Books Read in January 2026

I am always excited to start a new year of reading. This year I would like to read one each of the following every month:

• A vintage mystery
• A mystery published between 1970 and now
• A book in any other genre, including nonfiction
• A book in eBook format
• A graphic novel or graphic nonfiction
• One classic, preferably from my Classics Club list
• One Canadian book
• One short story book

Some of these categories can overlap, so it is not as hard as it sounds (to me, at least). 

This month I read seven books and the only categories I missed are: a short story book, an eBook, and a classic. I started reading The Prime of Miss Jean Brody, which is on my Classics Club list, in eBook format, but I haven't finished it yet.

So, here are the books I read:

Nonfiction / Nature

The Backyard Bird Chronicles (2024) by Amy Tam

I always like to read about birds in fiction or nonfiction. I was expecting to enjoy this book because of the format, similar to a diary, and the illustrations, which were a mix of rough sketches and very polished, detailed bird portraits. Amy Tan did all of the illustrations herself. The text was very informal; Tan took drawing lessons and she delighted in discovering birds that were new to her and drawing them so that she could identify them later. She talked a lot about mating behavior and which birds mate for life. I loved her enthusiasm for the subject. The book covered part of 2017 through 2022. It was the perfect book for me. 

Graphic Nonfiction

What I Hate: From A to Z  (2011) by Roz Chast

This is a very short book, 64 pages, about twice the length of the average children's picture book and in the same format. Chast has illustrated twenty six of the things she hates (or is very anxious about), one for each letter of the alphabet. It is the first book by Chast that I have read, although I have admired her cartoons in the New Yorker for years. What we hate or are anxious about is very personal. So, although some of the things that cause anxiety in Roz Chast seemed silly to me, who am I to judge? The book is fun and funny.

Fiction

I See You Called in Dead (2025) John Kenney

I borrowed this book from my husband, before he had even read it. The protagonist works for a newspaper writing obituaries. He likes his job, but his life changes for the worse when his wife divorces him. He loses any zest for life that he had, starts drinking to excess, and ends up writing his own obituary. And publishes it. He is immediately suspended, but he is still getting paid, so he has plenty of time to wallow in self-pity. Fortunately he has caring friends and meets some new ones. These characters are the ones who make this book so satisfying. This book is described as humorous, and it has plenty of humor, but I would say it tends more towards sadness than humor. Just a warning. I thoroughly enjoyed it but parts of it are heartbreakingly sad. 

Historical Fiction

Old Filth (2004) by Jane Gardam

I could not decide whether to call this Historical Fiction or not. It begins and ends in the early years of the 21st century, but most of the story is about the years between World War I and through World War II. It is the first book in a trilogy by Jane Gardam and I will be reading book 2 for sure. See my thoughts on the book.

Crime Fiction

Hidden Agenda (1985) by Anna Porter

This is mystery by a Canadian author, set in Toronto, New York, and London. The main protagonist is Judith Hayes, a single mother and journalist based in Toronto who has ties to various publishing houses. The story starts with the death of a man run over by a subway car. Inspector Parr talks to Judith Hayes, who had a meeting with the man, an editor in a publishing house, just hours before he died. The police tend to think it was suicide. Judith says he gave no indication in the meeting that he would commit suicide. Then more deaths occur in publishing houses, all seemingly connected to a missing manuscript. The stakes keep escalating and it seemed to be a  cross between spy fiction and a political conspiracy plot. I admit that it strained my ability to suspend disbelief, but I liked the characters and the international locations and the look at the publishing industry. The author was a publisher for many years in Canada. 

The Murder at the End of the World (2024) by Stuart Turton

This book is a dystopian mystery. The story is very convoluted. There are two sets of characters on an island that has been isolated by an event in the past. The island is run by three elders, who have lived very long lives (over 100 years) and all have scientific or engineering backgrounds. The larger group on the island function to serve them, and all have lives limited to 60 years. One day, one of the elders is killed and this leads to the whole island being threatened by a poisonous atmosphere that will kill them all if they don't solve the murder. I was confused most of the time, and I think that was intentional. In the end it all came together and made sense. The book has two elements I love in a mystery: a lovely map of the island on the endpapers of the book and a list of characters.

Death of a Busybody (1942) by George Bellairs

When I sat down to write my thoughts on this book, I was dismayed to realize that I don't remember much about the plot of this story. Yet I do remember that I enjoyed reading the book and I plan to keep reading this series. Basically, the title describes the major plot element. A busybody, Miss Tither, who lives in a very small village, Hillary Magna, is killed. She has no friends. She snoops on people, offers her advice, and interferes in their lives. When she is killed, the local police are unable to handle the investigation and Inspector Littlejohn is called in to help. The procedure of tracking down the clues and suspects is not exciting, but the way the police work together and the relationships within the village are interesting, and there is subtle humor throughout. The final solution was much more complex than I expected, but it was very satisfying. The Inspector Littlejohn series has at least 50 novels in it, and many are available at affordable prices as eBooks.

The photos at the bottom and top of the post are of plants we purchased in early Summer of 2025. They were sitting on the patio waiting to be repotted. The photos were taken and processed by my husband. Click on the images for the best viewing quality.

 

Old Filth: Jane Gardam

 

Description from the paperback edition I read...

Filth, in his heyday, was an international lawyer with a practice in the Far East. Now, only the oldest QCs and Silks can remember that his nickname stood for Failed In London Try Hong Kong. 

Long ago, Old Filth was a Raj orphan – one of the many young children sent 'home' from the East to be fostered and educated in England. Jane Gardam's new novel tells his story, from his birth in what was then Malaya to the extremities of his old age. In so doing, she not only encapsulates a whole period from the glory days of the British Empire, through the Second World War, to the present and beyond, but also illuminates the complexities of the character known variously as Eddie, The Judge, Fevvers, Filth, Master of the Inner Temple, Teddy and Sir Edward Feathers.

Teddy Feathers acquired the name "Old Filth" when he was in Hong Kong. FILTH is an acronym for Failed in London Try Hong Kong. When it first came into usage, it was an insult, but later did not have that negative connotation.

The story begins when Teddy is living in Dorset with Betty, his wife. They are both in their late 70s and live a very isolated life. The story jumps around, from his childhood in Wales living with a foster family, to the years that he spends in boarding school and then prep school. When World War II starts, Teddy's father has him evacuated to Singapore, at the age of eighteen, which he finds mortifying. The story covers very little of his time working in Singapore and later in London.

My Thoughts:

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Old Filth. Teddy Feathers is a wonderful character. He had a sad life, but the story is not depressing. 

I will admit that the hopping around to various times in his childhood was confusing for me at times. Normally, I like that format of story telling, but in this case it may have been a problem because I did not have much knowledge of the time before World War II in the UK, and the relationships between the UK and various Asian countries. As usual, that makes me want to read more about the period (and any suggestions are welcome). There is a 2nd book, The Man in the Wooden Hat, telling the story from his wife's point of view, and I look forward to reading that.

I also want to try more of Jane Gardam's books. In an interview at the Guardian, from 2011, Gardam said "that's what all my books are about, the end of empire," and I think that would be interesting reading. If you have any to recommend, let me know.