Week in Review #52

This week I read seven books. While I may do another mid-week post to do the final movies of Century of Viewing, I'm guessing that I'll save any book reviews for newly finished books to 2026!

126. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Douglas Adams. Illustrated by Chris Riddell. 1979/2021. 289 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, speculative fiction, humor, science fiction, audio book]

Read this if...

• You enjoy science fiction
• You enjoy humor
• You enjoy audio books

127. Little House on the Prairie. Laura Ingalls Wilder. 1935. 335 pages. [Source: Bought] [children's classic]

Read this if...

• You enjoy historical fiction
• You enjoy children's classics
• You enjoy audio books

128. Westfallen. Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares. 2024. 384 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars] [MG speculative fiction, MG science fiction, MG dystopia, TIME TRAVEL, alternate history]

Read this if...

• You enjoy speculative fiction
• You enjoy magical radios that allow for communication across time
• You enjoy alternate universes

82. Whispers at Painswick Court. Julie Klassen. 2025. 368 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, Regency historical romance, Christian fiction]

Read this if...

• You enjoy Christian fiction
• You enjoy historical mysteries
• You enjoy historical romances

83. Ryle on the Christian Life: Growing in Grace. Andrew Atherstone. 2025. 208 pages. [Source: Review copy, 4 stars, christian biography, theology, christian nonfiction]

Read this if...

• You enjoy Christian theology
• You enjoy Christian biographies

84. A Wondrous Mystery: Daily Advent Devotions. Charles H. Spurgeon. 2024. 144 pages. [Source: GIFT] [4 stars]

Read this if...

• You enjoy devotional books
• You enjoy Advent books
• You enjoy Charles Spurgeon

16. 435E1B Paragraph Bible, Holy Bible, King James Version. Local Church Publisher. 1950 pages. [Source: Gift] [5 stars]

Read this if...

• You enjoy the King James
• You enjoy single column Bibles
• You enjoy reader's Bibles

Century of Viewing #52

1940s

• 1947 Miracle on 34th Street. A classic. I love this one so much. A lawyer convinces the world that one man--a Macy's Santa Claus--is THE one and only Santa Claus. Also romance.

1970s

• 1977. It Happened One Christmas. A 70s adaptation of It's A Wonderful Life with gender swapping. It's not horrible. It's not wonderful. It's slightly odd. I don't regret watching it once.
• 1979 American Christmas Carol. Henry Winkler stars in this adaptation of A Christmas Carol. It's just different enough to be interesting YET faithful enough to be good. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I would watch again though probably not this Christmas season.

1990s

• 1990 Die Hard 2. Perhaps not as good as the first. But his wife is in danger once again--along with a lot of other people at the airport--so action-packed drama.
• 1992. Muppet Christmas Carol. THE BEST MOVIE EVER? MAYBE PROBABLY.
• 1999. A Christmas Carol. Patrick Stewart stars in this adaptation of Christmas Carol. I enjoyed it very much.

2010s

• 2010 How To Train Your Dragon (animated). SUCH a good movie. Highly recommend. I do prefer this one to the live-action.
• 2019 A Christmas Movie Christmas. Is this parody enjoyable enough to make it a 'must'? Maybe. Maybe not. BUT it did make it more enjoyable to sit through. It's ridiculing the genre while conforming to the genre in its own twisted way. Would definitely have been improved if I'd been watching it with a friend.

2020s

• 2020 Nashville Christmas Carol. I wanted more Christmas Carol than I got. However, it was mildly pleasant. I wouldn't watch it again perhaps. But I'm not mad at it.
• 2021 Sister Swap: Hometown Christmas. If memory serves--which it doesn't always--real life sisters star in this movie. There are, I believe, two movies--one for each sister. YouTube only had the one! But this one was cute enough in its own way. A woman returns to hometown to 'save' her late uncle's movie theater and falls in love with a former classmate.
• 2025 Call the Midwife Holiday Special. I enjoyed it. Is it my favorite Call the Midwife Holiday Special???? Probably not. But it was GOOD.

© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews