I am so happy to say that 2023 was the sixth year of gemsbooknook…
I set myself some goals for the year and I am so excited to say that I have reached most of them. I hoped to complete my Goodreads goal of reading 100 books, writing 70 book reviews, writing 30 Wacky Wednesday posts, and writing 30 Sunday Session posts, getting 450 followers and 14000 viewers on my blog.
The only goal I didn’t reach this year was my Goodreads reading goal of 100 books. It is only the second time in almost a decade that I haven’t read 100 books so I am a little disappointed, but starting tomorrow I will focus on my 2024 reading goals and let go of 2023.
I have kept up with my Facebook page, Twitter account, Instagram account, and Pinterest account to accompany my blog. I have been kept pretty busy with all of these accounts, but I have loved every second.
I even participated in my seventh Bookmas, now that was awesome, hard work, but awesome.
I have kept up with my Sunday Sessions post; I have really loved writing them. It is a bit of a wacky idea where I just write whatever I want. From rants to poetry or whatever else takes my fancy. I am hoping to keep it up in 2024.
I have Instagram posts to accompany my blog posts and I have added a few Bookmail posts throughout the year as well.
Not only have you all helped me to achieve my blog goals for 2023 but your likes and comments have kept me motivated to do my best with every post or review.
I love being a member of the Hachette Books Bloggers database, and I am looking forward to continuing that into 2024.
gemsbooknook wouldn’t be what it is without all of you. Thank you so much for your support in 2023, it really has meant the world to me. I look forward to bringing you more content in 2024.
Welcome to my December Wrap Up. I had a great reading month in December, finishing 47 books (0 books off my TBR). I also received 1 ARC this month. I have reviews up or coming up for these books so as usual this is just going to be a brief rundown on each book I read.
Without further ado, let’s get into my December Wrap Up:
The Nutcracker by Valeria Docampo: This book was beautiful. I have never actually read The Nutcracker so I was very excited to finally read it. I am happy to say I loved this book. I loved the story and the emotion, and I absolutely adored the illustrations. I am so glad that I now own this book and I can’t wait to re-read it many times in the future.
A Treasury of Christmas Stories by Lake Press: I adored this book. I loved how varied the stories and songs were and how easily they were presented to the target audience. I also adored the beautiful illustrations that flooded the pages of this book. I am so excited to add this book to my Christmas collection and re-read this book many times in the future.
Anxiety Free Journal by Herron: This was a really great journal. The activities were helpful and easy to do. I didn’t need to spend a lot of time on this journal just a few minutes each day which I thought was wonderful. I also loved that if I needed to miss a day I could. One of my favourite elements of this book was the wonderful colouring pages as I love some mindful colouring time.
Mind Your Mind Activity Journal by Typo: This was a different kind of journal as you fill it in every day which I sometimes got annoyed with. One element of this journal that I loved was the reflection pages that gave you a prompt and you just write down whatever comes to mind, I found this really relaxing. I am glad that I completed this journal as there were times when I didn’t think I would.
Disney Advent Calander Books:
Alice In Wonderland – A Present For The Queen
Onward
Dumbo’s Snowy Day
Lilo & Stitch Ride The Waves
Toy Story – A Toy Christmas
Lady And The Tramp – Lady’s Christmas Surprise
Turning Red – Panda Up
Lightyear – Bug Trouble
Finding Nemo: A Big Blue Christmas
Encanto: Mystery In The Rainforest
Cars – The Best Present Ever
101 Dalmations: The Puppies First Christmas
Huey, Dewey & Louie’s Christmas Wish
Ratatouille: A Delicious Duo
Bambi: The Wonderful Winter Tree
Monsters, Inc.: Christmas Laughs
Mickey & Minnie’s Gift Of The Magi
Winnie The Pooh: The Sweetest Christmas
Wreck-It Ralph: Wreck The Halls
Robin Hood: Christmas For Everyone
A Gift For Wall-E
Pinocchio: The Perfect Gift
Donald Duck’s Christmas Tree
Mickey’s Christmas Carol
Christmas Re-Reads:
As I have read these books before and have reviews for them, I will just include the links to the reviews if you would like to check them out.
‘On Christmas Eve, Clara receives a very special gift – a wooden nutcracker. Join Clara as she steps into a magical world of toy soldiers and beautiful fairies in this lavishly illustrated Christmas tale.
This book is based on the story by E.T.A. Hoffmann, is beautifully illustrated by Valeria Docampo, and has a beautiful padded cover.’
This book was stunning.
While I know the story of The Nutcracker, this is the first time I have ever actually read it. I was so excited to get my hands on this book and I am happy to say it was everything I hoped it would be and so much more.
