Books Read in January 2018

The year is off to a great start, reading-wise! I enjoyed some excellent books in January:

• Only Child by Rhiannon Navin (NY) - adult fiction (reviewed for Shelf Awareness)
• The Adrenal Reset Diet by Alan Christianson - nonfiction
• Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (UK, CA) - adult fiction 

• Perfect Little World by Kevin Wilson (TN) - adult fiction on audio
• The Pirates of Cologne by Dinah Mack (Germany) - YA fiction
• Circling the Sun by Paula McLain (Kenya) - adult fiction

• Cici's Journal: The Adventures of a Writer-in-Training by Joris Chamblain & Aurélie Neyret (France) - middle-grade graphic novel
• The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (Mars!) - adult fiction, classic

So, 8 books total for me in January, which is a lot! I read mostly fiction, with one nonfiction book (that I read for my medical condition, on the advice of a friend). I focused mostly on adult fiction last month, though I did fit in one YA and one middle-grade book. I only finished one audio book, but it was a longish one. And one of my books was a graphic novel, so a nice variety last month overall! I enjoyed all of the fiction very much. I'm having trouble picking a favorite - maybe a tie between Exit West and Only Child (I will post my review for that one as soon as it is published), both of which were very unique, moving, and thought-provoking.

Progress in 2018 Reading Challenges:
This is my favorite part of my monthly summary - updating my Reading Challenges! I started the year off right, with 4 books from my own shelves for my Mount TBR Reading Challenge. For the Monthly Motif Reading Challenge, January was Diversify Your Reading, so Exit West fit well (the two main characters are Muslim). I already read one classic for the Back to the Classics Challenge and counted The Martian Chronicles under Re-Read an Old Favorite category. For my new 2018 Badass Books Challenge, I added A Book Published in 2018 (Only Child), a Re-Read (The Martian Chronicles and Book By An Author You've Never Read (Circling the Sun by Paula McLain).   It was a great month for international reading - I added UK, Germany, Kenya, and Mars (it counts!) for my Travel the World in Books Reading Challenge. For my 2018 Literary Escapes Challenge, I added three states - NY, CA (always a lot of those two), and TN.
 
Finally, Bookish Bingo hosted by Chapter Break - not really a challenge per se, but a fun game that I play each month. I filled in 19 squares in January - decent start to the year!

Spaces filled in:

Only Child - free child
The Adrenal Reset Diet - diet/fitness/exercise, multi-word title
Exit West - shelf love (TBR), repercussions
Perfect Little World - audio book
The Pirates of Cologne - YA, treason
Circling the Sun - library book, person on the cover, competition, betrayal
Cici's Journal - in a series, library or librarian
The Martian Chronicles - re-read, made into a TV show/movie, cold weather
Free Space

What was your favorite book read in January?