Here are my goodreads reviews. If you’re on goodreads, add me as a friend so I can see your books too! I also have an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Clap When you Land (4 stars): I love Acevedo’s books. I’ve loved The Poet X and With the Fire on High. And I loved Clap When You Land. I love the rhythm of her books. I love her characters. I love the way her books make me feel. This is a very short book and Acevedo has a section at the end where she explains how she got inspired to write this story. Enjoyed my time with this one.
A Beautifully Foolish Endevour (3.5 stars): Sometimes you read a book at the wrong time for you. I think this was my issue with this book. I loved Green’s first book and really enjoyed the story and the writing. I was very much looking forward to the sequel. Even though I know he didn’t write it during 2020, this book is such a relevant book for 2020. The desire to escape and belong to a virtual reality is just so palpable this year when the real world is unfriendly to human activity.
And yet.
I felt like this book was too much, there were too many things crammed into it. There were too many POVs and not enough depth in any part cause there was just so so much going on. The social commentary was fantastic and I think there could have been two other books here instead of the one dense and shallow one.
Still love Hank Green and will continue to read anything he writes.
The Book of Hidden Wonders (4 stars): “In each room the crying sounded different. In the drawing room there were huge, racking sobs; in the bathroom quiet little whimpers.”
This is the story of Romily who lives in a ramshackle mansion in the English countryside with her artist father who writes picture books about Romily and her cat. These books a wildly popular and there’s a story that they contain a treasure hunt.
The book is a coming-of-age story for Romily as people looking for the treasure wander in the vicinity of her life, as her mother who abandoned her comes in and our of her life, as she befriends a local girl.
As the years pass, and Romily finally uncovers the treasure, she is left to pickup the pieces of her life.
Even though the book is quite sad, I really enjoyed my time with it. I loved the visual elements and each of the characters were unique and interesting. I wish I knew more about the dad. Some really really beautiful writing and imagery in this story.
with gratitude to netgalley and harlequin publishing – Park Row for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Reading People (4 stars): I have become obsessed with Personality Assessments a bit this summer so this was the perfect complimentary book for me. It is, in fact, the only book that has finally made me understand Myers Briggs enough to make my peace with it. I enjoyed Bogel’s writing very much. It’s the perfect combination of background history, information, and personal story. If personality tests interest you, too, you will love this book.
The Switch (4 stars): I read and loved Beth O’Leary’s The Flatshare last year, so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this story.
This is the story of Leena and her grandmother Eileen. Leena is deeply burned out and is required to take two-months off work when she blows a major presentation and Eileen is newly single and looking for both some fun and companionship in her life.
To help each other, they decide to switch homes for a while so Eileen can live in the bustling, urban London and Leena can relax in the quiet life of Eileen’s little neighborhood.
What I loved most about this book is how lovely both of the women were and how they each found ways to bloom where they were. Even though things don’t go as planned, of course, and they learn so much about themselves and what they really want, of course. And they get to see that the people they think they understood, maybe they didn’t understand as well as they thought. Even with all that, most of the moments of this story and happy, hopeful, and show you how strong both Eileen and Leena are.
How they have each other and other community to help and support them. And how they show up for the people around them, too. O’Leary knows how to create characters that stay with you.
This lovely book was made only more lovely by the narration of Alison Steadman and Daisy Edgar-Jones who play their parts beautifully and really make these characters come alive.
with gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve never heard of or read any books by Alice Feeney before but the premise of this book sounded interesting to me so I decided I wanted to give it a try. It’s about a journalist, Anna, who goes back to her hometown to report about a murder. And Detective Jack who is also trying to uncover the truth while he’s embroiled in it himself.
This is a fast paced novel where the chapters alternate between him and her and the whole time you’re trying to figure out what’s going on and who did it. I am not usually a fan of twists or weird ways the author tries to manipulate the plot in books like these to make it hard to guess.
But in this case, Feeney managed to keep me interested and surprised without making me frustrated. She does an absolutely excellent job of keeping the reader on his/her toes. If you like fast-paced mysteries, you will love this one.
If audiobooks are your genre, this one is narrated by two actors: Richard Armitage & Stephanie Racine, which makes the audio quality excellent.
With gratitude to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Nothing Man (3.5 stars): The premise of this book was absolutely fascinating to me. The chapters alternate between a book (within the book) where the author’s writing about a serial killer who’s murdered all of her family and others. The serial killer himself finds the book at a store and starts reading it so the alternating chapters are told by him as he reads this book and reacts to what he’s reading.
