December Reading Wrap-up

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All opinions are my own. It’s okay to disagree. Just don’t be a dick.

For some reason, a fire lit under me in December, and I started devouring books more than I have all year. I think the Wellbutrin started kicking in. Plus, the end of December into January is the one stretch that we have a little time off from the bar and can enjoy some R & R.

I also returned to my day job after some time off, and I realized I had been wasting so much of the time that I have during the day. I work way faster than the general speed of corporate America. I can generally get my work done in half the time or less.

I read some great books in December. Let’s get into it.

The Nineties: A Book by Chuck Klosterman

I love the 90s. I was a kid for basically all of it, but I remember the music, the politics, and getting my first AOL account. This book was so much fun. I loved revisiting the decade with the distance of the last 20+ years and the context that provides. I recommend this for anyone feeling some nostalgia for their younger years.

Bevvie Pairing: A whiskey drink, a vodka drink, a lager drink, a cider drink

Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

The more I think about this book, the more I love it. Nothing is what it looks like by the end of the book. The way this book turns traditional gender roles within a marriage completely upside down, discusses aging and mental health as they all intertwine in midlife is interesting to read, and I loved the perspective of the narrator who was also telling her own story throughout the book. There were some flashbacks that felt abrupt and a little confusing, but honestly, I think watching the FX/Hulu show actually made me appreciate those parts of the book more.

Bevvie Pairing: Manhattan

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

A sweet YA read about a teenage love story. A girl stuck inside because of an immune system deficiency condition falls in love with her neighbor and risks everything to be with him. It was a lovely book, and I loved the chat transcripts and the drawings and doodles throughout the book. Sometimes reading a YA book with an adult brain gets a bit weird because when everything unfolded by the end of the book, my last thought was about the mother and whether she would be held accountable for her actions. But I enjoyed it overall.

Bevvie Pairing: Tequila Sunrise

OMG WTF Does the Constitution Actually Say? by Ben Sheehan

Fun fact about me: I started college as a political science major and ultimately changed it because I didn’t know about all of the career opportunities that exist within that field. I just thought everyone went to law school which was of no interest to me. I still care very much about civic engagement and being knowledgeable on our political system. Less than half of the people in this country can even name the three branches of government. COME ON! Anyway, let’s bring civics education and use this swear-y book about the constitution.

Bevvie Pairing: America Lager of your choice

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

This had been on and off by TBR for a while and then I found a used copy and decided to give it a go. It is absolutely beautifully written. The way the characters are connected with each other, and the central story is interesting and surprising as everything unfolds. There were a few things that I didn’t really connect with, mostly the ghosts.

Bevvie Pairing: Corpse Reviver

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Greed destroys. The main character experiences an accident that results in the loss of her memory of the summer she spent on her rich family’s private island. When she returns two years later, still missing her memory, everything starts to come back to her. I did not see the end coming. Completely surprised me.

*Spoiler Alert*

I’m going to try to make this spoiler a not-too-much-of-a-spoiler, but I think the end of this book should have a trigger warning. There was recently a fire in my apartment building, and while we were all waiting outside after evacuating the building, we saw the firefighters bring a dog outside who was trapped in the apartment and perform CPR on him. He did not make it. It was incredibly difficult and traumatizing to watch, and recently having that experience made the end of the book tough for me to read. Do with that what you will.

Bevvie Pairing: White wine spritzer

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

I thought this book was really fun. The whole book had be wondering what the heck was happening, where was Owen? Is he a bad guy or a good guy? I don’t know that I was totally shocked by the way things unfolded, but it was a fun read. And as a rational adult human, I don’t know that like, two connections to a certain city would get me to jump on a plan to search for my missing husband. Hey, we all have our limits.

There was a line in the book that said that Owen was drinking a “tall glass of whiskey” at a hotel bar, which made me LOL. That is absolutely not a thing that happens at any bar. It’s a single or a double, on the rocks or neat. A tall glass of whiskey would perhaps lead to alcohol poisoning. Minor detail, but it was funny to me.

Bevvie Pairing: Chardonnay, or a tall glass of whiskey, I guess

The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans

Reading diverse authors is really important to me, and I was admittedly not great about that in 2022. This book is a collection of short stories and a novella. All of them tackle some facet of race relations – the presence of the confederate flag on a college campus, racial differences within families, and the history we don’t get right. I really enjoyed this and would definitely recommend it.

Bevvie Pairing: Mint Julep

Until next time!