December 2024 in Books

I'm super late getting this post up this month, but it's been busy!  December was a really good month of reading, especially the historical fiction genre.  Here are the recaps:

In the Time of the Butterflies - Julia Alvarez - historical fiction - five stars - Great read about the four Mirabel sisters who lived in the Dominica Republic during the dictatorship of Trujillo.  This is a country and time period that I knew nothing about.  Three of the Mirabel sisters and their husbands were involved with those who wanted to overthrow Trujillo.  As a result they were each jailed at various times and eventually the three sisters were murdered as was one of their husbands.  The narrative moves from sister to sister, and also brings you up to date on the aftermath of the murders, the fall of Trujillo, and what happened with the family afterwards.  Excellent read.

The Stone Home - Crystal Hana Kim - historical fiction - five stars - Another book about a country/time period I had no knowledge of, South Korea.  When I first started reading, I thought it took place much earlier, maybe before or after WWII, and was shocked to realize that the events took place in the 1980s.  It's about a 'home' that was established by the government as part of an effort to clean up the country leading up to their hosting of the Olympics.  Homeless/undesirables were picked up and placed into institutions where they functioned as slave labor, manufacturing items that were sold with profits benefiting the government, in addition, the government solicited funds from religious organizations to 'sponsor' these homes.  In some ways the stories reminded me of those of the Native American schools that governments established in the US and Canada.  Disturbing, but well worth the read.

The Volcano Daughters - Gina Maria Balibrera - historical fiction - four stars - Another historical fiction book where I learned a lot.  This one was another about a dictator, El Gran Pendejo, this time in El Salvador, and a set of sisters.  Pendejo is not all their.  He has numerous mystical notions/beliefs.  Sisters Consuela and Graciela have been taken from their home to serve him.  Eventually they are able to escape and return to their village in the shadow of a volcano.  The village is slaughtered.  Somehow the sisters survive and escape, although both believe the other is dead.  The book follows their life post El Salvador as well as how the come back to one another.  It's a really interesting story, although I wasn't a huge fan of the narrative device the author used throughout.  It's narrated by the dead friends of the sisters.  

Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Before the Coffee Gets Cold, #1) - Toshikazu Kawaguchi - fiction - four stars - About a cafe in Tokyo where you can go back in time to see someone, but there are rules.  You have to sit in a particular chair, you can't change the future, you have to return to the future before your coffee gets cold, etc.  This one took a while to get going, but I really enjoyed all the little vignettes of who wanted to to the past, who they wanted to talk to, and why.  A nice quick read.

French Windows - Antoine Laurain - fiction - three stars - I've read a number of Laurain's other books, they are what I'd describe as novelettes, and I really loved them.  This one was a disappointment.  It's about Doctor Farber, a psychologist, whose new patient, a photographer, photographed/witnessed a murder and now can't seem to work anymore.  As Farber works with her, she slowly reveals who the murdered/murdered was.  It was an interesting premise, and I was definitely surprised at the end, but I kind of feel like the bulk of the book was a total tangent and not really necessary.  Didn't live up to my expectations for the author.

Within Arm's Reach - Ann Napolitano - fiction - three stars - This one was a mixed bag for me.  It's about a large family dealing with the decline of the matriarch and the unexpected pregnancy of one of her grandchildren.  The varying personalities within the family as well as their relationships with one another were interesting, but it just didn't tied together well in the end.  Too many loose ends, just a lot that I felt was left unresolved, like we needed a few more chapters.  I'll also say that a number of the characters were just frustrating and annoying.  The interesting thing is that I picked this up because I've really enjoyed Napolitano's other books and figured I would read this new one, but it turns out it isn't actually a new book, it's the re-release of her debut novel.  Definitely not as polished and well done as her later books, but it definitely kept me reading, just felt unfinished at the end.

Favorite this month was In the Time of the Butterflies and least favorite was French Windows.  I'm already two and a half books into 2025, currently The Magnificent Ruins which is pretty good.  What are you guys reading?