Browsing Category: What I’ve Been Reading

What I’ve Been Reading – May 2018

I’ve been rather lame in the book/writing department. There’s been a lot of things brewing and bubbling in my mind, and sometimes, sitting down at the computer is the last thing I want to do. That said, I also know how much I truly enjoy being able to look back at the books I’ve read. Thus why I’m forcing myself to sit down and do this.

I finished 8 books the past few months…yea, 8. Admittedly, a few of them were lengthy and a bit heady. I can’t fly through those books the way I can through fluffier fiction.

FAVORITE FICTION BOOK

The one that moved the fastest for me was Barefoot. It was pure fluff, but so much of it I just loved. It was the first book of her’s that I’ve read, and I’ve always seen her books and had them pique my interest. I liked the characters, I liked the story line, I liked that it was a bit of romance without seeming smarmy, but it was real and had heart. I just started The Matchmaker by her.

Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club selection was my close second favorite, Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows. Since Bend it Like Beckham, I have been interested in the Indian-London community. This book fits perfectly within that. It was a fun read, but also addressed a lot of deeper, and some darker, issues within not only the Indian community, but for women in general.

FAVORITE NON-FICTION BOOK

Seeing as I only read one non-fiction book, it would have to be Shauna Niequist’s Present Over Perfect. This was a book that I pre-ordered on Amazon in August 2016…yea, it took me almost two years to ACTUALLY READ the book *face palm*. I really enjoyed it though and so much of Shauna’s struggles have mirrored my own, of allowing other people’s expectations and requests to dictate my life and who I am. I ended up with quite a few dog-eared pages on this one.

THE BOOK I DIDN’T LIKE

The Forty Rules of Love: I REALLY wanted to like this book, but I just couldn’t. I don’t know if I just didn’t want to put the time into reading it or if it was that the story wasn’t what I expected or the bouncing around. I read to about page 100, then scanned the rest of the pages. I don’t think it ever got better, and I honestly don’t remember the ending.

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I’ve been struggling with books. I really WANT to read the heavier books (non-fiction), but they take me so long to get through. I feel like they’re keeping me from actually reading, because I dread picking them up, no matter how much I’m enjoying them. My brain doesn’t seem to have much time or energy to read. It’s not even a slump, it’s just too much.

Fluffier books are fun and I get through them faster, but I really don’t feel like they’re bringing much to my mental table. They’re the equivalent of cotton candy for dinner, it sounds like a good idea at the time, until about 20 minutes later and you’re thinking, “Why on earth did I do that?!”

What have you been reading?

Keep up with what I’ve been reading on GoodReads or Instagram 

(I’ve notated books I’ve read for my book club * and F for Fiction, NF for Non-Fiction, and A if it was an audiobook).

*This post contains affiliate links. You can read my disclosure policy here.

 

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What I’ve Been Reading – February 2018

It’s a new year for books! Last year I set myself a reading goal of 35 books on goodreads, and I managed to beat it. Ha! I’m not going to lie, it felt good. I honestly thought 35 was too high and I wouldn’t meet it. I decided to stick with 35 books for this year too.

I’ve completed 4 books for 2018, but 2 of them were poetry books, which always seem to read faster. I didn’t read anywhere near the number of Christmas books that I usually do. I just wasn’t into it; I don’t know what that was about.

FAVORITE FICTION BOOK

I’m only half way through No Man’s Land, and while it took a while to get into it, it’s VERY good. I have to admit the only reason why I picked this one up was Tolkien. The author is the grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien, and the book is a fictional writing of some of his experiences during WW1. Two things for me want to read it, WW1 and Tolkien.

I can already tell that, while the first half of the book was a bit slow, the second half is going to fly. I’m curious to know more about Tolkien’s story, as well as his coming to faith.

FAVORITE NON-FICTION BOOK

Capital Gaines…obviously, since it was the only one that I read, but I did love it! I so enjoy his humor and stories. As someone who has been saddled with entrepreneurs all of her life (my parents, my husband) I really enjoyed his insights into creating and running a business, particularly one that grew to be so successful.

