Read 24 books in 2024, that’s my goal for the year. And here’s a chart with my black-out BINGO!
My groovy friend, Donna Jo, texted me on the first day of January to wish me a Happy New Year.
In our text thread, she asked me about my New Year’s resolutions.
I hadn’t given it much thought because I resolved, ages ago, to give up New Year’s resolutions.
No longer would I feel bad when statisticians talked about me failing to lose weight, or eat better, or whatever. Nope. Half a decade ago, I resolutely vowed to unsubscribe to the soul crushing nonsense and now set a reasonable, do-able goal for myself each annum.
Last year, I enjoyed some success by shopping my own craft hoard before spending money a store.
For 2024, based on one of Donna’s many suggestions of ways to improve myself (all based on doing 24 repeats in honor of the year), I chose to read 24 books.
Committed to not doing anything simply, I created a BINGO card to keep track of my progress.
24 Books in 2024
I’ve always liked to read. And practically always finish books, even if they’re terrible.
My method for choosing a book or novel is non-scientific, which may explain why I sometimes have terrible books to finish.
Typically, I follow someone’s recommendation OR I’m attracted to a cover. But, now that I think about it, I do have to like the cover.
I have a journal to note the books I read. Which, I know, would yield better results if I could keep track of my said journal.
In hopes of continued inspiration to read and blog, I created the above BINGO card. If you’d like your very own card, a downloadable pdf is included below.
24 Books in 2024 BINGO is an Acronym
To layer in ease and to account for the genres I prefer, I made BINGO into an acronym for the types of tomes I’m drawn to. The five columns are banned books, mysteries and thrillers, contemporary fiction, historical fiction and miscellany.
My plan is to fill in the book titles here as the year progresses, with the ultimate goal being a coverall BINGO!
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B is for Banned Books
Worn out by the self appointed do-gooders, I plan to read 5 books deemed not worthy by people who I doubt have read these novels for themselves.
👍 1) Junie B Jones and Some Sneaky Peeky Spying by Barbara Park, illustrated by Denis Brunkus. My kids’ favorite teacher had Junie B Jones books as a cornerstone of her early elementary school curriculum, for the very reason some ill-informed parents have demanded the books be banned. Junie B is a kindergartner who is a typical, curious 5-year-old who uses words such as “stupid” and “meanie”. She’s also surrounded by caring adults who help her learn right from wrong. The books provide many teaching moments for children (and the rest of us).
👍 2) The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. This book was banned for themes of domestic violence, sexual assault, suicide and racism. Told from the perspective of 12-year-old Mexican-American Esperanza Cordero, the book is made up of short vignettes that weave together the story of her community. Some of the stories are heartbreaking, others naive and sweet. A favorite passage for me, “Our laughter for example. Not the shy ice cream bells’ giggle of Rachel and Lucy’s family, but all of a sudden and surprised like a pile of dishes breaking.”
👍 3) The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This novel landed in my hands at the perfect moment 🧡 I had just had a conversation with a dear friend where she asked “is this all there is?” Coelho use of a young shepherd’s journey to find his destiny, as a vehicle to show what the book jacket blurb calls the “transforming power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts”. Interestingly enough, this little book has been banned in Iran and prisons in Florida (there’s got to be an answer to this juxtaposition in the book).
👍 4) Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. A loving and wise letter written by an African-American father to his teenage son, that shares the reality of what it is to be a Black man in American society. The book has been banned from high school AP reading lists because it made White students feel guilty for their whiteness. I get that. But I know giving into feelings of guilt closes my mind to Coates’ message, that race is a social construct and questioning our learned biases is a good thing.
👎 5) The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyle. This work of fiction has been banned from some schools for racial slurs (which seems ridiculous when you consider the harsher realities inflicted on Jews and other marginalize people during the Holocaust) and scholars discourage reading the book because of historical inaccuracies. This story is told by a young boy, whose father is the Nazi officer in charge of Auschwitz toward the end of World War II. After I read the book, which the author wrote in a day and half, I did a shallow dive into the writer and his inspiration because I found the idea of *SPOILER ALERT* kids hanging out along a concentration camp fence to be outlandish and I got annoyed by all the repeating. I think this book got the attention it did because of the shocking end.
I is for Intrigue, such as Mysteries and Thrillers
I became a mystery writer because this is my favorite genre.
