December 2021 Wrap-Up & Favorites

Source: personal collection

Hi fellow readers! This post is the last wrap-up post for 2021. I am most definitely not going to post a yearly wrap-up because it's too much work. I just want to take it easy. Anyway, in December I started a new hobby outside of reading and binge-watching series. Hopefully I'll keep doing it consistently because apparently it's so much fun! This December, I finally managed to start the series which has been on my to-be-read list for almost 10 years (lol); the Kane Chronicles by Rick Riordan. I even finished the first book. Finishing this series would be the first goal that I look forward to accomplishing next year. Here's the list of the books I read in December.

Books read in December

	Religion: Vintage Minis - Karen Armstrong (★★★)
	This vintage minis collects 4 essays by Karen Armstrong taken from her books, The Case for God, Fields of Blood, and The Lost Art of Scripture. As we can learn from the theme of this minis, the essays in this book talk about God and Religion. In my personal opinion, somehow religion is a topic that's a bit difficult to talk about without offending anyone. No matter how careful we're trying to be. Still, it is an interesting topic since it becomes one of the fundamental needs of living as a human being. If you're not afraid of such topics and interested in Armstrong's work, I think this minis is a good introduction to her writing. Honestly, I've heard so much of Karen Armstrong but never really got around to reading her books. I like the way she presents her ideas through her writing. Although I'm not sure if I'll read her full books.
	I Want To Die but I Want To Eat Tteokpokki 2 - Baek Se-hee (★★★)
	This book is a nonfiction about the journey of a woman who's struggling with dysthymia. It contains notes from her sessions with her psychiatrist. Through this book, I believe the writer wants to share her journey to recovery from dysthymia. She wants to show that there are people like her and that if whoever reads her book feels the same way as her, they are not alone. This book is actually the second one that she wrote. I've read the first one also. Although in the second one her struggles turn into even a darker corner than the first one; I think it's handled better than the first one, which shows how much she's grown ever since doing the therapy. It gives hope that if you're also struggling with your mental health, please seek help as it will get better.
	The Red Pyramid - Rick Riordan (★★★★)
	The Red Pyramid is the first book in the Kane Chronicles trilogy. The series is based on Egyptian mythology. It follows Carter and Sadie Kane as they discover the truth behind their family history, which apparently rooted in Ancient Egypt's Pharaohs. In this book, they have to save their father and the world from Set, the Egyptian God of Chaos. This book is full of action. It's also fun and fast-paced. The first book is a set up for a bigger problem that the characters have to face in the remaining books in the series. Set is just the tip of the iceberg, so I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

December Favorites

Miscellaneous

ABC Cooking Studio Baking Class

My first Red Velvet Cake!

Here's the thing. My mother wants me to join baking class and/or cooking class. Ever since I was in college, she's been telling me to take some cooking classes because she thinks it would be a good investment. Honestly, I would love to do so. I actually love baking if only I had a proper oven at home. Budget and time hold me back. Now I have both (well, the jury's still out for time) and the city where I live starts opening up again, so I decided to finally start taking classes. Thankfully, there's one near where I live. I braved myself to take a trial lesson and it was so much fun. I baked my first red velvet cake in December. So I signed up as a member and took cake classes and bread classes. By the end of December I have baked chocolate cookie sandwiches, cheese tarts, a white chocolate mousse cake, and a chocolate stollen. I'm excited to take more classes in 2022.

That's all for 2021. For 2022, I will still post these wrap-up reviews and hopefully I'll post more reviews or pretty much anything I want, but more consistently. I might share some of my baking classes experience. I'm also planning to do some drawing since I used to love drawing. I'm hopeful for 2022. I'm ready to leave 2021 behind (I think).