A new year of watching, reading, and listening!

Watch

Genie (streaming on Peacock)
Melissa McCarthy plays a magic genie set to fix a mans family for Christmas. It is pretty cheesy and I didn’t laugh as much as I regularly do with her movies, but it was an enjoyable feel-good Christmas movie with a solid message. (Elle)

The Marvels (coming to Disney+ in February)
This movie was fun. Not the best Marvel movie, and there were some gaping plot holes and times when the story seemed too rushed, but otherwise it was enjoyable. (Dana)
Check out our Disney+ Roku to watch.

The Villains of Valley View (Disney+)
A family of villains must go into hiding and try to live “normal” lives. A great show for a quick comedy break. They are my new favorite TV family! (Hazel)
Check out our Disney+ Roku to watch.

Read

A Child Called It: One Child’s Courage to Survive by Dave Pelzer
Horrifying yet inspirational. (Deb)

Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Honestly, I read this because it’s short and I was trying to get to my Goodreads Challenge goal. But ultimately I liked it! Cute. Clever, as only Neil Gaiman can be! I love the cat-without-a-name. (Deb)

Goats in the Time of Love: A Martha’s Vineyards Love Story with Goats, a Dog, and Some Recipes by T. Elizabeth Bell
I like to read books that take place in locales I’ve been to and this fits that bill! Cute, enjoyable. Goats are cool. (Deb)

Penance by Eliza Clark
I’m only part way through this book, and I’m still on the fence as to how I feel about it. I don’t usually like stories with unreliable narrators, but the structure of this one is intriguing, and it takes place in Yorkshire which is a bonus. Whether or not it has enough promise to keep me reading remains to be seen. (Dana)

The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch by Melinda Taub
Smart, funny and pitch-perfect–this reimagining of the most troublesome Bennet sister was a terrific read! (Jen)

The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall
I don’t know how this one slipped by me during fall (I guess it is still technically fall, so maybe its still okay), but I have been really enjoying it. There are recipes at the end of each chapter and they sound absolutely delicious! (Elle)

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Just as I was starting to think, “this is lame, overdramatic & pretentious…” PLOT TWIST! (Deb)

Listen

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
What a journey in this short-ish memoir about the author’s relationship with her mother. Plus, hearing the author’s voice tell her own story made it very easy to connect to. (Hazel)

The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith, narrated by Robert Glenister
I love the Cormoran/Robin dynamic. That’s what keeps me coming back to this series. I can do without the cryptic quotations to begin each chapter. They don’t do anything for me so feel like a waste of time. That was more dramatic in a 1000+ page book that I was hoping I’d finish in 2023. (YAY! I did!) This one was more challenging to LISTEN to than others. Because it’s about an online cartoon and game, a LOT of the dialog is online social media & chat rooms, there was a lot of tedious syntax that needed to be narrated that your eyes would skim through if reading print. It’s also very complex trying to keep track of a high number of characters that all have multiple game personas, twitter handles, etc… not all of which are known to start out. So, if you like a long, complex who-dun-it, I suggest reading this one in print. (Deb)

I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy by Teddy Swims
Even though it’s just the start of 2024, I have no doubt this will make it into my Spotify Wrapped at the end of the year.  (Amber)

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
A remix and very digestible version of Ibram X. Kendi’s more robust Stamped From the Beginning. (Deb)