We Are Still Tornadoes

 Book 42 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 30 - 31

We Are Still Tornadoes

by Michael Kun and Susan Mullen

published 2016

5 stars

I read this on vacation and it was a perfect mix of light and heavy topics.  The letters format made it easy to pick up and put down as I was traveling around town.  There were lines that made me laugh out loud and I'm a sucker for young romance.  Even though I'm happy with the ending I also wasn't ready for it to be over and wanted more from the characters.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 42nd book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I own (my goal is to continue chipping away at my shelves/boxes of unread books)

- Title starting with 'W' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Edge of Lost

 Book 41 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 21 - 27

The Edge of Lost 

by Kristina McMorris

published 2015

5 stars

Lovely book with good pacing, interesting characters, and a satisfying ending.  Just by coincidence I finished this book on the plane to California and we visited San Francisco and saw a display about attempted escapes from Alcatraz.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 41st book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'E' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

1920

 Book 40 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 21 - 26

1920: The Year of the Six Presidents

by David Pietrusza

published 2007

4 stars

"The President of the United States lay bleeding on the bathroom floor."  This opening line set the tone for an accessible nonfiction book that wasn't dry and didn't feel like the 533 pages it was.  There were a lot of people to focus on and while I got lost in the connections of some of the secondary players, the book was overall easy to follow.

What an amazing election cycle to have 6 past, current, or future presidents running.  No other election has come close to that; my first thought was because of term limits but my second, sadder thought is because presidents now skew so old they aren't around for as many cycles.  My kids have heard me lament many times about the lack of Gen X presidents - the Boomers didn't leave and now the Millennials are coming up.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 40th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'N' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Just the Funny Parts

 Book 39 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 21 - 26

Just the Funny Parts: ... And a Few Hard Truths 

About Sneaking into the Hollywood Boys' Club

by Nell Scovell

published 2018

3 stars

Even though I didn't know Nell Scovell by name it turns out I've seen and enjoyed a lot of her work.  The book was entertaining with good jokes and amusing anecdotes.

So why 3 stars instead of 4?  I don't want to overtax myself by going back through the book for specific quotes but some of the more serious points rubbed me the wrong way.  She was judging others harshly for actions that, from this outsider's opinion, she also did (off the top of my head, an example would be rolling her eyes at a young woman entertaining male writers with a story about her boobs when earlier she said she would try to start with a filthy joke to let others know she was 'one of them').  Diversity is an issue and should be talked about but she seemed to want to hold others accountable while making justifications for herself at times that she had as much power as the people she was talking about to possibly make changes. Or the system of 'word of mouth' in general...it's not good when it's white men recommending/choosing white men but doesn't the system also fail when it's white women recommending/choosing white women, like it's the gatekeeping and not the specific demographic that's the issue?

The "funny parts" read quickly and I enjoyed them.  The stronger messages were on point but I'm taking the messenger with a grain of salt. 

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 39th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'J' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Reading Promise

 Book 38 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 16 - 20

The Reading Promise: My Father and the Books We Shared

by Alice Ozma

published 2011

4 stars

When talking about buying books that can be read and passed down through generations..."What greater gift to your descendants yet unborn than the love of books and reading?"

The book was very readable with a great message.

Reading with your kids?  Great.

Sharing something special?  Great.

Having a common goal?  Great.

If I started looking beyond the reading into other aspects of their dynamic (as told by the author)?  Maybe a little codependent.

If I started thinking about the mom and/or sister and projected my own feelings of being left out?  Possibilities of hurt feelings.

But overall, I'm really happy for the author and the memories she was able to create.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 38th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'R' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Accidental Astronomy

 Book 37 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 12 - 19

Accidental Astronomy: How Random Discoveries 

Shape the Science of Space

by Chris Lintott

published 2024

2 stars

This is a low 2 star read for me; it's not a 1 because I'm not angry but I am pretty bored.  I read lots of words but can't say I retained a lot of information.  My mind wandered.

I saw this book while browsing at the library and expected actual random discoveries in space (like the example of discovering penicillin in medicine), like "happy accidents".  That was not the case (or if it was, I completely missed them).

