This year one of my personal goals is to read 100 books.  I managed to do this for the first time in my life last year.  I honestly thought it was something I wouldn’t be able to do until I retired from working full time.  I challenged myself to do it again this year.  I just hit the 50 books read milestone this year.  I’m a little behind, but nothing that can’t be made up.  

Below I’m sharing some of my favorite reads of the year, and there are some good ones!  First, I’d like to share my reading habits that enable me to reach my reading goals consistently.  I’m regularly asked how I am able to read so many books.  Here is what works for me:

• I read every single day.  I literally never skip a day.  I read every single night before bed no matter how tired I am.

• I read books in any format - Kindle, physical or audio.  Yes, listening to audio books counts as reading.  It actually takes me longer to listen to books, than it does to read them, so it definitely counts.

• I use my library regularly.  I always have 10-12 books on reserve at my library. I love the Libby app for ebooks and audio books.  Things would get very expensive if I didn’t use the library!

• I take a book to all personal appointments (including appointments for my daughter) - doctor, dentist, and hair appointments, etc..  These appointments always involve some waiting time so I read during that down time.

• If you’re reading on your kindle device that is connected to wifi, then it syncs with the Kindle app.  I’ll pull up a book on the app on my phone if I find myself stuck somewhere with nothing to read.

Recommendations

Below are some of the books that I’ve loved this year.

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon (Historical Fiction)

By far, this is my favorite book of the year so far.  It chronicles the story of a midwife in a rural Maine town in colonial times over the course of a long winter.  The story opens with the death of a man who is one of two men accused of raping a local woman, and gets more intriguing from there.  The way women are treated makes my blood boil, but I know it is accurate for the time period.  The best part is that this book is based on a real woman and mostly real events that occurred in her life.  If you enjoyed Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See, then you will enjoy this book and vice versa.

The Women by Kristen Hannah (Historical Fiction)

Kristen Hannah is known for her historical fiction novels featuring strong female characters, and this one is no exception.  The main character is a nurse who volunteers to go to serve in the Vietnam War.  She’s led a very sheltered life until that point, and is thrown right into the heat of the war in a field hospital on the front lines.  Part of the story focuses on her time in Vietnam, while the second half of the story is focused on how she adapts to life back in the US where many people are protesting the war and the veterans returning home.

The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson (Mystery/Suspense)

This book is actually YA, and my daughter picked it out at a bookstore.  After she raved about it, I decided to read it.  It’s a really good suspense novel.  Rachel Price disappeared several years ago.  When she suddenly reappears her teen daughter begins to realize that things aren’t quite what they seem.  If you have a long trip ahead this one will keep your mind occupied.

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (Fantasy)

I know.  I know.  I’m late to the party on the Fourth Wing series.  I’ve now read both books that are out, and I’m anxiously awaiting the release of the third book in the series.  Yarros really builds out an interesting new world with a compelling strong female lead.  This has bits of Harry Potter, Outlander and Hunger Games.

Absolution by Alice McDermott (Historical Fiction)

The bulk of this story takes place in Saigon in 1963 while tensions are rising, but before war breaks out.  It focuses on the relationship between two women who are the wives of defense contractors living in Saigon.  

Compassionate Leadership by Rasmus Hougaard and Jacqueline Carter (Business)

This book explains how leaders can develop “wise compassion” as opposed to “caring avoidance,” which is letting empathy or fear be a barrier to action.  It emphasizes being human in one’s approach to leadership.  There are chapters on how to have difficult conversations with compassion and combating the notion of “busyness.”  I highly recommend this for people looking to sharpen their soft skills and bring more of a human touch to their leadership style.