A Last Goodbye by Elin Kelsey, Soyeon Kim (Illustrator)

A well done children’s book about death using animals.

October 1, 2024.

The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas

This was a prequel collection of connected novellas. I am reading the series in the recommended order with this being the third book. I continue to feel a tad underwhelmed. I like the protagonist and some of the characters, but I struggle through everything else including the length of these novels. I am not a big plot reader. There is this strange thing with SJM novels where I feel that a lot of happens but as the same time, not a lot of happens due to the length of the novels. The pacing is off. In the down moments, I get bored but then the plot thickens and it’s fine since they finish well. While I did not love ACOTAR, I think I preferred the world building in that series. I wish there was a bit more magic in this one. It feels like the series keeps building up to something big which is why I keep reading. I hope I won’t be disappointed if I continue. The books are dialogue heavy and easy to read overall though. I am considering listening to some of the next book in audiobook to see if it’s easier. I wish there was a full Graphic Audio for this series. I read mostly Kindle Keyboard and Kobo Libra 2 even though I had the book from the library.

Read on Kindle Keyboard and Kobo Libra 2. September 21-October 2024.

The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes with Louis Slobodkin (Illustrator)

Newberry winner from 1944 about bullying. Nice but illustrations were lacking. I hope they can redo the art for future editions.

October 3, 2024.

Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Francesc Miralles and Héctor García Puigcerver, Walter Dixon (Narrator)

I had this hardcover from a Little Library. It’s cute and small. The book does not offer anything I do not know about aging, but it offered a chance to reflect. I have been contemplating the meaning of life these days. I’ve never really had a calling for anything and to this day, work for me is a means for me to make money. There is other work though which includes non renumeration and working on one’s self. Even though I love a lot of things like reading and being with my friends, I do not necessarily know if this is sufficient to define my “ikigai”. I read a great quote the other day:

“The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.” – Alan Watts

I wouldn’t necessarily say I’ve been trying to rush for a bigger goal. I do want to live my life mindfully and spiritually. I am really a simple person and have a very small family. I will continue to try and push my boundaries a bit more through meeting new people, volunteering, and taking care of my mental health. I do like my current work. I love my family and friends. I also love to read, be fit, etc. I will try not to worry too much about what the meaning of my life. This was a nice little book which was not essential reading but allowed me to examine life a little bit.

1.35x. October 3-6, 2024.

Ascendance of a Bookworm (Manga) Part 1 Volume 2 and 3 by Suzuka, Miya Kazuki with quof (Translator)

Two volumes in a row. I am doing these in bulk because I am really getting into the story now. Volume 2 started off slow and I found Myne the protagonist a bit annoying as she was squeamish about butchering and whined a few times. Then again she is a 20 year old woman stuck in the body of a 5 year old. I thought Volume 3 picked up the pace a lot more with new characters, conflicts, and actual fantasy elements. There is a lot of crafting in these books and it notably shows the protagonist struggling in a way that’s realistic or as a realistic as it can be in an portal fantasy. I’ll likely try to binge read this before starting another manga series I want to start. As someone who grew up with anime, I did not read any manga except Sailor Moon for a long time. Now in my thirties, I am finally finding ones that I truly like.

October 6, 2024.

My reading fixation took a pause the last week of September as I watched the Shogun (2024) adaptation and became a bit obsessed with it.

How To Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy by Jenny Odell, Rebecca Gibel (Narrator)

The core anti-capitalist message of this book is good but the delivery was severely lacking. The author prefaced the book saying that her upbringing and residency in California drove the book. It lacked alternative, every man perspectives. She spent a lot of the book reviewing and extracting from other philosophers, writers, and artists. There isn’t any action plan or tips which tell you how to actually resist the attention economy. While these aren’t needed, the content of the of this book does not help its title. It’s a bunch of privileged, liberal essays. I did not like the narration either. It was too rote and cold.

1.25-2.00x. Sept 18-22, 2024.

Dracula by Bram Stoker, narrated by a full cast including Alan Cumming and Tim Curry

Started reading this via email from Dracula Daily in May. I sometimes listened to the re: Dracula podcast as well. I knew I’d get impatient. I am the kind of reader who reads books in a couple of sessions. In mid September, I found the full cast audiobook which was great so I would listen to that by itself or in tandem with the Standard Ebooks epub. It’s hard to determine how much I listened to on audio and how much was ebook or email.