This book was great at first and great at the end with a bit of a slump in the middle, for me. As the details of the serial killer and the ways in which he killed all of his victims kept coming, I was pretty ready to put the book down but, of course, I kept wanting to see what was going to happen.
And I am glad I stuck with it. There were some twists I didn’t see coming and other twists I did see coming. The whole book came together really well in the end.
I read an audio version of this book narrated by Alana Kerr-Collins and John Keating and the two different voices really helped make the story more real.
with gratitude to netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
And there we go, grateful to be reading.
Books I Read this Week 2020 is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here. I am also tracking my books in real time on Good Reads here. If you’re on Good Reads add me so I can follow you, too! I’ve also started an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Weekly Intention: Ok this week’s intention is to make some plans for next week. I am off next week and would like to mix in some adventure into our week if possible and some time with my boys and some time alone.
This month’s intention is:July: Run Wild: Settle into the summer. Enjoy the wild. Use the energy of the sunshine and the long days. Step into it. Honor it. Bask in it. Last week of July, let’s see if we can get some more “wild” in our days.
One way I will show up this week: kind.
I will go into the wild: let’s see if i can find another friday adventure.
This week, I will pay attention to: what grounds me.
One new thing I will begin this week: i just began the 4 week core classes in peloton so that will have to do. also my bike is coming today so maybe that will have to be the thing!
One magic I will create: maybe a backyard picnic?
One thing I hope to release: my sadness over seeing the sadness of the people i love.
One thing I will join in on: maybe some live peloton classes
One area I will practice being open: that everything will be okay.
I am looking forward to: more climbing this week
This week’s challenges: still getting out of my mental space.
Top Goals:
Work: make a plan for the week, continue creating space, one more thing for packet. maybe write draft. keep email clean.
Personal: continue with daily peloton + biking! + running + climbing, more of eating the wild. draw. journal. do art. sleep earlier. continue 100 days of mantras. pick more friends to connect with.
Family: support nathaniel and david and jake. cook. walk. hike together. climb with jake. friday adventures. plans for next week.
I will focus on my values (love, learn, peace, service, gratitude): i need more grounding. i am still all over the place.
This week, I want to remember: it’s going to be okay.
Living Wild is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here.
The Wildest Part of this Week was: Hmmm not much this week either. Tbh, the days are blending into each other and I am trying to stay productive and positive but some days it’s easier than others.
Top Goals Review:
Work: did not really make a plan for the week, started creating space but not enough, did not do one more thing for packet. sort of kept email clean.
Personal: continued with daily peloton + running + climbing, slowly going back to eating the wild. drawing. journaling. not doing art. sleeping a bit earlier. continuing 100 days of mantras. not picking more friends to connect with.
Family: trying to support nathaniel and david and jake but doing so so. cooked very little this week. walked with N. hiked together. climbed with jake. did our first friday adventure.
I celebrate: going to the waterfall on Friday
I am grateful for: the good moments that are always there in the middle of the noise.
This week, I exercised: i ran 3 times for 30 minutes, I did peloton daily between stretching, strength, yoga, mediation, bootcamp, walking and running. i went climbing with Jake 2 times.
This week, I answered the Call of the Wild: we went to Uvas Canyon park and hiked around waterfalls.
This week’s Wildcard was: the lovely waterfall will have to do.
I said yes to: going out even though i totally didn’t feel it.
I said no to: letting the days blend into each other.
Core Desired Feelings (leap, soft, release, join, delight) Check-in: a little better this week, mostly because i focused on what i love most. but still a bit all over the place
My mood this week was: numb
I am proud of: i am proud of all the exercise i am doing. i am showing up and trying.
I release: the need to control how others experience things. i can only change my perspective, if that.
Here’s what I learned this week: not much is changing any time soon so it’s best to find good coping strategies.
What I love right now: i still love the serenity of my backyard.
Weekly Review 2020 is a year-long project for 2020. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here.
Here are my goodreads reviews. If you’re on goodreads, add me as a friend so I can see your books too! I also have an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Frends and Strangers (3 stars): Usually, I tend to love books where “nothing happens.” That generally means the book is focused on characters and that I get to see them and dive deeply to the characters’ experiences, thinking and choices and see their growth. In this story, even though “nothing happens” I didn’t feel the kind of depth I wish were there instead. I didn’t dislike the book but I also didn’t love it.
