Required Reading: December 2014

November has come and gone, and December is here, bringing all the holiday cheer we can hold. For a bookish person, that means even more books—receiving, listing, buying, shelving, and reshelving. But let us not forget Thanksgiving, feasting, family, and fellowship!

Here are the books and short stories I finished last month:

1. Flury: The Journey of A Snowman by Tony Bertauski – 5/5 stars – A wonderful story about love, family, and sacrifice. If you haven’t started this series yet, I suggest picking up your copies now—it is truly the perfect read for the season!


2. Dwellers by Eliza Victoria – 4/5 stars – TFG’s pick for November turned out to be a deeply engaging read and sparked a fantastic discussion at the last FilReaderCon.


3. The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell – 5/5 stars – It took me a while to finish this, but that had nothing to do with the storytelling. About three-quarters of the way through, my heart broke, and I found it difficult to keep turning the pages. I eventually mustered up my courage and let the tears fall where they belonged.


4. The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell – 4/5 stars – A captivating journey through time and character. While not explicitly a sad story, I finished it with a heavy sigh. I’ll have to explain my thoughts in more detail another time!


5. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera – 3/5 stars – My final Dare You To Read challenge book—yay! Kundera is undoubtedly a brilliant poet in his prose.


6. Doll Bones by Holly Black – 3/5 stars – A brave adventure, a test of friendship, and a wonderful coming-of-age story.


7. Roselily by Alice Walker & The Swimmer by John Cheever – 5/5 stars – My short stories of the month via The Short Story Station.

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December TBR

For my final reading requirement of the year, I’ve chosen just one book—the one that matters most to me:

Fall Like Rain by Ana Tejano – It’s no secret why I already know I’ll love this. I hold the author very dear to my heart, and I know how much love and effort she poured into crafting this story.

Although I won’t reach my 70-book goal this year, I don’t feel too bad about it. I gave it my best shot to fight off the dreaded Reading Slump. It was a solid battle, and I managed to bounce back. Slumps are a natural part of every reader’s life; the key is to keep doing what we love.

Wishing everyone a Christ-filled season and a prosperous bookish year ahead!