I read a little less this month, both audio and paper. One of my audiobooks (looking at you, Open Book) was really long, and my audiobook listening tapered off with my running. (I also wanted to catch up on some podcasts.) Still, what I read was mostly pretty good, and I am grateful for a great library system through which to get so many good books!
I think my favorite reads this month were from T.I. Lowe, an author whose first book was not that great for me. For some reason (maybe the compelling covers?), I gave her a second shot and really enjoyed her books. They are a bit heavy, but also SO redemptive, and that is my favorite kind of reading! With that, here's February's reading list:
17. Outer Order, Inner Calm: Declutter and Organize to Make Room for Happiness by Gretchen Rubin—Gretchen Rubin has dubbed herself a “happiness expert,” and this is her treatise on decluttering and its benefits on mental health. The book itself is an example of outer order, beautifully laid out and easy to read. I would not say that the tenets of the book are earth-shattering, but they are accessible, easy-to-implement, and practical. Rubin encourages readers not only to tidy up, but to consider the “why” of keeping things, and “why” decluttering them might be of benefit. Purpose is paramount, she writes. While not all find calm through order (as Rubin, and admittedly I do), this is a good book, and a resource I have already recommended to others of similar personalities to mine.
18. Open Book by Jessica Simpson [Audiobook]—I liked this book less than some of the other memoirs to which I have listened. I do not want to discount Simpson's experience, but so much of her story just seemed so, well, superficial. She had hard stuff happen (like an early childhood accident that caused speech delays, childhood sex abuse, etc.), but she makes fun of herself for it. Maybe that is her way of processing, but it just was not for me. Her flippancy about adversity, choosing to be live what I would label a promiscuous life after her divorce, etc. frankly irritated me. I did like the song portion at the end of the audiobook. That was a fun treat to have music linked with the written/read content. All in all, this is not a memoir I would recommend, but I still wish Simpson all the best and hope she is having a better life than the 75% of the book that covered her life up until her second marriage and child rearing.
19. Chasing Slow: Courage to Journey off the Beaten Path by Erin Loechner [Audiobook]—More memoir than self-help, this is the author’s story of never feeling enough, chasing more, and then deciding that she did not want more to define her. Loechner went from college girl, to LA resident with her film producer husband, to HGTV, to Mom. All the while, she tried to fight against a culture of more in order to live slowly. She calls the culture of “more” “the lion,” and she honestly depicts how it continued to call her back. In the end, she chooses a life of minimalism, but finds even that flat when lived without gratitude. Loechner shares some of her Christian faith, but weaves in quotes from other spiritual teachers, too. I would not call this book life-shattering, but it did have some good thoughts worth pondering, and if life is ever going to slow down, I am going to need to take some time to ponder lessons learned from those, like Loechner, who have been able to do that.
20. The Secret to Happiness by Suzanne Woods Fisher—Just like the first book in the Cape Code Creamery series, this one is a winner! It continues the story of Dawn and Marnie Dixon as they work to build their Main Street Creamery Business. Kevin is back, and he and Dawn are re-engaged at trying to plan their wedding. Dawn's cousin and rival Callie Dixon comes to visit, but she is not the same, battling deep-seated fears and struggling to re-engage with her career as a chef, one from which she temporarily stepped away from due to a massive mistake. A lot of this book revolves around Chatham resident Bruno Bianco and his class and book about happiness, and I have to say, the tips shared are pretty good! This story is special because there is a little bit of a mystery about a certain someone. I thought I had it figured out, and I actually didn't read ahead to confirm this time, but turned out to be right! All in all, this was a very sweet book, and I am excited to read the next installment in the Chatham ice cream shop saga!
21. Grown-Up Faith: The Big Picture for a Bigger Life by Kevin Myers with Charlie Wetzel—At its onset, this book seems like it might be a prosperity gospel-informed invitation to a bigger faith and bigger life. It’s really not, though. It’s a call to love God with mind, heart, and will (or heart, soul, and mind as the Bible puts it). It’s part apologetic, part theology, and a lot of encouragement to know the Word and live by the Word (with encouraged passages to read as well). This is a solid book, even if the author’s Wesleyan theology about salvation differs from mine. I think we could all use some admonition to grow up in our faith and faith-walk, until we meet Jesus, or He calls us home.
