Elizabeth's Rusted ROOTS

I joined this group in 2020 hoping to read more of my owned books...and then the pandemic hit and I went through a huge reading slump instead. I would have rejoined in 2021, but I found out I was pregnant with my first and he was born on January 5, 2021, so reading wasn't really my top priority! This year, I am all set to try again with a goal of 30 books, as some of the books I have on my shelf are mammoth! I am looking forward to my next attempt.

Elizabeth-welcome!
You can do this!
Happy birthday to your son!

Happy reading- may you find lots of time for this.{ hint-I read when my girls were napping}- housework, what housework lol. :+}

>2 LadyBookworth: Hello! That sums it up pretty well! My house is a perpetual disaster! And thank you for the happy birthday- I can't believe I'm going to have 1 year old! (Who also loves books!)

Happy ROOTing in 2022!

Hi Elizabeth. Such nice news! An almost one-year old boy. Congrats on that and on his upcoming first birthday.

Happy ROOTing in 2022!

Welcome, Liz! I joined this group as a new mum too, I now have an 8 year old which I can't believe (I'm sure she was 1 only 5 minutes ago!). I hope you have a good reading year, and find the best times for you to read.

Welcome back and have a great reading year! Count your son's books as ROOTs too! ;)

>7 rabbitprincess: You know, we've actually read most of my son's owned books, but there's a few I know we haven't yet!

Welcome back and happy birthday to your little one!

>9 MissWatson: Thank you!

I'm using a random number generator to decide which books I read off my shelf. I got one of my middle grade books first!

#1) Blended by Sharon M. Draper

#2) Who Thought This was a Good Idea? And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When you Work in the White House by Alyssa Mastromonaco.

#3) State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. I wasn't a huge fan, unfortunately.

#4) The Stolen Marriage by Diane Chamberlain. My most enjoyed ROOT so far!

#5) Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. A middle grade memoir in verse. This was so gorgeously written and my favorite ROOT of the year so far.

#6) The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury.

Hi Elizabeth, I've been away from LT Threads for a while. Too much going on in my life the last months. I hope you are still going strong with your reading.

>17 connie53: Thank you, Connie! I appreciate you checking in. :) So far, so good!

#7) Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. This is an epic tale about a cattle drive from Texas to Montana. I fell in love with the characters and was devastated when it was over!

#8) Ash & Bramble by Sarah Prineas. It was a good enough retelling of Cinderella. I liked a lot of the elements, like the Godmother being cast as the villain, and the having to break the Story. At times, I felt like this would have been better as a trilogy, as some of the parts felt a bit rushed.

#9) Switch by A.S. King. Magical realism/thought provoking/ya.

#10) Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi. I absolutely loved this! It was the fastest I've ever read a book from my bookshelf, as I received this for SantaThing 2021.

#11) Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami.

#12) Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks. Listened to most of this one on audiobook, of which the last story with multiple narrators, including Cecily Strong, was my favorite.

#13) Toasting Up Trouble by Linda Wiken. Wanted to like it, but just didn't. It was extremely readable, but the author had no idea how old her protagonist was supposed to be. There was a Get Smart reference; how many 20 somethings would know about that show? The only reason I know it was because my father, who's in his 60s, watched it when I was growing up. And these women with their calories- their values around calories don't match up with mine, and I'm apparently pretty vehement about this. Not for me, I will not be seeking out the sequels.

#14) Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. This is the first book in a planned trilogy, though only books 1 and 2 are out. I have a hard time finishing series and trilogies, so we shall see if I get to book #2, but it ends on such a cliffhanger!

#15) The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa. I received this book in a mystery chocolate and romance book subscription box. It ended up being the second in a series, but with romance novels it doesn't really matter most of the time. Light, fluffy, a 3/5 spicy level (a couple intense romance scenes and a slow burn), and lots of fun.

#16) The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow. This was a solid read, but it didn't quite live up to my high expectations. Would still recommend; Harrow's writing style is terrific and I'll pursue her other novels for sure.

Hi Elizabeth. I've been neglecting the ROOTers for some time. Live, sunny days, babysitting the grandkids and doing volunteer work for the library at Lonne's school. And reading of course. Today is a rainy day with some thunderstrokes. A perfect Sunday for reading al those neglected threads.

>29 readergirliz: I loved that book. I've read A spindle fractured and The once and future witches and liked them even better.

