{Books} February 2018

Turtles All The Way Down
by John Green

This book is a YA that I could not put down.  It's about a young woman with health anxiety, and I can't even put into words all the ways I could relate to her. If you wonder how it feels to suffer hypochondria (or if you ever wanted to climb inside my mind during a bout of health anxiety) read this book! I listened to it and I got through it so quick!  


Grief Cottage
by Gail Godwin

Grief Cottage was a bit slow in the beginning, but I enjoyed the winding tale of the story.  Sometimes I need a slower paced book, and this one hit the spot.  The main character is a boy whose single mom dies in a car accident at the beginning of the book, and how he deals with that loss as he moves in with a recluse aunt.  It's a good read, but not necessarily a page turner. 


Happier At Home
by Gretchen Rubin

After having this book on my shelf for literally years (it came to Alaska and back with me!) I have to say I was sorely disappointed by it.  I had loved The Happiness Project and Better Than Before, and was enthused by the idea (as a homemaker) of a happiness project that focused solely on the home.  Instead what I got was a hodgepodge of random goals that Gretchen worked on for a year to make herself happier.  None of which seemed directly related to the home except for "Create a Shrine" which lead to some controversy on our Inspired Readers Book Club page and left us all feeling a bit confused about how we felt about our belongings. 
The book was good in that it did inspire us to look at our homes and our lives to find areas where we could improve our happiness, but it did not inspire me the way her previous books have.  My two cents? Skip it.


Purple Hibiscus
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Purple Hibiscus was like Grief Cottage in that it was not a page turner, but more of a long, winding story.  I enjoyed the story and found myself rooting for the main character to find her voice, but I don't know that I would read it again or recommend that anyone else read it. The ending left me feeling really down, honestly, for quite a few days, and I didn't love that. 


The Wisdom of Sundays
by Oprah Winfrey

The Wisdom of Sundays, which I borrowed from my library on Overdrive (it's an app you can download on your phone for free & use to borrow ebooks & audiobooks from your library) was awesome.  It was like listening to multiple podcast interviews with Oprah and several of her favorite guests.  I myself had multiple aha! moments that I had to sit down and journal about, and it felt so good to spend some time each day listening, working on personal development.  I highly recommend it. 

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February Tally: 5

2018 Tally: 10

Yearly Goal: 10/60