Since one of my writing goals was to read more, I thought it would help to keep track of what I knocked off Mount Tsundoku. Here’s as good a place as any to post what I’ve read to keep me honest, and what I thought of each book immediately after finishing.

Back in 2020 I decided to be a little more systematic about my reading plans. I started putting an actual to-read pile to stack on the nightstand and limited the stack to five books, which seemed doable for the month. Occasionally comics and graphic novels or roleplaying games jump the queue, but I typically tried to get through the pile in the order I stacked them. I also used this strategy to try and diversify my reading. The goal was for each to-read pile to contain at least one book by a BIPOC or LGBTQ2S+ author, one book by a woman, one non-fiction book, and one book by an author I know personally.

Creating the piles is getting a little trickier, as I’m having a bit of trouble filling all of my criteria from stack to stack from my own shelves, and I’m never sure when a library book will arrive. Despite all of the library reading I’ve been doing I still plan on trying to read through the books on my own shelves as much as possible.

Just in time to start writing the February to-read list, here’s what I read in January.

I started 2022 finishing off the last of 2021’s to-read stacks from home and library.

Trick or Treat: A History of Halloween by Lisa Morton: Fascinating. I was a bit slow getting through this one though, I wish I’d started it back in the spoopy season instead of reading over Christmas and New Year’s. I enjoyed more of the history side than the end bits on the literature and pop culture sides of Halloween. Lots of future inspiration for stories in it though.

Once Removed by Andrew Unger: A fun satiric novel by the author of The Daily Bonnet website. Reminded me of reading Armin Wiebe’s The Salvation of Yasch Siemens when I was younger. The Daily Bonnet is always a funny read, but I can’t wait to read more novels by Unger.

Star Wars Saga Edition Roleplaying Game by Wizards of the Coast: A reread because I watched a couple of liveplays on the Dungeonmusings channel. I originally dismissed the game when it released, as I hadn’t cared much for the previous D20 Star Wars game, but there’s lots to love here.

Blackbird by Sam Humphries, Jen Bartel, Paul Reinwand, Triona Farrell: A fun graphic novel I picked up largely because I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen of Jen’s art on Twitter. I liked the art more than the story in this one. I might read future volumes.

Batman Curse of the White Knight by Sean Murphy, Klaus Janson, Matt Hollingsworth: I wish I would’ve read Batman: White Knight first, I think I might’ve enjoyed this more if I had. Still, excellent work by Sean Murphy on a Batman story that wasn’t really to my personal taste.

Werewolf the Apocalypse Second Edition Roleplaying Game by White Wolf Game Studio: A reread. This takes me back to my high school pilgrimage to GenCon where I picked up the original game. I still enjoy the lore of the world, even if some of it feels a bit dated now.

The Björkan Sagas by Harold R. Johnson: A fantastic read that wasn’t at all what I expected when I picked it up. I was very sorry to hear of Harold’s recent passing.

Batman: White Knight Presents Harley Quinn by Katana Collins, Sean Murphy, Matteo Scalera, Dave Stewart: I enjoyed this one more than Curse of the White Knight. I loved Matteo Scalera’s art.

Star Wars Bounty Hunters Vol. 1: Galaxy’s Deadliest by Ethan Sacks, Paolo Villanelli, Arizona Prianto: Interesting story with some of the iconic Star Wars bounty hunters.

Wonder Woman The Just War by G. Willow Wilson, Cary Nord, Xermanico, Jesus Merino, Emanuela Lupacchino: I had high hopes for this one, but it wasn’t to my taste, too many different artists in the collection.

Excalibur Vol.3 by Tini Howard, Marcus To, Erick Arciniega: I’m really enjoying Howard’s take on Excalibur. This book reminds me of how much I enjoyed the original Claremont/Davis run. Marcus To’s art is also a perfect fit for the book.

Batman White Knight by Sean Murphy, Matt Hollingsworth: I wish I would’ve read this one first, I might’ve liked Curse of the White Knight more (but maybe not, I’ve never really liked Azrael as a character). Murphy’s take on the Batman/Joker dynamic was interesting even if it wasn’t what I want out of a Batman story.

Hellions Vol.1 by Zeb Wells, Stephen Segovia, David Curiel: Another book in the Jonathan Hickman revamp of X-Men. Enjoyed it despite it not featuring any of my favourite mutants.

Dungeons & Dragons Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft by Wizards of the Coast: One of my favourites of the recent D&D supplements. Even though I have no plans to run a Ravenloft campaign, there’s tons of options in here I’d use as a player or dungeon master to spice up an existing game with more horror feel.

Savage Avengers Vol 1: City of Sickles by Gerry Duggan, Mike Deodato Jr.,Frank Martin: I really thought I’d dig this, as I’ve loved some of Duggan’s recent comic writing, but this series just wasn’t to my taste.

Check out my roundup of my 2021 reading here.

Check out my roundup of my 2020 reading here.