Welcome to my December 2025 Favorite Books post! This monthly post is where I share the 5 star books I’ve read so far each month. You can see the first half of my December reading here and I will share the rest of my December reads next week. I am writing this a bit early, so if I have further 5 star reads, they will be shared in that post as well. The Amazon links to the books I’ve read are affiliate links and if you use them and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission.
Title: As A Jew
Author: Sarah Hurwitz
Genre: Non Fiction
Publisher: Harper One, 9/9/25
Source: Library
Why I Read It: Sounded good
My Rating: 5 Stars
I listened to this book, read by the author, but I truly need a print copy to review! As A Jew is about how outside forces have shaped Judaism today, including antisemitism, erasure, and even Christianity. The author took a personal journey to rediscover Judaism and she shares how while Judaism is indeed a culture, she found it difficult that she had a lack of text based knowledge around that culture. She writes to inspire Jews to reclaim and find a deeper connection to their Judaism.
“At thirty-six, Sarah Hurwitz was a typical lapsed Jew. On a whim, she attended an introduction to Judaism class and was astonished by what she discovered: thousands of years of wisdom from her ancestors about what it means to be human. That class sparked a journey of discovery that transformed her life. Years later, as Hurwitz wrestled with what it means to be Jewish at a time of rising antisemitism, she wondered: Where had the Judaism she discovered as an adult been all her life? Why hadn’t she seen the beauty and depth of her tradition in those dull synagogue services and Hebrew school classes she’d endured as a kid? And why had her Jewish identity consisted of a series of caveats and apologies: I’m Jewish, but not that Jewish . . . I’m just a cultural Jew . . . I’m just like everyone else but with a fun ethnic twist—a dash of neurosis, a touch of gallows humor—a little different, but not in a way that would make anyone uncomfortable. Seeking answers, she went back through time to discover how hateful myths about Jewish power, depravity, and conspiracy have worn a neural groove deep into the world’s psyche, shaping not just how others think about Jews, but how Jews think about themselves. She soon realized that the Jewish identity she’d thought was freely chosen was actually the result of thousands of years of antisemitism and two centuries of Jews erasing parts of themselves and their tradition in the hope of being accepted and safe. In As a Jew, Hurwitz documents her quest to take back her Jewish identity, how she stripped away the layers of antisemitic lies that made her recoil from her own birthright and unearthed the treasures of Jewish tradition. With antisemitism raging worldwide, Hurwitz’s defiant account of reclaiming the Jewish story and learning to live as a Jew, without apology, has never been timelier or more necessary.”
One topic that the author covers is the concept of the good Jew. Those who reject their Judaism or whatever society currently dislikes about Judaism are accepted. We see a lot of this expectation today. We also unfortunately see the view that no Jew can be good and this leads to events like the one in Australia on the first night of Hanukkah. So how do we fight antisemitism? By being proud Jews. The author suggests that Jews should engage in more of our traditions and rituals. In order to tell our story, we must learn our story.
Title: Maid For Each Other
Author: Lynn Painter
Genre: Rom Com
Publisher: Berkley, 7/15/25
Source: Gift
Why I Read It: Love her books
My Rating: 5 Stars
I love Lynn Painter’s rom coms so I was excited to receive Maid For Each Other for my birthday. This is about house cleaner Abi, who gets caught sleeping in her client Declan’s home and is mistaken as his made up girlfriend who he has called Abby. They agree to fake date each other, which leads to their falling for each other. Declan is a millionaire who is surrounded by millionaires, so there is a class difference between the two which does lead to conflict.
“As a professional cleaner, Abi Mariano never thought her apartment would have any sort of infestation, but because of a building-wide outbreak, she now needs somewhere to stay for a week. As a part-time student with two jobs, she doesn’t have many options. Then the solution presents itself: the owner of the penthouse she cleans is out of town for the week. She normally wouldn’t consider it, but he’s literally never around (she hasn’t even met him). It goes great…until one morning she finds two strangers in the kitchen. They’re the parents of the penthouse owner and they seem to think they’ve heard all about Abi—not as their son’s maid, but as his girlfriend. Declan Powell has always put his career first, working his way up to become an executive at his company, but he still has his sights set on the next level. When his parents mention that they met his girlfriend, “Abby,” he all but chokes on his escargot. As wonderful as it sounds that she was just darling, he doesn’t actually have a girlfriend—he made her up to get everyone off his back. When Dex finds out who Abi really is, he makes her a proposition: pretend to date him, and he’ll provide everything she needs during their little arrangement. What harm would it do? It’s purely business, no pleasure…right?”
As I do with all her books, I enjoyed this one! It was funny and light and it had heart.
