This month I’m talking about one book. Thank You For Your Service by David Finkel.

As I sit here thinking of what to write, what to tell you…I find myself at a loss for words. There’s just no way to explain this book.

I will tell you this. It’s not an easy read. It’s not light. I had to put this book down, close it, and cry several times.

If you have ever said Thank you for your service! to a member of the military, then this book will explain to you what you are thanking them for. The demons they fight when they come home, the horrors they face.

This book isn’t for the faint of heart. It talks about PTSD, traumatic brain injuries, high suicide rates in veterans.

I believe that everyone needs to read this book.

I won’t forget it as long as I live. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to read, but I needed to read it. I highlighted many, many passages and this book will be one I hold on to and reference for years and years.

It’s easy to live in a pretty bubble and pretend like everyone is okay and like things are over once they come home. That’s not true for anyone. These men and women need our HELP. They need more than our words and our platitudes.

I’ll stop here, before I start rambling. Just wanted to share this with you all.

 

S

 

Ehhh…a whole bunch of nothing.

I’m still attempting to read, but nothing is holding my interest. Truly. The only book I remember reading lately is Jojo Moyes’ new book.

And it was sweet and lovely…but just okay. I wanted the magic of Me Before You. Sigh.

Other than that I’ve read crap. Crap that I don’t even want to record on Goodreads because it doesn’t matter.

And I’ve been checking out books from the library, but they don’t even interest me enough to read them.

I guess you could say I’m in a reading slump. Or maybe exercise has taken my reading time. And that’s okay, but I would love to read a good book.

So it’s your turn. What have you read lately that you loved? I want something that will grab me and pull me in. I want something that I will immerse myself in. I want something GOOD. I don’t want to struggle. I want to be consumed.

Whoa. That’s quite the laundry list, no?

Go!

xo

s

 

 

Okay. So I sort of fell off the blogging about reading wagon. 🙂 But after a gentle reminder from some of y’all…I’ve decided to do a little update!

Thank heavens for Goodreads…or I wouldn’t remember any of this!

 

 

What I’ve read in the past few months:

1. The Good Luck of Right Now by Matthew Quick – Loved this one. I’ve seen lots of mixed reviews and I get that. It’s totally quirky. Wait…it bypasses typical Matthew Quick quirky and veers into weirdo land. But I loved it.

2. The Innocent Sleep by Karen Perry- It was interesting but never fully sucked me in. Sort of Gone Girl-esque. Worth a read, and the setting (Tangiers) is really interesting.

3. Mad About the Boy (Bridget Jones) by Helen Fielding. NO. JUST NO NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOO. It makes me mad just thinking about it. HORRIBLE.

4. The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty- I adored this one. I am a new fan of Moriarty. Light and fluffy, but good.

5. Someday, Someday Maybe by Lauren Graham- Disclosure…I LOVE Lauren Graham. So that might have given me some bias here, but I really liked this book. It’s no secret I’m a fan of good chick lit. This was adorable.

6. Falling Together by Marisa de los Santos- eh. and a little blah. That’s the best I’ve got. Super disappointed considering I’ve loved everything else by this auther. Maybe my expectations were too high?

7. Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight- Really good. Sad and scary and pretty on point with things going on in the world today.

8. What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty- Oh how I loved this one. Just a good read. Not deeply intellectual, but I needed a brain break. Loved loved.

9. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss- I kind of just kept waiting for something to happen/click and it never did. I really liked the characters, though…I’ve just heard so much about this that I expected something different I suppose.

10. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion- Awesome. Quirky, different, interesting, and funny as hell. Two thumbs up.

11. Joyland by Stephen King- Man…King just rocks. Another great book. A bit coming of age/retrospective, a bit mystery.

11. The Dinner by Herman Koch – I don’t really know what to say about this one. Highly entertaining and a quick read. But seriously messed up and disturbing.

 

What’s in my “To Read” pile:

1. Night Film by Marisha Pessl

2. The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud

3. Wonder by RJ Palacio

4. The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman

 

You can see my past recommendations HERE.

So what about you? What are you reading?

xoxo

S

One of my goals for 2014 is to be more intentional about reading. To track my books via Goodreads, to pay attention to what I read and didn’t read, to share what I’m reading here.

For the January edition of What I’m reading (including how I select books and my entire process), click HERE.

This month I want to talk about WHEN I read. I get asked this question all.the.time.

People genuinely want to know how I read so much. The answer? It’s a priority to me. Reading is like breathing. I simply have to do it.

I am a really fast reader. So fast that Jimmy swears I’ve taken a speed reading course. I haven’t. So that helps.

But I also always have a novel in my purse. Waiting in the carpool line? I read. In the waiting room at the doctor’s office? Reading. I even read when I walk. True story. Not so great considering how clumsy I am. HA!

This month I checked out a stack at the beginning of the month. I ended up taking most of them back because they just weren’t doing it for me.

Here’s what I ended up with and here’s what I will most likely read this month:

February List:

1. Joyland by Stephen King

2. The Dinner by Herman Koch

3. TransAtlantic by Colum McCann

4. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

5. Have a New Kid by Friday by Kevin Leman

6. What is Left the Daughter by Howard Norman

Books I completed last month:

1. Wild by Cheryl Strayed- LOVED this. Loved Loved LOVED. Devoured it, in fact. Just an awesome story of strength and redemption. I heard they are making it into a movie and I’m not 100 percent sure how I feel about this.

2. The Returned by Jason Mott- Blah. Had potential but I never connected or really cared about the characters. I kept waiting to like it but I never really cared one way or another. Totally fell flat for me.

3. The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker – I’m having a hard time explaining how I feel about this one. I enjoyed it but found it very depressing. I find dystopian books terrifying/intriguing and this was no exception. Walker did a beautiful job of explaining life in junior high. I found this an interesting juxtaposition with all of the crazy cosmic stuff that was going on. Super easy/quick read.

4. The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes- Moyes is one of my new favorite authors. I found this book absolutely fascinating. I have to say I found the flashback portions much more interesting than the “current day” portions, though.

5. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak – WOW. Wow wow wowwwww. Still processing this book. This book tore my heart out and broke it in to a million pieces. I honestly don’t feel that any review can give it the worth it deserves. There are just no words. The horrors, the pain, the death…yep. It broke my heart. Beautifully told. I need to quickly read everything else Zusak has written. One more thing- I had tried to read this once and gave up on it. SO glad I stuck with it.

There you go! The February version of what I’m reading. As always, I’d love to hear what you are reading, fellow bookworms!!

xoxo

S