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 37th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'A' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Bad Girls With Perfect Faces

 Book 36 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 15 - 17

Bad Girls With Perfect Faces

by Lynn Weingarten

published 2017

4 stars

This author knows how to make interesting titles.  I read her book Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls in 2018 and added this to my list at that time...there's no rhyme or reason to what ends up making it off my never-ending TBR.

For most of the book I felt uncomfortable in a 'low stakes' way, like with second hand embarrassment or concern about the consequences on their social lives.  The stakes got higher as the book went on and while I can't say I found the ending realistic or satisfying, it was interesting and I couldn't put it down.

I can picture that final scene of crossing paths in a movie shot before fading to black.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 36th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'B' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Carnegie Libraries Across America

 Book 35 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 12 - 16

Carnegie Libraries Across America: A Public Legacy

by Theodore Jones

published 1997

3 stars

"Free libraries maintained by the people are cradles of democracy, and their spread can never fail to extend and strengthen the democratic idea, the equality of the citizen, [and] the royalty of man.  They are emphatically fruit of the true American ideal." 

~ Andrew Carnegie

I picked this book from a library display.  Spending time browsing at a library and coming home to read about libraries and look at pictures of old libraries?  Sold.

Even though it was published almost 30 years ago it's not outdated other than the stats about how many libraries are still in use.  The majority of the book was about the history of the Carnegie grants and the beginning of public libraries.  Iowa connection: the first Carnegie library was in Fairfield, IA.  At the time of the book's publication the library was being transitioned; I looked it up and the building is still standing and currently a Carnegie museum.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 35th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'C' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert

 Book 34 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 12 - 15

Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert

by Bob the Drag Queen

published 2025

5 stars

I love Bob TDQ's passion about any project they're involved in and hearing them talk about this book was no exception.

The concept of this book was very creative and although I have no shared life experience with any of the characters they were written in a relatable way passing knowledge in an accessible way.

I don't do audiobooks but I feel like this book would be good in that format as well, especially if the songs are performed.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 34th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

An Offer From a Gentleman

 Book 33 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 8 -12

An Offer From a Gentleman

by Julia Quinn

published 2001

3 stars

As I continue the Bridgerton series, I think this may be one of the few times I'll enjoy the show/movie more than the book.  I haven't watched any episodes but am reading the books because the clips of the show I've seen interest me (and I'm pretty much spoiled on all the twists and relationships).

For this particular book, it was fine but if I didn't know what was going to happen I definitely would've been antsier and skimming to the end.  When people withhold information and add unnecessary complications I anxiously wait for things to be revealed/resolved.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 33rd book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

Balls

 Book 32 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 4 - 11

Balls: It Takes Some to Get Some

by Chris Edwards

published 2016

4 stars

First off, great title (not surprising for someone successful in advertising).  I received an used copy of Balls for Christmas and found an accidental bonus: this is a signed copy (like a legit signed copy made out to a specific person listing a specific location).

He acknowledges the uniqueness of his situation because of his access to resources, his surgery choices, and the time period he was transitioning.  Although it's sad that the access and support is unique, it's true and in some ways could be worse now than when the book was published in 2016.

He was blunt but not 'shock value graphic' in his descriptions of his transition and there was more time spent on the smaller things like urinal etiquette and not having the door held open for him.  It was interesting and I'm glad his outsides appear to match his insides.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 32nd book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'B' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Viscount Who Loved Me

 Book 31 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 2 - 4

The Viscount Who Loved Me

by Julia Quinn

published 2000

2 stars

This is the second book in the Bridgerton series and hopefully my least favorite one.  I don't love the 'enemies to lovers' romance trope anyway but especially in this book, Anthony was so mean and insensitive that it felt hard to come back from.

I will continue the series though.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 31st book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'V' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Geek Parenting

 Book 30 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 1 - 3

Geek Parenting

by Stephen H. Segal and Valya Dudycz Lupescu

published 2016

2 stars

Unique concept but cookie cutter parenting advice.  I expected more humor and I was skimming by the end.  It was interesting to see how many characters I recognized (more than I expected).

