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William Stoner is born at the end of the nineteenth century into a dirt-poor Missouri farming family. Sent to the state university to study agronomy, he instead falls in love with English literature and embraces a scholar’s life, so different from the hardscrabble existence he has known. And yet as the years pass, Stoner encounters a succession of disappointments: marriage into a “proper” family estranges him from his parents; his career is stymied; his wife and daughter turn coldly away from him; a transforming experience of new love ends under threat of scandal. Driven ever deeper within himself, Stoner rediscovers the stoic silence of his forebears and confronts an essential solitude.
John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.
One of my in-person bookclub members praised this book very highly, and it became our December BOTM.
The Quotes
“In his forty-third year William Stoner learned what others, much younger, had learned before him: that the person one loves at first is not the person one loves at last, and that love is not an end but a process through which one person attempts to know another.”
“A war doesn’t merely kill off a few thousand or a few hundred thousand young men. It kills off something in a people that can never be brought back. And if a people goes through enough wars, pretty soon all that’s left is the brute, the creature that we—you and I and others like us—have brought up from the slime.”
“In the University library he wandered through the stacks, among the thousands of books, inhaling the musty odor of leather, cloth, and drying page as if it were an exotic incense.”
The Narrator(s)
Robin Field. It was great, I was very much immersed in Stoner’s world and I thought the narration was perfect.
My Thoughts
I was surprised by how invested I got into Stoner’s life. He’s an ordinary person, not special at all, and he doesn’t do anything special either. He was the most passive person but there were occasional times when he fought hard, and then nothing again, it’s interesting and perhaps true to life. The book follows him throughout his life and we see him through all his ups and downs. There were times you think he might achieve great things or do something extraordinary, times when you hurt for him and celebrate with him, times when you wish you could reach into the book and shake him and tell him to make better choices. There was a lot to think about and I think the writing is absolutely beautiful.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
‘I never have been in love; it is not my way, or my nature; and I do not think I ever shall.’
Beautiful, clever, rich – and single – Emma Woodhouse is perfectly content with her life and sees no need for either love or marriage. Nothing, however, delights her more than interfering in the romantic lives of others. But when she ignores the warnings of her good friend Mr Knightley and attempts to arrange a suitable match for her protegee Harriet Smith, her carefully laid plans soon unravel and have consequences that she never expected. With its imperfect but charming heroine and its witty and subtle exploration of relationships, Emma is often seen as Jane Austen’s most flawless work.
I wanted to try more of Austen’s works! And it was a buddy read.
The Quotes
“I lay it down as a general rule, Harriet, that if a woman doubts as to whether she should accept a man or not, she certainly ought to refuse him.”
“Silly things do cease to be silly if they are done by sensible people in an impudent way.”
“I always deserve the best treatment because I never put up with any other.”
“There are people, who the more you do for them, the less they will do for themselves.”
“Nobody, who has not been in the interior of a family, can say what the difficulties of any individual of that family may be.”
The Narrator(s)
Wanda McCaddon. I enjoyed the narration.
My Thoughts
Emma is my third Austen book, and I think while I can enjoy Austen’s books, I could also just take them or leave them. They are good, to be fair, and very reflective of the era they were written in, the social expectations, culture, and prejudices. I’d say Austen is quite progressive for her time, and I can enjoy her books as historical and cultural studies, but I can’t enjoy them as romances because it’s hard to accept the ways gender norms and cultural expectations were viewed at the time.
I do love Emma for what it was though. I didn’t find many of the characters in this book likeable, but I do find them interesting and funny, and somewhat relatable. I quite enjoyed the read and got really invested in the drama in a very gossip-y, low-stakes way. I think Austen’s books in general are very well-written and easy to read. It is a little difficult sometimes to ignore the classism, misogyny, issues with age difference, etc. but unfortunately, it’s accurate to the times and culture it was written in, and I try to take that into account and not judge the story based on that. These issues are probably the reason why I could take or leave Austen’s works though.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.
Today’s topic is Best Books I Read in 2025
I read so many good books in 2025, it was so hard to choose! It’s a blessing though, I think, and I’d rather have too many good books than not enough to choose from. I also reread several favorite books that may or may not have a higher standing than some of the books I’ve listed here, but I didn’t think I should add them to this list in order to be fair to first time reads. The one exception is Dungeon Crawler Carl – I read the first two books the year before, but reread them, and the rest of the five books for the first time in 2025.
