December RandomKIT - O (Christmas) Tree

For the final RandomKIT challenge of the year, read a book with a tree or trees on the cover! Any kind of tree at all, and it doesn't matter whether it's a major or minor part of the cover image. Feel free to post your covers when talking about what you read, and don't forget to update the wiki: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/2023_RandomKIT

This one has been on my to read pile for ages, looking forward to finally getting to it!

I like it! I read one I quite enjoyed earlier this year:
The Wild Trees / Richard Preston

... in case anyone is interested in a suggestion. :-)

I had to go pretty far down on my list to find a book with a tree on the cover...odd! I will be reading The House on the Moor by Margaret Oliphant.

I see several on my TBR and I've zeroed in on South Riding by Winifred Holtby. The new Paulette Jiles ,Chenneville, has trees on the cover but I don't think I want to read it right now.

Oh, I have a book that matches, and was given to me by alcottacre, The Country of Pointed Firs!

Surprisingly, I have very few trees on the covers of the books that I am planning on reading in December. But luckily, I did have this one, Silent Nights: A Collection of Christmas Mysteries that has an actual Christmas tree!

When I first read this challenge, I thought 'easy!' But all the books I was thinking had foliage or flowers, but very few have actual trees. I was surprised.

>8 JayneCM: Right. I'm going to read Christmas at Thrush Green by Miss Read and although I'm sure there will be trees in the story, I was surprised that there are only a few trees way in the background on the cover:

Oh perfect! Two of the books I've got slotted for next month actually have trees on the cover :) -- Witching Moon by Rebecca York and The Remaking by Clay Mcleod Chapman

I lucked out on this one! I have a lovely copy of Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening and the cover features trees (of course).

I think I'm going to try and read The House of Unexpected Sisters by Alexander McCall Smith. There's a tiny tree peeking out from one side.

It looks like one of my Mt TBR Bingo books that is left for December (after all the numbers have been called otherwise) will fit.

The Lost Ancestor by Nathan Dylan Goodwin



ETA: Completed.

>13 thornton37814: Oh, I like the cover! What is this about? Do tell!

>14 LadyoftheLodge: This is a mystery series where the detective is a genealogist. The author has made appearances at a few conferences so he's rather well-known and liked in the genealogical community. I think he's investigating a disappearance of a woman in this one.

>13 thornton37814: >14 LadyoftheLodge: Sounds good to me too and the first one is a Kindle Unlimited.

>16 clue: Hope you enjoy it!

>13 thornton37814: >14 LadyoftheLodge: The first one is free on Kobo, so I'll download it for later

I have several books lined up for December that have a tree on the cover - now I just have to choose which one to start with :-)

Starting early because I've got two other books to read for my book club and my reading group next week and then I'm going away.

The Hidden Life of Trees: The Illustrated Edition by Peter Wohlleben

>20 Robertgreaves: - I gave this to my sister-in-law last year for Christmas and she said it was very interesting.

COMPLETED The Hidden Life of Trees: The Illustrated Edition by Peter Wohlleben

I listened to The Christmas Ruse by Jenny Goutet, which features some wintery trees on the left side of the cover.

I finished reading The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming by Lemony Snickett which is just as silly as I remembered it. I liked it better this time around. It is sort of a take-off on the story of the runaway pancake or little gingerbread man. It has a part of a Christmas tree on the cover.

I also re-read If You Take A Mouse to the Movies and it has a Christmas tree on the cover too.

I am reading The Stories Behind the Best-Loved Christmas Songs for this challenge. It has a beautiful tree-filled cover.


I also read Corduroy's Christmas Surprise for KiddyCAT which has a Christmas tree on the cover.

I'm reading A Monster Calls, which has a monster on the cover, who is (it seems) a Yew tree made animate. Plus an actual tree.

I also listened to Der Jahrhundertwinter by Richard Dübell, which has several trees on the cover. While the story was different from what I expected, I still think that the winter scene on the cover is beautiful:

I finished Christmas at Thrush Green by Miss Read (2009)

This is the last book in the Thrush Green series and now I have read all of Miss Read's books. This last installment starts at the beginning of December and ends with the ringing in of the New Year. Nearly all of the characters from the previous books are mentioned or featured. The main stories include preparing for the annual Nativity play, some unfriendly new residents and Ella Bembridge's increasing blindness.