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 30th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'G' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio

 Book 29 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 1 - 3

The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio:

How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less

by Terry Ryan

4 stars

This was an interesting, entertaining read.  The timing of things coming through sounds too good to be true but I don't discount the effort Evelyn Ryan put into her contesting and it's good to read about a little magic during tough times.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 29th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'P' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Trial by Ambush

Book 28 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 1 - 2

Trial by Ambush: Murder, Injustice, 

and the Truth About the Case of Barbara Graham

by Marcia Clark

4 stars

I chose this book from the options in Amazon's First Reads.  I went in blind with absolutely no familiarity with the case.  The foreword said the trial seemed harsh and a movie about her (for which the leading actress won an Oscar) went the other direction and made her saintly.  I can't speak for the movie but I agree about the trial.  Incredibly frustrating, especially for a death penalty case, to have the prosecution act so unfairly (and the judge for allowing it).  

I'm against the death penalty generally but am especially glad they changed the blanket application of it applying anyone involved in a crime (for example, the driver of a getaway car where someone else killed someone is no longer eligible for the death penalty).  I agree with the author that Barbara Graham was there that night but I also agree with the author that it doesn't appear she committed any violence; she was brought as a decoy to get the victim to open the door in their plan to rob her.  I also agree that as the laws were written at the time, Graham likely still would've been found guilty for murder even if the prosecution hadn't hidden things but maybe she wouldn't have been sentenced to death.

The book was informative and a quick read.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 28th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'T' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Duke & I

 Book 27 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 28 - March 2

The Duke & I

by Julia Quinn

published 2000

3 stars

Jumping on the bandwagon for the Bridgerton series.  I've finally seen enough clips of the show on TikTok that I decided to give the books a try.

This was a quick read and I liked it but I'm rating it 3 stars because if I had read this before the show/knowing the backstories and what's to come, I would've been more confused and less invested.  My favorite part was the banter between the characters; I'm a sucker for witty dialogue.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 27th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

Perfect Crime Party

 Book 26 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 26 - 28

Perfect Crime Party

2 stars

This is the first time I've seen the short story format in a graphic novel.  There were 25 different stories by multiple authors.

Unique format but ultimately didn't work for me.  I don't know if it was because they're graphic novels or because they all have a crime theme but they felt too short and there were nuances I felt like I didn't pick up.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 26th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'P' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Saturday Night

 Book 25 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 12 - 28

Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live

by Doug Hill & Jeff Weingrad

3 stars

The text of the book was published in 1986.  Although my paperback copy says "updated 50th Anniversary Edition", the only updating was an acknowledgment before the epilogue that obviously we know more about how the people have fared since it was written.  On one hand I liked having the book stay as it was written, including the epilogue predictions, because it captured the freshness of the interviews; if some of the people were interviewed today their answers may be softer either out of time healing wounds or out of political correctness.  On the other hand there were grammatical errors and repeating paragraphs that surely could've been taken care of in this edition without changing the meaning of the text and the epilogue felt long because there was so much speculation that time has proven true or untrue.

Interesting note: they could say the 'n' word but not "pissed off".

I really enjoy reading the lore of SNL but I think I've become oversaturated, especially reading about the early days.  Basically, people acted like assholes but we've decided it's okay because the product remains all these years later.  I'm less amused with the 'creative antics' each time I read about them.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 25th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

The Scottish Ladies' Detective Agency

 Book 24 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 20 - 27

The Scottish Ladies' Detective Agency

by Lydia Travers

3 stars

It started strong but by the time the book was halfway through and the author kept adding many crimes/mysteries/characters, I gave up trying to follow the clues and just finished the book.

The characters have potential and I wouldn't rule out reading the second book in the series to give it another try but reading almost 300 pages to have the biggest mystery solved through a brand-new character naming someone followed by that someone's confession/monologue after one question wasn't the most satisfying ending.

And what happened to the wrongly accused character in jail...no wrap up for him?