Top Ten Best Books I Read in 2025
Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman – This is hands down my favorite books read in 2025. I know I’m cheating because it’s a whole series but it’s technically one story, and all seven books (so far) are so good! If I didn’t give the series a spot, it would be all seven books in seven spots on this list, and we gotta give the other books a chance!
Lady Astronaut Universe series by Mary Robinette Kowal – Another cheat because it’s also a series. There are four books so far, and they are tangentially related but I really loved them and had to include them. I didn’t realize they were alternate historical fiction and initially expected something more sci-fi, but I loved what I got! I especially love how much attention to detail Kowal gave the story, and how nuanced the issues with societal and cultural prejudices were presented. It was very well-written.
Perdido Street Station by China Miéville – This book is incredible and lives rent free in my head. There is so much to it; the worldbuilding, the characters, the emotions! OMG, the emotions! It was difficult to read at times because of how intense it got. It’s one book I know I want to reread because I know I’ll get more out of it, but not any time soon because I need to recover from the first time I read it!
Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – I tend to not remember much of the details of books I read, especially if it was a while ago, but I remember impressions, and this book really packed a punch. It’s especially painful for me to see small and vulnerable people getting hurt by big, authoritarian people, and this book made me rage and cry.
Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann – Another story that highlights racism, genocide, oppression, and the injustice of powerful people towards vulnerable people. Except that this is a true story and I hate that it happened and is still happening in less obvious ways. It hurts to see the evil that people are capable of, and especially with the current political climate we live in, that they get away with because other people allow them to, and even condone their actions. It frightens me and I really hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman – This was a beautiful book about found family, which everyone knows I have a soft spot for. I can understand the despair and loneliness Ove initially felt and why he was so curmudgeonly at first, but I love seeing the journey of how things changed for him. It was such an emotional read for me.
A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher – I love Kingfisher’s books because I love fairytale retellings and the kind of stories she writes in particular, but some are better than others and I think this is one of them. I’m not very familiar with the original fairytale it’s based on (Goose Girl) but I love this story on its own. I especially loved the characters because they were all so different but so strong in their own ways.
Christine by Stephen King – I was good and only put one Stephen King book on my list. I was so surprised by how much I loved this one. I never prioritized this book from his vast catalog because I was not very interested in cars, but of course, it’s not about the car, it’s about the story and the way he tells it. King is a master at creating the most interesting characters; I love how even the side characters stand out and reminds us of real people in our lives. I love the way he writes the relationships between the different characters in the book and how relatable they are in different ways. The characters are always the best part of any King book.
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – I don’t know where to start with this. The fact that it’s a true story and such a tragedy made it really hard to read, but also so hard to put down. It doesn’t matter that it happened years ago, Krakauer wrote it when it was relatively fresh for him and even though he tried to be objective, his emotions are obvious on the page. I had so many thoughts and feelings while reading this that I write about more in the review, but oof, I’m still processing even now.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – I love this book because of how subtle and nuanced the issues with classism and racism are. Don’t get me wrong, it’s also pretty blatant, but there are so many little details; the micro-aggressions, that you don’t see and don’t realize unless you’re living it or it’s pointed out to you. The topic of motherhood and what makes a good mother is also explored deeply here, and it’s emotional. I’m both traumatized and healed by this book.
Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?
Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.
December 2025 Wrap Up
Happy 2026, everyone!!
I had a busy, but good, December and I feel very happy and hopeful for the new year. I do feel like I’m constantly playing catch-up with my blog posts and book reviews though, and I am truly sorry for neglecting my blog and all of you who have been very patient with me.
My intention is to catch up with all my reviews for December, and I really want to participate in the Top Ten Tuesdays and Sunday Posts more regularly this year. I also really love the End of Year Book Surveys and booktag memes, and I’ll try to do them throughout this rest of this month.
I’m making new year resolutions for better time management and I’m going to do better in 2026!
My December 2025 TBR Intentions
I was trying to take it easy in December so I only had four books on my TBR intentions, and I cannot believe that I completely forgot to read one of them! I forgot I had it on my list! Oh well, I’ll read it this year. 😅
Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller
Notable Books This Month
The Lady Astronaut series by Mary Robinette Kowal were really good! I didn’t expect them to be alternate history because the title made me think sci-fi, not history, but it made a whole lot of sense and I really like the stories that she told with each of the individual books.