22. The Connected Parent: Real Life Strategies for Building Trust and Attachment by Karyn Purvis and Lisa Qualls with Emmelie Pickett [Audiobook]—This was a GOOD book, at least in terms of the work that I do. In it, Dr. Karyn Purvis and Lisa Qualls focus on the parenting aspect of caring for children from hard places. A great partner to The Connected Child book, it focuses on what parents can do to build healthy dependence (the basis for healthy independence), grow attachment, and creatively connect. Lisa Qualls is an adoptive parent herself, so she does not mince words about how hard connected parenting is. What she does do is give parents a path forward, based on both the work of Dr. Purvis and herself, as well as on her personal story. She also encourages practical self-care strategies for the marathon work that is connected parenting. This book has a special section on connected parenting for teens/older adopted kids, and I think that is very useful. I would highly recommend this book to foster parents, adoptive parents, and lay people and professionals who help foster and adoptive parents. This is a real life resource that will benefit all the hands, hearts, ears, and eyes that pick it up.
23. A Simplified Life: Tactical Tools for Intentional Living by Emily Ley [Audio book]—This is another great book by Emily Ley, and a short and sweet one at that! In this book, Ley lays out 10 areas to simplify: from space to faith. In each chapter, she shares some of her own journey, along with practical tips about how to simplify one's own life. I appreciate her gentle approach and encouragement to do what works for the person, instead of trying to follow some program, for instance, a specific brand of minimalism. This is an accessible book, one that it might do me good to revisit in the future as stages of life change.
24. Love on a Whim by Suzanne Woods Fisher—Like her best friend Dawn Dixon, Brynn Haywood has always been a person of routine and reflection. Suddenly, however, she finds herself having impulsively married a stranger, and then run away from him. She comes to Chatham to hole up with Dawn, and finds herself drawn into baking, and then buying her own bakery. What is with her? She asks herself. This is a sweet story that ties up well the multiple strands of stories swirled throughout the Cape Cod Creamery series. As with the other books, there are many life truths worth pondering woven in as well. I highly recommend this final book, and again, the whole series!
25. Secrets of Adulthood by Gretchen Rubin—This was a short, and easy read. If I’m honest, I read it primarily because it was short, and because I have a thing about wanting to read all the books an author has written. While I still have three or four more of Rubin’s to read, this is one of her more recent ones. In each of its sections, Rubin gives a short introduction, and then a collection of aphorisms (often one-liners) on that topic. I didn’t find anything life-changing, but there were some thoughts worth pondering. For those who have not read any of Rubin’s other books, perhaps this “secrets” book is a good place to start to see if her work is for you.
26. Lowcountry Lost by T.I. Lowe—Avalee Elvis is back in South Carolina, overhauling a ghost town as part of her Lowcountry Lost renovation business. What she's not prepared for is the return of Rowan Murray, her one time love, and the breaker of her heart. This is a tale rich in complexity: from Avalee's story, to that of Sebastian, or “Bash,” to that of the old town itself. This is a story of love and loss and finding love and family, even if in non-traditional ways. I would not recommend this book to young readers, but for mature readers who have seen the pains and evils of life, this is a testimony to the ability to live and learn after loss, to experience restoration after grief. Gain can come after loss, as least according to this Lowcountry story, and powerful as it is, I believe it!
27. Be Kind to Yourself: Releasing Frustrations and Embracing Joy by Cindy Bunch—In this book, Spiritual Director Cindy Bunch reviews spiritual practices she used to get through hard times, and to continue to ground herself today. Bunch's primary practice encourages a “daily examen” of writing down what bugs a person, and what brings brings joy. This is a way to connect with oneself, and with God. While I am not sure I will do many of the practices, this is one I think I will try for a while. Part personal story, part workbook, this read made me think, and I could do to slow down and do more of that.
