I can not believe it's been almost a year since I first started this blog! The strange, it's still the holidays because New Years is coming but Christmas is over time inspired me to look back on my year of reading and I came up with the most popular post of this blog; the 2018 top books of the year post! This has certainly been a year of ups and downs and there were a lot of months that I struggled to stay up to date with this blog. Now that I'm FINALLY caught up, I think I'm going to try to do my best to write the posts as I go, so that I don't have to spend hours one day a month writhing this thing ;) I also may do away completely with the monthly overviews and just post reviews of the books I particularly want to share my thoughts on (good and bad). And then share occasional "Top Book" lists, including the end of the year one. What do you guys think???
It's funny that so far (as of 12/21) I've read all books that came out this year, and if they are older, they're from 2008 or 2009! LOL.
Life Will Be the Death of Me... and You Too! by Chelsea HandlerReleased: April 9, 2019
Read from: 12/3/19-12/7/19
Format: Audiobook (Scribd)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 4.07 stars
This is Chelsea Handler's most recent book, and I read them all several years ago. This one was much different than the other ones. This one was more about her journey of self discovery and healing, but it still has the typical Chelsea Handler humor.
For full review on Goodreads click here.
Released: October 28, 2008
Read from: 12/7/19-12/9/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.78 stars
This was a cool Christmas story. I literal ghost from Theodora's past comes back to their house in Charleston, SC under the guise of house help to bring the family together and experience a traditional, happy southern Christmas. I enjoyed this audiobook, and this was my first by this author so I'm definitely interested in her other boos now.
My full review can be found on Goodreads.
Released: October 28, 2008
Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar
Released: August 5, 2015
Read from: 12/30/19 - 12/31/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.87 stars
This book has a very interesting concept. It was about scientific research getting out of hand, and accidentally releasing a dangerous organism to the general environment. Three kids find themselves in the woods around it without even realizing. When two come out, one with a really bad, ulcerative and spreading rash, and the other never making it home, they know something is up, but they’re too afraid to say that they’re linked to the missing kid. Meanwhile, the mysterious rash is getting out of hand and it can’t be hidden anymore. Are the kids going to get in trouble? Is this rash going to go away or will it keep spreading? It’s obviously highly contagious...
The author is the writer of a very famous book that I read in middle school so I was curious to see what kinds of books by him were coming out recently. This one was good. I think if I was the age group it was written for I’d have liked it better. I do recommend for young readers and I think I’m going to purchase it for a few kids in my life who are about that age!
This was a cool Christmas story. I literal ghost from Theodora's past comes back to their house in Charleston, SC under the guise of house help to bring the family together and experience a traditional, happy southern Christmas. I enjoyed this audiobook, and this was my first by this author so I'm definitely interested in her other boos now.
My full review can be found on Goodreads.
Released: October 15, 2019
Read from: 12/2/19-12/9/19
Format: Print (Library)
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.75 stars
This is a heartwarming holiday story with a little bit of romance thrown in. It shows how two groups of very different people, local Nantucket shop owners and a family of millionaires and beautiful people, can come together and be a family. They have some differences of course, but the love of one little girl becomes the glue that brings them together and keep them there.
You can find out more of my thoughts via my full review on Goodreads.
Released: October 28, 2008
Read from: 12/9/19-12/12/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.78 stars
Another heartwarming Christmas story. This one with a little bit more romance. An angel is sent from heaven as a teacher for an adult literature class, where his mission is to help certain students in his class. With the help of his mentor, who took the form of a barista at the college, they're able to help unite two sworn enemies, along with a parolee and a quiet veteran suffering from PTSD.
My full review can be found on Goodreads.
Released: November 5, 2019
Read from: 12/10/19-12/15/19
Format: Print (Library- BOTM option, November 2019)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 4.02 stars
A real creepy story about kids that got trapped living in a cultlike community, trapped inside their own house. This is the author's newest book. I published my full review on this blog earlier this month. You can find that post here.
Released: April 14, 2009
Read from: 12/13/19-12/16/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.83 stars
I fun and sassy memoir about her life, focusing a lot on early life and how she became an actor, as well as her timr on Broadway and in TV shows. Kristin Chenoweth seems like the type of sweet person I'd love to be friends with, and this memoir made me a fan. You can find my full review on my most recent blog post here.
Released: October 22, 2019
Read from: 12/16/19-12/19/19
Format: Audiobook (Scribd)
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.93 stars
I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked this memoir. I found it extremely entertaining, as well as interesting. I'm also now definitely a Busy Phillips supporter. This full review is also on my most recent blog post that you can find here.
Read from: 12/21/19-12/21/19
Released: February 12, 2013
Released: September 18, 2011
Read from: 12/21/19-12/21/19
Format: Print (Purchased)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 4.27 stars
This was a really good children's book! I read it before I gave it away for a ten year old for Christmas. It's about a brother and a sister who find a secret portal to take them back in time, where they find their house, and the inhabitants of it, from 100yrs ago. But there is a dog that connects the two worlds, and the people together. The kids need to find out why they're connected. It's sort of awesome, for a kids book.
Full review on Goodreads can be found here.
Released: October 27, 2015
Read from: 12/19/19-12/24/19
Format: Audiobook (Scribd)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.57 stars
This was not my most favorite memoir. I learned a lot about her, sure, but I didn't feel the connection to the author I liked to feel with a memoir, and the order of events was not chronological so it was very confusing. My entire review can be found on Goodreads.
Released: January 6, 2015
Read from: 12/24/19-12/24/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.86 stars
A light hearted Christmas mystery, taking place in a religious area of Scotland where the modern day Christmas celebrations are viewed as pagan and frowned upon. It's very short. I listened to it in 2hrs driving down to NJ to visit family for Christmas. Nothing outstanding, but I had no negative thoughts. It was perfect for my drive. You can find the rest of my review on Goodreads.
Released: May 14, 2019
Read from: 12/16/19-12/28/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 4.37 stars
I really did not like this book. Notice the high Goodreads rating. I'm in the minority here. But there are plenty others with the same views as me on this book which was good to see when I was surfing Goodreads. I lost connection with the characters pretty quick and the ending I just hated. I have a long review explaining more of why I did not like this book that you can check out on Goodreads.
A Week in Winter by Maeve Binchy
Released: February 12, 2013
Read from: 12/24/19-12/30/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.82 stars
One big story, told in short stories. Chicky Starr comes back to Ireland after tragedy and opens an inn. The stories of each guest (how they came to the inn and how their lives are changed because of their stay there) are told, and it is all tied together in a subtle way in the end. Find my full review on Goodreads.
Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar
Released: August 5, 2015Read from: 12/30/19 - 12/31/19
Format: Audiobook (Overdrive)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Goodreads Rating: 3.87 stars
This book has a very interesting concept. It was about scientific research getting out of hand, and accidentally releasing a dangerous organism to the general environment. Three kids find themselves in the woods around it without even realizing. When two come out, one with a really bad, ulcerative and spreading rash, and the other never making it home, they know something is up, but they’re too afraid to say that they’re linked to the missing kid. Meanwhile, the mysterious rash is getting out of hand and it can’t be hidden anymore. Are the kids going to get in trouble? Is this rash going to go away or will it keep spreading? It’s obviously highly contagious...
The author is the writer of a very famous book that I read in middle school so I was curious to see what kinds of books by him were coming out recently. This one was good. I think if I was the age group it was written for I’d have liked it better. I do recommend for young readers and I think I’m going to purchase it for a few kids in my life who are about that age!
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