This book was first published in 2009, more than 12 years after the last Thrush Green book. An "Acknowledgement" note at the beginning of the volume makes clear that the book was conceived by Miss Read, but actually written by her long-time editor, Jenny Dereham. I missed some of the longer nature and weather passages that are such a trademark of Miss Read, but overall the writing was very much in her style. In fact, by her last years of life Miss Read was nearly completely blind, which makes the storylines even more significant. A rather wistful way to end my reading with Miss Read.

>28 kac522:
A life-long anglophile, I've been wanting to read Miss Reead for years.
Just checked 1st one out from the library. Thnks for the reminder!

I read Agatha Raisin and the Potted Gardener, which has some rather stylized trees on the cover.

>29 nrmay: Love them all and have read them for years. They are my go-to comfort reads.

I completed The Odd Women by George Gissing

The Youth Hostel Murders by Glyn Carr has many trees on its front cover.

I finished a mystery set in 1921 Hollywood which has palm trees on the cover: Der Mann, der nicht mitspielt. Lots of real people showed up, and it's based on the Arbuckle scandal.

January's RandomKIT thread is now up!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/355872

I read Bluecrowne by Kate Milford, which has lots of tiny trees on the cover.

I read We Wish You a Murderous Christmas by Vicki Delany which has a Christmas tree on the cover.

>35 Jackie_K: thank you!

Finished A Monster Calls which was a book bullet from someone and hit a bull's eye.

I finished Witching Moon by Rebecca York today. It was the third book in the series, but it didn't come close to living up to the earlier books. Full review written, but I'm honestly not sure if I'll be reading another York book after this one.

I've completed Silent Nights, a collection of Christmas mysteries assembled by Martin Edwards.

I read The Treeline, a fascinating though often grim look at the boreal forest all across the top of the Northern Hemisphere (there are chapters on Scotland, Norway, Russia, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland) an how it is faring on a warming planet.

I just finished Catherine Lloyd's Death Comes to Kurland Hall, which has a tree on the cover (left-hand side, behind the manor house):

I just finished Jims brillante Weihnachten which has a Christmas tree on the cover. I enjoyed this very much.

(edited for touchstone)

My MysteryKIT read Not A Creature Was Purring also fits this category.

I read Christmas with O. Henry which has what might be trees on the cover.

>46 sallylou61: "What might be trees" lol

I read another one: Her Christmas Secret by Melissa McClone. The cover shows a horse drawn sleigh going through a snowy forest.

I read Dashing Through the Snow by Debbie Macomber
The beginning of this book sounded so familiar that I began to think I must have read it before, but then at about 20% the familiarity ended, which confirmed that I gave up on it. I feel like giving it the heave-ho again because it is truly awful. It’s really short and I almost finished it this time, abandoning the last two pages, but following a great book by Sophie Kinsella, this was too much to bear.

I gave this a measly half star because it was probably my worst book of the year - but it has a nice tree on the cover!

I've read How To Be More Tree: Essential Life Lessons for Perennial Happiness by Potter Gift.

I also read Murder for Christmas by Francis Duncan, which has a few pine trees or firs in the snow on the cover, framing a country house.

I've also read The Templars'Last Secret by Martin Walker. The cover shows trees along the edge of a cliff.

Finished another book with a Christmas tree on the cover. Uncle John's Bathroom Reader: Jingle Bell Christmas

Currently reading Breakup by Dana Stabenow. The cover has conifers in the background:

Just finished Independence Square by Martin Cruz Smith. The eponymous cover is the Independence Square in Kyiv, with a few faint trees in the background.
The story follows Arkady Renko who is traveling all over the Crimean and Ukraine, just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He is searching for a disappeared girl, and trying to solve a number of political murders on people involved with the opposition. A well written, relatively simple story, the kind a master storyteller may write late in her career. Excellent writing and worldbuilding, but very little complexity in plot and storyline.
In that way it reminds me of Agents running in the field, John le Carres penultimate outing.

I read Miracle on 34th Street by Valentine Davies. My first edition copy has trees on the cover.

