Reading Recap: January Edition

I participate in the Goodreads Book Challenge every year. My goal for 2021 is 52 books. I really love the idea of reading a book a week and, while I normally crush the goal, January was a bit of a bust. I officially got the Covid. I tested positive on January 9th and, honestly, have no memory of the entire following week. Covid is weird, y'all. While my case was, thankfully, very mild, I'm left with the memory of that guy from Memento and the sleeping habits of an elderly house cat. The brain fog and fatigue are real. Very, very real. I also haven't been hungry since January 7th. I mean, when I remember to, I'm eating. I just have no interest in food, which is a major change for me. I'm normally very interested in food. So, not only did Covid wreck my appetite, it did a real number on my reading schedule. I managed to read four books this month and only kind of remember some of them. So, here goes, the vaguest book review blog of all time. First up, The Need.

The Need, Helen Phillips

2 martinis

I chose this Helen Phillips book because I was intrigued by the cover and I was trying to make the most of my $25 BAM gift card. I love the plants on that black background. Dope cover, mediocre book. It had a lot of potential; it's kind of scary, there's a whole alternate dimension storyline where God is a woman. But it kind of went nowhere. I know that because I read that other people on Goodreads said so. Again, this memory is foggy at best. But the cover is great!

Lovers and Writers, Lily King

3 martinis

I read this one with my ears while lying in bed. I set the sleep timer because it was inevitable that I would fall asleep and miss something. Despite that, I still missed something. It was the interest in the book itself. The main character was a bit tedious. She lamented over a lost love and then we learn that she knew the guy for about 72 hours. After that, she kind of bugged me. It isn't a bad book and, had I had more of my faculties, I may have enjoyed it more. I told you this post would be vague and kind of terrible.

Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin

4 martinis

I totally abandoned the idea of taking in new material. I've watched the show a few times and heard it followed the books closely. This foreknowledge was a relief to my addled brain. Finally! I kind of knew what was happening.

Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen

4 martinis

Elephants is a reread for me. It really has helped get me back in the habit of reading to read something I'm already familiar with. And I freakin' love Rosie. All elephants are amazing, every one of them, but Rosie is the best. Plus, we get a healthy dose of that carnival lingo I'm so fond of. I really want a job that has its own language. Like, I want people to be utterly confused when I tell them what I do rather than just bored. That's it, I'm starting accounting slang.

And that's it. That's all I managed to read this month. I'm one of those people who always have to be doing something. I had many plans for January. I was going to plot the next Perry book (Don't have the first one? Grab it here.), get ahead of my homework - oh, so, starting school while in the midst of a Covid fever is SUPER fun, I'd planned on doing some Lynx & LeRoux work, and I had a goal to do yoga every single day. Y'all, not one of those things happened. And that's okay. My brain has cleared, my fatigue is mostly gone; I'll be able to do some of those things in February. I'm having some post-Covid heart rate issues, so I'm cutting myself some slack on exercising. Yoga will be there when I'm ready for it. I guess that's been the hardest thing about having Covid. I'm a straight up control freak. Covid cares not one iota for your plans or goals. It just completely wrecks your body and leaves you functioning at half capacity for weeks. And that's if you're lucky. So, I'm going to be kind to myself, do what I can, and continue to wash my hands (guys, we should have been doing this the whole time), socially distance, and try to take care of those around me even if they seem content to not take care of themselves.

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