2023 BOOK REVIEW

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When last year came to a close, I was disappointed that many of my reads were just average. As 2024 started, I had a desire to read more great books. And, that definitely happened!

It was a great year in reading!

Two stars next to my top 6, one star next to some of my other favorites:

  1. The Measure – Nikki Erlick ⭐️

  2. Becoming – Michelle Obama ⭐️

  3. You Are My Sunshine – Sean Dietrich

  4. And Yet: Poems – Kate Baer

  5. Independence – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni ⭐️⭐️

  6. Lessons in Chemistry – Bonnie Garmus

  7. The Sweetness of Water – Nathan Harris

  8. I’m Glad My Mom Died – Jennette McCurdy ⭐️

  9. 5 Things to Pray for Your Spouse – Melissa B. Kruger

  10. All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir – Beth Moore

  11. Georgie, All Along – Kate Clayborn

  12. We are Displaced – Malala Yousafzai ⭐️

  13. Remarkably Bright Creatures – Shelby Van Pelt ⭐️⭐️

  14. Dear Future Mama – Meghan Trainor

  15. Coronation Year – Jennifer Robson

  16. Kitchen Confidential – Anthony Bourdain

  17. Beyond the Wand – Tom Felton

  18. The Light We Carry – Michelle Obama

  19. Try Softer – Aundi Kolber ⭐️

  20. The Wishing Game – Meg Shaffer ⭐️

  21. Tell Me Everything – Minka Kelly

  22. The Secret Book of Flora Lea – Patti Callahan Henry ⭐️⭐️

  23. The Try Softer Guided Journey – Aundi Kolber

  24. Hula – Jasmin Iolani Hakes

  25. The Great Reclamation – Rachel Heng

  26. Sourdough – Robin Sloan

  27. Heartburn – Nora Ephron

  28. Pilgrim: 25 Ways God’s Character Leads Us Onward – Ruth Chou Simons ⭐️

  29. Party of My World – Jodi Benson

  30. The Miracle Goes On – John W. Peterson

  31. Tom Lake – Ann Patchett ⭐️⭐️

  32. If You Would Have Told Me – John Stamos

  33. None of This is True – Lisa Jewell ⭐️

  34. The Secret Keeper – Kate Morton ⭐️⭐️

  35. Killers of the Flower Moon – David Grann

  36. Bright Lights, Big Christmas – Mary Kay Andrews

  37. Corrie’s Christmas Memories – Corrie ten Boom

  38. Advent: The Season of Hope – Tish Harrison Warren

  39. Upon Waking – Jackie Hill Perry ⭐️⭐️

  40. The Uncommon Reader – Alan Bennett

My favorite place to track my reading is Goodreads–let’s be friends!

Here’s to more great reads in 2024!

 

2021 BOOK REVIEW

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After last year’s book-reading growth spurt, I didn’t know if I would match the momentum this year. The past twelve months have held a lot of grief and loss for our family and I wasn’t sure I would or could keep up the pace.

But, I think reading became such a companion for me last year, and was a continued friend and support that I could turn to to rest, learn, grieve, escape and grow.

My journey with books this year was interesting.

  • I read more books on grief than I wanted–which was helpful and painful at the same time.

  • I lost a lot of my personal library in our house flood–and then watched books and bookstore gift cards show up at my doorstep, in my mailbox, and on my desk at work over the following weeks as friends and family slowly replaced my library. I am always so humbled and grateful when I look at my shelves, each book is a reminder of God’s blessings in the midst of sorrow.

  • I dove into both The Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter series this year–they were so, so special and made up 2/3 of my top six reads for this year.

  • I joined a book club, which I was happily able to cross off my bucket list.

Here is my 2021 book list, with stars next to my six favorites:

