What I Read | January Check-In

It feels strange not to have my usual list of book challenge categories to cross off. As you may remember, one of my 2017 goals was to hit the pause button on reading challenges for a little while. I found that I wasn't enjoying a lot of what I was reading and I wanted to get back to solely reading for pleasure. Not committing to a reading challenge in January really didn't alter the frequency or the quantity that I read, but it did feel liberating to give up on books that I lost interest in, or completely change course when something new struck my fancy.

Here's what I read in January:

Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham (★★★)

I'm not sure what exactly I was expecting but I felt a little disappointed. The whole book felt like a cobbled-together attempt to capitalize on the buzz around the Gilmore Girls revival. She did get me excited about the possibility of more future Gilmore Girls, but that was about it.

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover (★★★★★)

I am so thankful to have just finished a book I couldn't put down for the first time in awhile. There are so many things I want to say, but don't want to spoil the plot. The protagonist was wonderful and gave so much insight into women in situations like hers. Frankly, all the characters were fantastically written. The author's note at the end made the entire book for me, however. This was one of those books that just needed to be written. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

March: Book One by John Lewis (★★★★★)

I've never read a graphic novel before, but this was the absolute best one to start with. Written by Congressman John Lewis, this three-book series tells his story through animated flashbacks of his involvement in the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's. This book read quickly and was absolutely fantastic. I'm planning to read the other two ASAP and purchase the series so that my boys can read it when they get older. I have been so fired up with everything happening in our government right now. With the Women's March fresh in my mind, I am so glad I picked up this book when I did. 

7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker (★★★★★) 

Chuck and I have been on a kind of self-imposed budget trim down. That's what happens when you try living off of one income. However, as we've been reviewing our past spending habits, we've had to face the fact that we've been completely irresponsible with our money when we've had it and are trying to reform our ways. We want to be good stewards and this book came at the perfect time. Hatmaker sets out to eliminate excess in seven areas of her life and documents her endeavor through a diary-style narrative. It was so motivating for me to get our own finances under control and nudge us in the direction of a more simple, less wasteful lifestyle.


Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick (★★★★)

As far as celebrity memoirs go, this is a good one. It felt authentic, light-hearted and not overly cheesy, much like Kendrick herself. I particularly loved the chapters in which she talked about her past relationships and how she grew from them.






Currently, I'm alternating between The Nesting Place by Myquillyn Smith and The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. What are you reading?