Whew!  I caught up on the Monica Ferris series.  Now what?

I read 15 books this month (pretty usual in spite of adding the gym to my schedule).   Of those 15,  10 were by women authors (Ferris mostly),   8 of the 15 were crime/mystery novels,  2 were nonfiction (history),  2 classics (Eugene Onegin and the Kalevala) a couple were literary fiction and one was historical fiction.

There was nothing really outstanding this month – Drabble was a new author for me and The Red Queen was quite good but still, only an 8.5.

The best thing about November is that I finished The Kalevala – the Finnish National Epic.  It was a wonderful book but always a bit weird – hard – very fantastical.  Eugene Onegin and The Worst Hard Time were rereads.

Sweet Tooth and A Thread of Grace were both disappointing compared to what McEwan and Russell have written prior.

Only Holy War by Nigel Cliff was really interesting,  fresh,  new in non-fiction and it got a bit sloggy with all of da Gama’s adventures described in almost mind-numbing detail.

Here’s to a better December!  (see Upcoming)  –  One more Monica Ferris and I’m looking forward to The Book of Evidence by John Banville.   Also,  I have the following for January 1st  book clubs:

The Secret Keeper: A Novel by Kate Morton
Istanbul Passage by Joseph Kanon
Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont–Elizabeth Taylor
Care of Wooden Floors –  Wiles

I might read the Pulitzer winning “What Hath God Wrought” and  Jefferson by Meacham.  –  We’ll see.   I’d like to read at least 8 books in order to get to 150 for the year … so they will likely be some audios I have waiting –

All Clear and Blackout by Connie Willis
The Black Box by Michael Connelly
Split Second by David Baldacci –

Oh! –  I have Walden to read – it’s on my TBR shelf-  (I’ve never read it! – shhhh!)

And I might just finish The Count of Monte Cristo a bit early –  that makes 12 for December which is about average –  I’ll do this.

(P.S. –  one of my goals for 2012 was to read FEWER books but read them better!  –  I didn’t manage the fewer part –  I don’t know about the better. )