I enjoyed this book and I do not like horror. Stoker created a very engaging scary story. It was spooky and featured an interesting cast. I wish there had been more Mina and even poor Lucy. I liked the Dracula Daily format but I still prefer to read novels in a shorter amount of time. Good pacing and I am glad I finally read this classic.

1.25-2x. Read on Kobo Libra 2. May 3-Sept 27, 2024.

Love Is My Favorite Color by Nina Laden, Melissa Castrillón (Illustrator)

Recommended by book club friend J. Very lovely illustrations from Castrillon.

Sept 29, 2024.

I feel like I am reading too many books.

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, Eric Ozawa (Translator), Catherine Ho (narrator)

Audiobook for about 15%. This was nice after I had some mixed feelings over the last few Japanese novels. I liked a quiet and shorter novel about characters who find themselves living at the Morisaki Bookshop. I really liked the relationship between the protagonist and her uncle which is not something you see often. I am looking forward to the next book.

1.25x. Read on Kobo Mini. September 13-14, 2024.

The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey

This was recommended to me by a book club friend who likes Golden Age mysteries like I do. Aside from a likeable protagonist Robert Blair, I was indifferent to most of the other characters. The plot was a bit odd. It’s quite dated with its views about the Irish. There is sexism that’s a bit different than the usual type because it was written by a woman. I think some of it was suppose to be tongue in cheek but some of it was probably played straight. There were a couple of darkly funny lines and social commentary was good too. I do not think I’ll read another Tey novel anytime soon, but it wasn’t bad.

Sept 14, 2024.

Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein by Linda Bailey, Júlia Sardà (Illustrator)

The story is about the talented Mary Shelley. I really like Júlia Sardà’s illustrations after The Liszts. This was wonderfully illustrated.

Sept 16, 2024.

Ascendance of a Bookworm (Manga) Part 1 Volume 1 by Suzuka (Artist), Miya Kazuki (Original Story), Quof (Translator)

I found this recommendation for cozy manga awhile ago. I didn’t know or forgot that it was an isekai. I like isekai (portal fantasy). This was based on a light novel which I think I can track down on the internet. I’ll probably stick with the manga since my library seems to have most of the 18 volumes that’s been released. It’s cute and fun so I’m looking forward to using it between all my other reads.

Sept 17, 2024.

Cold Clay by Juneau Black, Cassandra Campbell (Narrator)

While I have this series on ebook, I found a couple of the audiobooks on Libby. It’s a nice fantasy cozy mystery series. I liked the narration except for Orville the bear. The plot and the twists are predictable, but I do like most of the characters. I like Vera’s style as an investigate journalist and detective. I did find the miscommunication trope in the romance annoying as I usually do with most modern romances. Other than that, I will continue with this nice series.

1.25x. Sept 14-18, 2024.

Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks by Jason Reynolds, narrated by an ensemble including the author

Audiobook for the last 40%. Read this to complete the 2024 Storygraph genre challenge: Read a short story collection by a black author. Jason Reynolds is a great middle grade and children’s author. He really captured the feelings of kids especially those who are going through things. In this short story collection, a lot of the kids were dealing with bullying, chronic illness, or parental health issues. Some of them were dealing with regular kids stuff such as liking a girl. As with most short story collections, I didn’t love every one of them and my attention wavered. Around the 60% mark, I found and checked out the audiobook. I should have listened to this from the beginning. Each short story was narrated by a different narrator and it was more engaging than reading. Good writing.

1.25-2x. Digital reading with Kobo Mini. Sept 18-19, 2024.

Weslandia by Paul Fleischman, Kevin Hawkes (Illustrator)

About a boy who spends his summer founding his own civilization in his own backyard starting with gardening. It was quite empowering and imaginative. I liked the late 1990s style art in this and it felt nostalgic for me.

September 20, 2024.