#17) After several weeks, I've finished The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, a sweeping saga of a family living in Australia. Someone in reviews described it as a Greek tragedy, and I am inclined to agree. It is also the story of 3 generations of women who eventually find their place in the world after upsetting and difficult losses in their lives. The main relationship in the book is extremely problematic, but I was captivated following the results of the relationship. I think it was worth the read!

>31 readergirliz: I remember that book as quit impressive, Elizabeth. Glad you liked is too.

>32 connie53: Thank you, Connie! I appreciate that you check in with me, and everyone else in this group!

#18) The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. How I wanted to like this book! Most of it was well written and engaging, even with difficult subject matter, but I felt the ending was contrived and pretty awful. I wouldn't recommend it- to the Little Free Library we go!

#19) People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks. This was a great read, and definitely in my top 5 ROOTs of the year! Historical fiction merged with contemporary fiction, and a treasure hunt of sorts.

#20) Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. This was a reread for me. The characters were delightful and quirky, though the plot kind of wandered around and didn't always make sense to me.

>36 readergirliz: I've just started that one!

>37 Jackie_K: I hope that you enjoy it!

#21) The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. This book was just okay for me. I liked the style of storytelling a lot and I really enjoyed the author's writing; however, the story itself didn't quite grab me and I didn't always love her descriptions (some particularly gross).

And #22) Modern Lovers by Emma Straub. I liked this one way more than I thought I was going to. It was definitely the right time of year to read it, it was a beachy kind of read. The only character I couldn't get behind was Andrew- his story seemed the most contrived, even though this was a story about a fictional band!

#23, which I squeezed in yesterday. It's been a long time since I read a book in a day, but I took a little reading retreat and was able to do it! Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer.

#24) Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan. I'm glad I read this at the beginning of September, since it was set in Maine during June and July! I love a good dysfunctional family book, and I liked the mother-daughter relationships in the story. Since each character had chapters from their perspective, it was a lot of fun seeing the different points of view of the same events. The ending didn't quite land for me, but I had a good time along the way.

>41 readergirliz: That sounds interesting and I have a digital version of the translation. So, on my Kobo it goes.

>43 connie53: Happy reading, Connie! :) I hope you love it!

#25) Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman. I went into this book only hearing that Eleanor was something of a curmudgeon. Since I enjoy those types of narrators, I thought this book would be a light, fluffy, "cranky person with a heart of gold" stories. Boy, was I wrong. Eleanor is just an outsider who truly doesn't care what others think of her appearance, vocabulary, or mannerisms. But wow, what a load she carries. Trigger warnings for: discussions of physical abuse, emotional abuse on the page, harm to children, death, depression, and suicidal ideation. I ultimately absolutely loved this book and even wished it were a touch longer so I could know what happened to a certain character and a certain event! My favorite ROOT of 2022.

#26) Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney. I well and truly hated this book. The writing style was good, but the characters were insufferable, there wasn't a plot, and there was no change to the characters from beginning to end.

>46 readergirliz: That sounds awful.

#27) Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. A compelling family saga, and because I grew up in a big, loud, Italian family, I loved the way he depicted the big, loud, Greek family in this story. I think it would have been more appropriate had it been written by someone who was intersex. I listened to most of it on audiobook and thoroughly enjoyed the narrator as well!

#28) Red Clocks by Leni Zumas. I flew through this book by listening to it on both audio and reading it. Definitely a quick read, but not an easy read. In a future that looks an awful lot like our present, abortion is illegal, all adopted children must be adopted by 2 parents, and an embryo could technically own property, as they are considered a person. This book follows 4 women (technically 5, I guess? That's what the cover says...) who are each fighting a part of this new system. No happy endings here, but very thought-provoking, and unfortunately way too relevant.

#29) The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez. Very cute rom-com, only 1 very sexy scene but a lot of flirty tension; discussion of infertility, and loss of a loved one unexpectedly. Deducted points for constant repetition of "he won't love me because I can't have children" and for Kristen treating Josh like garbage.

And #30! My last one! I'm so proud of myself! The View from the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman, a collection of nonfiction. He's one of my favorite authors but I hadn't really read any of his nonfiction. I read it one essay at a time, except for today because I wanted to finish it before December. Here's to ROOTing again in 2023, though I'll try to sneak in a bonus ROOT before the year is out!

>51 readergirliz: Woo hoo! Congratulations!

>51 readergirliz: Well done!

Hooray, well done!

You did it! Gongrats on reaching your goal!



Wishing you ans yours all the best for 2023 and Happy Holidays!