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I have always been an avid reader – when I was younger, my Mother used to punish me by grounding me from reading – yep, that’s me. The library was my favorite place and I determined whether I was going to buy a purse or not on it’s size of how many books it would hold.
Lately though, reading has been put on a back burner for me. With a business to run, a house to maintain, and a little person to look after, reading simply doesn’t take the precedent it once did. That’s why I put it on my Summer Bucket List: I wanted to be intentional about reading this summer. It is one of my favorite pastimes, other things just tend to push it out, and I didn’t want that to be the case this summer.
5 books may or may not seem like a lofty goal, but it was just perfect for me. I just finished my 5th book & I have loved spending some extra time reading this summer!
Here are the books I read and my thoughts on each of them:
At Long Last – okay, so if you’re smart, you’ll realize there are 6 books in my pile. I read At Long Last just before I started my Summer Bucket List challenge, so I included it because I wanted to give it a little plug. This is a self-published book by a girl I’ve followed on Instgram for a long time. Erin Morris’s sister-in-law, Kristen, was my wedding photographer (thus the rabbit trail I followed to find Erin) At Long Last is the love story of Erin & her husband Daniel & if you believe in true love & the power of waiting for it, you must pick up this book!
Crazy Busy – My Mom lent me this book & said I just had to read it. I wasn’t sure if I should take it in a good way or bad way: I’m not “crazy busy” Mom, why should I read this book? Wait, yes, I am “crazy busy”, I don’t even have time to read this book! It was an insightful read though, very practical and encouraging. This book is in no way a finger pointed at busy people saying, you must slow down and stop being so busy. On the contrary, this book truly explains why we are so busy, how that is our society, and little things we can do to save our busy lives from overtaking us. It was a surprising (short) read & I’d highly recommend it.
The Choosing & The Calling – An author I’ve loved since I was a teenager is Ted Dekker & surprise, writing must run in the genes because his daughter has spun out the first two books of a trilogy that will grab you hook, line, and sinker! At first, I was a little skeptical because the story starts out & reminds me a bit of The Hunger Games, and I already went down that road with trying to read Divergent, but my sister had lent me these books and promised they end up nothing like those 2 (super similar) stories, so I pushed forward & was delighted with a fascinating tale! Set in a future society, these books were gripping and I cannot wait for the last book of the trilogy to be released (January 2017!)
Bittersweet – Shauna Niequist, need I say more? Her lovely writing is so inspiring, it sucks me in and tempts me to never leave. Someday, when I’m a big kid, I want to write like her. She makes every-day-life so full of awe & beauty, it makes me look at my days thru completely different eyes and I am just so inspired every time I read anything by her.
Bridge to Haven – Francine Rivers has been one of my favorite authoresses for a long long time (ever since reading Redeeming Love) and Bridge to Haven did not disappoint. She is such a master story-teller, I felt connected to the main character in every way. I felt her despair, her longing, her emotions, her hopelessness, and her redemption so strongly as if it was my own story. If you’ve never read anything by Francine Rivers, do yourself a favor & go read something (I’d suggest starting with Redeeming Love or the Mark of the Lion series!)
