The Mom Weekly Volume 124: December 23, 2025
You can read this, or any other previous Mom Weeklies, by going to the home page here.
Notes:
Christmas is almost here, and I am relieved and happy about it. It’s been quite the Advent season (not the least being two big snowstorms in just a few days–not that I minded the snow), and I am ready to celebrate Christmas season!
Remember how much I love you,
Mom
The Most Intriguing Books I Read in 2025
Goodreads tells me I read about 80 books this year, and since I saw this concept around the internets, I thought it would be worthwhile to make my own list.
In no particular order, here are seven of the best/most intriguing/most memorable books I read this year:
Piranesi by Susanna Clark
This was my second read of this book, and it’s absolutely stunning and haunting. I’m going to try to read some of her other novels in 2026.
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Book Collector’s Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend by Rebecca Romney
I was delighted to meet her and have a short conversation after her talk at JASNA this fall. Romney writes about near-contemporary women writers to Jane Austen, and I’ve added many of them to my list.
Wormwood Abbey (The Secrets of Ormdale #1) by Christina Baehr
This was a 100 percent wonderful, absolutely perfect YA read by a newer author—a mom of 10! I can’t say enough good things about this series, which my second daughter introduced me to (and I’m so, so grateful). The literary references! the family relationships! the twists and turns of the plots! It kind of reminds me of the Ranger’s Apprentice books, but set in 1800s England.
Pollyanna by Eleanor Holmes Norton
I’ve read this book at least half a dozen times, and every time I remember how much fun and also how terrific (in an old-timey way) it is! Definitely a comfort read for me, and I’ve been doing a lot of comfort reading this year.
The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary by Sarah Ogilvie. I didn’t love everything about this book, but the concept is so wonderful. I wrote about it earlier this year. https://themomweekly.com/the-sunday-tramps/
Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age by Rod Dreher
I also read his much earlier book The Little Way of Ruthie Leming: A Southern Girl, a Small Town, and the Secret of a Good Life, and didn’t like that quite as much. Living in Wonder is about the importance of recognizing the supernatural (wonder) in our world.
He Leadeth Me by Father Walter Ciszek
This book is SUCH a good Lenten read, and I am glad that I read it during Lent 2025, for I think the second time. I reviewed it back in the day, and here’s just a couple of sentences from that:
“He Leadeth Me, Fr. Walter Ciszek’s spiritual autobiography, including his harrowing years as a political prisoner in World War II-era and post-war Russia.
His successes and failures of faith, of perseverance, make the word “inspiring” an understatement. He Leadeth Me is for anyone who seeks to live a Christian life, but who feels unprepared for the task. Fr. Ciszek’s story shows us that “keeping on” and never giving up, is the important quality of the Christian life, all through the lens of the persecution he experienced.”
Interesting/Notable:
Class demonstration uncovers dangerously large kidney stone in medical student—Washington Post gift link
Such an interesting story! I bet this medical student was glad that she volunteered to be the ultrasound “patient” among all the other students, because the instructor spotted a giant kidney stone causing a backup of fluid in one of her kidneys. The note I enjoyed most from this piece is that the instructor was glad that the students were new in medical school, so they would not notice what she could easily see, so it protected the student’s privacy until she could talk to her privately.
An Action Item: Begin to Make a List for 2026
There are so many versions of this, but I think it is worthwhile to consider a list of what you’d like to do, see, create, etc. during the new year. I have not started this, so I consider this my nudge to do so.