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 24th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

The Ultimate Serial Killer Trivia Book

 Book 23 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 19 - 21

The Ultimate Serial Killer Trivia Book

by Jack Rosewood

published 2022

3 stars

I picked this up before Christmas as part of a "buy 2 get 1 free" sale on Amazon.  It was fine.  There were interesting tidbits and definitely people I hadn't heard of but it was also mostly surface level.  Framing it as a trivia book meant the author didn't have to make connections or transitions; instead it was a question such as "who was..." or "what was..." followed by a paragraph or so of the answer.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 23rd book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'U' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Memorial Drive

 Book 22 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read on February 18

Memorial Drive: A Daughter's Memoir

by Natasha Trethewey

published 2020

4 stars

Gwen Grimmette was murdered.  Domestic violence is frustratingly frightening because even with all signs and notice her ex-husband gave that he wanted to kill her, including jail time for previous violence against her, it wasn't enough to protect her.  It gave me little consolation to look it up and see that he was given life sentences for his crimes.

This book written by her daughter processes trauma in a surprisingly lyrical way (or I guess not surprising given the author's success in poetry).  It was a very high 4 star read for me and I read it in a day.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 22nd book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'M' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

 Book 21 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 8 - 17

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

by Jamie Ford

published 2009

3 stars

Good but not great for me.  It felt halting, stopping just short of deeper emotional connections for me at different points throughout the book for me by changing focus and moving on.  It felt like it took a long time to get somewhere and then ended abruptly.  I wanted more.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 21st book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'H' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Toy Car

 Book 20 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read on February 15

The Toy Car

by Rose Tremain

published 2025

3 stars

I read this short story on an e-reader through Amazon Prime Reading.  Although it feels weird to classify a short story as a book, it's listed individually on Goodreads so it counts for my reading challenge.

The story was fine.  I wish he had given London more of a chance but the story arced in a way that made sense.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 20th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'T' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Free for All

 Book 19 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 12 - 14

Free for All: Oddballs, Geeks, and Gangstas 

in the Public Library

by Don Borchert

published 2007

4 stars

Although the technology and policies have changed since this book was written in 2007, the people stay the same.  I miss the reference desk - the Internet has made many of them obsolete.  And although self-check is fine, I prefer to have an actual person check out my books whenever possible; even a sentence or two from a fellow reader makes the library experience even better.

I worked at our public library for over 5 years.  What was my most random item returned in the drop?  A fish (a real fish).  Our library is near a walking trail with a pond and someone put a fish in one of our reusable bags and put it in the drop.  The fact that it was an actual library bag made it even more memorable because whomever did it really wanted to catch us off guard!  I could tell the bag felt squishy when I picked it up so I took a peek inside and immediately handed it off to someone else.  The fish was dead but they took it back to the pond to complete the circle of life.

Maybe this book is niche but for those in the demographic, it was an enjoyable read.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 19th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'F' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write

 Book 18 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from February 7 - 11

100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write

by Sarah Ruhl

published 2014

2 stars

I added this book to my TBR after seeing a friend's post about it on Facebook.  I didn't realize that all the essays would pertain in some way to plays: writing, acting, directing, watching, etc.  That topic doesn't hold my interest for an entire book and that's the way 2 star reviews usually go for me; I personally found it boring but it wasn't bad and I can see why other people may enjoy it more.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 18th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'O' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Little Princesses

 Book 17 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 26 - February 5

The Little Princesses

by Marion Crawford

published 1950

4 stars

Typically I don't research a book prior to reading.  I'll see whatever review or cover that caught my eye enough to add it to my TBR, I'll read the book, I'll write and post my review, and then I'll read others' reviews (especially 1 star and 5 star reviews) to see what else is being said about it.

This book is an exception.  The text of the book was published in 1950 but my edition had a forward from 2002 with information and I also read other articles about it because I was curious.  So to add context to the book, the author was completely shut out by the Royal Family after its publication.  She had to move out of the home she had been gifted by the King and was never spoken to again.  After decades of service to them, I'm sad that nothing softened with time (she didn't die until 1988) but I also understand how the book could feel like a breach of privacy even if it was mostly positive.

