Only Four Books to Finish Out My Pile!!

Silly me. In September I set some lofty reading goals. On top of that, I joined a BOOK CLUB with a few other homeschool ladies I love. Guess how many pages of that book I read.

A big, fat ZERO.

Yep. I bit off more than I could chew, especially since our high school co-op had two books on deck that are enough to make a person cry: Walden (because living in the woods is really only so exciting) and The Count of Monte Cristo (because who doesn’t love a good 1,200+ page novel). The kids were not a fan of Walden (and I can’t say that I blame them).

Truthfully, I set some big goals at the beginning of the year in my 20 Books to Read in 2015 post. These were lofty ones for me since I’m not a fan of the non-fiction book reading. One here and there is ok, but I’d much rather find something that doesn’t require my brain to process all the time. While I did pick a large chunk of books that appealed to me, there are several new *shiny* books taunting me. Non-fiction ones not in my current pile, but newly released and distracting. While I realize I can read things whenever I want, the part of me that wants to see something through to completion struggles with having an unfinished list. (Apparently my ‘perfect’ word for the year is still having issues). 

I haven’t been taking as much time to sit and read in the afternoons, and honestly I’m feeling it in more ways than not getting books finished. When I don’t have a little down time each day it really makes life feel so much more cluttered and not productive (and not as much gets done). Isn’t it funny how rest makes us more productive, when it seems that the opposite would be true?

Here’s a peek at the books remaining in my pile for the rest of the year (since we’re halfway through November already). While I’m honestly hoping to at least finish my books I had chosen for this year – I’m just not sure. Yes, I likely could read the four books, but realistically, it may not happen (telling it like it is). I’ve been trying to get in more exercise and reading on the treadmill isn’t cutting it, unless I want to spell all forms of disaster and finish out the year with one last trip to the ER. These are the few left to read…

• Writing in the Margins by Lisa Nichols Hickman
• Gods at War: Defeating the Idols That Battle for Your Heart by Kyle Idleman
• Glimpses of Grace by Gloria Furman
• Beyond Ordinary by Justin Davis

Believe it or not, I already have a book stack piling up for next year’s reading. So far there are five books I already own, and a multitude of books in my Amazon cart.

Books Finished the Last Few Months…

• The Lost Heiress by Roseanna M. White – another wonderful book by White. I absolutely love the depth of her writing (not just a typical historical fiction book), but real depth of characters and story line. She is one author that I own every single one of her books and will re-read them.
• The Sticky Faith Guide for Your Family by Kara Powell – quite honestly not one of my favorite formats for a book. It wasn’t one that was a read cover-to-cover, but rather a book full of suggestions for family faith growth. Essentially, one that you really have to sit, process, read a little more. While there are some good suggestions, it’s not very user-friendly in my opinion.
• The Cure for The Perfect Life by Lipp and Gregory – this is another book I had a difficult time with the format of. Because there were two authors, they switch back and forth (so I would get confused when I had put the book down for a bit), and also the acronyms – trying to get my brain to remember. Let’s just say I do struggle with perfectionism, and there were nuggets I walked away with, but the book isn’t in my ‘to keep’ pile.
• The Family of Jesus by Karen Kingsbury – I finally finished this one! The format of storytelling in this book is wonderful, but I got a little burned out on Kingsbury after her incredibly long, drawn-out Baxter series. This was a little different in style and offered an interesting look into the main characters in the life of Jesus though.
• Chasing God by Angie Smith – absolutely loved it. Angie’s writing style is fun and quirky (love how she interjects her train of thought into a chapter). It’s like sitting down and having a conversation with a friend over coffee, but gaining some deep spiritual insight at the same time.
• The Homegrown Preschooler – if you are just beginning in your homeschool journey, have a preschooler or toddler – do yourself a favor and grab this book. It is so full of helpful information, resources, ideas, and will honestly be a book you will reference constantly. I had the opportunity to meet these ladies at our homeschool convention last June and their booth just pulled you in. They show you how to make learning FUN and hands-on and a part of all that you do.
• Cleaning House: A Mom’s Twelve Month Experiment by Kay Wyma – absolutely LOVED this book on breaking entitlement in our children and have been implementing several of the techniques she suggests. The only problem is (if you read it straight through), you’ll want to do it all right away and may overwhelm yourself. Definitely a book to keep around and reference.
• The Midwife’s Tale by Delia Parr
• These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer – a Regency book written in the early 1900’s – interesting read
• Under the Northern Lights by Tracie Peterson (kindle)
• Tiffany Girl by Deeanne Gist (kindle)
• Summer of the Midnight Sun by Tracie Peterson (kindle)
• The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon (kindle)

Reading With the Kids

These are a few of the books we’ve been reading together the last bit. Since I get just as drawn into the books as the kids do and listen along, I think they count for me as well:

• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix
• Sent by Margaret Peterson Haddix

That’s a look at what I’ve been reading (and had on my mind lately). Any books to recommend for the upcoming year that you think I shouldn’t miss? Or have you read any of the above too?

See my list of 20 Books to Read in 2015 in this post. I am making progress on these non-fiction books, but the fiction is so much fun too! You can see all the books that I’ve read so far this year via my 2015 Reading Pinterest board.