L’homme qui plantait des arbres by Jean Giono, French narrator Jacques Bonnaffé, English narrator Malk Williams

My second French book of the year. I would read a few paragraphs or a chapter in print then switch to the French audiobook. After I finished, I listened to the English audiobook which took about 20 mins. This is a story about a man named Elzéard Bouffier in Provence who dedicated his life to planting trees. This book was great for French practice as it was short, had a lot of naturalistic vocabulary, and I could listen to the audiobook. I think it was well written. Even though I had to look up some of the words, I found the prose clear and easy to understand. As a result, the English translation was very good. It was an inspiring story but a fictional one. It is considered a parable and at times, it did have a moralistic undertone. I really enjoyed it as a French book and am considering getting my own copy if I can find another illustrated version.

1.0x in French. 1.25x English. Sept 5-7, 2024.

A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan, Kate Reading (Narrator)

Back to some good old cozy fantasy. I do like low stakes but not no stakes fantasy. I was hoping this would be similar to Emily Wilde which is one of my favourite series of the last couple of years. It sounded similar as this was about an amateur scholar who studies dragons in an alternate 19th century world. The audiobook was well narrated and easy listening. It was in the style of a nonfiction memoir. Other than that, I was disappointed in the rest. I didn’t find the characters engaging. There was a romance but it’s a bit too subtle and under developed. The writing was too dry. The worse part was there were not enough dragons! They exist but they are barely interacted with. Part of me wants to listen to the next audiobook but I am afraid that the rest of the series will be the same: dragons in the background with a lukewarm protagonist.

1.5x. Sept 6-8, 2024.

Borders by Thomas King, Natasha Donovan (Illustrator)

A story about an Indigenous woman and her son trying to cross the US-Canadian border by asserting her true nation: Blackfoot. A reminder that governance and state borders is fairly new to human cultures.

Sept 8, 2024.

Death by Dumpling (A Noodle Shop Mystery, #1) by Vivien Chien, Cheryl May (Narrator)

Audiobook for about half and immersive reading with ebook. I have read cozy mysteries before and wanted to try a new series. I do not know where I found this one, probably GoodReads and my library had a few of them on Libby. The series is set in Cleveland, Ohio and centres around a biracial Chinese-American woman who works in her family Chinese restaurant. I actually preferred this over Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers except that Vera Wong had better food descriptions. Chien’s prose is clean and easy to read. Lana was, like most amateur detectives, very nosey and spent too much time breaking and entering. I did figure out the twists and the killer early on, but I do not mind it. It was satisfying to read and I really like the covers and titles. My library only has the first in audio. The narration was fine except I did not like the voice for the Detective. I will consider revisiting this series.

1.5-2.5x. Read on Kobo Mini. Sept 9-10, 2024.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo with Timothy Basil Ering (Illustrator), Graeme Malcolm (narrator)

Audiobook for the first 15%. Narrator was great and could have listened to more, but I wanted to look at the illustrations. This was a nice but I did not enjoy it as much as the last DiCamillo mostly because of how the character of Mig was portrayed.

Sept 10-11, 2024.

Soft Science by Franny Choi

I think I am hitting a reading slump even though I’ve been reading almost a book a day this month. What’s a reading slump from reading too many books? Anyway, I do think I’ve hit a poetry slump because both the Choi and Vuong poetry collections have not been resonating with me. I like poetry, but it’s very hit or miss. Some of the poems were intriguing though, but not enough.

Sept 8-11, 2024.

Night Sky with Exit Wounds by Ocean Vuong

After Time Is a Mother, I wanted to see if Vuong’s debut collection of poetry would be better. I think I preferred this collection but I still did not feel connected to some of the poems. Overall, the novel On Earth We are Briefly Gorgeous is my favourite of Vuong’s works.

Aug 28-Sept 1, 2024.

Everything Is OK by Debbie Tung

Debbie Tung is one of my best discoveries of this year. I loved this graphic memoir even more than the others. It hit me close to home as another Asian woman who has had anxiety and depression. It deeply resonated with my own mental health journey. Beautiful.

Sept 1-2, 2024.

The Dictionary Story by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

Lovely, well done children’s book about a dictionary who tried to make her own story. It was sweet and there were so many details that I could read it over again.

Sept 3, 2024.

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, Ramon de Ocampo (narrator)

55% on audiobook. After a month full of literary books, I wanted easy going fiction. I had low expectations going into this because I am not a big contemporary romance fan. The audiobook was a great listen to on Labour Day as I tidied up and went on walks. I could have easily listened to all of it because the narrator did a great job. I appreciated the friendships and family relationships in the book. The book had enough stakes but it was not too stressful. The author did a good job of balancing the plot and the characters. I will probably read another book by McQuiston.

