the good to the bad to the just plain problematic.

157. Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree

Prequel to Legends & Lattes and another delightful cozy fantasy sure to especially delight D&D players.

158. Bird Sense by Tim Birkhead

A look at the science on the sensory powers of birds, with some speculation on what that tells us about their inner worlds.

159. A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

A work of gothic dark academia with evil fae thrown in, though ultimately a story of survival and love.

160. Accompany Them With Singing by Thomas G. Long

More homework for my preaching class, this one an examination of the Christian funeral that argues for remembering the ritual/liturgical meaning of it as a worship service, and the last time the church worships with the deceased in this world.

161. Rivers of London, Vol. 11: Here Be Dragons by Ben Aaronovitch

As always with the Rivers of London graphic novels, I wish the quality of the art was better, but I still enjoy them as methadone between novels and/or novellas in the series.

162. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth by Ben Rawlence

A fascinating but generally depressing look at the boreal forest circling the Arctic, and the threats it faces from climate change.

163. Year of the Rabbit by Tian Veasna

A memoir in graphic novel form about the author's family's struggle for survival after the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia. (Veasna himself was born three days after the takeover while his parents were refugees fleeing Phnom Penh.)

>220 susanna.fraser: This looks like an interesting read. While not boreal, the forests in Germany are already dying, and it is terrible to see - areas of just dead wood, almost looking like large elephant cemeteries.

>221 susanna.fraser: I am adding this to my WL as well. I visited Cambodia in 2017 and bought several memoirs written by victims of the Khmer Rouge before my trip, but I could not stomach reading them and gave them away. I have never tried a graphic novel, but maybe this approach will work better for me (although it must be just as gruesome).

>220 susanna.fraser: I'm going to add this to my wishlist. I read another book by Ben Rawlence a few years ago, Radio Congo, and enjoyed his writing. He doesn't seem to be attracted to the most cheerful subjects though!

>222 MissBrangwen: The forests aren't dying in my part of the Pacific NW, but we are seeing far more wildfires than we did even when I moved here less than 30 years ago. "Smoke season" has become a normal and expected part of summer, and I hate it.

>223 Jackie_K: Definitely not a cheerful writer!



164. Paladin's Faith by T Kingfisher

And after my recent reading I wanted something I could count on to be comforting and end happily, and this very much fit the bill.

165. The Conspiracy to End America by Stuart Stevens

A good, quick read in the "Former Republican operative now has deep regrets" genre, though given that I get plenty of that from my podcast rotation (which is where I learned about this book), I might take a break from such reading. I'm already planning to do all I can toward get-out-the-vote efforts this cycle and donate as I can afford to, so I don't actually need the extra motivation.

166. The Quarantine Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

Extremely light and fluffy (and would be incomprehensible to any readers not familiar with the series) but just the kind of escapism I was looking for.

167. Hogfather by Terry Pratchett

I've had this on my Kindle for awhile and decided it was the most seasonally appropriate time to read it. I didn't love it as much as I do the Tiffany Aching series, but that's some good Discworld there.