January Wrap Up

Well hello there reader.

Once again another month has come and gone, taking with it all the books I finished in January. I don't have much to say, reader, so let's get right into the list.

From left to right: Grave Importance, Chasing a Ghost, Thirteen Storeys, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States, How To Do Nothing, Mexican Gothic, Kitchen,  Tokyo Ueno Station.

Tragic news, reader. I've just realized that my lovely graphic lists the books out of reading order. Now, could I go back into Canva and fix this glaring oversight? Of course not, that would require too much effort. Just know that I expended absolutely no energy to fix it. 

First is We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirly Jackson. My friend Vedis (who you might recognize as my delightful photographer over on instagram) lent me this book and I liked it. This is the first novel of Shirly Jackson's that I've read, although I have heard good things about her work. I do very much love the miniseries based on The Haunting of Hill House. Its piano theme often gets stuck in my head. Anyway, reader, I thought this was a serviceable and spooky little tale. You get an answer to the large mystery but not some of the smaller ones. For example, you find out why the Blackwood family was poisoned, but not if Merricat's sympathetic magic is effective or not. I also was not expecting the ending but I'm glad at least the cat made it through unscathed. One thing is for sure, reader, that town is going to have some very interesting local legends.

3/5 pumpkins.

Next is How To Do Nothing by Jenny Odell, a book recommended by Ariel Bissett a Canadian booktuber. It's a nonfiction book about disengaging from the attention economy and forming healthier attitudes and behaviors where social media is concerned. Odell has a tendency to wander from talking about the attention economy to relating stories about the art world she's a part of or her observations about the natural world. It does repeat itself on occasion, but not enough to feel stilted. I don't know much about contemporary art, but it's clear that Odell really cares about it and that care is interesting to read. I was more at home when she was talking about philosophers. I recommend this book, reader. This isn't a screed on cell phones bad, but a meaningful look at how social media can negatively impact you. 

4/5 pumpkins.

It is with happiness and also sadness that I have finished Grave Importance by Vivian Shaw. It's the third book in the Greta Helsing series and the climax of the three books. I hope there will be more, but I don't actually know if Vivian Shaw is writing more books in this universe. They are very good, reader. If you're looking for three solid urban fantasy books with a wry tone I highly recommend these. This book focuses on the mummies that Greta has been taking care of and in my estimation handled the mummy characters well. The fact that they are people who were largely plundered from their graves by Europeans is an integral part of their characters. As is the continued theft of their grave goods. It's a plot point, but I shan't spoil too much of the story, reader. We also find out why reality is weakening. And Grisaille and Ruthven are honeymooning in the first part of the book. I love those two. 

5/5 pumpkins.

I picked up An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz while in Portland. It's been on my reading list for a while now, but I'm very happy I got the opportunity to purchase a physical copy of it. This is an excellent history book, reader. It certainly will help fill in the gaps any American history class has left you with. Dunbar-Ortiz also quotes Silvia Federici's Caliban and the Witch, something I was very excited about, reader. She connections the enclosure of the commons talked about in Caliban with the settler-colonist drive to acquire more and more land. Absolutely marvelous. There's also a reading list in the back of the book which I am looking forward to reading. Normally when I read a book to further my own education I don't rate them. I wanted to make an exception here since history is my subject so I feel a little more confident saying that it is a good text.

5/5 pumpkins.

Tokyo Ueno Station by Yu Miri was the only library book hold that came in last month, but it was the book on there that I was most excited to read. It tells the story of Kazu's ghost, a working-class man who died homeless in Ueno park. It's an interesting look at Kazu's life as well as at the park and the people he spent his last days with. I felt like the story ended abruptly, but did cultivate a feeling of being unmoored in time and space. The atmosphere Miri set was interesting. I don't have much to say about the story itself besides that. 

3/5 pumpkins.  

Next is Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto, another book Vedis loaned me. I liked this story about loss, family, and the comfort you can find in a kitchen. I could have spent more time reading Yoshimoto's descriptions of how kitchens made her characters feel. The story also has a trans character and her depiction is a little dated, though it seems pretty typical of trans characters in Japanese stories, if that makes sense. It isn't a negative portrayal, just one that draws attention to the fact that she used to be a father and is now a mother. Eriko is an amazing character and I could read novels about her exploits owning a nightclub. She is killed, however, so if that is something you don't want to read about it might be best to skip this one.

3/5 pumpkins.

I am happy to report I finally finished Chasing a Ghost by DA Ravenscroft, reader. I knew I would like this book and I was right. The dramatic irony, the characters, the unrepentant queerness, it's just beautiful reader. I can't wait to read the next book, Chasing a Legacy. I have it on my shelf and everything. I really admire the Classic Tragedy nature of this story. It is a tragedy, mind. Enjolras and Graintaire may have escaped the barricade once, but the next one? Ah, well that would be spoiling the ending, wouldn't it reader. This was a delight to read.

4/5 pumpkins.

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims, a book which I borrowed from my partner and thus had to wait to read. At least until he finished it. He marked all the content warnings, so that was alright. If you don't know Jonathan Sims, he is the writer of horror podcast The Magnus Archives as well as the voice of its main character, also called Jonathan Sims. I'm a new horror reader and I'm still trying to find my feet in terms of what I like. I figured I would enjoy this because I enjoy TMA. I was not spooked by this book, but I did like it. It follows the stories of several narrators, each with a connection to Banyan Court, and each with an invitation to see its reclusive billionaire builder who lives on the top floor penthouse. I don't want to spoil anything so in the interest of that particular goal: I felt like most of the stories were okay to good but there were some characters that could have been better handled. Mostly Jesús and Jason. The lead-up to the story's climax was not subtle which I'm sure it wasn't supposed to be. It was fervently anticapitalistic and something of a commentary on European colonialism. It did do its best and I apricated it. There were a lot of fun moments that were visually striking. I recommend it. It, like much of Jonny's writing, is horror as social commentary.

4/5 pumpkins.

Last and not least is Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, the second book I've read by this author. This is another horror book that was also incredible at creating an atmosphere just popped. It's also a horror book that would make an amazing movie, which I would not be able to watch. Visual horror has always frightened me worse than audio or text-based horror. I am easily scared, and I also don't like skeletons with too much meat. There is a point between body and skeleton that is Very Bad to Look At. I also want to say, since my sister and my partner hate this particular thing, that there are mushrooms growing out of people in this story. It's integral to the plot. If that is something that you can't read about, don't pick up this book. It's good, I loved it, but if the mushrooms are a deal-breaker, please sit this one out. Read Gods of Jade and Shadow, it's also good and doesn't have mushrooms. This book is the first horror novel I've read that genuinely creeped me out, reader. I thought it impossible, and yet here we are.

5/5 pumpkins.

Thus ends my January reads. I've finished four books so far in February and only one of them was on my TBR list. I have some very long ones on there, so wish me luck. And as always:

Until next time, dear reader 🎃