1.25-1.5x. Sept 1-4, 2024.

Change Your Questions, Change Your Life: 10 Powerful Tools for Life and Work by Marilee G. Adams, Suzanne Toren (Narrator)

A CBT book that was recommended by my CBT-I instructor over a year ago. The book is written as a fictional story about a man who has a crisis at work. The actual story and plot are boring and serve only as a way to apply the process and questions. I do find this particular CBT method useful as it’s shorter and less intense than others I’ve tried in therapy. In any case, I am considering getting the print book and/workbook since I think I learn best with that method.

1.25x. Aug 26-Sept 5, 2024.

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman, Patrick Egan (Narrator)

This took a long time. I have a softcover and thought I would read it by print, but ended up slowly listening to it over the summer in bursts. I had to return the audiobook twice before finishing it. It was repetitive, but maybe somewhat necessary to drive home the psychological ideas. The narration was fine. I do think I will read and/or listen to Noise which I also have in print.

1.25x. June 12-August 24, 2024.

Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami, Allison Markin Powell (Translator)

What an interesting cover. This was a May-December romance about a 37 year old woman and her retired former high school teacher. It’s about loneliness and connections. There were some nice descriptions of Japanese food and life. The characters were likeable. It was just too slow at times.

Read on Kobo Mini and Kobo Libra 2. August 22-25, 2024.

One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle, Lauren Graham (narrator)

Audiobook for 30% by itself and immersive reading. This was a grief novel about a woman who had a codependent relationship with her mother. I don’t know any woman who would say their mother is the love of their life. Aside from the oddness, this book had a silly but fun twist. It was not believable but it was nice to get away to Positano, Italy for a couple hundred pages.

1.25-1.5x Read mostly on Kobo Libra 2 and a bit on Kindle Keyboard. August 25, 2024.

Time Is a Mother by Ocean Vuong

Narrated by the author. Poetry read by the author is nice. This was short and while I liked the narration, I didn’t find myself connecting to a lot of the poems. I read Vuong for his lyricism. I am will try his first collection of poetry as well.

1.25x. Aug 26-27, 2024.

The Dallergut Dream Department Store by Lee Mi-ye, Sandy Josun Lee (translator)

This was a cute cozy fantasy about a store which sells dreams. There were some sweet moments, but it took me awhile to read this book. The characters were nice but they didn’t have enough depth for me to be very invested. The world building was good but took awhile to get a a hold of it. Maybe it was the translation. Still sweet and original. I’d consider reading more from this universe.

Aug 19-29. 2024.

The Aosawa Murders by Riku Onda, Alison Watts (Translator)

Closing out on Women in Translation Month and the Storygraph Genre Challenge to read a thriller or crime novel in translation. I picked this up in the spring from my local rummage sale. I had not heard of it and it was a good find. This book and its mystery were very well written as it had several characters and their perspectives. It was very layered. I cemented a very important book appeal factor for myself. I do not like ambiguous endings especially for mysteries. This had a very ambiguous ending. It was not the cathartic ending that I wanted after all that well written build up. The whole book was really well written until the last couple of chapters which frustrated me.

Aug 31, 2024.

24 Hours in Ancient Rome: A Day in the Life of the People Who Lived There by Philip Matyszak

Narrated by John Telfer. This was a good history audiobook. It traces one hour of a Roman day through various characters and some of the stories are interlinked. The people in the book are fictional but based on accounts of real Romans from the time. I was excited to learn that Telfer narrated it. He narrated the complete Sherlock Holmes which I listened to 16 years ago. He did a great job here too. I have all the audiobooks for this history series. The narrators and the authors change, but I do like history through audiobooks so I’ll take my time to enjoy them.

1.25x. July 30-Aug 14, 2024.

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata, Ginny Tapley Takemori (Translator)

Second for Women in Translation Month. Had this on TBR for awhile since a lot of people had read it. I really liked the beginning and the voice of the neurodivergent protagonist; however, I became very frustrated when they introduced a stalking misogynist. He served a purpose but I had very little patience for misogyny. The ending was fine, but I could not say I enjoyed most of it.

