I am SO excited to write this blog post! Somehow, everything just fell into place and my January reading has been amazing. I’ve read two books that will be on my top ten favorite books ever list, and I’ve read several other five star reads. In fact, my lowest rating this month was a three star. I am also learning to DNF right away if something isn’t working for, so I think I’ve quit 3 books this month before I even really dedicated much time to them. One of them I may leave on my TBR to revisit at another time when my brain space feels different, but it was a DNF for now book.
Ok, let’s get started!
I read 11 books this month. 6 were fiction and 5 were nonfiction.
The Lincoln Highway
My Review: People LOVE Amor Towles, and this was my first book I’ve read by him. I was…underwhelmed. It was the story of a band of misfits who leave on a road trip. Except they first have to backtrack and several of them get into all kinds of trouble. The entire book takes place BEFORE they actually begin the road trip, so that drove me a little bit crazy. The characters were well developed, but I still struggled to connect with any of them in a reasonable way. This was just an ok book for me. I will try one more from this author and if I’m as underwhelmed, I will know that this author just is not for me.
How to Winter: Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold, Dark or Difficult Days
This book was one of those rare books that actually changed my life. I loved this book from the first word to the last. I loved how easy it was to read and to stay engaged with the subject matter. I loved her challenges on how to enjoy and thrive in a winter season. There were so many good takeaways from each chapter of this book. I think I will buy a copy and keep it on my bookshelves to re-read occasionally. If you are a winter hater or struggle in the winter- this book is for you.
The Cook’s Book
My Review: While I don’t follow this author online anymore, I am familiar with her. She’s cute as a button and a really great cook, with a sense of humor as well. I really enjoyed this book! It’s part cook book and part “how to” cook. I think this would make a great wedding gift! I gleaned lots of bits of information from it, and while I didn’t cook any of the recipes, most of them were down to earth and totally doable for a normal person who is just cooking for her family.
The Unmaking of June Farrow
This was our book club book for January! We met on Tuesday night and had some great discussions around the book. Everyone else in my book club really liked the book, some really LOVED the book! I did not. This book has a time travel element and I just did not understand the rules of her time travel. I could not wrap my mind around how it was working and how she broke the curse. I felt like the characters on one side of the timeline were neglected while the characters on the other side of the timeline were well developed. I loved the book club discussion and I’m glad I read it, but it was not for me and I probably wouldn’t pick up any other book by this author.
Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion
Woof, ok. This book. Where to even begin? I have followed Allie Beth Stuckey in some capacity for a year or two. I think she is a very gifted orator and has a way with words. I am a conservative Christian, and so I agree with a lot of what she says and I’ve even learned from her. HOWEVER. I am concerned about the level of “fangirl” that many of her followers have reached. They seem to take her word as gospel and it concerns me because she doesn’t get everything right. In a similar way, I found this book kind of hard to read. While I agree with almost all of her points, I find her tone to be often rude or condescending. I think that God has given her gifts to be STRONG and be able to DEBATE and I think that those are her strengths (and I’m thankful that God gave them to her and she is using them!), but my more gentle peacemaking spirit cringes when I’m listening or reading some things that she says. I know people who would enjoy this book, but I honestly hesitate to recommend it because it can be tone deaf and I don’t love how people seem to lose their critical thinking when they listen to her.
Shen of the Sea: Chinese Stories for Children
My Review: This was another Newberry medal book from the Newberry medal list, and I actually enjoyed this one! These were all parables or tales based around the Chinese culture. I say “based around” because this was actually written by an American who just associated with Chinese people. In 1925 when this book was published it was the norm for an American to write as if they were the authority on a different culture, but in 2025 we may say that it lacked the “own voices” concept. On a positive note, it wasn’t culturally insensitive or racist.
How to Read a Book
My Review: This book was an absolute GEM. I adored this book. I loved it so much. I cried and hugged the book when I had finished it. I laughed. I loved the characters. I loved the story arc. I loved the idea of found family. I loved the plot point that when someone gets their life back on track, they sometimes still mess up. It’s really hard to explain the plot of this book, but just know that the book cover does not accurately reflect the depth and beauty that is contained in the pages of this book. Just do yourself a favor and READ IT.
When Less Becomes More
This book has been sitting on my shelf for years and I thought that January was a great time to read through it. I really enjoyed it! I loved the reminders to clear out whatever clutter (physical, mental, emotional) that I can so that life can be full of the things that really matter. Even though the author and I have very different lives, I find so much of what she writes relatable and applicable to anyone.
If the Shoe Fits
My Review: I loved this sweet rom-com! It is part of a series of modern day retellings of princess stories. This one was a Cinderella retelling and it takes place on a TV show based on The Bachelor. I loved how this was a clean/closed door romance and I liked the character development as well as the plot. It was a fun read for me and I’m excited to pick up the other books in the series (all the books are by different authors, so I’m interested to see how that works!)
Defending Jacob
My Review: I don’t know how to classify this book. It was a thriller, with some creepy murder vibes but it was not a page-turning, fast-paced book by any means. In this story, a young boy is accused of a crime. His lawyer father and steadfast mother stand by him the whole time and defend him to the end. They lose all they have in the process. At the end is a shocking twist that I did not see coming. While this book takes place primarily in the courtroom and moves very slowly through the plot, it was interesting and I’m glad I stuck it out until the end!
Free Range Kids
My Review: I am fully on board with the concept of Free Range Kids! In fact, I would say that my kids are being raised in this style. I enjoyed this book, but didn’t find anything revolutionary or that I didn’t already know. This was another book that I had a hard time with the tone of the author. So much of what she said I agreed with, but she would say it in such a sarcastic tone that it rubbed me the wrong way.
DNF
Ready Player One, The Echo Wife, Hannah’s Children
And that’s a wrap on January! Here’s to hoping February has just as many AMAZING reads!
If you want to try another by Toles I do recommend a Gentleman in Moscow; my husband’s suggested it to me this summer and not knowing anything about it I picked it up. The book is based on a man who has been sentenced to live his life in a Russian hotel for fear of being captured or killed if he steps foot outside. It was really interesting to see history unfolding inside the hotel and with the characters around him. I listened to How to Read a book on the plane this winter and was so surprised at the content of the story based on the cover BUT I did love it so much! I have also just finished reading all the If The Shoe Fit series of books/fairy tale makeovers and enjoyed them all. Though I can’t remember if some were a bit more not so PG? (but I’m pretty sure they were). They were all really enjoyable.