Tuesday, 1 September 2026

2025 Book Commentary

Yes, I'm over half a year late posting this, but I want it for my own records.

I only read 33 books in 2025. But I had a busy year. 2026 is going to be better when it comes to book reading!

A good portion of my reading was British literature because I tutored Challenge II (Classical Conversations), and my class did British literature. This was my second year tutoring this level, but I hadn't read all the books the first time (tutors aren't required to read them - we just facilitate discussion). I also read some of my favorite authors and some new-to-me authors. In 2025, I read Christian historical fiction, classics, mysteries, young adult, fantasy, and a biography.

Here are the stats:

Books read: 33 (or maybe 34)

Most read author: Jen Turano (3 books) 

Runners up: J.R.R. Tolkien, Karen Witemeyer, Rachel Scott McDaniel, Jaime Jo Wright (2 books each)

Favorite book: The Curious Inheritance of Blakely House (Joanna Davidson Politano)

Other favorites: Walking on Hidden Wings AND The Dreams We Knew (both by Rachel Scott McDaniel), To Love a Beast (Karen Witemeyer), Of Silver and Secrets (Michelle Griep), and the first 4 classics listed below under "Re-reads."

Re-reads: The Return of the King (Tolkien), The Hobbit (Tolkien), Pride & Prejudice (Austen), Jane Eyre (Bronte), The Pilgrim's Progress (Bunyan), Robinson Crusoe (Defoe), Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Carroll)

Least favorite: I don't usually put a least favorite, but I didn't enjoy these two at all: Beowulf: A New Telling (Robert Nye) and A Passage to India (E.M. Forster). I think Beowulf: A New Telling would be my least favorite because the "new telling" was awful (imo). It has good reviews on Amazon, but I can't think why. Try a good translation of the original Beowulf instead. I wouldn't recommend it as a good introduction to Beowulf for kids, but that's me. Too much of the story was changed, and I found some bits silly or inappropriate for kids. A Passage to India has very good descriptions of India so that you feel you're there. And that's my only positive. None, and I do mean none, of the characters are likeable. It's told from a nihilistic point of view, so it's rather depressing.

I enjoyed all the rest of the books on my list!

I'm doing much better at reading this year, and my favorites list will be a lot longer!


Saturday, 10 January 2026

2026 Book Log

January
1. About Last Christmas (Rachel Scott McDaniel)
2. Whispers at Painswick Court (Julie Klassen)*

February
3. A Lady's Guide to Marvels and Misadventure (Angela Bell)*
4. The Bird of Bedford Manor (Michelle Griep)*

April
5. The Bookshop of 99 Doors (Jaime Jo Wright)
6. The Manhattan Confessions (Jocelyn Green)*
7. In Pursuit of Civility (Jen Turano)

May
8. Meet Me in Virginia (Elizabeth Camden)
9. Nineteen Eighty-Four (George Orwell)

June
10. When Debbie Dared (Kathleen Robinson)
11. Beyond the Clouds (Elizabeth Camden)
12. Don't Upstage the Body (Naomi Stephens) 
13. The Lost Story of Via Belle (Melanie Dobson)

July
14. The Life She Forgot (Joanna Davidson Politano)*
15. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
16. Worthy of Legend (Roseanna M. White) 
17. Alex Rider: Nightshade Revenge (Anthony Horowitz)
18. A Lady's Handbook to Gadgets and Guile (Angela Bell)*
19. A Thieving at Carlton House (Erica Vetsch)
20. Finding Lady Enderly (Joanna Davidson Politano)
21. The Highland Heist (Pepper Basham)
22. The Sleuth of Blackfriars Lane (Michelle Griep)

August 
23. The Bachelor Spy (Pepper Basham)
24. Part of Your World (Karen Witemeyer)*
25. In the Shelter of Hollythorne House (Sarah E. Ladd)
26. The Cloverton Charade (Sarah E. Ladd)
27. The Good Fortune of Miss Robbins (Melanie Dickerson)

September
28.