I've never been a one book-at-a-time girl. Since I was in middle school I've always had a good three or four, sometimes more, going at a time. Obviously, it takes me a lot longer to finish each book, but I love being able to choose what to read based on how I'm feeling any given day. There's also the advantage of not having to wait until I finish one before starting another! (Especially when I'm at a boring part of one book: I’m looking at you, Goldfinch.) The past few months (months, yes sadly. I'm a ridiculously slow reader) I've been reading a really nice set of books that cover a range of topics and styles. Mixing up the types of books I read--fiction vs. non-fiction, modern vs. classic--has not only helped me learn to develop a well-rounded writing "voice" but also keeps each type fresh and interesting. Too much of any one kind (think only Jane Austen or only Cormac McCarthy) gets really old, really quickly. So, if you're looking for something new to try, why not one of my four spring books? (All titles are hyperlinked: go check them out!) The Goldfinch (Donna Tartt, Little Brown and Company, first edition 2013, 775 pp., $30) This is a mammoth book. At 775 pages it is the epitome of the classic yet modern literary novel. Donna Tartt is known for her precision and detail, her work reading almost like a photograph: every moment caught, piercing, lengthy. She is one of the best character writers I've ever read, developing deep internal lives for each one (which accounts for the page count: it takes a lot of words to do this!). I'm only about 300 pages in, and honestly, it's hard to describe what this book is "about." It's about a boy's life after he tragically loses his mom (this isn't a spoiler, by the way). It's about the 21st century in an age of terrorism. It's about New York, and family, and growing up, and loss. I know these sound like vague descriptors, but the best novels are hard to pin down for the very fact that they are about the big, vague things in life like "love" and "beauty" and "pain." In any case, it's worth the read, although I need to remind myself of that because, as I mentioned above, I'm at a boring part and I refused to go on. Must, keep, going. Not to mention, this won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2014 and was short listed for the 2013 National Book Critics Circle Award. The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain (Bill Bryson, Double Day, Penguin Random House, 2016, 400 pp., $28.95) Thanks to my dad, I've been a Bill Bryson fan for a while now. Nobody combines travel, memoir, and humor like Bryson and I sure do love him for it. This book (and his many others, by the way) is just a delight. Mainly for the fact that it is light. And we all need that sometime. However, despite the humor while frolicking across the quaintest country in the world, he delivers some piercing insights into modern Britain. He is able to lovingly critique needless bureaucracy in the government, laziness in the youth, and the alarming loss of British social mores that once lost will be lost forever. Will we lose the land of crumpets, rambling walking trails, and pubs?! Not if Bryson has anything to say about it. Food Rules: An Eater's Manual (Michael Pollan, illustrations by Maira Kalman, Penguin Random House, first edition 2011, 224 pp., $23.95) This is just a fun book. Michael Pollan is a celebrated New York Times columnist, journalist, professor, and food-writer star, best known for The Omnivore's Dilemma and, most recently, Cooked (which was also made into a four-part Netflix documentary that I highly recommend). What I loved about this book was that he tackles the question of nutrition with graceful common sense. His goal is to help bring back a more simple and healthful relationship with food. The book brings together 75 "rules" that help the reader re-think the food they eat, with the overarching mantra: "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much." One of my favorite rules was number 57: "If you're not hungry enough to eat an apple, then you're probably not hungry." Covering three main questions: "What should I eat?", "What kind of food should I eat?", and "How should I eat?" Pollan gives us a sensible, easy, simple way forward out of the common-place Western diet of highly processed, sugar-filled "food like substances." Make it Happen: Surrender your Fear, Take the Leap, Live on Purpose (Lara Casey, Thomas Nelson, 2015, 220 pp., $15.99) I'll be honest: I'm not normally into this kind of book. The vast majority of inspirational, self-help type of books reeks of quasi-spiritualism. But not this one. I'm only a few chapters in, but I can honestly say that this book is one of a kind. Casey has a passion for helping women live on purpose. Think about it: it's one thing that we in 21st century America are desperately seeking to do and yet more often than not failing at. The majority of Americans lives in a rushed, stressed, constantly striving lifestyle that doesn’t make them happy or feel fulfilled. Casey reminds us that we were made for a reason and that God desires for our lives to be lived for his purpose. It's been a needed kick in the pants for me: I can make what matters to me happen. There is always time for what matters. Yes, it means sacrificing other things. But if you care about it, it can happen. Exercise, cooking, quality time: you--I!--can make this happen.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Authorwife to a med student and mama to three under three, seeking the joyful and learning to live by faith. Find me on Instagram and Pinterest or shoot me an email. I'd love to hear from you!
Categories
All
Archives
September 2016
|