The story itself was sweet, fun, and magical which was perfect for a Christmas read. I loved the magic of this story; was or wasn’t it a dream? I can easily see why this story has become such a beloved Christmas tale. Given that I read this book for the first time as an adult, I can only imagine the joy this story would bring to young readers when they first discover it.
The version of The Nutcracker that I read; and now own, was illustrated by Valeria Docamp and it was breathtakingly stunning. Every page was bursting with truly beautiful illustrations that brought to life E.T.A. Hoffman’s magical story.
Valeria Docampo’s illustrations added a whole extra layer of beauty to this wonderful story. The illustrations were so amazing that as soon as I finished reading this book I went right back to the start just so I could focus on the illustrations on every page.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book. I loved every page and I am so excited to add this book to my Christmas collection so that I can enjoy it many times in the future.
The Nutcracker by Valeria Docampo is a must-have for all young readers and all readers who are young at heart.
It’s Bookmas 2023 Day 12 and that means it’s time for my Favourite Book of 2023!
Drum roll, please…
Dark Mode by Ashley Kalagain Blunt.
‘Once you’re online, there’s nowhere to hide.
Is it paranoia – or is someone watching?
For years, Reagan Carsen has kept her life offline. No socials. No internet presence. No photos. Safe.
Until the day she stumbles on a shocking murder in a Sydney laneway. The victim looks just like her.
Coincidence?
As more murders shake the city and she’s increasingly drawn out from hiding, Reagan is forced to confront her greatest fear.
She’s been found.‘
I LOVED THIS BOOK!
Even though this is a work of fiction the plot is based on true stories and could easily happen in real life which makes for a truly frightening reading experience.
The plot of this book was so well-researched and written that it had me thinking about how I live my life and view the world around me. I also found the various twists and turns and the way that details were drip-fed to the reader left me on the edge of my seat until the very end of the book.
I loved the way the characters were written in this book. They were flawed and relatable and each one had their own distinct voice and reason for their various behaviours. The way in which the characters reacted with each other was believable and familiar which only heightened how terrifying the whole plot of this book was.
Ashley Kalagian Blunt has done a fantastic job with this book. On top of the relatable characters and the horrifying plot, the writing was absolutely perfect. The emotions radiated off the pages compelling you to care about these characters and the pacing was superb for this kind of story, captivating the reader from beginning to end.
This is one of those books that I know for a fact I am not going to forget anytime soon.
Dark Mode by Ashley Kalagain Blunt is a must-read for everyone.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book and I am so happy to be naming it my Favourite Book of 2023.
That’s it for Bookmas Day 12!
Bring us to the end of Bookmas 2023!
I hope you have all enjoyed Bookmas 2023 as I really enjoyed putting it together for you.
Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!
It’s Bookmas 2023 Day 11 and that means it’s time for my Favourite Historical Fiction of 2023!
Drum roll, please…
The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons
‘London, 1938. Bookseller Gertie Bingham is facing difficult times, having just lost her beloved husband, Harry, and with a lingering sadness at never having been able to have a child of her own. Struggling to face running the bookshop she and Harry opened together, Gertie is preparing to sell up and move away when she is asked if she would be willing to take in a young Jewish refugee from Germany. Gertie is unsure and when sullen teenager Hedy Fischer arrives, Gertie fears she has nothing left to give the troubled girl.
But when the German bombers come and the lights go out over London, Gertie, and Hedy realise that joining forces will make them stronger and that books have the power to bring young and old together and unite a community in need in its darkest hour…’
I LOVED THIS BOOK!
As a massive fan of Historical Fiction, I saw this book and knew I had to have it. I went into it with high hopes and I am very happy to say that it not only lived up to my high expectations, it well and truly surpassed them.
One of the things that I loved most about this book was the wide array of fantastic characters. I loved watching them develop and grow as the story unfolded and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the different personalities come together and at times clash while ultimately trying to do what was best in a truly dreadful situation.
This is one of those books that walks the line between heartwarming and heartbreaking beautifully. It was an emotional read that felt real and grounded. I loved that we got to see different kinds of reactions to various situations that the characters faced over the course of WWII.
Annie Lyons has done a truly wonderful job with this book. The story was sweeping yet personal, the characters were complicated and human, and the writing had a cinematic quality to it that captivated me from the very first page and kept me spellbound until the very end.
The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons is a must-read for everyone.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book and I am very happy to be naming it my Favourite Historical Fiction of 2023.
It’s Bookmas 2023 Day 10 and that means it’s time for my Favourite Non-Fiction of 2023!
