Four Books I Finished in August

Sometimes people ask how or why I read so much. So here’s the answer to that:

1. I LOVE reading! You find time for things you love.
2. I have books everywhere. One by my bed. An audiobook on my phone. A book by the couch. Another in the kitchen. One in the car.
3. I take 10-30 minutes to read in the morning. I usually take about 10-20 minutes in the afternoon to read. In the evening, I’d rather read than watch TV. If my kids or husband are watching something, I’ll sit with them on the couch and read next to them, OR, I’ll read for a little while after the kids go to bed. 
4. If I have to wait for my kids at a practice or an appointment, I’ll read.
5. I read WITH my kids. This is a little challenging with FOUR boys, so I pick a book and read one-on-one, or read SHORT segments with more than one child. 
6. The free HOOPLA app allows me to download excellent books for no cost, so I will listen to books while doing household chores or exercising.
7. My increase in reading may also be related to the fact that I’m new-ish to Minnesota, so I don’t have as many social commitments, also #MinnesotaWinter and #QuarantineLife! 🤔

The Glass Castle

By Jeanette Walls

Rating: 10/10

They say that truth is better than fiction, and this book is the PERFECT example of that. The author had me hooked into her life story from the very first page. She does an excellent job of recreating her childhood so the reader feels like they were there. I could feel her pain, joy, and disappointment. It’s an incredible story of survival, perseverance and resilience by four children being raised in the midst of poverty. Her story surprised me constantly – from how smart her parents were in some aspects, to absolutely dysfunctional in other areas. What an interesting story!

Intelligent Conversationalist

By Imogen Lloyd Webber

Rating: 6/10

The author shares a wealth of information on everything from presidents, to war, to religion and theater. She wants her readers to be able to have intelligent conversations on many topics. Overall – the book was just okay and I skimmed through parts of it. 

She includes a few ‘charts’ which contain a wealth of information – I enjoyed the chart on the presidents. She listed when each president served and highlights from their presidency. I thought that was incredibly informative! Now I want to read more about many of our presidents. You can skim or just skip this book.

Holy Envy

By Barbara Brown Taylor

Rating: 6/10

Review: This is the story of the author telling us about teaching a college level world religion class and what she’s learning from her students and studies of various religions. There were some gold nuggets in the book, but overall, I found it a little boring – as if I was back in my own World Religions class – some head knowledge but not much depth.

BoyMom

By Monica Swanson

Rating: 10/10

Review: I was so excited to read this book because it’s written by another mom with FOUR boys! Her youngest son is the age of my OLDEST son, so she’s just a little bit ahead of me and I wanted to hear what she’s learned and how she’s parented her boys. This book is incredibly practical and inspirational. I have enjoyed reading her blog for a couple of year now, and am so happy she’s written this book. I recommend it to every #boymom!

Click here to read one of her posts: What a Boy Needs Most From His Mom!

I’m currently reading Happiness Hypothesis and enjoying it so far. Ted recommended it.

What are you reading? Leave a comment!

Click here to read my top ten favorite books from 2019.