Nightstand Books for a New Year: 2021

It’s been far too long since I’ve done a Nightstand Books post, and I miss it. I think I shall try to resurrect this monthly type of post, and you are welcome to join me! Just snap a picture of the books you’re currently reading or planning to read in the next month and post them to your blog or other social media on the first Wednesday of the month. Then, at the end of the month, let us know what you actually read and which books you enjoyed the most!

This is most of my stack for the foreseeable future. I probably won’t finish all of these this month… but who knows? I did a ridiculous amount of reading last year, but I am hoping to get a lot more writing done this year, so I might slow down a bit.

Anyway, here’s what’s on the ol’ nighstand for January:

The Two Towers by JRR Tolkien - my husband is reading this one out loud to the family in the evenings. We recently finished Fellowship and moved on to this one. We are holding off on watching the movies until we’ve read the entire trilogy. The kids seem to be enjoying it, especially when they meet their name-sakes.

Rangers Apprentice: the Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan - this is a re-read for me, and I am reading this one out loud to Brant. He got a few chapter books for Jolabokaflod, and this one was a bit beyond his own reading skill, so we are reading it together. I am excited to re-read this one and he seems to be enjoying it.

Keepers of the Lost Cities: Nightfall by Shannon Messenger - I am continuing my read through of this series, and have not quite begun this one yet. We shall see if I get to it, as it is due in 3 days and I can’t renew it because other people are waiting. Hmph.

Deadwood by Kyle Robert Shultz - I am actually almost finished with this one and loving it every bit as much as everything written by this author.

Gray Dawn by Albert Payson Terhune - I was reading this out loud to my husband after we finished Thud and were waiting for the next one, but may finish it on my own since we got another Terry Pratchett to read. I love Terhune’s collie books so much. If you haven’t read them, I highly recommend all of them.

Yorien’s Hand (by Yours Truly) - my audiobook narrator has begun work on the third book in the series! So I have begun listening to the finished chapters. I’m excited about having this entire series available in audiobook soon!

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes - this is our current school book read aloud, and the second time I’ve read this one. We are enjoying it mightily.

The Truth by Terry Pratchett - this is not the next book in the City Watch arc, but our friend who has been lending us these books can’t find his copy at the moment, so he gave us this one to tide us over till he can find it. This book isn’t part of a series, but takes place in Ankh-Morpork and has some cameos by characters we’ve come to love.

Masque by W.R. Gingell - this is another book in the Two Monarchies Sequence. I thought it was book #2, but apparently it’s #3.5… but these seem to be stand-alone-y (and not having too many cross-over characters) enough that I’m not feeling lost. So far, I’m enjoying it rather a lot.

Not Pictured:

I am also reading The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis out loud to my kiddos. We’ve been making our way through The Chronicles of Narnia as our “fun, not for school” read alouds this past year.

Audio Book: I’m listening to Pemberley: Mr. Darcy’s Dragon by Maria Grace and narrated by Benjamin Fife. If you ever thought to yourself that what Pride and Prejudice really needed was a vast assortment of dragons… then this is the series for you. I’m only an hour into the book and already looking forward to writing a glowing review, because it’s just that fun.

Your turn, dear Reader! What are you reading this month? Do you have any reading goals for 2021? Is there a book coming out this year that you are particularly looking forward to? Have you read any of the books I’m currently reading? Do any of them look intriguing? Are there any there you’ve never heard of? I’d love to hear from you!!!