At Least One of Everything | November 2023 Reading Wrap Up

Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog!

Happy December, everyone! November absolutely sucked, but what else is new? November is historically the worst month of the year for me (and I'm betting for a lot of other people, too). So really, it was just par for the course, at this point. 

Anyway, let's talk books. 

This November I, once again, read 9 books: 5 novels, 1 novella, 1 poetry collection, 1 nonfiction, and 1 manga volume. And despite it being a poor month in every other aspect of my life, this was actually a super great reading month, with a couple new favorites and everything!

Alright, let's get into the wrap up!

==========

Novels

1. Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch by Rivka Galchen
Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 3.5 stars/6.43 CAWPILE
Page count: 288 pages
Day(s) read: 11.01 - 11.10
Goodreads thoughts: Not me knowing that Johannes Kepler’s MOTHER was tried as a witch??? What a heckin life, honestly. And what a sad ending! Not that I really expected the ending to be all that happy, considering it took place in the 1600s. But still!

2. I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys 
Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, YA
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.43 CAWPILE
Page count: 336 pages
Day(s) read: 11.03 - 11.04
Goodreads thoughts: Once again, Ruta Sepetys has informed me of a significant historical event of which I had no previous knowledge of. It's so frustrating to me that there are so many things that were never even mentioned in school. My parents didn't even know about the Romanian revolution, and they were around then!

Aside from my instant rabbit hole after reading this book, I thought it went by a little fast. I would have liked to see more of a build up to everything. The revolution itself seemed cut off in a way, though I suppose that's how it would feel to someone experiencing it. I think I just would've liked a little more detail to flush out.

3. Empire of Wild by Cherie Dimaline
Genre: Horror, Mythology, Contemporary Fiction, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.71 CAWPILE
Page count: 320 pages
Day(s) read: 11.05 - 11.10
Goodreads thoughts: Damn. That’s all I can really say at this point: GodDAMN! Also, another sad ending! Though I suppose with horror, that’s the norm isn’t it? Horrors don’t end happily.

4. The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah
Genre: Fantasy, Mythology, Historical Fiction, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4.5 stars/8.43 CAWPILE 
Page count: 512 pages
Day(s) read: 11.18 - 11.26
Goodreads thoughts: Absolutely wild! This was such a fun time, and the stakes were much higher than I had expected them to be. This could easily become a favorite fantasy series of mine. I'm eagerly looking forward to book 2!

5. If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
Genre: Dark Academia, Mystery/Thriller, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 5 stars/9.14 CAWPILE 
Page count: 354 pages
Day(s) read: 11.26 - 11.27
Goodreads thoughts: I want to go back in time to when I first heard about this book and then scream at my past self for waiting until now to read it, because I loved this! This is the exact kind of dark academia that I want. Not to mention this friend group is so incredible, it reminds me a lot of The Raven Cycle. They're all so in love with each other it hurts. This whole book hurt, actually. It hurt a lot. But I want to thank it, and M.L. Rio, for hurting me so badly.

Novellas

1. Exit Strategy by Martha Wells
Genre: Science Fiction, Adventure, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 3.5 stars/6.29 CAWPILE 
Page count: 176 pages
Day(s) read: 11.25 - 11.26
Goodreads thoughts: I feel like I'm slowing down with Murderbot. This story, at least, did not grab my attention the way the previous novellas did. While it was fun to see some of the characters from the beginning again, I feel like this particular plot was a little too cut and dry for my taste.

Poetry

1. Live Oak, With Moss by Walt Whitman (Illustrated by Brian Selznick)
Genre: Poetry, Queer Romance, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: N/A
Page count: 192 pages 
Day(s) read: 11.17 (ONE DAY READ)
Goodreads thoughts: N/A

Nonfiction 

1. 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric H. Cline
Genre: History, Archeology, Adult
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.14 CAWPILE 
Page count: 264 pages (10 hrs 47 mins audio)
Day(s) read: 11.11 - 11.14
Goodreads thoughts: I thought this was very well done. The author takes the time to really explain all of the civilizations impacted, explores all of the theories, and provides ample evidence as to why he thinks what happened, happened. I also appreciate that he revised this book to include new discoveries and evidence found after the first publication.

Manga 

1. Spy x Family vol. 10 by Tatsuya Endo 
Genre: Humor, Crime, Shonen
Star rating/CAWPILE: N/A
Page count: 200 pages
Day(s) read: 11.02 (ONE DAY READ)
Goodreads thoughts: N/A

---

Total page count: 2,642 pages

Favorite book of November: If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio 

DNFs this month: Vita Nostra by Maria & Sergey Dyachenko

No unfinished books this month

November book haul: If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
                                      My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones
                                      To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose
                                      The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

==========

Alright, that's all I have for November! Sorry I didn't get to any book reviews this month, I wanted to do one for If We Were Villains but the last few days of the month were very hectic and I ran out of time. 

I can't believe we're now in the final month of 2023. This year has been super weird, that's for sure. 

What was your favorite read of November? I'd love to know! Leave a comment below, or DM me on Instagram (link in sidebar under the header "More Media").

Until next time, friends!