I am so tickled that I met my 2015 New Year’s Resolution to read 52 books.
I wasn’t sure if I could make it. A few years back, in the heart of babydom, I was invited to join a book club but couldn’t imagine committing to 12 whole books. Ha! Isn’t it fun to watch the changing tides of life?
I actually surpassed my goal and read 56! Woo hoo! Very few books were actually published in 2015. Mostly I got my reading list by devouring 2014 year end reading recaps from blogs, following favorite authors and exploring my interests. As always female authors dominate my reading list. I hope you can glean a few title off of my list. Enjoy!
Best Books
Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver (utterly beautiful)
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson (absolutely stunning!)
Help, Thanks, Wow: The 3 Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott ( Got to love Anne! She feels like an old pal.)
Rules of the Wild by Francesca Marciano (My new favorite writer. Set in Kenya)
My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor (I knew her story from TV, but this book was perfectly paced and truly insightful.)
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle (brilliant!)
The End of Manners by Francesca Marciano (Afghanistan. Maricano’s ability to portray settings and reveal characters is awe-inspiring.)
The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka (amazing voice)
Station 11 by Emily St. John Mandel (I’m tired of apocalyptic lit, but this one was so unique and stayed with me for long time.)
Some Luck by Jane Smiley (beginning of a trilogy that follows a family for 100 years–addictive)
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (I can’t believe I waited this long to read this book. I read it in one fell swoop when my back as in a spasm and I was on bedrest. Perhaps my best reading experience this year.)
How We Learn by Benedict Carey (Great info, I changed many habits because of it.)
The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver (Beautiful and nicely matched with my current Frida Kahlo obsession!)
Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys by Stephen James and David Thomas (required reading for teachers and parents of boys)
Circling the Sun by Paula McLain (I’m a huge Beryl Markham fan. Read West With the Night too!)
Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff (POV was fascinating)
Here are all the other titles I read, excepting one that I hated so much I refuse to mention it by name. (Lesson learned from that disaster: I later abandoned 4 more titles I was 1/3 of the way through when I lost interest.)
The Sense of Style by Steven Pinker
California by Lena Kannappan
Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead (fun!)
Tomorrow There Will Be Apricots by Jessica Soffer
Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
Hinduism by Serenity Young
Friendship by Emily Gould
Welcome to Your Brain by Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang
Welcome to Your Child’s Brain by Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang
Casa Rosa by Francesca Marciano (Tuscany!)
The Good Luck of Right Now by Mathew Quick
The New American Spirituality by Elizabeth Lesser
Curious Minds: How a Child Becomes a Scientist (essays) edit by John Brockman
There is Something I Want You To Do by Charles Baxter
A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler
The Last Supper by Rachel Cusk
The Book of Strange New Things by Michael Faber (Read this without reading any blurbs or reviews! It was so fun to be surprised.)
The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown
Hall of Small Mammals by Thomas Pierce (favorite short stories this year)
Department of Speculation by Jenny Offill (sweet little thing)
A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande (important to read before caretaking years)
The Blue Zone Solution by Dan Butler (always love Blue Zones)
Small Victories by Anne Lamott
The Book of Why by Nicholas Montemarano (tender, sad)
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling (borrowed it, not worth a buy)
Yes, Please by Amy Poeler (best lines are already on tumblr)
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
Find Me by Lauren Van Den Berg
Honeydew by Edith Pearlman
Very Good Lives by J. K. Rowling
Ending the Homework Hassle by John Rosemond
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (nonfiction, loved)
Early Warning by Jane Smiley (2nd in the trilogy started by Some Luck. I wish I had read them closer together. The last page has the best description of parental love and favoritism I’ve ever heard.)
The Meaning of Human Existence by Edward O. Wilson
The House of Speculation by Erika Swyler
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George (when you just want something to delight)
Smashwords Marketing Guide by Mark Coker
The Secrets to Ebook Publishing by Mark Coker
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
Hateship, Courtship, Friendship, Loveship, Marriage by Alice Munroe
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
Happy reading, my friends!
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