👍 6) Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear. The first in a series of mysteries (presently the series has 18 novels), set in London between the World Wars, this tale paints a vivid picture of people war-torn and searching for a new normal. The main character is smart, hard working, likable and, of course, beautiful. I enjoyed the read! I would say it’s more of a thriller, than a mystery, since the reader isn’t given clues to solve it.
👍 7) Murder in the National Gallery by Margaret Truman. I have wanted to read this author for a while. No idea she has 31 novels in her Capital Crimes series! Thirteenth in the series, Truman (daughter of the United States President with the same name) uses her perspective as a Washington DC insider to weave an interesting web. Combine the intrigue with art and I’m happy. Doubt I’ll read another, because I’m trying to expand my reading repertoire, but I did like the book!
👍 8) Little Elvises: A Junior Bender Mystery by Timothy Hallinan. This was a surprisingly fun read. Junior Bender is a LA burglar with an unfortunate reputation among crooks for solving mysteries. The story is well plotted, the characters entertaining and believable, the writing is straight up fun. One of my favorite lines, “the carpet had been a snowy white fifteen or twenty years ago, but was now the precise color of guilt.”
👍 9) Desires and Devices by PD James. This is a re-read for me. PD James is such an iconic mystery writer and this novel was great for a second time! My first read was just after it came out in 1989. At the time, I was a recent college graduate, career gal, fixin’ to get married; now I’m 35 years married, nearing “retirement age” (not that I’ll be retiring) and my perspective on the world has changed greatly. Additionally, I’m more familiar with England, so the geographic descriptions and cultural observations made more sense. I’m not much of a re-reader. There are far too many books in my TBR pile for such frivolity. However! There is a scene, about halfway through, that stuck with me all this time. The main character, Adam Dalgliesh, is a famous commander for Scotland Yard and a poet (a juxtaposition James uses to complicate the character – which I love!). While on holiday, Dalgliesh finds a murder victim near the beach. He’s shocked and sicken, as one is upon grisly discoveries. Contrary to the countless, similar victims objectively approached in his police work, he’s caught unawares and has a very human reaction. James captures how life is always throwing us into situations meant to open our minds and hearts. And the title appears in the text, score!
🤟 10) BLONDE Murder in North Dallas by M Witt McCarty. Y’all! I finished my first draft and I read all the way through it. Editing will continue for a bit longer in anticipation of an April Fools Day release!
N is for Nouveau Novels or what most would call Contemporary Fiction
Most books recommended to me by friends seem to fall into this present day category.
👍 11) Little Bee by Chris Cleave. First off, I love the cover! This is the story of a young Nigerian woman who fled terrible circumstances to become a refugee in modern day London. I was a little concerned going into the book, that a male writer would have two female POV characters, but the story is captivating and I found several phrases turned delightfully. The novel starts, “Most days I wish I was a British pound coin instead of an African girl. Everyone would be pleased to see me coming.” This feel-good aspects of this book far less obvious than the cruelty of this girl’s circumstances.
👍 12) The Unbearable Lightness of Scones by Alexander McCall Smith. Though better known for his detective series The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, this novel (number 5 in the 44 Scotland Street series, currently there’s 17 books) is a funny, insightful, amusing telling of the everyday shenanigans of neighbors who live in Edinburgh, Scotland. The point of view skillfully hops from character to character, occasionally within a single paragraph, to let the reader know what everyone is thinking, even the dog Cyril. “But when Cyril awoke from his brief nap, the problem that confronted him was no one of understanding what was being said over the table, but what he saw underneath, down at dog level, close to the floor. For there before him, only inches away, were Matthew’s ankles; half clad in socks, half exposed. It was a sight of which Cyril had dreamed, and in some of his dreams he had acted. This was Cyril’s temptation, and it was an immensely strong one. Indeed, had Mephistopheles himself concocted a challenge for Cyril, he could not have come up a stronger, more tempting enticement. Matthew’s ankles were Sirens, and they beckoned from the rock of his ruination.” If these characters insist I read another, I’ll get it on Kindle. This 344-page book makes a bag heavy.
👍 13) Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. Wow! Heartbreaking, and uplifting, this coming of age story tells of a Melungeon boy growing up in the rural Virginia. I listened to the audiobook, read by Charlie Thurston (he’s great!).
🖐️ 14) The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck. A novel about three women’s journey through World War II in Germany. I thought the book was well written. I listened to it as an audiobook. Finishing this book gave me 2 straight BINGOs!
