Here's what I've been reading (from first read to last).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
I listened to this one on Audible. I enjoy having a book to read, and having one to listen to. There are moments when it's hard to read while cleaning the kitchen and watching a toddler, but listening while I clean or craft or drive is a fantastic way to read. (I feel like I should have quotes around read.)
I think I will end up buying this someday. I know there is a movie, but it seems like a wonderful book to read to my son when he's old enough. There are a lot of wonderful characters in this book. Smart and kind characters. Of course, to balance it out, there are a few jerks as well.
It's life. There are mean people, and there are nice people. I'd love Anthony to learn from this book. If he sees somebody who isn't quite like him, I want him to be a nice person. (Obviously, I'll already be helping with this, but the book will be good.)
I think it's a book written for teens, but I'm guessing all ages love it. It's written from the point of view of a few different people. Sometimes that gets to be a bit much, but this one was good. I'm glad it had all the different views. They were all honest opinions about the story and about the little brother.
It's not a book for adults necessarily, but I'd definitely recommend it. It made me laugh, and it made me cry. That's the perfect book for me.
Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson
I borrowed this book from the library. That photo is of me trying to finish it while doing laundry on the day it was due back to the library. I don't know why I take two books out at once. One is my limit even with renewing them.
I thought this book was a lot of fun. I found myself laughing out loud, and telling others about the awesome things the writer does in her spare time.
Other than the funny moments, this book is about somebody with a mental illness. Jenny Lawson lives with mental illness. She writes about it in her blog, and has two books out (I believe.) It's something that's not discussed a lot, and it has a lot of stigma. She makes a lot of interesting points.
One of my favourite points was when she said when somebody finally makes their way out of a deep depressive state, they don't usually get any congratulations. It was probably a HUGE battle, but for the most part, it gets ignored. I never thought of it that way, but it's true. She expands a lot more in the book about this topic.
It makes you think. It makes you laugh. It makes you grateful for what you've got.
At times, I saw a friend in the writer (not in a bad way), and other times, I saw myself in her stories. I don't think anybody gets away from mental illness. It's everywhere, and in many forms.
I haven't read a lot of the blog, but I plan to.
What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty
This is book is about a woman who hits her head, and wakes up thinking it was ten years earlier. She believes she's pregnant with her first child, and so in love with her husband.
In reality, she's now had three children, and is separated from her husband. She's the perfect mom, and expects perfection from everyone. Alice can't figure out how she got to this place in life.
She also has no real connection to her children because she can't actually remember any of them. It's a crazy thing to think about.
What if I woke up, and couldn't remember giving birth to my son? Would I be surprised at the way my life had turned out?
The book has a great premise.
I really enjoyed it. At times, I found myself hoping her memory wouldn't come back because I didn't want her to become the person everybody was describing.
This book was written from three points of view. In my humble opinion, I think they could have done it with two. Obviously, Alice is the most important. Her sister also had a powerful voice, and at times, I found myself crying because of her personal story instead of Alice. The third voice was the Grandma figure in the family. She was an adopted Grandma. I love the character, but didn't need the story told by her.
I always check the reviews on GoodReads after I've finished a book. This one didn't have all great reviews. That kind of surprised me. It's one I'm sure I could read again.
Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
This was another Audible Book.
It's a collection of essays about many different topics. Obviously feminism is touched on quite a bit. She calls herself a bad feminist because she doesn't always fit the exact description many feel you need to be.
I know what she means. I would also probably consider myself a Bad Feminist.
This book talks about everything. She talks about her past, she talks about her present. She talks about culture and her life. She talks about books dealing with feminism.
Honestly, she talks about it all. Even reality television shows, and how excited she was when the Sweet Valley Twins came back ten years later. (And how although she loves it, the story is completely ridiculous.)
She talks about life as a black woman.
She talks about rape, and how it's portrayed on television and movies. (I wish she had written the book now. She'd probably have a few things to add.)
She has a blog as well. I will need to check it out. I haven't been reading blogs as much as I should lately, but I would definitely add hers to my list.
It's nice reading things that are all about perspective. She's talking about her stories from her perspective, and her life experience. I agreed with a lot of what she said. I felt like maybe I'd get along with her in a life outside of her book. I would read more by her, for sure.
The Obsession by Nora Roberts
I was obsessed with reading it. That's Anthony eating a cookie while I try to finish the book.
I've never read a Nora Roberts book before. I don't know why. My sister lent this to me, and I finally read one.
I'm glad I chose this one as my first Nora Roberts. The first two or three chapters made me cry. I'm not talking lovely tears from a sad part of the novel. I'm talking, ugly crying.
I don't know what it says about me, but I like that in a book. If you can make me cry, I'm probably hooked.
I didn't cry quite as much as the book continued. The main character grew up, and past her tragic past. I did cheer for her though, and for the other characters.
It was also a bit scary at times. I tried to finish it one night because I was worried I'd get nightmares otherwise. (I didn't finish it, but didn't get the nightmares either.) I guess it was a little bit in the thriller category, but with one foot in and one foot out. It didn't start getting scary until closer to the end of the book.
Now that I've read my first Nora Roberts, I think I'll definitely read more. I'd read this one again as well. Even though I know the ending. (Also, I figured out who the bad guy was before they revealed him, but that's because I spend a lot of time trying to figure it out.)
That's it for my January books. Hopefully, I can read just as much in February.
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