Title: Wreck
Author: Catherine Newman
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Harper, 10/28/25
Source: Gift
Why I Read It: Loved the book Sandwich
My Rating: 5 Stars
As soon as I finished reading Sandwich, I knew I had to read the sequal, Wreck, as well. Although I loved Sandwich more, Wreck continued with the same humor and relatability for a middle aged mom like myself. In this one, Rocky is dealing with a health crisis. She has her father living with her, Nick, and Willa. And she is obsessing over a nearby fatal car vs train wreck.
“If you loved Rocky and her family on vacation on Cape Cod, wait until you join them at home two years later. (And if this is your first meeting with this crew, get ready to laugh and cry—and relate.) Rocky, still anxious, nostalgic, and funny, is living in Western Massachusetts with her husband Nick and their daughter Willa, who’s back home after college. Their son, Jamie, has taken a new job in New York, and Mort, Rocky’s widowed father, has moved in. It all couldn’t be more ridiculously normal . . . until Rocky finds herself obsessed with a local accident that only tangentially affects them—and with a medical condition that, she hopes, won’t affect them at all.”
There were so many funny parts to this book that I was cracking up while reading it. It just feels so real to me, and I love the love this family has for one another.
Title: The Memory Gardener
Author: Meg Donahue
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Gallery, 11/25/25
Source: Publisher
Why I Read It: Sent to me for my review
My Rating: 5 Stars
I loved this book about Lucy, a gardener who is able to match scents from her plants to people, who when smelling them, see a memory that has meaning to their lives.
“Lucy Barnes is a gardener with an uncanny ability to know exactly which scent among her flowers will illuminate to a person a key from their past that might change their future. Sadly, after a tragedy ten years ago, she no longer uses her gift and has fled her hometown. But six months after her mother’s death, Lucy awakens to find her mother’s unmistakable scent drifting over her, and she knows that she is being called home. And when a mysterious note leads her to take a job as the gardener at the Oceanview Home, a senior-living residence, Lucy finds herself wondering if there is more to her gift—and her mother’s past—than she ever knew. Her work among the lush gardens of Oceanview Home soon awakens the entire community, unearthing memories that will forever change all who cross Lucy’s path. But not everyone is happy to see how her presence has transformed the Oceanview Home, and when a secret comes to light that threatens to shatter the entire community, the future suddenly looks uncertain. Have the memories that Lucy has unearthed awakened something wonderful…or are some memories better left buried?”
When Lucy is hired to restore the gardens at a retirement home estate, she meets and gets to know the residents there, including Fitz, who also has chapters from his viewpoint. I loved the found family, the unexpected connections, and the sweet characters in this book.
Title: I Made It Out of Clay
Author: Beth Kander
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Mira, 12/10/24
Source: Purchased
Why I Read It: Hanukkah
My Rating: 5 Stars
About a year ago, I attended an author event with Beth Kander for her book I Made It Out of Clay. I bought the book then and finally read it for this Hanukkah! I loved this both funny and meaningful story about Eve, who is struggling after the death of her father, with tensions between her and her best friend as well as with her sister, the threat of losing her job, and escalating antisemitism in the world as well as locally in her hometown of Chicago. With her sister’s wedding approaching, Eve needs a date and she wants to ask her neighbor Josh to go with her. When he blows off her invitation, she ends up creating a golem to be her date. The golem is great at first, but things become more complicated and even dangerous as time goes on.
“Nothing’s going well for Eve: she’s single, turning forty, stressed at work and anxious about a recent series of increasingly creepy incidents. Most devastatingly, her beloved father died last year, and her family still won’t acknowledge their sorrow. With her younger sister’s wedding rapidly approaching, Eve is on the verge of panic. She can’t bear to attend the event alone. That’s when she recalls a strange story her Yiddish grandmother once told her, about a protector forged of desperation…and Eve, to her own shock, manages to create a golem. At first, everything seems great. The golem is indeed protective—and also attractive. But when they head out to a rural summer camp for the family wedding, Eve’s lighthearted rom-com fantasy swiftly mudslides into something much darker.”
I loved this take on the classic golem story. A golem is a mythical Jewish figure made from clay in order to serve its creator. It also protects the Jewish community from persecution. This version of a golem does justice to the original for sure. Also, his name was Paul Mudd. Get it?? I wouldn’t call this book a rom com although it does have romance in it. It is more of a book about grief, relationships, and growth. I normally don’t love “dark humor,” so I think this was humorous and dark, but maybe not actually dark humor! All in all, I loved it.
Come back next week for the rest of my December reads!
Do you have a favorite book you’ve read this month?
