What We've Been Reading Lately - July 2019

I finished more books than usual this month due to my husband taking the kids camping for a week and giving me a quiet house to myself (aside from my occasional visits to the campsite). A beautiful week that I've been calling Introvert Heaven :)

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

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This, I believe, is the central question upon which all creative living hinges: Do you have the courage to bring forth the treasures that are hidden within you?
I finished this one, and immediately started reading it again. Do you ever have books like that? The short, poignant chapters on inspiration and doing your work from one of our generation's most brilliant creative minds is a must read for all humans who desire to live fully alive. I highly recommend the audio read by the author. 

5 out of 5 stars

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

State of Wonder
As Dr. Marina Singh embarks upon an uncertain odyssey into the insect-infested Amazon, she will be forced to surrender herself to the lush but forbidding world that awaits within the jungle. Charged with finding her former mentor, Dr. Annick Swenson, a researcher who has disappeared while working on a valuable new drug, she will have to confront her own memories of tragedy and sacrifice as she journeys into the unforgiving heart of darkness.
In Big Magic, Liz Gilbert tells the story of a Amazon jungle novel she worked on for months until a family crisis led her to put the writing on hold. When she came back to the idea years later, she found the Amazon jungle novel had become lifeless. She moved on. Until sometime later she met the brilliant novelist, Ann Patchett, who herself was working on an Amazon jungle novel. As she listened to Ann describe her work-in-progress, she came to the inescapable conclusion that after suffering years of neglect, the Amazon jungle story left Liz Gilbert and found a home with Ann Patchett. Of course, I had to track down this marvelous story.

State of Wonder is the Amazon jungle story, and it is every bit as brilliant as Liz Gilbert led me to believe. Beautiful writing, compelling characters, a plot that is full of twists and turns, and leaves your heart aching for more. I've read several works by Ann Patchett, but this is for sure my favorite.

5 out of 5 stars

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

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I write you in your fifteenth year. I am writing you because this was the year you saw Eric Garner choked to death for selling cigarettes; because you know now that Renisha McBride was shot for seeking help, that John Crawford was shot down for browsing in a department store. And you have seen men in uniform drive by and murder Tamir Rice, a twelve-year-old child whom they were oath-bound to protect. And you have seen men in the same uniforms pummel Marlene Pinnock, someone's grandmother, on the side of a road. And you know now, if you did not before, that the police departments of your country have been endowed with the authority to destroy your body. It does not matter if the destruction is the result of an unfortunate overreaction. It does not matter if it originates in a misunderstanding. It does not matter if the destruction springs from a foolish policy. Sell cigarettes without the proper authority and your body can be destroyed. Resent the people trying to entrap your body and it can be destroyed. The destroyers will rarely be held accountable. Mostly they will receive pensions. And destruction is merely the superlative form of a dominion whose prerogatives include friskings, detainings, beatings and humiliations. All this is common to black people. All this is old to black people. No one is held responsible.
I hope everyone reads this letter from a black father to his teenage son, especially those who find themselves questioning why we still need to talk about race. I think if you read these words and try to stand for a moment in the reality that Coates and his son live with everyday, you will see why we still have work to do in this area. Again, the audio read by the author himself is excellent.

5 out of 5 stars 

Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center

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A year after getting divorced, Helen Carpenter, thirty-two, lets her annoying, ten years younger brother talk her into signing up for a wilderness survival course. It's supposed to be a chance for her to pull herself together again, but when she discovers that her brother's even-more-annoying best friend is also coming on the trip, she can't imagine how it will be anything other than a disaster.
I thought the premise had merit, but I quickly discovered this book is not for me. The book begins with an irritated encounter between the protagonist and her brother's best friend in which the characters grated on me to no end and I could barely stomach the dialogue. I didn't make it past the first few chapters.

Did Not Finish

Between Two Worlds: The Inner Lives of Children of Divorce by Elizabeth Marquardt

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The premise of the "good divorce" sounds logical. Surely, if divorce does happen, it is better for children not to lose significant relationships entirely, nor to be drawn into bitter, unending fights. However, when you talk to the children themselves, you find that the popular idea behind the "good divorce" - that the quality of the divorce matters more than the divorce itself - is actually an adult-centered vision that does not reflect their true experience.

A child of divorce herself, the author surveyed thousands of adults who grew up in both divorced and intact families. She also completed extensive interviews and compared the experiences of children growing up with a contentious divorce, a so-called "good divorce", a high-conflict marriage, or a low-conflict marriage. While she acknowledges sometimes divorce is necessary for the safety of children and their parents, too often our culture projects a rosy picture of divorce to children without acknowledging the grief and suffering that accompanies their new normal. I found this to be a helpful and enlightening read.

4.5 out of 5 stars

The Simple Path to Wealth by J. L. Collins

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This book was recommended by Liz from my new favorite blog, Frugalwoods. For anyone who wants practical financial advice, but finds Dave Ramsey and his cohorts hard to stomach, this book is a great alternative. A bit technical for me in some places, but for those who want facts and figures to support the financial principles taught, this might be right up your alley. It gives all the usual reasons why you need to get out of debt, but then spends much more time on the question of where to invest your money once it's not all flying out of your bank account to pay off various creditors. 

3.5 out of 5 stars

Introverted Mom: Your Guide to More Calm, Less Guilt, and Quiet Joy by Jamie C. Martin

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When I was a new mother, I didn't know what was mine to do! I looked at all the blogs, read all the books, went to all the playgroups. I attempted to knit, make granola, and use glitter with my kids at the dining room table. (Stop laughing.) And in case you're wondering, the knitting was a disaster, the granola a success, and I found glitter in cracks and crevices for months! It takes a while to figure out who you are as an introverted mother, who you are as a person now that the lifelong job of raising children has forever altered your identity. We find ourselves mostly through trial and error. The errors don't mean you're doing something wrong; they mean you're one step closer to knowing yourself.
This book is like Quiet by Susan Cain, but specific to moms, especially those with a literary bent. You'll be encouraged that you're not alone while at the same time invited to lean into the way God made you and find creative ways to thrive as a parent. The explorations of famous literary introverts like Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott, and L. M. Montgomery were a delight to my bookish heart. I wish I'd had this book years ago.

4.5 out of 5 stars

What did you enjoy reading this month? Feel free to share in the comments below. I can't wait to hear what you're loving these days! If you want more ideas for your TBR list, head over to Modern Mrs. Darcy for lots more book reviews.

Comments

  1. Aimee, hi! I only with the introverted mom book had been around 35 - 40 years ago. I could have used some of that wisdom then ...

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  2. Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. I've been 'eyeing' Introverted Mom for awhile now and think you've convinced me.

    Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

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  3. I am due with my first baby in 6 weeks and registered for The Introverted Mom as soon as I heard about it a few months ago! It sounds like something that will be very helpful to me as I am definitely an introvert (and very soon, definitely a mom!). I love that you compared it to Quiet because that book was amazing!

    Found you through MMD's Quick Lit!

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