My First Wrap Up in a Year! | December 2021 Reading Wrap Up

TL;DR

Olive discusses the books she read in December, including Half-Lives, When All the Girls Are Sleeping, A Most Remarkable Creature, and more.

Transcript

hi guys olive here here today with my first reading wrap-up video in an entire year today i will be talking about all the books that i read in december 2021. let's see if i remember how to do this even with the busyness of the holidays in december i still managed to have a pretty decent reading month i read a handful of books i really enjoyed i had... Read More

Key Insights

• 😒 Radium was once promoted as a wonder substance with various commercial uses, but its devastating effects on the human body are now known.
• 😪 When investigating a haunting, a resourceful teenager would conduct online research, infiltrate groups, and explore archives, as seen in When All the Girls Are Sleeping.
• 🫠 A Most Remarkable Creature combines the study of the Johnny Rook bird with in-depth natural history, making it a complex and fascinating read.
• 💭 The cozy mystery A Peculiar Combination introduces a likable protagonist, intricate family dynamics, and a central mystery that offers thought-provoking dilemmas.
• 🖤 The Nutcracker-themed books provided different experiences, with mixed feelings about the original story's darkness and the lack of plot in the ballet adaptation.
• 💦 Midnight in Everwood, a Nutcracker retelling, offers an immersive and beautifully written fantasy experience with similarities to the works of Rosamund Hodge.
• 🇳🇨 Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk is a charming book set on New Year's Eve, featuring a protagonist reflecting on her life and observing New York City.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is Half-Lives by Lucy Jane Santos about?

Half-Lives explores the history of radium, its commercial uses, and the detrimental effects it had on the human body. The author skillfully presents the information and provides a cultural history rather than focusing solely on the science.

Q: How did Olive feel about When All the Girls Are Sleeping by Emily Arsenault?

Olive enjoyed the book, finding it appropriately spooky and realistic in terms of the protagonist's investigation. The only downside was the lack of focus on schooling in this campus novel.

Q: What is A Most Remarkable Creature by Jonathan Myberg about?

A Most Remarkable Creature centers around the striated caracara, also known as the Johnny Rook, an intelligent bird of prey living on the Falkland Islands. The author delves into its history and the factors that contributed to its unique characteristics.

Q: What did Olive think of the cozy mystery A Peculiar Combination by Ashley Weaver?

Olive and Kate Howe enjoyed A Peculiar Combination, the first book in Ashley Weaver's new cozy mystery series. They found the case intriguing, with a thought-provoking moral dilemma, and appreciated the well-developed characters and intriguing love triangle.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Olive had a decent reading month in December, enjoying several books and having only one disappointment.

• She read Half-Lives by Lucy Jane Santos, which provided an interesting history of radium and its commercial uses.

• When All the Girls Are Sleeping by Emily Arsenault was a satisfying spooky YA read set at a girls boarding school.