February has come and is almost gone which means it’s time for another wrap up post! It’s been a bit of an odd month, so I’m looking forward to putting February behind me and starting fresh in March! That being said, let’s chat about what I’ve been up to this month.
February hasn’t been an easy month for me, and my reading has probably suffered because of it. I had a really hard time focusing on books this month, so I read a lot of audiobooks. That’s not super unusual though because I tend to turn them on either at work or when I can’t sleep, but audiobooks were definitely my main method of reading this month, so once again a shoutout to audiobooks, I would be a mess without you 💜
I did end up reading 18 books, and I’m hoping to finish at least one of the books I’m currently reading with the remaining days of February.
A lot of the books I read this month were just kind of…meh. Not necessarily bad, but very few really gripped me and kept my focus. Of the new books that I read this month, I absolutely loved This is Not a Personal Statement by Tracy Badua, and Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson, both were anticipated reads for me — reviews will be coming in the next few months as the HarperCollins strike has finally been resolved. This Time It’s Real by Ann Liang made me laugh and cry. I had high hopes for this book and they were absolutely met — I just love all of her work, she can do no wrong in my eyes.
The Daisy Jones and the Six brain rot is STRONG right now. I did a reread and annotation this month in preparation for the Amazon series premiering on March 3rd, and it has completely taken over my brain. I’ve been listening to Regret Me and Look At Us Now (Honeycomb) non-stop and keep watching the trailers. I really am SO excited about it and just know that it’ll become my entire personality, so that is something for all of us to look forward to.
To add or purchase the books mentioned:
Link for This Is Not a Personal Statement: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
Link for Nine Liars: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
Link for This Time It’s Real: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
Link for Daisy Jones and the Six: Goodreads | TheStoryGraph | Bookshop | IndieBound
Blog posts I loved reading:
- I just LOVE reading “top reads of x year” blog posts and Taylor’s Top Reads of 2022 included many of my favorites!
- I received an ARC of When Oceans Rise by Robin Alvarez and am really looking forward to it as I’m always looking for more books written by Filipino authors and I love mythology. I haven’t gotten a chance to read it yet (I’m hoping to read it in March!), but I absolutely loved Kate’s post on the Filipino Mythical Creatures in When Oceans Rise! I don’t know much about Filipino mythology — something I’d like to change this year — so I found this post super interesting and has totally amped up my excitement for this book!
- I am a big Rachel Lynn Solomon fan and have been looking forward to her latest novel, Business or Pleasure, for a long time! I trust Helena’s opinion on many many things, one of them being her opinions on RLS books — I was so glad to hear that she loved Business or Pleasure and her review has made me even more excited to get a copy!
- I’m definitely in my gothic/paranormal/horror reading era (I mean I kind of always am, but I have been drawn to these stories a lot more recently) and I’ve been dying to read She is a Haunting by Trang Than Tran and I loved Michelle’s review.
My posts this month:
- Cozy Convos with Caity & Coco: Rachel Lynn Solomon featuring Helena
- Mini Reviews
- Caseen Gaines, Author of Footnotes and When Broadway Was Black Interview
- Delicious Monsters Review
February has been a bit of a whirlwind! This month always flies by quickly since it’s the shortest month of the year, but February really seemed to pass in the blink of an eye! I’m gonna be totally honest, this month was rough. I’ve had a hard time sleeping and it has really affected how I’ve felt throughout the month. I felt pretty down and unmotivated for the first half of the month, but I feel things turning around as we head into March. Now, is that because March is my birthday month? Who knows! But I feel like things are turning around so I’ve decided to just ride the wave, baby, as Kennedy McMann always says.
It was, unsurprisingly, another busy work month. I was the stage manager for another show, and let me tell you, it doesn’t matter how many times I do it, but going from a 5 hour tech night to 3 morning shows the next day, and then 2 shows the day after is a lot! It was a very fun show though, and I had a great time working with the kids. And, although it triggers my allergies, it’s always great to be up in the booth calling a show.
One of the true highlights of the month was going to a Sistine Chapel Exhibit (coincidentally on the anniversary of Michelangelo’s death) with my mom, and we had a wonderful time! I loved getting to see these reproduced photos of the artwork that have such a life-like quality, you truly feel like you’re in the Sistine Chapel while looking at these paintings. Each painting has an informational sign next to it and there’s an app that you can download and listen to more narration about the paintings. You can find out more about the exhibit on their website. Here are photos I took of some of my favorite paintings.
It really was so stunning and it was really difficult to not get emotional while looking at the pieces and listening to the stories behind them. It was a completely magical experience and I’m really glad that I got to go!
I also got a haircut this month and that was the first time I had gotten a haircut in over a year and my hair feels amazing! I changed up my hair color and got curtain bangs — I’m totally in love. The bangs are giving 1997 Anastasia vibes, and I am here for them!
I’m looking forward to March for a few reasons, but mostly because it’s my birthday month and I’ve got some fun stuff planned for my birthday weekend that I’m excited about.
I’d love to hear how the month of February treated you and what you’re looking forward to in March. Sending all my love!