Drum roll, please…
Destination Buchenwald by Colin Burgess.
‘The harrowing story of the Allied airmen who experienced the true horrors of Nazism firsthand.
It was the summer of 1944 as liberating Allied forces surged towards Paris following the D-Day landings. For a large group of downed airmen being held in that city’s infamous Fresnes Prison, they were about to face evacuation into the blackest, bloody heart of Germany and experience the most acute evil of the war. Amid great secrecy, those 168 airmen – including several from Australia and New Zealand – were transported on a filthy, overcrowded nightmare train journey that ended at the notorious Buchenwald concentration camp, accompanied by orders for their execution. At Buchenwald, they witnessed extreme depravity that would haunt them to the end of their days. Yet, on returning home, they were confronted by decades of denials from their own governments that they had ever been held in one of Hitler’s most vile concentration camps.
In conducting his original deep research for this book – now completely expanded and updated – Colin Burgess personally interviewed or corresponded with dozens of the surviving airmen from a number of nations, including their valorous leader, New Zealand Squadron Leader Phil Lamason. Destination Buchenwald tells a compelling story of extraordinary bravery, comradeship, and endurance when a group of otherwise ordinary servicemen were thrust into an unimaginable Nazi hell.’
I LOVED THIS BOOK!
I have a real interest in WWII and have read many books about it, so I was surprised that this story was new to me. As soon as I read the synopsis I knew that I had to read this book and I prepared myself for an emotional reading experience.
I was expecting an emotional read and that is exactly what I got with this book. Reading about what these airmen went through; as well as the civilians who helped them, was equally heartbreaking and heartwarming. While the experiences of the people featured in this book are just a small number of the horrible situations that occurred during WWII, they carry the weight of all the suffering of that time.
One of the things I really liked about this book was that background information was woven into the story for anyone who may not have a lot of previous information about the places and situations that are taking place. This allows for the full scope of the situation these airmen were facing to be understood in a small way.
Colin Burgess has done a wonderful job with this book. The writing was superb; emotional yet factual, the story was perfectly paced, and the historical and statistical information included added to the story instead of slowing it down.
Destination Buchenwald by Colin Burgess is a must-read for everyone.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book and I am very happy to be naming it my Favourite Non-Fiction book of 2023.
It’s Bookmas 2023 Day 9 and that means it’s time for my Favourite Australian Book of 2023!
Drum roll, please…
Black Summer by Michael Rowland.
‘The bushfires that burnt across Australia from June 2019 to February 2020 were unprecedented. By the time the rains came, they had devoured more than 18 million hectares of bush and farmland, destroyed nearly 3000 homes, claimed the lives of 33 people, killed about a billion animals and driven more to the brink of extinction. The heartbreak, pain, loss and uncertainty were felt far and wide. These were fires that burnt in every state and affected all Australians, directly or indirectly.
But out of the tragedies, the fear, the lost homes, the burnt forests, the bleak holidays, and the unrelenting smoke have come stories of courage and community. ABC journalists on the ground during the crises brought many of these stories into homes across the nation. This book contains updates, new stories, and overviews by them, as well as reflections on how such a catastrophe occurred and what we have learned from it. It is both a record of the events and a tribute to those who endured, escaped, fought, and in some cases paid the ultimate price.
With forewords by Ita Buttrose and Andrew Constance, and contributions from Casey Briggs, Jessie Davies, Daniel Doody, Matthew Doran, Brittany Evins, Richard Glover, Nick Hose, Melinda James, Tom Joyner, Jonathon Kendall, Stacey Lee, Hamish Macdonald, Jade Macmillan, Jennifer McCutcheon, Philippa McDonald, Karen Michelmore, Greg Nelson, Adriane Reardon, Michael Rowland, Baz Ruddick, Erin Semmler, Josh Szeps, Claire Wheaton and Philip Williams.’
I LOVED THIS BOOK!
I have wanted to read this book from the moment I saw it and now that I finally read it I am happy to say that it was well worth the wait.
The Black Summer bushfires were so horrific and widespread that many of the stories in this book were new to me; especially those that weren’t in NSW.
Hearing these stories and seeing the photographs was truly heartbreaking. The devastation, the stress, and the loss were something I couldn’t even imagine and at times struggled to comprehend.
With so much emotion and trauma it would be easy for this book to just overwhelm a reader, but the Aussie spirit, the mate-ship, and the community that rose out of these terrible times gives hope to a reader and made me proud to be an Australian.
Black Summer by Michael Rowland is an absolute must-read for everyone.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book and I am so very happy to be naming it my favourite Australian Book of 2023.
gemsbooknook 