Spines Speak

2020 Recap: My Top Reads

/ spines in a line / 10 Comments

I really enjoy the start of the year, a time for reflecting and planning and all the lists! I don’t often share my top reads of the year but I read a number of stellar books in 2020 and if it calls for a list, I’m already interested.

I have a couple more recap posts in the works but let’s start with books! Here are my top 10 reads of 2020 in a very rough order besides the top 3, and some stats on my 2020 reading!

Top Reads

I’ve talked about quite a few of these books a number of times already so today’s post will be a snappy 3-word review/pitch!

Book cover for Each of Us a Desert by Mark Oshiro. Illustration of an orange sun over a sandy hill.
Book cover for Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead. Image of red and white beaded bison on black felt.
Book cover for Early Departures by Justin A Reynolds. The cover has an illustration of a Black teenage boy facing the reader as other people walk in front and behind him. The other people are all drawn in shades of pink and purple.
Book cover for Trace by Jeff Ho. Illustration of a piano in front of a city skyline. A large grey, black, and white cloud comes out of the piano.
Book cover for Texts from Jane Eyre by Daniel Ortberg. Yellow cover with a photo of a woman wearing a period dress and texting in the middle.
Continue reading →

2020 Recap: Beyond the Bestsellers

/ spines in a line / 8 Comments

It’s time to get into some 2020 reading recaps! I have a couple posts planned as I look back on my reading and blogging journey over the past year, and I’m really excited about today’s topic!

Before I get into my top reads from last year (coming this Friday!), I wanted to join the Beyond the Bestsellers initiative started by Suzy @ Suzy Reads Books. She’s encouraging bookish folks to share some books we’ve read that are underhyped, especially those with under 500 ratings on Goodreads.

I love this project as it’s a great way to use our “book influencer” status to help amazing books reach a larger audience. In looking through my reads this past year, I found a bunch that haven’t received much attention but are still more than deserving of it.

Beyond the Bestsellers

Continue reading →

Month in Review: December 2020

/ spines in a line / 2 Comments

Another month done so it’s time for another month in review! And happy new year to all!

I’m planning a separate post for my year in review (because wow I did a lot of blogging stuff this year! I’m proud of myself and I’m gonna post about it!), but here’s what I got up to this past month. Template based on Jenna’s series @ Falling Letters.

Books finished:

  • My Conversations with Canadians by Lee Maracle
  • The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills
  • Pemmican Wars by Katherena Vermette and Scott B. Henderson
  • Red River Resistance by Katherena Vermette and Scott B. Henderson
  • Northwest Resistance by Katherena Vermette and Scott B. Henderson
  • Love Beyond Body, Space & Time edited by Hope Nicholson
  • Charming as a Verb by Ben Philippe

Books reviewed:

Header graphic for the Please Pick Me book tour. Background of illustrated sunflowers. In the foreground is the book cover for Please Pick Me and text that reads "please pick me by Reina Regina". A logo in the bottom right corner for Caffeine Book Tours.

Graphic created by Caffeine Book Tours

Continue reading →