What’s Your Enneatype? (5 stars): I have never been a fan of the enneagram (or other tests TBH) but for some reason I really wanted to read this book so in preparation for it, I took 6 tests online just to see how consistent they would be, and of course, they disagreed with each other. But through the process, I found a number that I thought might be the most likely fit for me.
Thanks to this lovely and beautifully designed book, I was able to dig a bit deeper and the more i read, the most it resonated with me. I have since read several other books and have now become slightly obsessed with enneagram (like so many seem to be.)
This book is not a fully standalone book. It doesn’t have a test (but you can easily find several online for free.) and it doesn’t go into pages and pages and pages of depth for each number but it does have a lot of the basic and layered information for each number. So if you’re like me and wanted to take the plunge but didn’t think you could ever really find your number, this might be a good fit for you, too. And if you know your number and appreciate well-designed books, you will love this, too.
with gratitude to netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Kawaii Doodle World (4 stars): I got this book so that I could do some of these lovely drawings with my little one. The characters and decorations are really fun and the author does a wonderful job of both breaking them down and building them up so you can see how to make really simple drawings and then how to use those skills to create more complex scenes. It’s the perfect starter book if you or your kids are interested in drawing these cute doodly characters.
with gratitude to Quarto Publishing Group and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Ordinary Hazards (3.5 stars): “It occurs to me that the expression ‘the light at the end of the tunnel’ carries with it a false idea of forward progress.”
This book was hard for me to connect with it. At its core, this is a story about grief. Most of the story takes place at a bar, where the main character goes back and forth between being in the present day and recounting what’s going on in the bar and unwinds her story to tell us what happened until now.
The grief this character is feeling is so deep that there’s disconnection and numbing which made it very hard for me to connect with the character. If she’s not feeling her feelings, it’s really hard for me to feel them. I have to imagine them.
While I totally understand that this is an absolutely valid reaction to grief, I feel my feelings so much and so deeply that it was really hard for me to sit with this character with all that’s going on both in the past and the present and not be longing for more. I wanted to dig deeper. Deeper into her and her husband too (whom we get to know so little of really.)
I think while the story might be similar to some of Celeste Ng’s work, the feeling of this book definitely resonated more with the Claire Messud comparison for me. That empty feeling is so hard for me to reckon and connect with.
With gratitude to netgalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Dilemma (2 stars): I grabbed this because I wanted to continue to read something easy and fun and fast moving. I liked “The Breakdown” and thought it was really fast moving. Alas this one is wildly different. No major twists, no major revelations, just a husband and wife musing and worried about two different and major things, never talking to each other and then then when they do, they do, and nothing really happens. Very much unlike The Breakdown.
Know My Name (5 stars): I put off reading this book for quite some time. I live a handful of streets from Stanford and had, of course, heard of Chanel Miller’s story. I knew this book would completely break my heart and make me angry and sad. I didn’t know it would also make me hopeful. Chanel’s bravery and willingness to speak up didn’t result in a positive outcome for her but it did cause some tangible change for those who will come after her (because unfortunately there will always be more.) There are new laws now because of her. The judge is now gone because of her. These are permanent changes as a result of her willingness to speak up, her willingness to endure the pain and incredibly long journey of standing up for herself in court. I am so sorry for all she’s endured and so grateful for victims who’re willing to speak up and help the world become a juster place for everyone else in the process.
Self Care (3 stars): I am of two minds on this one. I liked both the punchy and seamless incorporation of jabbing fun at the wellness industry and social media. I liked the references dropped all over the book that make you smile (or chuckle) with knowing. It was laugh out loud funny at parts.
And yet, the characters were so one-dimensional and there were some dark issues that the book explores (especially towards the end) that just didn’t fit properly into this sarcastic and funny novel especially because they were not treated with the gravitas they deserve.
And there we go, grateful to be reading.
Books I Read this Week 2020 is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here. I am also tracking my books in real time on Good Reads here. If you’re on Good Reads add me so I can follow you, too! I’ve also started an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Weekly Intention: I didn’t do awesome with my intentions last week. Still triggering quite a bit. I guess this week I need to aim for slowing down and being in the present moment more.
This month’s intention is:July: Run Wild: Settle into the summer. Enjoy the wild. Use the energy of the sunshine and the long days. Step into it. Honor it. Bask in it. I am definitely sitting in the sun but I am also definitely not going into the wild.
