January 2022 book list

Hi there, friend! I hope everything on your end is good and that this week has been treating you well.

The other day, in the Monday Poll, Tisha asked the following question in the comments:

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Btw, what are you reading? I’ve been dying to get my hands on a good book, sounds like fun!

I read lots of great fiction last month. My favorite out of the bunch was “Klara and the Sun,” by Kazuo Ishiguro. It’s science fiction, but not the kind that involves aliens destroying the earth or superheroes saving the universe from killer snakes from outer space.

It’s a quiet story of a robot companion and her teenage charge, and it contemplates what it implies to love and be human. Days after I finished the last page, I kept thinking about the story, and my heart would feel both heavy and hopeful at the same time.

Sigh… I’m not ready for the rise of the machines, man.

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Still, I loved it. It’s one of the best books I’ve read in years.

I’ve recently discovered that Reese Witherspoon (yup, the actress) has a book club, kinda like Oprah’s book Club. Every book that she’s recommended so far, I’ve enjoyed. In January I finished…

“The Giver of Stars,” by Jojo Moyes

I started this a while back but stopped reading when it got scary for the main characters, librarians who travel by horseback into the far reaches of the Kentucky mountains during the Depression. I just couldn’t take it and needed a break. I’m so glad I finished this book, though. It’s about friendship and resilience, and the relationships between the women are beautiful.

“The Last story of Mina Lee,” by Nancy Jooyoun Kim

This mystery is about a Korean woman who immigrates to Los Angeles in the ’80s and her daughter, and it flips back and forth between the past and the present as the story unfolds. I had to force myself to put the book down before bed! It’s one of those books you could easily read cover to cover.

“The Henna Artist,” by Alka Joshi

Another page turner! It’s set in 1950’s India, and it’s about a woman trying to make it on her own in a world where there aren’t a lot of opportunities. Again, I couldn’t put it down.

That Reese Witherspoon knows how to pick some good books.

I also read a couple non-fiction books, too. “Painless Grammar,” by Rebecca Elliott, is written for kids, but it’s a fun refresher on basics of the English Language. I also delighted in “The easy Filipino Cookbook,” by Roline Casper, and I can’t wait to try some of her recipes.

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What’ve you been reading lately?

Your friendly neighborhood charm addict,

Karen