Happy Wednesday, book friends! It’s our first What We’re Reading Wednesday of the new year, and I’m abuzz (and slightly anxious) with the blank canvas that is my reading for 2022. 

I rung in the New Year with a bit too much gusto and spent the first day of 2022 feeling less than tip-top shape. Guess I was just trying to squeeze a little more chaos into the final year of my 20’s? 

Regardless, between that and the virtual start to our semester at the university where I work, 2022 has started up with a bit more of a whimper than a bang (unless you count the actual bang of a meteor exploding or something over PA, which is a thing that happened). 

Still, I’m enjoying my new planners and fresh reading spreadsheets and all the “fresh start” energy in the air. Here at Your Book Friend, the new year first and foremost means new books, so let’s get into this week in reading! 

(Full disclosure: Links to specific books are Bookshop.org affiliate links, and I’ll earn a small commission if you choose to purchase. Book of the Month links are referral codes). 

---

Recent Reads

I rounded out 2021 with 80 books exactly, finishing Lex Croucher’s Reputation on audio while baking cookies for a visit from a dear friend I hadn’t seen IRL for two years. 

That book (out April 2022) also earned the spot as my last review of 2021, which you can check out here: Mean Girls Meets Jane Austen in Lex Croucher’s “Reputation”

I’m continuing on with Much Ado About A Latte, which came out yesterday (happy belated book birthday). It’s a cute story but a bit slow to start, which is why I’m having trouble cranking through it with so much else happening this time of year. 

---

Currently Reading

I’ve begun Book of the Month-themed Bookish Bingo, in which we try to read through our accumulation of BOTM copies. First up for me is The People We Keep by Allison Larkin. This is one of those books I picked up because it’s slightly different to what I usually read, then didn’t read because… well, it’s slightly different to what I usually read. 

I’m well over halfway through this one so far, and while it’s definitely a different vibe than what I’m used to, I am finding it very compelling. Final thoughts TBD, though I expect I’ll finish in the next day or so at this rate. 

On audio, I’m listening to Stanley Tucci’s food-centric memoir, Taste: My Life in Food. I have to confess I’m a smidge disappointed by this one so far, as I find the tone a bit pretentious and therefore slightly off-putting. It’s possible this is just personal with my own food-related upbringing (we were more of a taco rings using Pillsbury crescent rolls than a homemade pasta from scratch kind of family). There are some interesting anecdotes and recipes throughout, but it is a bit hard to relate to… which, I suppose, all celebrity memoirs are, but it’s bothering me here in a way I’ll have to try and parse in my full review. 

The march through self-care reads for 2022 continues on, as well, with The Witch’s Book of Self-Care. I’m enjoying it immensely so far, though resisting the urge to put it down any time I come to an activity suggestion. “It’s okay to come back to this later” is my 2022 reading mantra where this goal is concerned. 

---

Up Next & On To You

I’m honestly feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the reading goals I’ve set for the new year. I’m excited and don’t regret setting any of my goals, but I do feel a bit stuck about where to go next. It feels like the blank pages of my 2022 Reading Spreadsheet (and the physical reading journal making its way to me) are staring at me, waiting to be filled. 

I do know I’ll be picking up Jane Austen: A Life for the first task of the 2022 Read Harder Challenge, and will also be working my way through another title from my NetGalley shelf once I finish Much Ado About a Latte. 

I may also choose to set aside goals for a moment and just read what I feel like next, because reading should be enjoyable, first and foremost. That, and I did stop by my local indie, White Whale, to grab a formidable stack of books I’m excited about. I guess we’ll see what happens! 

What have you been reading this week? Do you have anything you’re excited to pick up next? Let me know! Let’s talk about books, friends. 

---

Thanks for reading! To keep up to date with what we’re reading every Wednesday, follow us here, on Medium and on Bookstagram! We’re also new to #BookTwitter and would love to connect there!