As for the book itself, it was a fascinating look behind the scenes at a different time.  The author humanized the family which doesn't sound like a bad thing but felt intrusive to them.  Now they may strive for "authenticity" but that was definitely not the case back then.  

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 17th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- Title starting with 'L' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Devil in Oxford

 Book 16 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 25 - 30

The Devil in Oxford

by Jess Armstrong

published 2025

3 stars

After reading the first two books in this series after seeing them while browsing at the library, I sought this third one out to read shortly after.  Now I'm reminded why I don't read new books very often...I now have to wait to see if/when there will be a continuation of the series.  The good news is this didn't end on too much of a cliffhanger.  In all 3 books the main mystery of each book was solved in that book and the continuing questions are from the characters' personal relationships and lives.

For this particular book, I didn't like the mystery as much.  Characters withholding information made it longer and muddier than it needed to be and I didn't fully understand the ending; lots of moving pieces had to come together for it to work out the way it did and there were too many coincidences.  This felt less like detective work and more like 'right place right time' (or 'wrong place wrong time' depending on which character you were).

Quote from the Book

"A sense of unease settled in my chest....Not that I had any reason to be unnerved - only a murderer on the loose, multiple people following me, hallucinations of spectral dogs, and I'd accidentally fallen in love with a man I'd utterly rejected. Truly, my life was going precisely to plan."

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 16th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'D' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

My Lady's Choosing

 Book 15 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read on January 27

My Lady's Choosing

by Kitty Curran & Larissa Zageris

published 2018

3 stars

I'm new to the "interactive" genre but I checked this out from the library after enjoying my first interactive book Can You Solve the Murder?  This book is a romance, not a mystery, and I read it through 4 different paths to see different options.

Overall, I'm definitely seeking out more interactive books, although I think I prefer mystery to romance.  The benefit of romance is that I didn't have to pay as close attention and the stakes felt lower but the downside is the choppiness of the paths meant it went from "nice to meet you" to "ok we're having sex" pretty quickly which could be jarring.

For this book, I appreciate the options of male or female partners for the female main character.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 15th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

The Secret to Superhuman Strength

 Book 14 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 24 -26

The Secret to Superhuman Strength

by Alison Bechdel

published 2021

3 stars

Making a memoir in a graphic novel format makes difficult topics more accessible.  That's not as much of a theme in this book compared to her other books but there were still struggles sprinkled in.

I thought it was fine but it felt a little long; I would've liked the focus to stay more on her with deeper dives.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 14th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

The Only Woman in the Room

 Book 13 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 18 - 25

The Only Woman in the Room

by Marie Benedict

published 2019

3 stars

I read The Only Woman in the Room after my daughter read it and passed it along to me.  She did a school presentation on the book and Hedy Lamarr that she will show me now that I've finished it.

The subject: fascinating.  I was barely familiar with Hedy Lamarr and her inventions and I definitely want to know more.

This particular book: meh.  I was left wanting more information and there were gaps glossed over that seem like big deals.  It's tough because it's not like I think the book should've been longer and there was a big time period to cover but I don't feel like I came away from the book with much more knowledge than I started with.

So I like the book for intriguing me to learn more but I think I'll stick to non-fiction as I continue to learn about her.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 13th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

Our Souls at Night

 Book 12 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 22 - 24

Our Souls at Night

by Kent Haruf

published 2015

3 stars

Our Souls at Night is a small book that felt longer because of the richness of the storytelling.  There weren't a lot of words but there was a lot under the surface.

I decided on 3 stars in the final few chapters because it seemed so sad and unnecessary to separate them that way and it also felt out of character based on their behavior up until that point.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 12th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

The Second City

 Book 11 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 10 - 19

The Second City: The Essentially Accurate History

published 2019

2 stars

This oversized book felt cumbersome but read quickly.  I read it for a day, didn't pick it up again for about a week, and then finished it in a day.