One way I will show up this week: slow.
I will go into the wild: i am considering doing some Friday adventures.
This week, I will pay attention to: when and how i start going downhill.
One new thing I will begin this week: still seeking an evening routine.
One magic I will create: my magic this week will be making Friday plans.
One thing I hope to release: my thoughts.
One thing I will join in on: book club this week!
One area I will practice being open: that things will and can turn around.
I am looking forward to: more climbing this week
This week’s challenges: just getting out of my mental space.
Top Goals:
Work: make a plan for the week, start creating space, one more thing for packet. keep email clean.
Personal: continue with daily peloton + running + climbing, go back to eating the wild. draw. journal. do art. sleep earlier. continue 100 days of mantras. pick more friends to connect with.
Family: support nathaniel and david and jake. cook. walk. hike together. climb with jake. friday adventures.
I will focus on my values (love, learn, peace, service, gratitude): i want to go back to loving what is. choosing to be curious. serving others and being present to gratitude.
This week, I want to remember: things can change in a moment.
Living Wild is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here.
The Wildest Part of this Week was: I was mostly feeling down this week. I think I am worn out and need a longer vacation/time to process all that’s going on and all that I’m feeling about it. Nothing was all that wild this week.
Top Goals Review:
Work: i did not really make a plan for the week, i’ve been trying to hold on to the free time i have during the week so I can get through the email load and some weeks i totally can do it while other weeks it just doesn’t work out. I did not do one more thing for packet. I sort of kept email clean. It’s not clean but it’s also not terrible this week.
Personal: continued with daily peloton + running 3x week + climbing 3x a week, did not go back to eating the wild but doing better. drew 4x this week. journaled every day. did no other art. did sleep earlier some days. finished 100 days of noticing. did not pick more friends to connect with.
Family: doing poorest in this area, I think. just not doing enough.
I celebrate: making it through this week, this was another rough week.
I am grateful for: the good weather, moments with my hubby and that my kids give me lots of hugs/
This week, I exercised: i ran 3 times for 30 minutes, I did peloton daily between stretching, strength, yoga, mediation, walking and running. i went climbing with Jake 3 times.
This week, I answered the Call of the Wild: nothing this week. it’s been a quiet week.
Here are my goodreads reviews. If you’re on goodreads, add me as a friend so I can see your books too! I also have an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Party of Two (3.5 stars): I can’t help myself. I love Guillory’s books. I love her characters, I love the snippy dialogue, I love how both strong and human they are. Her women characters are always awesome and have strong friendships, solid jobs and skills, and self-confidence without being full of themselves with a mix of healthy vulnerability. For as long as she keeps writing, I will keep reading.
Follow Me (3 stars): I kept putting this book off every time it became available at the library. Just couldn’t get myself to read it. But this weekend I finally felt like maybe it will do the trick. And it did. It was relatively fast paced, kept my attention throughout and I wasn’t expecting much so it delivered what I needed. I already read too many books on the harmfulness of social media so, to me, the overall message was meh.
Happy & You Know It (3.5 stars): This was another fast paced quick read that had a lot of the same topics I’ve read lately. Mommy bloggers, how social media is not good, rich mommies have nothing to do with their time, etc etc. But it was funny, kept me interested and had several surprises that I didn’t anticipate so it was a win in my book 🙂
142 Ostriches (3.5 stars): I had never heard of this book. I randomly borrowed it from the library because it looked fun. And it was a great story even if it wasn’t “fun.” This is the story of Tallulah who lives on her grandmother’s ostrich farm and her grandmother dies and leaves the farm to her. She doesn’t want to keep it. The book is about identity, parenthood, family, relationships and reckoning with all the familial dysfunction. I really enjoyed my time with it.
I Was Told It Would Get Easier (3.5 stars): Abbi Waxman has some funny one liners in this book. She also has some lines that really were too flippant for me. This is the story of a mom and a daughter on a college tour. The mom and the daughter alternate chapters so you can get to know both of them. The daughter’s chapters really did sound like a young adult so I think she did a good job there. The story was funny and had some clever bits. I doubt it will stay with me but I enjoyed the time I spent with it.
The Other Mrs. (3 stars): If twisty, creepy mystery books are your thing, you will like this offering from Kubica. I find that I enjoy these when I am in the mood for them. There were definitely a handful of twists in this one that I couldn’t guess in advance and I enjoyed the time I spent with it.