  1. Grieving with Hope – Samuel J. Hodges IV, Kathy Leonaard

  2. A Grief Observed – C.S. Lewis⭐️

  3. In Five Years – Rebecca Serle

  4. The Midnight Library – Matt Haig

  5. Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy – Mark Vroegop⭐️

  6. Fear Not!: Death and the Afterlife from a Christian Perspective – Ligon Duncan

  7. Just Mercy – Bryan Stevenson

  8. The Magician’s Nephew – C.S. Lewis

  9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis⭐️

  10. Talking as Fast as I Can – Lauren Graham

  11. The Horse and His Boy – C.S. Lewis

  12. Prince Caspian – C.S. Lewis

  13. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader – C.S. Lewis

  14. The Silver Chair – C.S. Lewis

  15. The Last Battle – C.S. Lewis⭐️

  16. Suffering – Paul David Tripp

  17. The Yellow Bird Sings – Jennifer Rosner

  18. Good Grief – Granger E. Westberg

  19. Suffering is Never for Nothing – Elisabeth Elliot

  20. Home Work – Julie Andrews

  21. The Giver of Stars – Jojo Moyes

  22. True Love – Jennifer Lopez

  23. A Good Neighborhood – Therese Anne Fowler

  24. Born Standing Up – Steve Martin

  25. The Last Letter from Your Lover – Jojo Moyes

  26. The Rooftoppers – Katherine Rundell

  27. GriefShare: Your Journey from Mourning to Joy – David & Nancy Guthrie

  28. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K. Rowling⭐️

  29. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – J.K. Rowling

  30. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – J.K. Rowling⭐️

  31. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.K. Rowling

  32. Wildflower – Drew Barrymore

  33. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J.K. Rowling

  34. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K. Rowling

  35. Mama Bear Apologetics – Hillary Morgan Ferrer

  36. Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers – Dane C. Ortlund

  37. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J.K. Rowling

  38. Double Time: How I Survived–and Mostly Thrived–Through the First Three Years of Mothering Twins – Jane Roper

  39. A Sweet & Bitter Providence – John Piper

  40. Firekeeper’s Daughter – Angeline Boulley

  41. Christmas with L.M. Montgomery – L.M. Montgomery

  42. A Redbird Christmas – Fannie Flagg

  43. The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint Exupéry

  44. The Christmas Pig – J.K. Rowling

  45. The Greatest Gift: Unwrapping the Full Love Story of Christmas – Ann Voskamp

  46. Shadow and Light: A Journey into Advent – Tsh Oxenreider

  47. New Morning Mercies – Paul David Tripp

You can find my ratings and reviews on Goodreads!

Something helpful I did this year to aid in my goal of reading more was removing all social media apps on the home screen of my iPhone and replacing them with bookish apps–Goodreads, Audible, Libby, Kindle, etc.

I really enjoy having those apps front and center and find myself passing time by seeing what friends are reading, researching books or reading more myself!

What did you read this year?
What’s on your list for next year?

Let’s be friends on Goodreads!

 

2020 BOOK REVIEW

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I’ve always included “reading” in my list of favorite pastimes. But, if I were being honest, I fell out of the rhythm of reading some time during high school. I read the books required for school. I skimmed text books in college and read the occasional devotional or self-help book, but I couldn’t call myself an avid reader.

My New Year’s resolutions have always included a reading goal–a goal which I rarely met. When 2020 began, I set my reading goal to four books. F-O-U-R. I thought if I could just read four books this year, I’ll be in good shape.

Six months in, I had hit my goal above and beyond, so I readjusted my goal to 20.

I loved getting back between the pages–meeting new characters, flipping through different genres, hearing from various authors and rediscovering my love for reading again.

I am proud to say that I finished 2020 having read 30 books.

Here is my 2020 book list, with stars next to my six favorites:

  1. Parenting – Paul David Tripp⭐️

  2. Eleanor Oliphant Is Complete Fine – Gail Honeyman

  3. Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens⭐️

  4. The Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd⭐️

  5. Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life – Tish Harrison Warren

  6. Rhythms of Renewal: Trading Stress and Anxiety for a Life of Peace and Purpose – Rebekah Lyons

  7. Don’t Make Me Count to Three – Ginger Plowman

  8. Cherish: The One Word That Changes Everything for Your Marriage – Gary L. Thomas

  9. Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery⭐️

  10. Anne of Avonlea – L.M. Montgomery

  11. I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness – Austin Channing Brown

  12. Anne of the Island – L.M. Montgomery

  13. Beholding and Becoming: The Art of Everyday Worship – Ruth Chou Simons

  14. Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right – Jamie Glowacki

  15. Anne of Windy Poplars – L.M. Montgomery

  16. Anne’s House of Dreams – L.M. Montgomery

  17. If You Can Keep It: The Forgotten Promise of American Liberty – Eric Metaxas

  18. Valley of Decision: The War on God, Family and Country – Dr. Sterling Lacy

  19. Anne of Ingleside – L.M. Montgomery

  20. Before You Vote: Seven Questions Every Christian Should Ask – David Platt

  21. Ordinary Grace – William Kent Krueger⭐️

  22. Greenlights – Matthew McConaughey

  23. Changes that Heal: The Four Shifts That Make Everything Better… And That Anyone Could Do – Henry Cloud

  24. Unfreedom of the Press – Mark R. Levin

  25. How to Find Love in a Bookshop – Veronica Henry

  26. The Christmas Company – Alys Murray

  27. Another Place at the Table – Kathy Harrison

  28. Is This Anything? – Jerry Seinfeld

  29. A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

  30. Shadow and Light: A Journey into Advent – Tsh Oxenreider⭐️

I have loved using Goodreads to rate and review each book and see what others are reading.

I am eager to dive into my 2021 reading plan. What’s on your list?