Books to Check Out: What I Read in January 2022

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

Oh boy. This one cut me deep.

Curious Incident is a story about a boy with autism named Christopher as he tries to solve the murder of a neighbor’s dog. The events that follow are filled with heartbreak and struggle, as it starts to unveil deeper truths about his own life.

This book gutted me. The emotional impact is heavy, and you’ll feel deeply for Christopher and the things he has to endure as the book goes on. I like this book because it’s told in first person from Christopher’s perspective. It’s not a perspective that’s usually told, or told well for that matter. From the numerous accolades and reviews I’ve seen, it seems Haddon has given a portrayal of an autistic individual that many agree to be fair. I really went through an emotional roller coaster reading this one, and I can’t recommend it enough.

The Hotel Podcast

I know what you’re thinking. This is a podcast, this isn’t a book, what’s going on here? Well, I realized I wasn’t consuming nearly as many audiobooks this month, and this flash-fiction style podcast is the reason why. The Hotel is a creepy, atmospheric podcast about all sorts of deaths and dark happenings within its always shifting walls.

Am I being vague? You bet I am, and that works in The Hotel’s favor. Each episode is around ten minutes long, and they don’t offer much in explanation with what’s going on. You piece things together the more you listen, and slowly this strange scenario starts to feel more concrete. The horror element is razor sharp here. I both cringed from visceral, gross descriptions and held my breath at the quieter, more atmospheric moments. I feel like I have to highlight Episode 4 “Room 017 – Ashley Brushes”. I was so on edge. Picture this scene: I was leaning toward my phone, even though I was wearing headphones. It honestly felt like being hypnotized, and when the elevator’s “ding” signaled the end of the episode, I jumped out of my seat and almost fell on the floor. I’m not even being dramatic. I think about that episode on the daily.

There are recurring characters to keep you grounded, like the poor, anxious Lobby Boy, or the welcoming yet sinister Manager. I adore and fear these characters, and they always keep me engaged the whole time. The music is on point, the voice acting is on point, the writing is BEYOND on point. If you like horror, or any kind of audio fiction, it’s totally worth a listen to. You can get it on Spotify or if you're like me, with a nifty lil membership from their website here.

We Want What We Want by Alix Ohlin

We Want What We Want is a collection of short stories that kept me intrigued for many nights in my quaint little rocking chair. The stories vary wildly in their content, but they all center around the loves and losses of the human experience.

To give you some examples of these stories, my favorites include “Money, Geography, Youth”, “The Detectives”, and “Nights Back Then”. These ones in particular had some interesting characters for me to get invested in, and I even reread them. I still enjoyed all the stories in here, however, and it was a great story collection to start the year. Each story held a quiet power that kept me turning the pages and thinking about them long after I put the book down every night. If you want a collection that’s full of tight writing and emotional impact, this is the collection for you.

A new year means a whole new world of reading. I had a great time with each of my picks above. The latter two were things I simply stumbled upon, and I think that was a fun way to start my reading year. I’m sure there’ll be more exciting things to come across in 2022, so here’s to a year of happy reading!