Bookwyrm Breakdown: Happy Holidays

Hello friends!

Hope you stayed safe and enjoyed your Thanksgiving!

It’s finally December and 2020 is almost over. Is it just me, or has this year been dragging for way too long? Not sure if 2021 will get any better, but one can only hope.

Honestly, it still feels weird not being in class right now. I still get the occasional “OH MY GOD! DID I STUDY FOR MY EXAM TOMORROW?” nightmare. All I know is that my ability to procrastinate is still going strong.

This Month’s Posts

• [2 Nov] Google Translates My Blogging Advice from Last Year (Spoiler: I insist on hating blogs forever)
• [8 Nov] Bookwyrm Breakdown: It’s November and We’ve Been Dealing with Life
• [13 Nov] Send Me Their Souls by Sara Wolf ★★★★
• [17 Nov] The Lost Wonderland Diaries by J. Scott Savage ★★★★
• [20 Nov] These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong ★★★★★

Books Hoarded

Lupe

After spending SO MUCH on books last month, I decided to give my poor wallet a break. I was very tempted, but I powered through!

Hannah

Finances are currently tough (I’m really only spending on the very occasional treat yourself), so my hauls as of late have been from the library’s ebook system. (I’m actually considering dumping Kindle Unlimited lately as well…)

• The Iron King by Julie Kagawa – holy shit, it’s been over a decade, but I’m readying myself for The Iron Raven.
  • Lupe: Still waiting for the cue to begin buddy reading this series. *patiently waiting*
• Early Departures by Justin A. Reynolds – I loved Opposite of Always so the moment I found out about Early Departures, I moved it into my TBR.

Books Devoured

Lupe

I’ve once again failed this month. The reading slump IS A REAL STRUGGLE. I devoured lots of Mexican food on Thanksgiving. Does that count?

Hannah

November started out rough, and then I turned into a speed reading monster for two days and then I hid myself away in a game.

• These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong (ARC) – I don’t think I’ve read any debuts this year so by default These Violent Delights tops that list (but even if I did, Chloe Gong’s debut novel is amazing and I highly, highly recommend you get your hands on it).
  • I’m going to hold off on purchasing this until things are better, but I think my mom is going to steal my copy because These Violent Delights is set in Shanghai and that’s all I need to say to get her to read YA.
    • She still has my copy of American Panda and The Epic Crush of Genie Lo. Mom, pls. I love those books. 😭
• Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao (ARC) – In my full defense, I really thought it was going to publish later in November but lol time laughed.
• Shine by Jessica Jung – I haven’t posted a review over at The Arts STL in a very hot minute, but I’m pondering it? Anyway, I was not a fan of Jung’s debut novel no matter how much I adore Girls’ Generation and even if they were my intro into K-Pop.
  • You’re better off reading I’ll Be the One by Lyla Lee
• Send Me Their Souls by Sara Wolf – Enjoyed it overall, but it had quite a few loose ends that make the ending not too complete.
• Early Departures by Justin A. Reynolds – I started and finished this right at the end like I sometimes submit my stuff back in college, and I enjoyed this as much as I did with Reynolds’ debut novel.

Fandom Assemble

Still haven’t come up with a Good GIF.

Lupe

I love The Mandalorian, but I’m going to love WandaVision once the first episode drops on January 15, 2021. Have you seen the trailer? I can’t wait for this Marvel TV era to begin. I’m a big fan of Marvel and I have no doubt that WandaVision will be phenomenal.

CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

I am not ashamed to admit that I decorated my home two weeks before Thanksgiving. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. I love Christmas! Listening to Christmas music gives me tremendous joy. I’m just grateful that my boss and coworkers have the same Christmas energy. I pretty much helped decorate the workplace! They encourage me to make the decorations as cheesy as possible. How great is that?

Hannah

Honestly, the only thing I’ve been keeping up with Pop Culture wise is everything K-Pop. This month has been filled with bops and comebacks, and some of them I still haven’t gotten around to… like BTS’s album. I’ll get around to it, I promise.

Here are some of my favorites:

• Taemin (SHINee) released Act 2 of his Never Gonna Dance Again album with the title track IDEA and I’m just… anyways, if you haven’t listened to Taemin, you’re missing out. 😌 (I only hope he’s getting enough rest, though… considering he released Act 1 and then Super M had a comeback and now Act 2. This is all within three months of each other, all of them full-length albums. Ouch.)
• aespa made their debut with Black Mamba! I love it, but also… not to be that person but I feel like this is kind of a PR stunt considering… waves hands some recent events.
• Monsta X released Love Killa, the title track to their new album Fatal Love, which I liked for the most part.

The Breakdown

A breakdown of what the universe had in store for the month (or longer).

Lupe

November has been difficult due to starting a new job rotation. To give you more context, I am in a year long program where I get to learn how a warehouse is run which will essentially prepare me to be a warehouse supervisor/manager. Learning a new job is both exciting and challenging, but my brain is fried and my anxiety level is increasing. Hence why I get home, shower, eat and immediately pass out.

Currently, I am planning to get back into Bookstagram. Haven’t been on that app in AGES. Honestly, I missed being creative and messing around with my camera. I do plan on reading at LEAST one book this December. Got to finish this year feeling somewhat accomplished!

Hannah

Quite frankly, this month has been… exhausting with the election and being stuck for another four years with a governor that gives 0 fucks about their people. Friends, we never even had a statewide mask mandate since this shit started, and we have folks suing the county executive for shutting indoor dining.

I think it’s safe to say this month for me has been more focused on self-care since I’ve been picking up overtime hours, so the moment I get home, all I want to do is lie there in bed doing nothing. But I’ve been working on some reformatting, with most images being created on the phone since I have unlimited phone data (might as well put it to use). I’ve also abandoned touching anything language wise but I’m starting to pick it up again. Hopefully I’ll stop abandoning them so much.

Let’s talk!

How was your November? Are you ready for winter?