Read-at-Home Mom Report: December 2023 Wrap-Up

December Favorites 

I'm late with this month's post, so I'm going to skip adding book covers or commentary so that I can get this done quickly and jump into a new year of reading! These were all five star reads: 

• A Lot Like Christmas by Connie Willis 
• The Appeal by Janice Hallett 
• Credo by Bishop Athnasius Schneider 
• Gifts: Visible & Invisible by Catholic Teen Books 
• The Holiday Stand-In by Kortney Keisel 
• The Mind of the Maker by Dorothy L. Sayers 
• Date with Death by Julia Chapman
• Pop Sonnets: Shakespearean Spins on Your Favorite Songs by Eric Didriksen
• 4:50 from Paddington by Agatha Christie 
• The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion Volume 1 by Beth Brower 
• The Catechism of the Catholic Church 

Read-Aloud and Homeschool Books

• The Ancient Egyptian World by Eric H. Cline 
• The Lion in the Box by Marguerite de Angeli 

Sequels and Series Books

• Jeeves and the Yule-Tide Spirit by P.G. Wodehouse (from The World of Jeeves)
• The Christmas Appeal (The Appeal book 1.5) by Janice Hallett 
• We Grant You a Merry Christmas (Save the Date short story sequel) by Morgan Matson 
• Solo for the Season (Gift Wrapped Romance) by Martha Keyes 
• Merry Kismet (Gift Wrapped Romance) by Anneka Walker 
• Cabin Crush (Gift Wrapped Romance) by Kasey Stockton
• The Clause in Christmas (Poppy Creek book 1) by Rachael Bloome
• It Happened One Christmas Eve (Museum of Literature Romance Book 3) by Jenn McKinlay

Standalone Books

• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
• So This is Christmas by Tracy Andreen 
• A Christmas Legacy by Anne Perry 
• Bright Lights, Big Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews
• A Cross-Country Christmas by Courtney Walsh 
• Leaf by Niggle by J.R.R. Tolkien 
• On Fairy Stories by J.R.R. Tolkien 
• Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow 
• The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman by Louise Plummer 
• The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson
• The Christmas Joy Ride by Melody Carlson
• Christmas in Winter Hill by Melody Carlson 
• The Christmas Spirit by Debbie Macomber 
• You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Toni Shiloh 
• Starstruck by Amy Clipston
• The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder  

DNF

• My True Love Gave To Me: The Costa Family Christmas Romance Series Box Set by Ellie Hall 
• Baggage Claim by Juliana Smith

Family Reading Lists

M. (girl, 10 years, 1 month)

• Call of the Wild by Jack London 

C. (girl, 8 years, 3 months)

• The Flight and Adventures of Charles ll by Charles Norman
• Fire on the Wind by Geoffrey Trease
• The King's Day by Aliki
• William Penn, Quaker Hero by Hildegarde Dolson
• The Puppets of Spelhorst by Kate DiCamillo
• The Explorations of Pere Marquette by Jim Kjelgaard

E. (girl, 6 years, 2 months)

• Lysis Goes to the Play by Caroline Dale Snedeker
• The Spartan Twins by Lucy Fitch Perkins
• The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner 
• Our Little Athenian Cousin of Long Ago by Julia Darrow Cowles
• Our Little Spartan Cousin of Long Ago Julia Darrow Cowles
• Archimedes Takes a Bath by Joan Lexau 

R. and A. (boy and girl, 3 years, 9 months)

• Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Life (mostly R.)
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss 
• Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo 
• The Kingfisher Young People's Book of Oceans
• The Lorax by Dr. Seuss 
• Oliver Elephant by Lou Peacock
• The Lost Gift by Kallie George 

My husband

• Mara of Old Babylon by Elizabeth P. Witheridge  
• The Animals' Christmas by Anne Thaxter Eaton 
• The Lion in the Box by Marguerite  de Angeli 
• Christmas by Alice Dalgliesh 
• The Flying Classroom by Erick Kastner  
• Anson's Way by Gary D. Schmidt