Today I want to share my January Reads with you. The end of January is in sight! It’s felt like the longest month. And one where I haven’t found as much time to read as I’d like. But here’s what I have read and I’m reading next…
My January Reads
The Pants of Perspective by Anna McNuff
I started my January Reads with a book I’d received for Christmas. I really enjoy running memoirs and have already spoken about some in a previous Reading Rituals post.
This one made it onto my wishlist because not only was it a running memoir but it was all about a woman running the length of New Zealand.
(Side note – I lived in New Zealand for 11 years, I got married there and my son was born there. I adore New Zealand!)
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had me laughing out loud and on the edge of my seat. I read parts aloud to my husband. I felt nostalgically homesick for parts of New Zealand I recognised as I read about them. And I now have even more places to visit on my list. I was vaguely familiar with the Te Araroa Trail (which runs for 3,000km along the length of South and North Island) but this book really brought it alive for me.
Anna McNuff also talks about mental health and resilience. I love her analogy of fears as threads that you roll into a ball and roll aside…but then someone tugs on a loose thread and it can all unravel. This really resonated with me.
I’d recommend giving this a go – even if you’re not a runner or don’t know New Zealand particularly well.
Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks
The next of my January Reads was Uncommon Type. This book is completely different from anything I usually read. It’s a series of short stories written by Tom Hanks (yep – the actor from Big, Forrest Gump, Castaway…). Some of the stories are related to each other and they all feature some reference to typewriters. It was fun looking out for the reference as I read.
Some of the stories were heart-warming, some funny and some were a little disturbing. It was an interesting mix. They ranged over different periods of time and had different settings. I was quickly absorbed into each story and enjoyed the writing style.
I would definitely read more of Tom Hanks’ work in the future and may look for some other short story anthologies to try as well.
What’s next?
I’m starting Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon next. It’s the ‘A Bookish Baker Book Club’ pick for January. I talked about the book club in my Reading Resolutions post.
Reading Rituals is my monthly post about all things reading. I usually discuss books I’ve been reading and talk about my reading habits. Click here to see all of my Reading Rituals posts.