I read alot. I have no idea how I manage to get through books so fast, perhaps it's because they keep showing up at the library and I know I have to read them before their due date! And it probably helps that I have officially converted to reading everything on my kindle. I never thought that day would come, but I can't remember the last time I actually read a proper book with pages, minus the children's books of course.
Anyhow, people are always asking me for book recommendations. And sometimes it's super easy to recommend a book as I've read a few books lately that I think anyone and everyone would like regardless of your favored genre. But other times, I find myself asking a question back - what type of books do you like to read? And which ones have been some of your favorites?
See the thing is I read everything. Well maybe not everything as I'm not a huge fan of science fiction, but I'll read pretty much anything that is recommended to me. And my favorite books come from all sorts of genres.
But since it's been so long since I've written a post about books, I thought I'd share some of my favorites with you. Some books are from last year and others are books I just finished.
The Nightingale - You guys if you have yet to read this book, then you need to put down what you're reading right now and pick up this one! This book is incredible, truly. Such a beautiful story and one of my all time favorites. When people ask me what they should read, I ask, have you read the Nightingale? I have yet to meet anyone who didn't love this book. It's historical fiction, which I love as I always feel like I walk away learning something new about the past.
Amazon blurb, "The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France--a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime."
And I bawled my eyeballs out, so good you guys. So good. And the author, Kristin Hannah, is one of my favorites - I can guarantee you'll want to read another book by her after you're done with this one. Firefly Lane, Winter Garden, both great books.
Rising Strong - A Brene Brown treasure, this is her newest book. And you guys this book truly deserves it's own blog post, but I just don't have time for that. THIS. IS. A. BOOK. I. WOULD. READ. AGAIN. Can't believe I just said that, but I feel like there was so much good stuff in there that I probably didn't catch everything. AND. THIS. IS. A. BOOK. I. WOULD. BUY. I'm such a library fanatic and it's really hard for me to buy books, but this is definitely a book I would buy! I wish I owned it so I could write all over it and earmark it. If you like Brene Brown, you will love this book! I love that she's a social scientist and writes about her work and her research and the power of being courageous and living a brave life. And owning our stories.
"When we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending."
She writes about the concept of rumbling...rumbling with our stories, with ourselves, with others, with others stories, with expectations, with truth. And I've done some rumbling of my own lately with friends and family and myself.
Amazon blurb, "It is the rise from falling that Brown takes as her subject in Rising Strong. As a grounded theory researcher, Brown has listened as a range of people—from leaders in Fortune 500 companies and the military to artists, couples in long-term relationships, teachers, and parents—shared their stories of being brave, falling, and getting back up. She asked herself, What do these people with strong and loving relationships, leaders nurturing creativity, artists pushing innovation, and clergy walking with people through faith and mystery have in common? The answer was clear: They recognize the power of emotion and they’re not afraid to lean in to discomfort.
Walking into our stories of hurt can feel dangerous. But the process of regaining our footing in the midst of struggle is where our courage is tested and our values are forged. Our stories of struggle can be big ones, like the loss of a job or the end of a relationship, or smaller ones, like a conflict with a friend or colleague. Regardless of magnitude or circumstance, the rising strong process is the same: We reckon with our emotions and get curious about what we’re feeling; we rumble with our stories until we get to a place of truth; and we live this process, every day, until it becomes a practice and creates nothing short of a revolution in our lives. Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process, Brown writes, that teaches us the most about who we are."
So good friends, so good. I wanted to talk to everyone about the book I was reading. My favorite Brene Brown book for sure!
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't stop Talking - Again, I wish I had time to devote a whole blog post to this, but this will have to do. This book was life changing for me! I truly talked to every single person who would listen about this book and the things I was learning. It truly provided me with such a deeper understanding into the hearts and minds of the introverts in my life. And it really made me think about how I can encourage my kids to live into who they truly are. I also really loved what she wrote about the American Extrovert Ideal and the insight she provides in regards to understanding the introversion/extroversion scale in other cultures and countries. So insightful and so much truth in her words.
Amazon blurb, "At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts—Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak—that we owe many of the great contributions to society. In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts—from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves."
Wonder - Where has this book been all my life? Definitely one of my ALL time favorite books. Another one that I highly recommend. I loved this book and I have yet to meet an individual that didn't enjoy this book. It's a YA book about a boy named August.
Amazon blurb, "August Pullman was born with a facial difference that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. Wonder begins from Auggie’s point of view, but soon switches to include his classmates, his sister, her boyfriend, and others. These perspectives converge in a portrait of one community’s struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance."
And I bawled my eyeballs out with this one too. I just kept thinking about my kids and how to raise them up to be kids that fully accept and embrace difference...to be kids that befriend someone like August. So good. Read it - you won't regret it!
Me Before You - And this book. OMG. I should start off by saying I bawled my eyes out and I was SO incredibly sad when it finished. Peter had to remind me that the book wasn't real as I was just distraught. But it's so good you guys. I'd read it again, and I don't say that very often about any books.
Amazon blurb, "Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has barely been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex–Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. Will is acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.
A Love Story for this generation and perfect for fans of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, Me Before You brings to life two people who couldn’t have less in common—a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart?"
And so far I've really enjoyed Jojo Meyes and the other books she's written - One Plus One and just started After You.
Inside the O'Briens - I've loved every single book I've read by Lisa Genova. She's a neuroscientist, so she writes about things like Huntington's disease, autism, Alzheimers, brain injuries, etc. And all of her books address how all of these things impact the dynamic of a family.
Amazon blurb, "Joe O’Brien is a forty-three-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the stress of his job, but as these symptoms worsen, he agrees to see a neurologist and is handed a diagnosis that will change his and his family’s lives forever: Huntington’s disease. Huntington’s is a lethal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and no cure, and each of Joe’s four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father’s disease. While watching her potential future in her father’s escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. As Joe’s symptoms worsen and he’s eventually stripped of his badge and more, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life “at risk” or learn their fate."
Really good and informative, I walked away knowing more about Huntington's and wondering what choice I would make if I were in that situation.
When Breath Becomes Air - This is a beautiful memoir written by a neurosurgeon, who was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer at the age of 36. This book is a beautiful reflection on the challenge of living while also facing death.
Amazon blurb, "One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a naïve medical student “possessed,” as he wrote, “by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life” into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality."
The Gifts of Imperfection - Another Brene Brown treasure, an oldie, but a goodie, published in 2010. I really enjoyed it. But I really love everything by her! She makes me feel brave and strong and courageous.
Amazon blurb, "In her ten guideposts, Brown engages our minds, hearts, and spirits as she explores how we can cultivate the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think, "No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough," and to go to bed at night thinking, "Yes, I am sometimes afraid, but I am also brave. And, yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable, but that doesn't change the truth that I am worthy of love and belonging."
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