I really appreciated how often Gaines FAILED, that’s right FAILED, in businesses, but always walked away with something and had a good mindset about it; glad for what he learned from the experience. I love how he turns it all back around to his family and God too. Such wisdom and humility in his words, even when he’s not being so humble.

THE BOOK I DIDN’T LIKE

I hate that I don’t like it, but Clash of Kings….it’s still sitting on my night stand, stalled at page 237 and haven’t picked it up in 2 months. I still REALLY want to like the Game of Thrones books, but I just cannot get into them. I hate it. I know I will finish the books. I’ll force myself to do it, but it’s going to take a while.

What have you been reading? What reading goals have you set for yourself this year? Remember, you can follow along on what I’m reading on Instagram, just check out my hashtag #Books2018JMW

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What I’ve Been Reading – November 2017

What I've Been Reading November 2017

I have had some seriously varied reading the past few months! I’ve ready deep, meaningful non-fiction about motherhood, to fluff fiction about old Hollywood; and I have to say I’ve pretty much loved it all! While I haven’t read nearly as many books these past 3 months, I have managed to read something. Either way I’m still way ahead of my Reading Challenge for the year.

What I've Been Reading November 2017

 

FAVORITE FICTION BOOK

This is a tough one! It’s a really close toss-up between A Table by the Window and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. They were both really fast, enjoyable reads. ATW was great because it was the first book in a series I finished last year, and I love how the author ties in recipes to family history (not to mention the recipes are delicious). TSHEH was great too, it was old Hollywood, it was emotional and gritty, but still light enough to not leave you depressed. Both books had fantastic words that stuck with me.

FAVORITE NON-FICTION BOOK

Oh this one….near and dear to my heart, and written by a friend, {Why} Motherhood Matters was, without a doubt, my favorite non-fiction. More than likely it will be my most favorite non-fiction for the entire year. I’m not going to wax poetic about it, I already did that HERE, but read it.

THE BOOK I DIDN’T LIKE

The Notebook was HORRIBLE! I don’t feel that I had too high hopes for it, I knew what it was before reading it. I had just hoped that it was going to be BETTER than the movie (I love the movie), but it wasn’t. It left me wanting in every single way. The characters were boring, the love story was bland, there was just NOTHING to make the book worth reading. Sure, there were a few pleasant turn of words, but that was about it.

I was sad to say, A Game of Thrones didn’t thrill me either.  Again, I had such high hopes for it as I have LOVED the TV series. I seriously had to SLOG through it, I skipped pages, I glanced over things. I’m thinking that if I watched the film version of something, that I seriously won’t like the book as well…and it KILLS me to say that. That said, I did just start the second book.

 

What have you been reading?
Keep up with what I’ve been reading on GoodReads or Instagram 

(I’ve notated books I’ve read for my book club * and F or NF for Fiction and Non-Fiction).

*This post contains affiliate links. You can read my disclosure policy here.

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What I’ve Been Reading – August 2017

What I've Been Reading August 2017

This post contains affiliate links, which means that I earn a small commission from any purchases made through the following links, at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting my site (you can read my disclosure policy here).

I’ve been on a roll again the past few months. Our book club took a break for the summer, as did the mom group that I lead, which freed up quite a bit of time in the evenings. I had several books that I received last year for my birthday that I still hadn’t read, so I made it a point to finish some of them.

I’m actually going to pass my Reading Challenge on GoodReads this year! I figured picking 35 was crazy-sauce, but as of right now I’m at 31! I even managed to read a healthy mix of fiction and non-fiction.What I've Been Reading August 2017

Favorite Fiction Book

I want to say The Nightingale, but I’m not sure if that’s because I just finished it. And yes, I read a lot of WW2 fiction. I have to say though, that The Nightingale was the one that moved me the most emotionally. The Secret Keeper was very good, but it didn’t have me crying at the end.

