November 2021 Wrap Up Part 2

It's December! That means it's time to go over the books I read in the second half of November. It turned out to be a really great reading month after the hell that was October. I read most of the books on my TBR and I read enough other books to cover the books I didn't get to.

I wrapped up 6 books in the first wrap up for November so here's what happened after that.

In the Wild Light by Jeff Zentner - I reviewed this in full in a previous post so there should be no questions about this one. I continue to like Zentner's work and will continue to read whatever he puts out. This was not on my TBR, but it turned up from the library, so I squished it in.

The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty Are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures by Christian Allaire - I didn't expect to be impressed by this book even though many of my award colleagues really liked it. I'm not really into fashion, so I expected to be confused and bored. On the contrary, I really liked the way this author went at the topic. The first chapter was about Native Ribbon Sewing. There was a chapter about natural hair. There was a chapter about high heels for men, and not just drag queens. It was really fascinating, and I enjoyed it.

All These Bodies by Kendare Blake - This one wasn't as scary and bloody as the last Blake horror book I read. There was one part that gave me the willies, but it wasn't too bad. It is set in 1958 and told from the perspective of a high school boy who is the son of the sheriff and who wants to be a journalist one day. He gets involved when, at the end of a months-long killing spree all over the mid-west, a family is murdered in his small town and a girl is found in the middle of the grisly scene dripping blood. In all the other murders, the bodies are drained of blood. She is arrested and refuses to tell anyone what happened except this boy. It's a weird tale and there is a twist at the end. It was pretty good, but the fact that the actual bad buy is only a shadowy figure makes him less scary.

XOXO by Axie Oh - I really enjoyed this YA romance. I had lovely dreams about hot Asian guys while reading it. She is a classical cellist and he is a Kpop star on the rise. He's not allowed to date because stardom and she is confused. It's pretty predictable, but the Happily Ever After is still super satisfying.

That's it! That makes 10 books for November! I haven't read that much since July! I feel so accomplished!