Books of January 2015

January is over! This month felt very long. I barely remember Christmas or New Year's Eve. My month included a 5K, a trail 10k, a month of Friday Five posts, and another work trip to Dallas. I began purging some of my unnecessary craft goodies, old clothes, and never-read books. Despite the clean out, there is much to do. Luckily, we're one month closer to the end of winter. For some reason Ohio has it's own weather-predicting groundhog and ours claims there will be an early spring. We'll see.

Anyway, on to the books. (I bought an E.B. White set if you can't tell.)

Finished January 3, 2015

Charlotte's Web

by E.B. White

Review: 4 / 5 

Can you believe I never read this as a kid? Well anyway, that's been remedied. Obviously a classic, and for good reason. Wilber and Charlotte make a great team.

Finished January 5, 2015

Fortune's Friends: Hell Week

by  K. Reynolds

Review: 4 / 5 

I found this at Half Price for $2.00. A good buy. I wish you could see the interior art. The story jumped around a few times and got slightly messy, but overall it was face-paced and funny. I'd recommend if you enjoy graphic novels, mysteries, or 80s fashion. You can read more about the (failed) series here.

Finished January 9, 2015

Stuart Little

by E.B. White

Review: 5 / 5 

I'm so happy to have caught up on my E.B. White (I'd only read The Trumpet of the Swan in school). I thought I'd hate this because in the very beginning I couldn't get the image of the movie Stuart Little out of my head. Eventually that faded, and as Stuart began his adventure away from home the book improved. 5 stars for the last third of the story.

Abandoned January 14, 2015

The Friday Night Knitting Club

by Kate Jacobs

Review: 1 / 5 

I must confess: I did not finish this book. 

About 10% of the way I could barely convince myself to read before bed. I wasn't enjoying the main characters –they were completely one dimensional. I took some advice and skimmed the rest of the book. Oh gosh, the plots! Horrible! And there was zero progress from page 24 to 220 on one key front. 

I read an amazing review on Goodreads that summed up my feelings. It also included a *major* spoiler. I AM SO HAPPY I read the entire review! If I'd finished this book and had to sit through that ending I might have ripped the book to shreds. 

How was this so popular? Is it because knitting was cool for a while?? Did I wait too long to read this? Has it's time passed? (Not a good sign.)

Finished January 27, 2015

Dreamland

by Sarah Dessen

Review: 3 / 5 

I needed a book for a flight and this was a good pick. Went very quickly and kept me interested. 

I liked the beginning even if Caitlin was a bit bland (by design). I flew through the story and was bummed by the turn of events. I couldn't help thinking about how white and rich everyone was. I did find it funny that the story takes place in the same town as Lock and Key.

Finished January 14, 2015

11/22/63

by Stephen King

Review: 4 / 5 

I loved the beginning of the book in Maine. I liked the sidestep to Jodie, but everything in Dallas/Fort Worth was just ho-hum for me. With the way it played out, I would have rather had more time in Jodie! Maybe that's how Jake/George felt. The final act brought me back. I thought it was an interesting ending and I wonder what became of Jake/George. (And the Yellow/Orange/Green card men. I would read an entire book devoted to them.) Even though the book is 850 pages, Stephen King is so fun and I averaged 50-100 pages each time I read. 

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As always, these reviews were ripped from my Goodreads. 

What did you read in January? 

What are you reading now? 

What I'm looking forward to: I "accidentally" reserved seven books while I was preparing for Dallas. And guess what? They've all arrived at the library on the same day. I'll be making my way through those in February and trying to finish Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box on my tablet.