Wrapping Up and Looking Back at the 2021 Fifty Books Challenge!
Picture by Dan Dan the Binary Man on Flickr
I didn't quite make it to fifty, but I came a lot closer than I did last year!
This year, my beloved public library was (albeit in a far more limited way) available to me, and that was no small thing. More books this year I loved and had a huge impact on me.
Much to my shock, I received attention from both Alice Hoffman and Amanda Yates Garcia for my reviews of their work, including some incredibly sweet comments from the latter about my genuine gushing over her wonderful book.
But it wasn't all good stuff, I'm afraid. We lost some incredible authors in 2021. The legendary Beverly Cleary, responsible for so many wonderful childhood memories and whose work appeared here twice so far died at age 104. The author of a book that made a huge difference to me, Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong which I read as a teenager, James W. Loewen, also died in 2021, and if you haven't read Lies, please do so now! But the biggest loss to me was bell hooks, a massive influence on my own feminism and activism, and a powerful force for good in the world. I tore through her books as a teenager and her work holds up and stays relevant. If you're doing it right, her work should be one of the cornerstones of your feminism and activism. If you haven't read bell hooks before now, please, please read her work.
In addition to luminaries we lost, though, there were also some real doozys here I was too happy to read to filth after reading and suffering.
So let's get into the good, the bad, and the meh! WATCH FOR THE END FOR A SPECIAL SHOUT OUT!
Favorite Books:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
11/22/63
Hidden Figures
Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
Dark Places
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books
Still Missing
Spark Joy
The Silver Witch
Don't Ever Tell
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
Magic Lessons
Looking For Alaska
Teen Spirit
Beartown
The Devil in the White City
Broken (in the Best Possible Way)
The Witches of New York: a Novel
A Witch in Time
Least Favorite Books:
The Fifth Petal
Fault Lines
Mrs Fletcher
Eeny Meeny
Sh*t My Dad Says
Spoken From the Heart
Under the Dome
A Secret History of Witches: A Novel
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Books That Made Me Want to Stare Disapprovingly at the Author Until They Apologize:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
11/22/63
The Trunk Murderess
The Fifth Petal
Fault Lines
Mrs Fletcher
Eeny Meeny
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
The Night the Lights Went Out
Sh*t My Dad Says
Spoken From the Heart
Mrs Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years
Under the Dome
The Witch's Guide to Manifestation
A Secret History of Witches: A Novel
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Books That Felt Like a Sisyphean Ordeal:
The Trunk Murderess
The Fifth Petal
Fault Lines
Eeny Meeny
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
Sh*t My Dad Says
Spoken From the Heart
Mrs Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years
Beartown
Under the Dome
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Books That Helped Me Look at the World in a New Way:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
Hidden Figures
The Trunk Murderess
Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
Dark Places
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books
Spark Joy
The Silver Witch
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
Spoken From the Heart
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
Mrs Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years
The Devil in the White City
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Books I've Already Recommended to People:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
11/22/63
Hidden Figures
Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
Dark Places
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books
Still Missing
Spark Joy
Don't Ever Tell
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
The Devil in the White City
Broken (in the Best Possible Way)
Most Disappointing Books:
The Trunk Murderess
The Fifth Petal
The Whole Truth
The Rules of Magic
Mrs Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years
Under the Dome
A Secret History of Witches: A Novel
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Most Depressing (as in Sadness-Inducing) Books:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
11/22/63
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Dark Places
The Great Beanie Baby Bubble
The Rules of Magic
Beartown
Under the Dome
Broken (in the Best Possible Way)
Memoir of a Milk Carton Kid
Most Uplifting Books:
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books
Spark Joy
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
Magic Lessons
Beartown
The Witches of New York: a Novel
Books I Feel Like It's Important or Culturally Significant for You to Read at Least Once:
Orange is the New Black; My Year in a Woman's Prison: A Memoir
Hidden Figures
Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books
Spoken From the Heart
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
Looking For Alaska
Finally, absolutely none of this Challenge, including the fact I received attention from two of the authors I reviewed, would have been possible without the Matron Saint of This Blog, the one and only Queen Claudine! Not only was it her idea for me to have a blog just for my reviews, she encouraged me to start it back up, and reads and comments my reviews regularly no matter what I read! Not only all of THAT, but this year alone she surprised me with two books for the challenge that were on my want list as well as several beautiful bookmarks (I'm such a sucker for bookmarks). She is my Constant Reader, more than any of you lookie-loos (although I do see you and appreciate you! Please leave a comment if you feel comfortable!), and I love her because she is the Queen. ALL HAIL THE QUEEN! ♡
...Now let's get going and see what this year might bring!
DON'T FORGET I'M ON BLOGSPOT NOW!