I own the first 3 books, but haven’t gotten around to the third one yet (my tbr is a mile long). The second book has the origin story for the ghost. It’s sad, as you’d expect, but also insightful.

The first book is probably the weakest in the series due to the character development of the cafe staff and the repetition. I blame that on the author’s background as a screenwriter. You could tell he was still getting his feet wet as a novelist.

I also wasn’t thrilled with the way some of the stories wrapped up. They often involved a woman sacrificing her life (whether it was her dreams or her own survival) for someone else. For example, >!a successful businesswoman gave up her restaurant and contritely went home to run her parents’ hotel at the insistence of her dead sister!<. That said, I still liked the book because it made me think about what I’d do if I could visit someone from the past. It also exposed me to a different culture with a different set of values from my own.

So far, I’ve read the second book, and I think it’s much better. The character development is stronger, as we get backstories on Kazu and the cafe ghost. That said, if you’re not enjoying it by now, your feelings probably won’t change. There’s nothing wrong with spending time on something else you do enjoy.

Also, in fairy tales, the oldest child is inevitably the villain. There might’ve been some truth to that back when the eldest (usually a son) inherited the family’s wealth, but it’s no longer universally applicable, especially in America where younger children tend to be favored.

That’s a good point about her music. When her first album came out, critics compared her to Debbie Gibson. Yet she’s had much greater staying power even though Gibson is a better singer imo. Is it because Britney was a good dancer and concept artist? The video for “Baby One More Time” was her idea.

I’ve read Winter Garden, The Nightingale, and Firefly Lane. For some reason, the last one is the only one I liked. The characters really came alive for me. It read like a more well-developed, cleaner version of Judy Blume’s Summer Girls, with a strong female friendship at its heart. In Winter Garden, the women characters were too cold, detached, and unemotional for me to relate to.

Believe it or not, the soulless algorithm also known as Amazon has actually been tossing up good recommendations for me lately, as well as having good holiday sales in the Kindle store. If you like fantasy and/or YA, bookriot.com is another good source. And finally, several news outlets are releasing their top 100 lists from 2023. NPR and Time magazine have lists from a wide variety of genres (including literary fiction) this year.

That was such a good one! I also loved Walk Two Moons. I would’ve loved to travel cross-country with Sal’s grandparents.

The Awakening by Kate Chopin didn’t change my beliefs so much as expand my view of what was possible. Ever since junior high, I sensed that I didn’t want kids. Edna showed me that it’s OK to want something different out of life. Because I lived in a more progressive time period for women, I could make a plan for my life instead of being trapped by traditional social mores the way Edna was.

I think she also changed her name and/or socially detransitioned. She didn’t feel she could safely live as Isabel after all the bad press.

I didn’t know about NK Jemisin’s involvement, but I’ve lost some respect for her now.

I think the rating system is unpopular because it could be used as a form of censorship.

I took off of work today and now I am at home, sudden crying outbursts all the time and it’s like my whole body and mind scream for my personal method of “relief”: Lay in bed with a hot cup of tea and HP and the sorcerers stone and just nope out of real life. I know this is not healthy and a little weird but it helps me so much.

I’m so sorry for your loss. It is absolutely fine and healthy to take a break from reality and read (or do something else) for a little while. Grief is emotionally exhausting, and just like any other work, we need breaks. I’m sure your grandmother would want you to take care of yourself.

My last comfort book was The Christmas Letters by Lee Smith. It’s the story of one Southern family told through three generations of holiday letters. I found it reassuring because if these characters could survive the loss of a parent, spouse, or grandparent and keep rebuilding their lives, then so could I.

I dislike it, too. It encourages young women to orbit around men like this, waiting for them to be nicer, but usually it doesn’t happen.

Audiobooks are better for headaches because staring at screens or print can lead to eyestrain. But for anxiety, nothing beats a book for me. I can just get immersed in someone else’s world and forget my problems for a while. I feel really fortunate to have this coping strategy.

Considering that I’d only read 3 books in one category (YA), that was the only one I felt comfortable voting in. Most of my reads this year were either pre-2023 or didn’t get nominated.

But some of them fall into the category of “so bad, they’re good!” Think Pauline’s Passion and Punishment or Behind a Mask. Reading about women villains is like a refreshing palate cleanser after the sometimes cloying morality in Little Women (which I still love. Don’t get me wrong).

I don’t do it for every book I read because that would be a lot of reviews, but I will if the book really struck a chord with me. It can be a good way to start a conversation and compare impressions with others (like, “What was the main character’s motivation for doing X?”).