The Swap (1 star): I absolutely hated this book. Hated it. I hated the characters so much. I hated every single one of them and I hated the story. I kept waiting for it to redeem itself but it never did. I was so consumed by how much I disliked it that I almost want to give it a higher rating for its ability to elicit such a strong reaction from me. If you read the other reviews, you’ll see that many people liked this book. So you have to ignore my review for this one since I am such an outlier. I clearly should have just DNF’ed it.
And there we go, grateful to be reading.
Books I Read this Week 2020 is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here. I am also tracking my books in real time on Good Reads here. If you’re on Good Reads add me so I can follow you, too! I’ve also started an instagram account where I join my love of reading with my love of art.
Weekly Intention: Here’s the deal. I am struggling at the moment. My brain is going a mile a minute. I am anxious about stuff at work, I am anxious about school next year, I am anxious about surgery my son will have in a few weeks. I am just tired, anxious, and a mess. So my intention this week is to give myself space. To notice my thoughts, remind myself that I am not my thoughts and to be really really really kind to myself. And I am going to jiust assume the best
This month’s intention is:July: Run Wild: Settle into the summer. Enjoy the wild. Use the energy of the sunshine and the long days. Step into it. Honor it. Bask in it. I am definitely sitting in the sun but I am also definitely not going into the wild. I’ll have to think more on this one.
One way I will show up this week: quiet.
I will go into the wild: no plans this week either. i will think about this.
This week, I will pay attention to:my thoughts. where i am going a mile a minute.
One new thing I will begin this week: well i will be starting the new art. even though i still don’t feel like i have it down.
One magic I will create: no idea on this one 🙁 maybe i will send some presents to a friend.
One thing I hope to release: stress and anxiety still win here.
One thing I will join in on: new gyms are opening so we’ll see.
One area I will practice being open: i want to be open to the possibility that what my mind is telling me is not actually the truth.
I am looking forward to: having a more peaceful week hopefully.
This week’s challenges: i have two 6am gym trips this week.
Top Goals:
Work: make a plan for the week, start creating space, one more thing for packet. keep email clean.
Personal: continue with daily peloton + running + climbing, go back to eating the wild. draw. journal. do art. sleep earlier. continue 100 days of noticing. pick more friends to connect with.
Family: support nathaniel and david and jake. cook. walk. hike together. climb with jake.
I will focus on my values (love, learn, peace, service, gratitude): be ok with who you are. lean into it. assume the best of others. choose peace over anything else.
This week, I want to remember: i’ve been here before and I know how to get to the other side of this.
Living Wild is a year-long project for 2019. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here.
The Wildest Part of this Week was: This was a relatively quiet week. The wildest part of the week was getting the kids to the dentist. They hadn’t been in months and we couldn’t be sure if it was better to go or not to go. It’s amazing how even the simplest tasks have become complicated in our new reality.
Top Goals Review:
Work: sort of made a plan for the week but need to do better here, did not start slowly putting together packet but did take a few steps, talked to charlotte.
Personal: continued with daily peloton and running and climbed a bunch of times. did not really go back to eating the wild. have been drawing and journaling. doing so so on the sleeping earlier but continuing the noticing. did not pick any friends and doing so so on the art project.
Family: doing mediocre on supporting nathaniel and david and jake. cooked little. walked a tiny bit. did not hike together. climbed with jake.
I celebrate: making it through this week, this was a rough week.
I am grateful for: i’m taking fridays off for the summer and it’s become one of the few things that helps me stay sane.
This week, I exercised: i ran 3 times for 30 minutes, I did peloton daily between stretching, strength and running. i went climbing with Jake 3 times.
This week, I answered the Call of the Wild: nothing this week. it’s been a quiet week.
This week’s Wildcard was: a great conversation with a colleague on Friday
I said yes to: doing some art this week.
I said no to: i had to advocate for myself a lot this week.
Core Desired Feelings (leap, soft, release, join, delight) Check-in: I am being a bit too triggered lately so I am trying to soften into what’s going on and see if I can release some of it.
My mood this week was: down
I am proud of: the exercise still.
I release: how i am feeling. i want to put it all down and walk away from it
Here’s what I learned this week: i get to choose my perspective and i get to decide what matters. i forget this too often.
What I love right now: the quiet simplicity of my life.
Weekly Review 2020 is a year-long project for 2020. You can read more about my projects for 2020 here.
