Reading List – Page 2 – …on the B.L.

11… Of My Favorite Christmas Books to Read

December 14, 2020December 14, 2020 RaeAnna

A Christmas Treasury is one of my favorite Christmas books and my #1 recommendation.

When I started blogging, I decided to dedicate December to reading Christmas and holiday books. By now, in my third year of continuing this tradition, I have now encountered many Christmas inclined books. Some have been beautiful classics and others have been smutty romances and others have been worse than a Hallmark movie with a bigger time commitment.

To save you some time, I’m sharing eleven Christmas books I will always recommend. There are a couple silly romances, but they’re well done, and now is the time of year for love, joy, peace on Earth, and a little mindless reading.

A Christmas Treasury This one is a beautifully illustrated book full of lots of Christmas stories. If you buy one book this year for Christmas, make it this one. Perfect for children and adults. Plus, it looks amazing sitting on a coffee table or under the tree.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens Arguably the greatest Christmas story ever told, it changed Christmas in England and America. It’s a classic because the tale is timeless and the writing is superb.
Letters from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien I adore everything about this book. Tolkien wrote to his children for two decades as Santa. The letters were accompanied by beautiful illustrations.
Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory So often Christmas stories involve white people. I love that this romantic comedy had a strong independent woman who gave up nothing for love and the two main characters are Black. Yay!!!
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson I have an emotional connection to this one because I starred in the play version as I kid. It’s fun, funny, and full of redemption.
The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guinn Full of history, adventure, and Christmas spirit, this is a great book for families to read with their kids. I also just enjoyed it immensely as a history buff.
A Merry Christmas and Other Stories by Louisa May Alcott Alcott has been one of my favorite authors since I was a child. I love her Christmas stories as much as her novels. They’re sweet and beautiful.
The Nutcracker by Alexandre Dumas This is not the ballet. It’s a great book about the Nutcracker and Christmas with the right amount of horror and fun.
The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum This is such a sweet and fun story. I absolutely love the mystical take Baum gives Santa and his world. It’s adorable and I read it again and again.
Christmas at Thompson Hall and Other Christmas Stories by Anthony Trollope I have loved Trollope’s way with words, and his Christmas stories are witty and full of societal insight.
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry This is a classic Christmas story, and one that probably has more relevance than we would like to admit in today’s world of COVID and financial upheaval.

Alright. These are my eleven Christmas picks. I highly suggest all of them. You can’t go wrong with any of them. They’re happy and full of Christmas spirit. This year, we could all use a little bit more of that in our lives; I know I could.

bisous und обьятий,
RaeAnna

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11..., Lifestyle

11… Books for Women’s History Month

March 16, 2020March 15, 2020 RaeAnna

Hanging out in the Iowa State Law Library in Des Moines, Iowa. | Skirt | Sweater | Shoes |

Every year, I like to read books dedicated to a few of the heritage months. Last month, I did not read as much for Black History Month as I’d hoped, oh well. I use the heritage months as a way to educate myself.

The one month I don’t celebrate through my reading list is Women’s History Month. I don’t need to. Not that I’m the most educated person on the topic, most of the books I crack are written by and about women. I find them more interesting. Gender studies is one of my favorite topics to read about. I tend to have to go out of my way to read books by and about men in the fiction genre – history is another story altogether. I just don’t care as much about the protagonists when they’re men. Sorry, but not actually. I have always thought a woman’s story, no matter who she is/was, is far more engaging to me than those of men. Men are great, sure, but I’d rather spend my time reading about my people.

I completely and full-heartedly support Women’s History Month, but I don’t make a point of dedicating my reading list to it. My entire reading list, all year long is a devotion to women, our history, our issues, our future. If you want to read more books about and by women, here are eleven of the books and authors who opened my mind and enthralled me as a young reader, as a student, and as an adult!

Rose in Bloom Louisa May Alcott
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Harriet Jacobs
The Awakening Kate Chopin
Funny in Farsi Firoozeh Dumas
All The Single Ladies Rebecca Traister
Americanah Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Reading Lolita in Tehran Azar Nafisi
Homegoing Yaa Gyasi
Herland Charlotte Perkins Gilman
The Second Sex Simone de Beauvoir
To the Lighthouse Virginia Woolf

bisous und обьятий,
RaeAnna

11..., Reading Lists

11… Black Writers I LOVE

February 10, 2020 RaeAnna

wp-1581366815475 — The Travelers | The Water Dancer | How to Love a Jamaican | A Raisin in the Sun | The Palm Wine Drinkard | Infidel: My Life | I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem | Passing | Half of A Yellow Sun | Homegoing |

Some of my favorite books are written by black authors. The first book I read by an African author was The Palm Wine Drinkard by Amos Tutuola. It completely opened my mind to a new voice, culture, and world.

Black authors have done more to open my mind than any other demographic. I would not be the person I am today without these authors, their stories, the characters, and the challenges they gave me to face in the mirror and the world.

1. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie… I’ve read all of her books, and they are amazing. Americanah is absolutely stunning. I can’t recommend her enough. She has a uniquely African, American, female, human voice, which creates empathy and understanding by bridging the differences and finding the commonalities.
2. The Palm Wine Drinkard by Amos Tutuola was my gateway book. Before it, I had always gravitated to the European classics. Tutuola opened my eyes to a more diverse world of literature, and I’ve never looked back. It’s an amazing novel. You should read it.
3. One of the first novels I read by a black woman after discovering Achebe was Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. It is an incredible novel, and I fell in love with Hurston’s prose. She was incredibly talented, witty, and amazing. Anything she wrote is gold.
4. A few years ago, Yaa Gyasi was all over the place because of her debut novel Homegoing. It is absolutely worth the hype. I love the book and reviewed it, here.
5. Ta-Nehisi Coates is a great writer. I really love his essays. They are incredible and insightful. 2019 saw the publishing of his first novel, The Water Dancer, which I’ve just read and I’m in the process of writing a review.
6. The playwright, Lorraine Hansberry, is best known for A Raisin in the Sun, a play depicting segregation in Chicago and the Black Americans living in it. It was the first play by a black, female author performed on Broadway.
7. Alexia Arthurs has an amazing and unique voice. I can’t wait to see what else she brings into this world. Her collection of stories How to Love a Jamaican is wonderful. I reviewed it, here.
8. I love memoirs, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a phenomenal memoirist. She’s had a challenging and tragic life, but she overcame it and created good in the world through her activism and writing. I highly suggest any of her memoirs, but Infidel: My Life is particularly incredible.
9. I recently discovered Nella Larsen and her novella Passing. It was published 91 years ago, but it still holds so much up in today’s world and provides insight into the days of years gone by. Read the review, here.
10. I read Moi, Tituba, Sorcière… Noire de Salem or I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem by Maryse Condé in college. Some of the scenes in the novel have stayed with me ever since. It’s an amazing and heart wrenching novel in the original French and just as powerful in the English translation.
11. Regina Porter’s debut novel The Travelers is fantastic. It’s an amazing snapshot of American history. I reviewed it a few months ago, here.

bisous und обьятий,
RaeAnna

Books, Reading Lists

11 Books to Read This Christmas

November 12, 2019 RaeAnna

Beau agrees, she can’t believe it’s Christmas already!!! | A Christmas Treasury | Christmas Dog Mug

Hi. Halloween has come and gone, which means it’s the best season of all. Christmas. I’ve been listening to Christmas music for eleven days now. Last year, I read a bunch of Christmas books in three weeks. I started earlier this year, but I have more to read. I haven’t posted any seasonal book reviews yet because I know not everyone is as Christmabsessed as I am. Anyways, here are eleven books you can and should read during the happiest time of year.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (classic, duh)
The Nutcracker by Alexandre Dumas (not the ballet)
The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guinn
The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum
Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan
Letter from Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkien
Hiddensee by Gregory Maguire
The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry
Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
Mr. Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva
How Mrs. Claus Saved Christmas by Jeff Guinn

Some of these I’ve read in previous years. Some I have read this year, and there are a few I haven’t read yet, but they’re waiting for me on my shelf to read in front of the tree!!!

Books, Reading Lists

Cruise Reading List

February 17, 2019February 17, 2019 RaeAnna

My suitcase is packed. My books are packed in my favorite weekender. I have my sunhat ready to go. Wearing my comfiest shoes and yoga pants for a roadtrip!

I’m off on another adventure. Technically, it’s my first adventure of the year. The year rolled over while I was on my last adventure. I’m spending a few days with family in New Orleans before heading on my first cruise. A bunch of my mom’s side of the family are taking a cruise to Mexico to celebrate my grandma’s 80th birthday!

I am working the next couple of days, but I am not working while on the cruise. Well, I’m not working three of the four and a half days on the cruise. Those three days will be the first days I’ve not worked in…. years. I’ll be doing work for the blog like taking pictures and writing. I like to think of that as fun(work). It’s work, but I love it.

I will actually get to sit down and read. Actually dedicate time to reading. I’m super behind on my reading list, so hopefully, I can catch up over the next few days. Fingers crossed. Besides reading, I get to actually put on clothes and look like a human being!!!

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Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way
Tanja Hester
I’m currently reading this. It’s full of lots of great ideas. I kind of feel like I’m living a work optional life because I have the freedom of taking my work with me everywhere I go.
We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy
Ta-Nehisi Coates
I’m really excited to read this one.
Mother Winter
Sophia Shalmiyev
I’m looking forward to this memoir about emigration and motherhood.
The Bold World; A Memoir of Family and Transformation
Jodie Patterson
I love the cover, and I’m looking forward to reading about a mother’s journey with a trans child.
French Quarter Fiction; The Newest Stories of America’s Oldest Bohemia
Editor: Joshua Clark
I love New Orleans, and this is an obvious choice since I’m in the city.
American Spy
Lauren Wilkinson
I love the cover a whole bunch. The story sounds pretty great too.
Dreyer’s English; An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style
Benjamin Dreyer
My inner language nerd is going to have so much time reading this. This is my version of porn.

Books, Reading Lists

Up, Up, and Away Reads

September 11, 2018September 11, 2018 RaeAnna

Getting ready for take off at Hobby Airport in Houston!

I wasn’t even in Houston for a full month, and I’m off again on another adventure. Alabama has been trying to kill me for a year every time I drove through it, so I decided to fly. Plus flying is faster and more convenient. I just can’t take my dog on the plane! So I’m a free mama this go around. Here are the books I’m going to try to read my way through over the next ten days. Wish me luck!