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Welcome to my weekly update for December 31, 2023!
I hope everyone who celebrates had a wonderful holiday week! We had a nice Christmas weekend with my parents and then my sister and her husband joined us there on Christmas Eve. We spent Christmas day at home but my sister came over in the afternoon. We introduced her to the Hogwarts Legacy game and she seems to be hooked! The rest of the week was just the usual round of work (my husband) and errands and chores (me). We’re planning to go to an early outdoors New Year’s Eve celebration tonight and then see my parents again on New Year’s Day.
Challenges I’m Hosting:
As a reminder, signups are open for my annual Books in Translation and Southern Literature Reading Challenges.
Posted:
Nothing this week.
Read:
Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury–4 Stars (With this, I finished ShelleyRae’s Nonfiction Reading Challenge! Woohoo! I wasn’t sure I would make it this year.)
Mortimer’s Christmas Manger by Karma Wilson, illustrated by Jane Chapman–4 Stars
Currently Reading:
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson
Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch by Julie Abe, read by Caitlin Kelly
American Christmas Stories, edited by Connie Willis
Up Next:
I have my top ten books of 2023 post scheduled to go up on Tuesday as part of Top Ten Tuesday. I hope you’ll join us!
What did your week look like? I hope we all have a happy 2024!
Hosts:
Deb Nance at Readerbuzz hosts The Sunday Salon and Kimberly at Caffeinated Book Reviewer hosts Sunday Post. Kathryn at Book Date hosts It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?
28 Comments
Thanks so much for the heads up about Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch. I’ve downloaded it as an audiobook and hope to get to it soon!
It was so cute! I’m pretty sure I learned about it from the A Might Girl Facebook page. They have lots of fun recommendations on there.
Sounds like a great Christmas! I got Tress as one of my Christmas gifts, so I’m hoping to read that one soon. It sounds really fun!
I haven’t been making much time to sit down and read but Tress is so good when I do! It feels like a fairy tale.
Happy New Year! So glad you enjoyed your holidays. Wilson’s book looks adorable. American Christmas Stories has been on my mind a lot.
Wishing you a new year filled with good books and blessings.
https://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2024/01/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-and.html
Wilson’s book was truly adorable.
Happy New Year, Jen! I did read one short nonfiction book in November, but now can’t even remember what it was! December was almost all easy holiday reading, so I’m looking forward to some weightier books in January! I had the new Connie Willis book on my wish list, but didn’t receive it, so had to order it for myself on Dec. 26th! 😁
I need to add more of Willis’s work to my TBR. I really clicked with her style!
Sounds like a nice Christmas season. Mine was quiet but enjoyable. Come see my week here. Happy reading and Happy New Year!
“Quiet but enjoyable” sounds like a lovely Christmas to me.
Jen congrats on getting the last NF book in and so completing the challenge. Yes I am looking forward to seeing all the top ten books of 2023. Hope my list of want to reads doesn’t grow to much! Happy New Year.
Thank you!
Whoops. What an eclectic list of books. I love your choices.
Happy New Year.
Happy New Year to you and your family as well.
Glad you had a nice holidays! Mortimer’s looks so cute 🙂
Happy New Year!
Mortimer was very cute!
I still need to check out the Hogwarts Legacy game. I think it would be one I’d enjoy. I mostly play Mario Wonder this week. My husband gave it to me for Christmas and it has been a lot of fun to play. I hope you have a fun NYE.
https://jennielyse.com/sunday-news-49/
I’m not a great gamer. I don’t play often enough to have great coordination on controllers so most games eventually become too difficult/frustrating for me. So far I’ve avoided hitting a wall in Hogwarts though, so I’m really enjoying it! I really want to play all these new Mario games that have been coming out lately but we don’t have a Switch and I don’t play often enough to justify buying one. Bummer. Happy New Year!
So lovely you had time with family for the holidays. The year has just flown by and now all the challenge updates and new challenges. We did our Top 10 week this week. I look forward to seeing your picks and you are welcome to link up with us so everyone can see them.
Anne – Books of My Heart This is my Sunday Post
Every year does seem to pass more and more quickly as I get older.
I’m glad you had a good Christmas! Happy 2024.
Happy New Year to you as well!
Congratulations on finishing the nonfiction challenge. I barely finished the classics challenge this year—not sure why I had such a hard time with it.
I look forward to seeing your list of your top ten favorite reads of last year!
I don’t think I even read half of my classics challenge goal. :-/ I’m trying again this year though!
That Christmas picture book looks cute.
Happy New Year!
It was very cute!
I’d love to get round to reading Tress of the Emerald Sea — it looks so fun. Hope you’re enjoying it!
My weekly roundup.
Tress feels a lot like a fairy tale. I haven’t been making much time for reading lately but I’m enjoying it hugely when I do sit down with it!