What I Read in December 2023

Hello!  Thanks for stopping by Thinking Out Loud Thursday where I talk about something on my mind and invite you to link up and do the same.  Today I'm thinking about the books I read in December!

In December, I read two great books and finished reading the Holy Bible through my year-long Bible app.  Typically, I listen to a book or two on my way to and from work but in December my radio was tuned to Christmas music the entire month!

The Guncle

I loved this book!  The Guncle was all the rage a while back, but it had never made it to the top of my list.  I'm so glad it finally made it because I enjoyed it from start to finish.  Here's the summary ~

Patrick, or Gay Uncle Patrick (GUP, for short), has always loved his niece, Maisie, and nephew, Grant. That is, he loves spending time with them when they come out to Palm Springs for weeklong visits, or when he heads home to Connecticut for the holidays. But in terms of caretaking and relating to two children, no matter how adorable, Patrick is, honestly, overwhelmed.

So when tragedy strikes and Maisie and Grant lose their mother and Patrick's brother has a health crisis of his own, Patrick finds himself suddenly taking on the role of primary guardian. Despite having a set of "Guncle Rules" ready to go, Patrick has no idea what to expect, having spent years barely holding on after the loss of his great love, a somewhat-stalled acting career, and a lifestyle not-so-suited to a six- and a nine-year-old. Quickly realizing that parenting--even if temporary--isn't solved with treats and jokes, Patrick's eyes are opened to a new sense of responsibility, and the realization that, sometimes, even being larger than life means you're unfailingly human.

With the humor and heart we've come to expect from bestselling author Steven Rowley, The Guncle is a moving tribute to the power of love, patience, and family in even the most trying of times.

The Great Believers

Wow - this was a great book.  I'm not surprised that it was a Pulitzer Prize finalist, National Book Award Finalist, a New York Times Top 10 Book of 2018, and the list of accolades goes on and on.  I'm anxious to read another by her.  Here's the summary of The Great Believers ~

In 1985, Yale Tishman, the development director for an art gallery in Chicago, is about to pull off an amazing coup, bringing in an extraordinary collection of 1920s paintings as a gift to the gallery. Yet as his career begins to flourish, the carnage of the AIDS epidemic grows around him. One by one, his friends are dying and after his friend Nico’s funeral, the virus circles closer and closer to Yale himself. Soon the only person he has left is Fiona, Nico’s little sister.

Thirty years later, Fiona is in Paris tracking down her estranged daughter who disappeared into a cult. While staying with an old friend, a famous photographer who documented the Chicago crisis, she finds herself finally grappling with the devastating ways AIDS affected her life and her relationship with her daughter. The two intertwining stories take us through the heartbreak of the eighties and the chaos of the modern world, as both Yale and Fiona struggle to find goodness in the midst of disaster.

The Holy Bible

This is the first time I've read the entire Bible.  Each day for the last year I followed the Bible with Tara-Leigh Cobble and The Bible Recap podcast.  I've already started at the beginning again and am looking forward to reading through the Bible again this year.  If you've tried a Bible reading plan and didn't get very far, I highly recommend The Bible Recap to help you along.  Each day you read a passage, and then Tara-Leigh sums it up.  The perfect way to read and understand the Bible!

Now it's your turn - what are you thinking out loud about today?  Link up and share!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter