December 2023 Wrap Up

Nancy Mitford

Books Read:

Christmas Pudding by Nancy Mitford (1932)  4/5 stars

A laugh-out-loud, delightful between-the-wars story of a Christmas house party and it's repercussions. 

The Lark Shall Sing by Elizabeth Cadell (1955)  4/5 stars (my review here)

The Blue Sky of Spring by Elizabeth Cadell (1956)  4/5 stars  (my review here) 

Six Impossible Things by Elizabeth Cadell (1961)   3/5 stars  (my review here)

Iris in Winter by Elizabeth Cadell (1949)  3/5 stars
An enjoyable story of siblings and their relationships, experiences and mishaps, with light romance thrown in.

The Waiting Game by Elizabeth Cadell (1985)  4/5 stars
Light, enjoyable, and not always predictable, The Waiting Game is one of Cadell's last novels.  Taking place in the 1980s, it lacks a little of the charm and grace of her books from earlier decades, but is still satisfying and entertaining.

Audiobooks:

Tutankhamun's Trumpet: Ancient Egypt in 100 Objects from the Boy-King's Tomb by Toby Wilkinson (2022)  5/5 stars

I absolutely loved this fascinating, informative book.  Wilkinson gives a history of Ancient Egypt, using 100 different articles found in Tutankhamun's tomb as a jumping off point for each topic.  It's well-written, surprisingly engrossing, and gave me a new interest in Ancient Egypt. 

Keats: A Brief Life in Nine Poems and One Epitaph by Lucasta Miller (2021)  4/5 stars

This is a light biography of the poet Keats given in nine vignettes of sorts, based on what affected the poems he wrote at that period in his life.  I've never cared much for Keats or his poetry, and this didn't change that opinion.  Nevertheless, it was well-written and interesting, particularly the social history aspect.

Didn't Finish:

The Earl and the Pharaoh: From the Real Downton Abbey to the Discovery of Tutankhamun by The Countess of Carnarvon (2022)

This was such a disappointment.  The author whitewashes the Earl's past, gives excruciating details about nothing, and writes most dully.  I adore social history, am recently interested in Egyptology, and the Earl's lifeline follows my period of most interest and yet, I simply could not finish.