The formatting was rough for me in the first few chapters.  Throughout the whole book there are lots of sidebars and text boxes highlighting specific people but in the first chapter it would be regular text stopping in the middle of a sentence, turning the page to find a page with completely random info, turning the page and completing the sentence.  The first time it happened I thought I had missing pages because it was so jarring.  It happened multiple times so by the time I got to the second chapter I went through and read all the extra stuff first and then went back and read the text of the actual chapter.  It settled down and was less of an issue after the first few chapters but didn't start off on the right foot.

The content was fine but I would've liked a little more finesse in the storytelling and not so much "this person said this", a new person started, "this person said this", etc.

I considered rating it a neutral 3 stars because a bigger fan might find this more interesting but decided on 2 because of the issues mentioned above.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 11th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

Old Romantics

 Book 10 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 14 - 17

Old Romantics

by Maggie Armstrong

published 2024

2 stars

Old Romantics is a collection of connected short stories, mainly on the theme of love/relationships.  I don't need characters to be likable but when the vibe of the book is listening to a friend tell stories and I wouldn't choose the main character as a friend because I find her to be draining, it makes it an unenjoyable read.

This is one of those 2 star reviews based on my personal preference...the writing was fine and another reader may find connections in this book I didn't.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 10th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'O' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

Can You Solve the Murder?

 Book 8 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 12 - 13

AND

Book 9 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read with Megan January 14 - 17

Can You Solve the Murder?

by Antony Johnston

published 2025

5 stars

What fun!!!  I didn't know interactive books like this were a thing so I was very excited going into it...it's "choose your own adventure" for adults!  I will definitely seek out more books like this and I'm also going to read one of this specific author's 'regular' books because I liked the plot and dialogue of this book.

The first time I read through it took about 3 hours and I didn't solve the case.  I finished with 115 points.

The second time I read through I made choices that honed in on my top 2 suspects from the first time through.  It took about 2 hours and I solved it!  I finished with 140 points.

EDIT: Update: I read this again with my daughter.  I read it aloud to her and she chose the path.  

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 8th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- 9th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

The Secret of the Three Fates

 Book 7 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 10 - 12

The Secret of the Three Fates

by Jess Armstrong

published 2024

3 stars

This is the second book in the Ruby Vaughn series and I read it immediately after the first.  I didn't enjoy it as much as the first one but am still interested enough to continue the series.

For this particular book, the pacing felt slow and there were so many characters that I struggled to make sense of all the connections even after the culprit's helpful monologue confession.  I also still have questions...was Ben's death helped along (and if so by who)?  Why was Genevieve on the war ship?  Why was Lucy mad at Owen?  I just really didn't get it.

For the series, I wish the White Witch would either stop saying things or explain them further; by the end of the second book I would like there to be answers for at least some of the breadcrumbs dropped along the way.  And the separation at the end feels like an unnecessary obstacle and I hope it's resolved quickly in the next book.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 7th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- Title starting with 'S' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)

The Harm in Asking

 Book 6 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from January 5 - 9

The Harm in Asking: 

My Clumsy Encounters with the Human Race

by Sara Barron

published 2014

1 star

This book has been on my TBR since 2014 and I finally got around to reading it.  I acknowledge I'm a tougher critic on personal essays than I was back then but I don't think I would've liked it even if I'd read it right away.

Strike 1:  More than one casual use of the 'r' word which is an automatic red flag for me and left me thinking it would be probably be a 2 star read.

Strike 2:  Referred to someone as "her molester" more than once in a situation she described as him yelling at her to leave a party after she drunkenly fell on someone else.  That's pretty aggressive language.  At that point I thought maybe I'd hit an unfortunate stretch of pages (the first 'r' word was right around this time too) but it would bounce back to the "meh, it's fine" read I'd had so far.

Strike 3:  Too many stories that are presented as her being real and authentic but just seem mean.  Racing an obese woman to a seat on the subway "having figured it'd be good for her to have to stand"?  Obnoxiously farting (yes it happens but again, it was presented in a way that almost seemed like she was weaponizing it)?  So many judgements about other people?

I can usually overlook "shock" if it's funny but Strike 4 (that's how sports work, right?): I wasn't amused.

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 6th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'H' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)