Stoner was also another standout, and it’s interesting that it is because the MC is such an ordinary, unremarkable character, who’s just wanting to live a simple life. I love that we follow him throughout his life and see him through his ups and downs; the challenges that he faces, the good times he enjoys, his occasional bursts of brilliance, his passion about certain issues and then his passivity on other issues. It’s just such great writing.
January 2026 TBR Intentions
Other than BOTM obligations for January, I’m also wanting to get to some of the books on my TBR that I didn’t manage to get to last year.
Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
The Women Are Not Fine by Hope Reese
The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
The Will of the Many by James Islington
The Strength of the Few by James Islington
How was your month in December? How was your year in 2025? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful 2026 with lots of great books!
These are all the reading challenges I’m participating in for 2026. Click on the links to find out more!
The 52 Book Club’s 2026 Reading Challenge The 52 Book Club’s annual reading challenge is made up of 52 unique prompts. The goal is to match one book to each prompt, for a total of fifty-two books over the course of the year. Prompts are related to everything from specific titles, to cover designs, authors, genres, settings, themes, characters, etc. (Think of it like a giant bookish scavenger hunt!) We encourage participants to try books outside of their regular reading comfort zones and push themselves to read more, read differently, and get creative with it!
The Classics Club The Classic Club is a community of Classics Lovers who are taking on the challenge of reading at least 50 classics in 5 years. It started when a blogger wanted to see more people discussing classic literature, and it has now grown to a huge community of classic readers and bloggers. I started this on Dec 1, 2023, and hope to finish my 50 classics by Dec 1, 2028.
The Stephen King Constant Reader Challenge This is an informal challenge I have taken up for myself. I am a fan of the author but have not read many of his works yet, so this challenge is for me to read his full catalog, including rereads and any new books he releases while I’m completing the challenge. There is no time limit for this challenge. It is complete when I finish them.
I am also still looking for a couple more challenges for reading more bipoc books/authors, and for finishing series I’ve already started. If I don’t find any, I’ll probably just do them anyway, just more informally.
The aim of the Nonfiction Reader Challenge is to encourage you to make nonfiction part of your reading experience during the year. It’s hosted by Shelleyrae @ Book’d Out, please click on the link to find out more and to sign up!
HOW IT WORKS
You can select, read and review a book from the categories listed below during the year for a total of up to 12 books; OR select, read and review any nonfiction book. A book may be in print, electronic or audio format.
Choose a goal: Nonfiction Nipper: Read & review 3 books, from any 3 listed categories Nonfiction Nibbler: Read & review 6 books, from any 6 listed categories Nonfiction Nosher: Read & review 12 books, one for each category Nonfiction Grazer: Read & review any nonfiction book. Set your own goal, or none at all, just share the nonfiction you read through the year.
Categories: History Memoir/Biography True Crime Science Health Food South East Asia Humour (Humor) Lost or found Television Subculture Published in 2026
Nonfiction Grazer
I will be going for the Nonfiction Grazer goal; I have a few nonfiction books in mind that I’ll list below and cross off as I finish them, but otherwise I just want to share the nonfiction I read through the year!
The Books
I will be crossing them off and/or listing them here as I go. Check back often to see what I’ve read!
I have loved and completed The 52 Book Club Reading Challenge in 2024 and 2025 on the blog these last couple of years, and I see no reason to stop participating for 2026 too! I’m excited for these prompts and looking forward to seeing what books I end up reading for them.
The 52 Book Club’s annual reading challenge is made up of 52 unique prompts. The goal is to match one book to each prompt, for a total of fifty-two books over the course of the year. Prompts are related to everything from specific titles, to cover designs, authors, genres, settings, themes, characters, etc. (Think of it like a giant bookish scavenger hunt!) We encourage participants to try books outside of their regular reading comfort zones and push themselves to read more, read differently, and get creative with it!
Below is the 52 Book Club’s list of prompts for 2026. These prompts are linked to Goodreads Lists of books that fit each prompt. I copy and pasted them from here, for easy access, and so I can link to each prompt with the books I finish.
A propulsive and uncommonly wise novel about one unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew.
It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe’s plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.
In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I’ve heard a lot of praise for this book and I was curious.
