Last year I read 100 books. It was an amazing time and a feat I’m very proud of. But this year I’m not setting a reading goal. I want to be able to read longer form pieces (like the 5 volume 3,000 page Dostoevsky biography I have my eye on) without having to worry about meeting a quota.
Even so I was able to read a variety of wonderful books this month. Thank you Random House for gifting me these books, noted with a star!
A Gentleman in Moscow
Amor Towles
This has been on my list forever and I’ve just kept prioritizing other books. It was worth the wait. I loved, loved, loved this book. In a word, it’s delightful. It’s about a man who is sentenced by the Soviet government to life imprisoned in the famous Metropol Hotel in Moscow. He makes all kinds of friends and gets into all kinds of antics during his time there. Perfection from start to finish.
Great Goddesses
Nikita Gill
This is a really interesting book of poetry about Greek goddesses but through a contemporary, feminist lens. The poems were really beautiful and thought provoking. Goddesses (and women) definitely don’t get treated very well in Greek lore so it was nice to see that taken back. I will say, these are best digested slowly over a period of time rather than read through all at once.
Blood and Ivy
Paul Collins
This was our book club book for January. It’s about a famous murder on the Harvard campus in the nineteenth century. One Harvard professor murders another Harvard alum because of money issues and everyone refuses to believe it because of Harvard’s prestige. It was an engaging read and a reminder of the entrenched privilege in our world.
Women With Big Eyes
Angeles Mastretta
This is a beautiful book of short stories about the Latina experience. The edition I bought had both English and Spanish versions which is always nice, especially as I’m trying to improve my Spanish. It’s written as though exploring all the female branches of the family tree, Aunt Maria, Aunt Esperanza, Aunt Alba, etc. It’s a lovely homage to the power of female ancestry.
Art of the Con
Anthony Amore
Art of the Con is a book written by the head of security at the Gardner Museum (famous for its 1990 theft) about famous art thefts around the country. Art theft is inherently interesting so in that way it’s a pretty engaging book, but the writing isn’t outstanding. It’s an entertaining enough read, but nothing groundbreaking.
Sabrina and Corina*
Kali Fajardo-Anstine
I really enjoyed this collection of short stories about indigenous Latinas in the U.S. I read a lot of Latina lit but this was a fairly new perspective for me. The author is from Denver so a lot of the stories take place in that area, a region of the country that’s also fairly foreign to me. These were beautifully written and very interesting, highly recommend.
Have Dog Will Travel
Stephen Kuusisto
This book was recommended to me by a friend. It’s written by a blind poet about how his life changed when he got his first seeing eye dog. My abuelo was blind and worked with a seeing eye dog so I really enjoyed reading this piece. The author had clearly been through some familial trauma and his dog brought him a loving, trusting relationship as much as a travel companion.
The Ghosts of Eden Park*
Karen Abbott
This is a phenomenal nonfiction book about a bootlegger in the 1920s who owned 1/3 of the whiskey in the whole country. He and his wife built this prohibition bootlegging empire and then it all came crashing down when he was pursued by the (female) Assistant Attorney General. Every part of this journey is insane and fascinating and it’s written in a really interesting way. Highly recommend.