Thursday, October 24, 2024

Books I've read and enjoyed so far this year (2024)

Children's Literature

All of the following I recommend for both kids and adults—my kids loved all of these! They would be great to read aloud and I've indicated when I've listened to the audiobook:
  • From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg
    • audiobook is great
    • all of my kids loved it (ages 7, 9, and 11)
  • Bea Wolf by Zach Weinersmith
    • Graphic Novel
    • based on Beowulf
    • recommended as a read aloud as kids may not know all of the vocabulary, also it is fun because of the word play and inner rhyme!
    • we've already started giving it as gifts and now my niece is going to be Bea Wolf for Halloween!
  • A Rover's Story by Jasmine Warga
    • audiobook is especially great
    • at least one of my kids has reread it on their own
    • if anyone in your family likes the movie Wall-E or space in general, this is a must-read!
  • Heart of a Samurai by Margie Preus
    • based on a true story!
    • excellent audiobook
Young Adult Literature - these are books that I or my kids have read that are generally better for ages 13+
  • All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat
    • non-fiction
    • lots of pictures 
    • highly recommend!
  • Every Falling Star by Sungju Lee and Susan McClelland
    • non-fiction / memoir
    • references to drug, prostitution, etc. (still appropriate for middle school, though)
    • recommend
  • Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
    • high school + 
    • I didn't love the second in the duology, but this book is not really a stand-alone..? I wouldn't recommend the second, but if you read this, you will probably want to finish the series :)

General Literature

Fiction:
  • The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Lord Tennyson (poem)
  • Doctor Thorne by Anthony Trollope
    • I couldn't put it down, which says a lot for 19th century lit, right?
    • my brother and I watched the miniseries after I finished it and it was excellent.
  • Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
    • highly enjoyable light fiction
  • Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
    • beautiful writing
    • quiet, more serious book focused on family drama
  • The Rom-commers by Katherine Center
    • light contemporary romance
    • please note there may be some profanity
Non-Fiction:
  • The Radium Girls by Kate Moore
    • avoid the audiobook
    • a little gruesome at times, but worth finishing
  • Muppets in Moscow by Natasha Lance Rogoff
    • audiobook is phenomenal
    • fascinating memoir about producing Sesame Street in Russia right after the Cold War
  • The Longest Afternoon: The 400 Men Who Decided the Battle of Waterloo by Brendan Simms
    • audiobook is good
    • probably niche interest, as it focuses on one of the three battles in Waterloo in very close detail, but I enjoyed it.

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