I read Last Night at the Lobster, which has a snowy mall car park, with some trees around the edges of the parking area, on the cover

>56 lowelibrary: I remember reading and loving that book many years ago. :)

I have gotten stalled (ha! go figure!) on my tree reads, but then I started a Christmas gift book and realized IT HAS TREES!



So far it's REALLY GOOD and I expect I'll finish it in the next day or so.

They're hard to see, but there are some trees up against the buildings on the cover of The Frozen Thames by Helen Humphreys.

>59 dudes22: oh, I liked that book.

>60 fuzzi: - A few people here mentioned it which is how it came to my attention.

I read several Christmas themed books this month that have a picture of a house amongst trees on the cover:
A Christmas Party by Georgette Heyer, 3.5*
The Christmas Guest by Peter Swanson, 3*
Twelve Slays of Christmas by Jacqueline Frost, 3.5* (this one also takes place at a Christmas tree farm)
Twelve Days of Murder by Andreina Cordani, 3.5*

>61 dudes22: I had to buy another copy of this book because the one I owned got lost when I moved. I liked it just as well the second time I read it.

I finished Vittoria Cottage by D. E. Stevenson, which has an interesting cover with trees:


I'm currently reading Ralph the Heir by Anthony Trollope, and the cover scene includes leaves around the perimeter and tree reflections in the water:


There are some lovely descriptions of trees as the Squire walks through his estate.

>63 LadyoftheLodge: - I don't keep a lot of books after I read them due to space issues. But this one is a keeper.

I finished Twitch for this one.

Billy and the Giant Adventure by Jamie Oliver

One of those adventure stories that a Dad might tell at bedtime to be continued over several nights. The story, mysterious and exciting, reminds this reader of the style of storytelling I loved as a child. Oliver’s parents ran a pub serving tasty food, just like Billy’s family. This allows Billy to take along tasty snacks for the jaunts into the woods to visit the sprites the friends discovered. They also found danger but like dyslexia it can be conquered.

Jamie Oliver understands the dyslexic reader and is reassuring that given time and patience, all will be well. The dedication says it all:
“This is for all the kids who struggle at school, or have dyslexia like me. Never lose hope. Believe! You have the power to see things in ways no one else will! Find your way, just like Billy. The Billy-Boy way!

I thoroughly enjoyed the book as well as the author's recipes graciously included at the end.

The King of Bones and Ashes is the first in the Witches of New Orleans series by J. D. Horn

I have had this series on my list for a long time and have finally started it.

I've read a few more books with trees on the cover: The Gentleman's Gambit by Evie Dunmore (to the right, behind the gentleman); The Christmas Card Crime and Other Stories by Martin Edwards, ed. (evergreens in the foreground); and With Love, from Cold World by Alicia Thompson (palm trees hidden within the words "Cold World").

Oops, it looks like I missed posting mine! Let me go find it...

Greenwood / Michael Christie
4 stars

In 2038, Jake works on Greenwood Island in British Columbia; it’s one of the only truly livable/habitable places left with its giant trees. A biologist, Jake loves living here, though she’s not as enamoured with the job, touring around “Pilgrims” (tourists). Unfortunately, she’s also discovered a couple of trees that appear to be sick; these trees are hundreds of years old.

Her ex-fiance (a lawyer) shows up and books a private tour with her to tell her she might actually “own” the island, given her family history and the history of the island (that is, it may be part of an inheritance for her). The book continues by backing up in time through a few generations of Greenwoods to when Jake’s grandmother was a baby… and one generation earlier in 1908 when Jake’s great-grandfather was a kid (along with his brother). The brothers were very different: Everett ended up a vagrant and in jail; Harris was hugely wealthy via his lumber business, cutting down all the beautiful trees that Jake loves so much.

The bulk of the story followed Harris and Everett and that’s what I liked the best. Have to admit it took a short bit for me to get interested and to figure out what was happening and who the different characters were as we went back in time. I liked the way this one was done: we actually started in 2038, and gradually made our way to 1908 through the generations, then moved forward again back to 2038.

Books l read in Dec with trees on the cover -
Dirt Creek, Hayley Scrivenor
Green Thrush, Miss Read
The One and Only Ruby, Katherine Applegate
Foster, Claire Keegan