28. Indigo Isle by T.I. Lowe—Hudson Renfrow is a recluse who lives on his own island, literally and metaphorically. Location scout Sonny Bates doesn't know why she keeps being drawn to his island, but she does, and over time, she breaks down some of Hudson's walls and befriends him. Meanwhile, she is fighting battles of her own. Separated from her family, she has made a lot of poor decisions, and they just keep coming. This story has Francine Rivers (Bridge to Haven, The Masterpiece, etc.)/Phantom of the Opera vibes, and is definitely not one for the faint of heart, containing representations of sexual abuse and trauma, as well as death, divorce, and a lot of other hard things. What is beautiful is how God slowly redeems both Hudson and Sonny, drawing them back into community, and back to himself. There are even specific discussions of mercy and grace. Add to the story some fun southern references (eg Carowinds), and this was both a meaningful and enjoyable read. While Lowcountry Lost is still my favorite book by T.I. Lowe so farm this was one also worth my reading time.
29. The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store by Cait Flanders—Cait Flanders had some bad habits she wanted to kick. She kicked drugs and then drinking by quitting them cold turkey. She paid off a ton of debt by being accountable on her blog. She had a job and money, but realized that she was not saving as much as she wanted, so she decided to go on a year where she didn’t shop. It wasn’t that she couldn’t buy anything, but that she had some rules about what was and was not approved. What wasn’t “approved” was superfluous stuff like take-out coffee, clothes she didn’t need, books, decorations for her house, and electronics. She could buy groceries, and gifts; eat out; and even replace broken things (but only if she threw the old thing away). What emerged was a year not just of saving, but of living according to her values, of getting rid of a lot of junk, and of living more simply. I will admit that this book made me, too, want to throw everything in my house in a heap and start mercilessly going through it, but I know that is not the stress I need right now. So instead, I took away from this book the desire to clear out more clutter, and to continue to think carefully about what I buy and bring into my home. I especially need to work on throwing away old things (looking at you, running shoe collection) when I buy new.
Overall, this book, as written by Flanders in first person, is both interesting and inspirational. Flanders looks at her motivations for binge-buying, and even shows flexibility in changing the rules of her no shopping year in order to better live according to her value of creativity. The book is a pretty quick read, and worth the time if living a simple, values-centered life is a priority.
30. Composing Amelia by Alison Strobel—I had a little bit of a hard time reading this book, then it captivated me, and then the end seemed underdeveloped. There was a lot of conflict between newly married Amelia and Marcus. The potential for marital infidelity at almost every turn made me feel on edge, but not in a good way. The story was well written, and reminded me some of the plots of Heart of the Country by Rene Gutteridge and John Ward and The Song by Chris Fabry. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for Amelia’s illness to resolve. There were good truths about church and pastoring and faith. I wanted more development around Amelia’s faith struggles, though, and more about what walking out a faith tested by fire looks like. Maybe that would have made the book too long. The author writes in her interview that her developmental editor had her rewrite 90% of the story. Maybe the end just didn’t get recomposed. I will probably try reading another book by this author, because this one, although good in parts, just did not come together right.
31. Soulful Simplicity: How Living with Less Can Lead to So Much More by Courtney Carver—I think I idolize stuff (looking for safety, security, and comfort in it) more than I realize. That doesn’t mean I should throw everything away and become an ascetic, but I do need to lesson my attachment to things. This book encouraged me to do it. Courtney Carver is not a professed believer, but she does write about how a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis woke her up, teaching her to live in love, instead of in “stuff.” This book covers it all, from money stuff, to work stuff, to sentimental stuff. She encourages giving it away, selling it, or even hiding it (and then giving it away if forgotten.) The goal is to live in and enjoy the present, to slow down and savor everyday life. I would like more of that, which probably does mean I need to keep simplifying, doing with (and maybe even appreciating) less.
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Readers, what's been your favorite book recently? Please share in the comments section.
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