Read on Kindle Keyboard. Aug 13-15, 2024.

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson, Thomas Teal (Translator)

This was a balm. I know of Tove Jansson but did not read or watch Moomin so this was my first experience with her work. The novel is a series of summer vignettes with a Grandmother and her granddaughter Sophie on island in the Gulf of Finland. It’s lighthearted and a breeze. There was some lovely writing. Wonderful little book. A great one for Women in Translation month.

Read on Kobo Mini. Aug 16-17, 2024.

Here is New York by E.B. White

This was a nice essay and love letter to NYC. A good way to use my thrifted, upgraded Kobo mini.

July 19, 2024. Read on Kobo Mini.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Narrated by Elijah Wood. About 30% audiobook. Great narration. I did not like the Tom Sawyer book and after this book, I hate the little brat. This book was a big improvement. Huck was a much better character who had actual development. Jim was interesting and the real hero of this story. I am looking forward to reading Percival Everett’s James.

1.25-1.5x. July 19-26, 2024.

Foster by Claire Keegan

Beautiful, sad, and lovely novella. I adored Small Things Like These and this one may even be better for me personally. Keegan is deftly able to explore people and feelings in such a short amount of time and words. Extraordinary.

July 27-28, 2024. Read on Kobo Mini and Kobo Libra 2.

The Liszts by Kyo Maclear

Nicely illustrated children’s book about an eccentric family who make lists.

July 30, 2024.

Roaming by Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki

Three Canadian nineteen year olds go to New York City. There is roaming and a lot of coming of age feelings. The Tamakis’ are good at capturing the adolescent and young adult vibes here. Even though the characters were moody and even annoying at times, they felt real for their age. The art was interesting as well.

July 30-31, 2024.

Audiobooks narrated by Nicolas Ralph. I listened to this nonfiction memoir series from February to June.

These books were wonderful. All five books were lovely. They were very cozy and relaxing. Ralph’s narration was excellent. I listened to them on Libby but will look into getting my own copies so I can relisten. I liked all the books but I found the last three most comforting. I preferred the small animal stories over the ones about cows. There were many funny stories. I did sometimes have second hand embarrassment and found some of the clients annoying. All in all very wholesome and lighthearted. Made for perfect audiobook listening before bed and any time of the day really.

“All Creatures Great and Small” 2020-Present TV Series

Four series/seasons have aired and we watched them from June to early July.

The new TV series changed a number of things and gave focus and arcs to the female characters. We found the show very well done. It was as cozy especially with the food and the knitwear. They even improved a couple of the sad stories from the books. I recently rewatched North and South, and Brian Percival who directed it (and worked a lot on Downton Abbey) also directed a lot of this series.

I see this TV adaptation as a fictional alternate reality to the memoirs which is almost as good as the memoirs in its own way. Looking forward to more series to come.

The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner

Read by Richard Armitage. This was a nice novel. I liked all the eight main characters. The writing was fine and the historical aspect felt accurate. I am a Jane Austen fan too so the premise and Austen discussions worked for me. There were times when I thought I could really like this book more, but there was something that held me back. As a character reader, I think I wanted more from the characters. Jenner did a good job with eight leads though. A lot of people I know liked this more than me so I recommend if you enjoy a light historical fiction novel.

1.25-1.5x. July 1-8, 2024.

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

There was some interesting writing in this sci-fi short novel. One of the authors is local and there were a couple of references to my hometown. I like a short book and confident world building when done right. I could did not connect to some aspects of the story. I liked Red and Blue from what we saw of them but the war and the amorphous sci-fi setting felt garbled and cold. It was like recalling a very blurry dream. I couldn’t be fully invested. Not bad though and I appreciated the language and the character work.

July 8-15, 2024 over two sittings.

The Nineties by Chuck Kosterman

Read by the author Chuck Klosterman and Dion Graham. This was fun. Klosterman did research but does not claim it is a history book. It is more essays about various topics from 1990s including pop culture, politics, and technology. It’s similar to John Green’s The Anthropocene Reviewed. It was enjoyable to reflect on the decade that I grew up in. I like thinking about recent history even though the 90s were 30 years ago now! Recommended for those looking to revisit that time.

1.25x. July 10-18, 2024.