My reading has been a little scattered the last few months. I hit a little snag of disappointing fic/lit stories and it kind of jolted me off the fiction train for a bit. (It’s always a little disorienting to me when that happens, because up until about age 24 I hadn’t read more than a handful of non-fiction books by choice.) But I was very happy with the non-fic books I picked up this month, so (sigh!) it’s a happy ending after all!
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel: This one, about a troupe of Shakespearean performers traveling through post-apocalyptic North America, has getting been rave reviews, but I never really fell into it. Maybe I just didn’t get it? I’m not sure.
All I know is I felt much more engaged to the flashback storylines of dead characters than I did to the living ones, and I kept wishing there was just a little bit more why to it.
And honestly, there was so much gorgeous description of a handmade undersea comic book that I wished it could have been illustrated. 🙂
Essentialism by Greg McKeown : One of the things I most struggle with is keeping my brain focused on the NOW. There are so many opportunities for input–social media, magazines, books, blogs, music, TV, news, radio, and of course my three very talkative little ones–that I often find myself frozen in mid-play with one of the kids while my brain wanders elsewhere.
This book blew me out of the water, because it gave me permission and encouragement to clean house in my mind and lifestyle. It did for my busy brain and schedule what Marie Kondo’s book is doing for people’s houses. Now I’m getting down back basics and really curating my commitments, information intake, and responsibilities.
And it feels SO GOOD.
Can’t wait to buy my own copy of this one to mark up.
Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin : I’ve been a Gretchen Rubin fan since the my first read of The Happiness Project (years later I still remind myself to follow through on the gems I learned in that book—”spend out,” “Be Jamie,” “tackle a nagging task!”). This book, about creating and sticking with new habits–and ditching the “bad” ones–didn’t disappoint!
I took it with a handful of others (all fiction) for leisure reading on a recent trip, and was surprised that this non-fiction piece was the one I kept returning to. Another library read I’ll be buying for my library to mark up and take notes from.
And–bonus!–it’s helped me stop eating dessert every night! I (literally) didn’t think that was possible!
I’ve also been thumbing through What I Wore as I try to work out a capsule wardrobe for summer, and I’ve got The Nesting Place on my nightstand (one of my favorite decorating books, and only $2.99 on Kindle right now!) as I’m slowly making my way through the Cozy Minimalist course.
And a few books the kids and I picked up this month:
- I Stink : A lyrical book about garbage trucks that I almost loved. It was just a little too gross for me, but I bet moms of all boys could handle it and love it. (The 4 year old gave it a thumbs up.)
- Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs : I loved this as a kid, and possibly liked it even more as a grown-up.
- Extra Yarn : A semi-modern fairytale about a little girl with an endless ball of yarn. She has so much, in fact, that she can knit clothes and covers for everyone (and everything) in her whole town! I fell in love with the watercolor illustrations. I’d love to own this one. 🙂
Happy reading!
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I started Essentialism, but I had it on audiobook and I struggled with finding time to listen. I loved the parts I heard, but I think I need it in book form to get the most out of it. We also LOVE Mac Barnett, who did Extra Yarn. If you haven’t read any of this other books, you should check them out. Our favorites are “Chloe and the LIon” and “Guess Again”.
Thanks for the recommendations, Meggan! This was our first Mac Barnett book–I didn’t know there were more! I’ll put them on hold at the library. 🙂
I listened to Essentialism on audiobook, too. I just put it on my iPad and listened to a few minutes when I folded laundry or did the dishes, or when I was running errands with just the baby. It was spotty, but I almost liked it better in little chunks because then I just had a few things to mull over at a time. There’s a lot of food for thought packed into it!
I haven’t read any of these. But it feels good to read the work from a fellow book nerd! 🙂
Thanks Aishwarya! I hope you’ll stop by with some recommendations for me when you read something new. 🙂
Oh, I really liked the Happiness Project! I’ll have to look into Better Than Before! That might be a good switch up book for me as well! Thanks for linking up with us!