December reading is always a crazy mix of airplane reading, the last few review books of the year, and a couple of Advent/Christmas staples. (Above: the book of readings that has shaped my experience of Advent since 2001.) Here’s the last roundup of 2018:
Harry’s Trees, Jon Cohen
I grabbed this novel at the library after Anne raved about it. A slow start for me, but I fell in love with Harry Crane, a Forest Service employee who escapes to the woods after his wife dies. I loved the people he meets – Oriana, a young girl who’s lost her father; Amanda, her relentlessly practical mother; and Olive, the elderly pipe-smoking librarian who gives Oriana a book that changes everything. Magical and moving.
Darius the Great is Not Okay, Adib Khorram
Leigh and Kari both loved this book, and I really enjoyed it. Darius is an Iranian-American teen (and tea lover) who travels to Iran for the first time. His relationships with his dad and little sister were so well drawn and real, and I loved watching him make a real friend and bond with his grandparents.
Discontent and its Civilizations: Dispatches from Lahore, New York and London, Mohsin Hamid
Hamid is better known for his novels – like Exit West, which I loved – but this collection of his essays is wise and thought-provoking. I learned a lot about Pakistan from the “Politics” section, but found more to enjoy in “Art” and “Life.” Found (on sale) at the charming Papercuts JP last month.
Running Home, Katie Arnold
Arnold became a runner as a kid, almost by accident – at the urging of her photographer dad. She chronicles her journey with running (and later ultrarunning), interwoven with her dad’s illness, his death, and their complicated but deeply loving relationship. So many great lines about writing, life, family, and how we shape the stories we tell ourselves. I loved it as a runner and a writer, but I think even if you’re neither, it’s well worth reading. To review for Shelf Awareness (out March 12).
Star Crossed, Minnie Darke
Justine is a whip-smart Sagittarius with journalistic ambitions and little regard for astrology. Her childhood friend Nick is an aspiring Aquarian actor who trusts the stars for major life decisions. They reconnect – and Justine starts dabbling in astrology – in this fun Australian novel. I loved all the intertwined stories and Darke’s sharp observations about various star signs. To review for Shelf Awareness (out May 21).
Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others, Barbara Brown Taylor
Teaching Religion 101 to undergraduates in Georgia for nearly two decades, Taylor (a former Episcopal priest) found much to admire and even envy in Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam. She explores her experiences alongside her students’, and muses on what “holy envy” may have to offer those who are still deeply committed to their own faith. Thoughtful, insightful and so well done, like all Taylor’s books. To review for Shelf Awareness (out March 12).
Summer at the Garden Café, Felicity Hayes-McCoy
I loved Hayes-McCoy’s memoir about Ireland and enjoyed her first novel set there. This, the sequel, is charming and fun. It follows the lives of several people in a small village in western Ireland: librarian Hanna, her daughter Jazz, their colleagues and friends.
Winter Solstice, Rosamunde Pilcher
I received this book as a gift over a decade ago, and I still revisit it almost every December. It’s a story of five loosely connected people who end up in the north of Scotland one Christmas, and the ways they bring hope to each other. So good.
Most links (not affiliate links) are to my favorite local bookstore, Brookline Booksmith.
What are you reading as we head into 2019?
cakes, tea and dreams 
I always love learning what you’re reading. However, I am pretty sure Barbara Briwn Yaylir is still a priest, but no longer has a parish. She is on the faculty of a divinity school.
Watch for the Light is so lovely, isn’t it? I ordered a copy years ago from Bas Bleu and try to read it every Advent. I didn’t get revisit it much this year (various things added up to me not having a lot of time for leisure reading in December–trying to make up for that now!), and I missed it.
I started 2019 with Lin-Manuel Miranda’s G’Morning, G’Night! Pep Talks for Me & You, a gift from my siblings, and it was the perfect book for me at this time. I’m also currently finishing up Madeleine L’Engle’s Bright Evening Star: Mystery of the Incarnation, which I had started reading for Advent (but see above…). I love her writing and this book, as all her others, is providing much food for thought.
Yes, I adore Watch for the Light. And I need to pick up Lin-Manuel’s book! Love L’Engle, too.
So glad you enjoyed Darius!
I’m almost finished with Winter Solstice, my first time reading it, but I hope not my last. 🙂 My husband and I are also reading aloud Rocket Men by Robert Kurson about the Apollo 8 mission and it’s wonderfully captivating narrative non-fiction.
Happy 2019 to you!
I love it so much! (As you know.)