Oops, this post is coming in a little late! As I mentioned in the previous post, work has been picking up! My reading in January was very minimal as well – basically all audiobooks. I read four books, and was working through the massive The Matter of Black Lives collection all month (and didn’t finish 😭). Anyway, here’s everything I read!

PIRANESI by Susanna Clarke

A man tries to learn about the labyrinthian world he resides in. Okay, I can’t even 100% describe what this book is fully about, but I think it’s pretty neat to go in blind? The concept is super unique and I can appreciate Clarke’s imagination and creativity for this one, but for me I was pretty frustrated at the unbearably slow world-building for the first half of the novel. With that being said, I didn’t find the ending to be completely satisfying either.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

THERE THERE by Tommy Orange

Vignettes of various indigenous people throughout the Oakland area meet for a finale at the Powwow. This was so informative for me – the story was good and I like the idea of learning about the stories of Indigenous people, but I felt like as a fictional novel, it would’ve been more impactful with less characters – I didn’t feel as connected with each one because of the volume.

Rating: 4 out of 5

NORWEGIAN WOOD by Haruki Murakami

A boy goes through the turmoils of being young and kind of in love while coping with the suicide of his best friend. I finally (!) read my first Murakami and I can happily say it won’t be my last – I picked this one up first because I had heard somewhere that Norwegian Wood is one of Harry Styles’ favorite books (not that I love Styles that much at all lol), and I was fully intrigued. This was really interesting and compelling to read. In some ways, it reminded me a lot of Normal People – messy relationships and figuring out who you are as an adult, that kind of thing.

Rating: 4 out of 5

MINOR FEELINGS: AN ASIAN AMERICAN RECKONING by Cathy Park Hong

Essays about being a second-generation Asian American writer and poet in America. I loved this audiobook (read by the author) and overall felt so seen. Hong’s experiences are relatable and so important; I even more so loved hearing her chat at the Seattle Arts & Lectures event!

Rating: 4 out of 5

That’s it for January! Already in February, I’ve been trying to incorporate a lot more romance novels 💕 stay tuned!

What have you been reading and loving recently?

Jen x