G is for Glorious, Historical Fiction
I gotta admit, I’m a fan of a juicy historical fiction! Especially those set in Europe.
👍 15) Empty Theatre by Jac Jemc. The alternate title is The Lives of King Ludwig II of Bavaria and Empress Sisi of Austria (Queen of Hungary), Cousins, in Their Pursuit of Connection and Beauty Despite the Expectations Placed on Them Because of the Exceptional Good Fortune of Their Status as Beloved National Figures. With Speculation into the Mysterious Nature of Their Deaths, which pretty much gives you the tea. I enjoyed this novel enough to write a blog post. Click here to read.
👍 16) The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead. This book won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction. I’ll admit, the perspective I brought to this book was that of a present day, public school educated, white person. After reading, I’m still those same things, but now on a mission to learn more, with a wider lens, about our nation’s history. Unsure of what I’d find in the pages of this book, initially I was impressed with how Whitehead painted the brutal picture of American slavery. He didn’t lean into gore or go for any shock value. Instead, he used concise, SAT words to describe the demoralizing ways people working the plantation were treated. When Cora, the main character, reached the Underground Railroad, I was given pause when Whitehead takes a fantastical turn and flips the metaphor on its ear, making the railroad literally underground. I had to put the book down and google. Overall, the most enlightening thing for me about the novel was the different ways different states handled slavery in their state. Not a blanket policy as I had learned in Texas schools. I’m glad I read the book; it’s given me a lot to think about, especially as I have been spending lately researching my ancestors who lived in these same places, at the same time.
👍 17) The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. This is a retelling of Homer’s The Iliad. I listened to this audiobook and really liked the narrator. The issue I had (as I always do with unusual names) was keeping up with who was who; that said, I enjoyed the novel, but probably would have liked it more if I was reading, for the visual clues on the names. The storyline follows the demigod Achilles of Ancient Greece, from the point of view of his beloved companion Patroclus. The settings are beautiful (as is Achilles) and the bond between the two men is tender and sweet. I spent a good amount of time during the Trojan War section of the book wondering if I should revisit the movie Troy.
👍 18) Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan. This story that takes place in County Waterford, Ireland in the 1980s. The main character is a hardworking family man, and in the course of the novella he makes some discoveries about his past.
🤟 19) A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. I’m giving myself some grace on this one and plan to finish in January. I discovered I get free audiobook listening with my Spotify subscription and started this wonderful story in early December. It’s a 20 hour book and my free allotment is 15 hours 😵💫
O is for Other Books, ya know, the ones that don’t fit in the above categories
To provide myself a parachute, here is a category for non-fiction books and overflow novels.
👍 20) The Joy of Drinking by Barbara Holland. I picked up this book at a St Vincent de Paul thrift shop based on the fun cover and the thinness of the book. With an expectation of recipes and the like, I was pleasantly surprised by this non-fiction work’s conversational approach to alcohol’s influence on American history, filtered through European ancestry. A favorite quote, “Vodka came to us unstained by filth, mud, and blood, innocent of any history we’ve heard, and it can’t be denounced in verse since nothing rhymes with it.”
👍 21) Irish in Wisconsin by David G Holmes. An interesting read, if you find the Irish in Wisconsin interesting. I do. My husband’s paternal great great grandparents immigrated to the US from Ireland during the Potato Famine and settled in the south-central part of the Badger State. I’ve spent a good amount of time looking for the villages these people left and have wondered how they landed where they did. This book provided some insight.
👍 22) Script & Scribble: The Rise and Fall of Handwriting by Kitty Burns Florey. This is definitely a niche read that I found in a tiny free library in Center Point, Texas. I found it fun and interesting to trace our scribbles through history. There’s plenty of pictures and written examples of humanities’ turned pages of technology and advancements. Plus, it answered some of my burning, nerdy questions of why it matters whether we write by hand or machine.
23) The Clanlands Almanac: Seasonal Stories from Scotland by Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish. Okay, I listened to this while driving home from Houston, and I only got through June. The authors are actors from the Outlander series. I liked the banter between the men and the information was interesting, however, I would have done better with a printed page given many of the stories and tales were location specific and I’m not intimately familiar with Scotland.
24) Mrs. Kennedy and Me by Clint Hill.
24 Book in 2024 BINGO Downloadable