I had also never read anything before about France during WW2, which was eye opening, even if it was fiction. I’ve had Suite Francaise on my list for a while, and just watched it on Amazon a few weeks ago. I think that will be getting bumped to my list soon.

Favorite Non-Fiction Book

Again, so hard to choose! All of the non-fiction that I read were ones that have been sitting in my pile for a while. They were all pertinent to some area of my life. I’d have to say it was a tie between Different and Life Creative. Different was so fantastic for this momma’s heart.

I loved reading about Sally Clarkson and her son, Nathan’s struggle with his being an out of the box child. While I’m not dealing with anything as extreme as they do, it was such a hope-filled book about being the mom that YOUR child needs, regardless of what other’s think your child needs.

Life Creative was another side of my momma-heart, with being creative. So often people will make disparaging comments about how moms’ should put aside themselves and their creative BECAUSE they’re a mom. Kelli and Wendy show you why it’s important that you don’t do that, but also that you invite your children INTO your creative.

The Book I Didn’t like

I’m going to say Give Your Child the World, and not because it wasn’t a good book. It was a good book, but I think I was looking for something more than a reference book with lists of suggestions. It’s a fantastic resource, but I was hoping it was going to go more into how to use the books to explore the world with your children. Granted, I think I can figure that out on my own, but still it would’ve been nice to have some suggestions.  I will say, that we’ve gotten a slew of books from the library that were suggested in this one and they were all top notch!

What have you been reading?

(I’m trying something new: I’ve notated books I’ve read for my book club * and F or NF for Fiction and Non-Fiction).

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What I’ve Been Reading – May 2017

I’m rather impressed with myself for the quantity of books that I’ve been reading! I’m at 20 books for the year, which is more than halfway toward my goal for the year. I’m not sure WHY I’ve managed to read as much as I have. I’ve been in two book clubs for the last 9 months that have kind of forced me to read at least two books, and one of those is usually an audiobook. That said, I am not someone who can read multiple books at a time…read one and listen to one, that I can do.

Favorite Fiction Book

I’m going for the cheese factor on this one. I absolutely LOVED As Old As Time, Braswell’s retelling of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Honestly, I think it’s my favorite version of Beauty and the Beast. I felt like the story was fantastically woven, that open plot lines were well concluded, and overall I really loved HOW she rewrote the story.

With all of the Beauty and the Beast hype of the past few months, I felt that this book did a better job of explaining the history of the characters. Far better than even the movie did. The movie was good, don’t get me wrong, but I think this story is much more in-line with the entire Beauty and the Beast premise, particularly regarding enchantment. If you do read it, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Favorite Non-Fiction Book

This is a tough one! I so liked all of the non-fiction that I read. My top three would have to be Metzler, Swindell, and Baker. But even of those I’d have to see it was Counting Grains of Sand that touched me the most. I’ve “known” Natasha through social media and different groups for several years, and hearing her stories again, in her voice was profound. Throw into that my own struggles with infertility, or anyone’s struggles with prayers not answered as we’d choose and this book will rock you.

This book was so good that I bought it and had it overnighted to a friend who was going through hardships before I had even finished it. THAT is how much this book was grabbing me. Natasha has so many delicious words and good truths that we all seem to not be able to remember.

The Book I hated

My least favorite book was that of The Zookeeper’s Wife. I struggled through this one; and I struggled with the fact that I didn’t love it! I had very high hopes for it, but the writing was less than intriguing. The story of the Antonina Zabinski was one that really struck my interests; keepers of the Warsaw Zoo in Poland during World War II, who were hiding and transporting Jews.

It was a tough one. While the subject matter was very interesting and the story of this family enthralling, I felt like the author couldn’t decide how she wanted to write this, whether a novel or a textbook. There were parts that sucked you in and told you a story, and then abruptly there were parts that were so detailed about things that had no bearing on anything that I skipped over them (i.e. in depth discussion regarding random plants).

Get through it I did though, and I’m glad for it…because it really was interesting, despite the drudgery.

What have you been reading?

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