Books so good you'll want to read them all
Hey stranger! Or maybe I'm the stranger here...I have been completely MIA lately. But I am BACK and want to talk about some of my favorite things - BOOKS!! It was around this time last year that I did a post recommending books for your summer reading pleasure. I figured, why not do it again this summer? Below I list some of my current favs:
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
I start with this book because it is definitely at the top of my list. This is not just a current favorite, this book will no doubt be on my bookshelf for the rest of my years. For those not familiar with Glennon Doyle, she is a bestselling author, motivational speaker, activist, and founder of Together Rising, an all-women-led nonprofit organization supporting women, families, and children in crisis. The message Glennon delivers - that the joy and peace we discover when we stop striving to meet the expectations of the world, and to start trusting the voice deep within us - is empowering and timeless. This book was like a massage for my soul; at times it was uncomfortable because it pushed my thoughts out of my normal comfort zone, other times it was so soothing that I just sank right into it, and by the end I felt so relaxed yet energized. I love this book so much that I have gifted it to more than one friend because I think everyone should read this - not just women.
This review sums the book up perfectly: "Soulful and uproarious, forceful and tender, Untamed is both an intimate memoir and a galvanizing wake-up call. It is the story of how one woman learned that a responsible mother is not one who slowly dies for her children, but one who shows them how to fully live. It is the story of navigating divorce, forming a new blended family, and discovering that the brokenness or wholeness of a family depends not on its structure but on each member's ability to bring her full self to the table. And it is the story of how each of us can begin to trust ourselves enough to set boundaries, make peace with our bodies, honor our anger and heartbreak, and unleash our truest, wildest instincts so that we become women who can finally look at ourselves and say, There She Is."
Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies by Tara Schuster
This is another memoir that I found so refreshing and inspiring. Tara Schuster is vice president of Talent and Development at Comedy Central, so expect to laugh while reading her book. Need proof? The book description reads, "This is the book Tara wished someone had given her and it is the book many of us desperately need: a candid, hysterical, addictively readable, practical guide to growing up (no matter where you are in life) and learning to love yourself in a non-throw-up-in-your-mouth-it's-so-cheesy way."
Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies is the story of Tara's path to re-parenting herself and becoming a "ninja of self-love." Through simple, daily rituals, Tara transformed her mind, body, and relationships, and shows how to:
- fake gratitude until you actually feel gratitude
- excavate your emotional wounds and heal them with kindness
- identify your self-limiting beliefs, kick them to the curb, and start living a life you choose
- silence your inner frenemy and shield yourself from self-criticism
- carve out time each morning to start you day empowered, inspired, and ready to rule
- create a life you truly, totally f*cking LOVE
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
I am super into thrillers and suspense novels right now, and highly recommend this one. Honest reason why I picked it up? I am a HUGE Steven King fan and he himself highly recommended it....and for good reason; it will keep you guessing until the very end, and is a super easy read. It's not necessarily groundbreaking or mind blowing, but it really is page-turning good. If you were into Girl on a Train or Gone Girl, then this book is for you. They also turned this book into a movie, starring Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, and Gary Oldman, which I haven't seen yet but definitely want to watch.
Anna Fox lives alone, a recluse in her New York City home, unable to venture outside. She spends her day drinking wine (maybe too much), watching old movies, recalling happier times...and spying on her neighbors. Then the Russells move into the house across the way: a father, a mother and their teenage son. The perfect family. But when Anna, gazing out her window one night, sees something she shouldn't, her world begins to crumble and its shocking secrets are laid bare. What is real? What is imagined? Who is in danger? Who is in control? In this diabolically gripping thriller, no one - and nothing - is what is seems.
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Like I mentioned above, I am super into thrillers and suspense right now, so naturally I had to add another one to the list 😆 The Guest List is so, so good. Many people have compared it to Agatha Christie novels (I personally haven't read any so I can't speak to that but now I kinda want to read some). This book is so well written, mysterious and thrilling. I stayed up WAY past my bedtime on many occasions because I couldn't put it down.
This book is about a wedding celebration, on a remote island off the coast of Ireland, that turns dark and deadly. Every chapter is written by the perspective of a certain person: the bride, the plus one, the best man, the wedding planner, and the bridesmaid. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. And then someone turns up dead. You can't wait to get to the end to find out who didn't wish the happy couple well, and, more importantly, why not.
In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek
Okay, obviously this style of book isn't my normal recommendation; up until this point I have stuck to adult books. But this one is so good, even if you don't have kiddos. Part of the Growing Hearts series, which celebrates the milestones of a toddler's emotional development, In My Heart explores a full range of emotions, describing how they feel physically inside. The book covers happiness, sadness, bravery, anger, shyness and more. The language is lyrical but direct, the illustrations are whimsical and fun, and the message applies to people of all ages. Sometimes as adults we forget to focus on how we're really feeling and this book is a great reminder to check in with ourselves at the most foundational level. My 6 year old son reaches for this book again and again at story time.
Sometimes my heart feels like a big yellow star, shiny and bright
I smile from ear to ear and twirl around so fast,
I feel as if I could take off into the sky.
This is when my heart is happy.
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