The Quotes
“There is no such thing as a happy place. Because when you are happy, everywhere is a happy place. And when you are sad, everywhere is a sad place.”
“And maybe that’s it: You do things in the moment for the person you hope you might be two years from now.”
“Nobody can take care of you the way you need to take care of yourself. It’s your job to take care of yourself like that.”
“She is so good at predicting what will happen in books, so bad at predicting what will happen in life. That is why she has always preferred books – because to be alive is so much harder.”
The Narrator(s)
Helen Laser. She’s really good! Her narration reminds me a little of Julia Whelan’s narration and I’m a huge fan.
My Thoughts
I’m not sure what I was expecting with this book; I initially thought perhaps something along the vibes of Fredrik Backman’s books, something depressing turned heartwarming, and it was a little like that but also more complicated and a lot less clear-cut. There was a lot of tension throughout the book, and I love how the author juggled that along with telling the story. I loved the characters, the fact that there is more to each of them than initial impressions. They make mistakes, do stupid things, behave badly, want things they shouldn’t, but they can still be good people who mean well.
I also love how chance encounters can change your life and how random people can turn into important relationships. I met a random woman once when I was a young teenage girl, who gave me some life advice that I’ve remembered and tried to stick to ever since. I don’t even know her name and wouldn’t recognize her if I saw her again but I’ve never forgotten her and what she said to me. I love that Lila changed Phoebe’s life without even meaning to, and for purely selfish reasons. You just never know the impact you have on someone.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn’t slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. As he turned to begin his long, dangerous descent from 29,028 feet, twenty other climbers were still pushing doggedly toward the top. No one had noticed that the sky had begun to fill with clouds. Six hours later and 3,000 feet lower, in 70-knot winds and blinding snow, Krakauer collapsed in his tent, freezing, hallucinating from exhaustion and hypoxia, but safe. The following morning, he learned that six of his fellow climbers hadn’t made it back to their camp and were desperately struggling for their lives. When the storm finally passed, five of them would be dead, and the sixth so horribly frostbitten that his right hand would have to be amputated.
Into Thin Air is the definitive account of the deadliest season in the history of Everest by the acclaimed journalist and author of the bestseller Into the Wild. On assignment for Outside Magazine to report on the growing commercialization of the mountain, Krakauer, an accomplished climber, went to the Himalayas as a client of Rob Hall, the most respected high-altitude guide in the world. A rangy, thirty-five-year-old New Zealander, Hall had summited Everest four times between 1990 and 1995 and had led thirty-nine climbers to the top. Ascending the mountain in close proximity to Hall’s team was a guided expedition led by Scott Fischer, a forty-year-old American with legendary strength and drive who had climbed the peak without supplemental oxygen in 1994. But neither Hall nor Fischer survived the rogue storm that struck in May 1996.
Krakauer examines what it is about Everest that has compelled so many people — including himself — to throw caution to the wind, ignore the concerns of loved ones, and willingly subject themselves to such risk, hardship, and expense. Written with emotional clarity and supported by his unimpeachable reporting, Krakauer’s eyewitness account of what happened on the roof of the world is a singular achievement.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
It’s one of the most recommended nonfiction books and I have an interest in reading about Everest in general.
The Quotes
“Getting to the top of any given mountain was considered much less important than how one got there: prestige was earned by tackling the most unforgiving routes with minimal equipment, in the boldest style imaginable.”
“Everest has always been a magnet for kooks, publicity seekers, hopeless romantics and others with a shaky hold on reality.”
“We were too tired to help. Above 8,000 meters is not a place where people can afford morality.”
“There were many, many fine reasons not to go, but attempting to climb Everest is an intrinsically irrational act—a triumph of desire over sensibility. Any person who would seriously consider it is almost by definition beyond the sway of reasoned argument.”
The Narrator(s)
Philip Franklin. It was amazing! I was completely immersed.
My Thoughts
I see why this book is so highly recommended! It is intense, emotional, exciting, and heartbreaking all at once. There has apparently been a lot of controversy surrounding this book and the events of the 1996 Everest disaster. There were criticisms thrown around about how individual people handled the situation as it was happening, how they helped or didn’t help, and so on. Obviously, all of this happened almost 30 years ago now and I’m late to the discussion, but I do have thoughts.
I think when you’re in a unique environment like Everest, all the normal protocols and morality for helping others don’t necessarily apply. You don’t have trained first responders you can call, you only have whoever’s up there with you, and very often you are already in compromised health yourself. It’s like if a person is drowning and you don’t know how to swim, don’t be a fool and jump in there to try to save them yourself; you’re only causing more problems because now rescuers have to rescue both you and the person who was originally drowning. In Everest, there are often no trained rescuers, fresh and energized, coming to help anyone in distress. You and the other climbers, all exhausted from their own climb, are all you have. And yes, if you aren’t in the best shape or condition, sometimes the choice you have to make is to not make the rescue, otherwise instead of one death, you’d have two or three or more.
Assuming that everything that Krakauer shares in this book is as accurate as he can be – and he admits that they may not be accurate because there have been discrepensies in each individual’s memories – he has been open with his actions and inactions with helping his fellow climbers, and takes some of the blame for the tragic deaths and suffering that happened. His writing voice in the book reflects his emotional distress about the tragedy, even as he tries his best to be objective about putting it down in words.
It’s easy to criticise others for their inaction, but honestly for me, you don’t know what you would do if you were in the same situation until you’ve been there yourself. It’s not even just being physically compromised and not able to physically help others, the conditions including the lack of oxygen to the brain also causes you to be mentally compromised and not able to think and make decisions. If it were me, I’d imagine that my lizard brain kicks in and survival instincts take over, and I’d be basically useless to help anyone but myself.
And that’s also why I will never ever climb Mount Everest! I am perfectly content reading about other people doing incredible things while I sit comfortably at home on the couch! The most risky thing I did was sitting on the edge of my seat while reading this book. I could’ve fallen off! I got into such a rabbit hole of googling more about Everest and watching some videos of Everest climbers after I finished the book. It’s an amazing story and I respect the hell out of people who do stuff like this.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
“It is the horrible texture of a fabric that should be woven of ships’ cables and hawsers. A Polar wind blows through it, and birds of prey hover over it.”
So Melville wrote of his masterpiece, one of the greatest works of imagination in literary history. In part, Moby-Dick is the story of an eerily compelling madman pursuing an unholy war against a creature as vast and dangerous and unknowable as the sea itself. But more than just a novel of adventure, more than an encyclopaedia of whaling lore and legend, the book can be seen as part of its author’s lifelong meditation on America. Written with wonderfully redemptive humour, Moby-Dick is also a profound inquiry into character, faith, and the nature of perception.
This edition of Moby-Dick, which reproduces the definitive text of the novel, includes invaluable explanatory notes, along with maps, illustrations, and a glossary of nautical terms.
It’s been on my TBR for a while now, and it was available as a buddy read in my online bookclub, so I decided now was the time!
The Quotes
“It is not down on any map; true places never are.”
“Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth; whenever it is a damp, drizzly November in my soul; whenever I find myself involuntarily pausing before coffin warehouses, and bringing up the rear of every funeral I meet; and especially whenever my hypos get such an upper hand of me, that it requires a strong moral principle to prevent me from deliberately stepping into the street, and methodically knocking people’s hats off – then, I account it high time to get to sea as soon as I can.”
“Think not, is my eleventh commandment; and sleep when you can, is my twelfth.”
The Narrator(s)
Anthony Heald. It was a wonderful narration and I really enjoying listening to his voice.
My Thoughts
It was not the best time for me to read the book because I had a lot of things on my mind, and had many things to do and catch up on, and I was not in the right frame of mind to savor this book. However, I really enjoyed it very much despite my inattentiveness to the story.
To be fair, there was more lecturing about whales than there was an actual story but I still really enjoyed the story, and I really enjoyed the lecturing; about whales, whaling, fossils, ambergris, history of this and that, Ishmael talks about it all! My issue was that I loved the idea of getting to know more about whales, but I wasn’t in the frame of mind to pay attention to the details, so I didn’t get the full benefit of those parts of the book.
As to the story itself, I love the characters and how vibrant they are! They were all kind of larger than life and caricaturistic, but I feel like that makes sense for how dramatic the story is, and the role each of the characters play in the story. It’s not unusual for me to reread books I enjoy over and over again to understand them better, and I think Moby-Dick falls into that category. It almost seems like this first read was like a primer for me, so that when I reread this I’ll know what to look out for and where I need to pay attention. I’m sure I’ll enjoy it more when I read it again!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
