Another year of reading is in the books (see what I did there?) I had thought that I would cut back from last year’s 170 books but I’m right there again with 168 books. I thought I would do more hiking. I thought I would hang out with friends and family more. But hours and hours of laundry, house cleaning and driving around town have kept me busy with audiobooks. My family also just seems to be busier (if that’s possible) and going in different directions. I will readily admit that I go to books out of boredom to seek entertainment, but I also use books as a refuge to hide from the world. That’s not completely a bad thing. Right?
But that leads me to one of my favorite books of the year. “Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, And Our Lives Revealed” by Lori Gottlieb. I love this book and highly recommend it! It felt a little voyeuristic at times but it also got me contemplating my many lives — how I got to where I am now and where I want to go next, especially in the year to come as my youngest child heads off to college and grand adventures. I’m worried that I will be a little lonely without her hustle and bustle, and perhaps I’ll be left to deal with my own losses. And yes, maybe I should also talk to someone.
“We tend to think that the future happens later, but we’re creating it in our minds every day. When the present falls apart, so does the future we had associated with it. And having the future taken away is the mother of all plot twists.”
– “Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, And Our Lives Revealed” by Lori Gottlieb
Like last year, I wanted to maintain reading more books by women and I did that without really even trying. I managed an even 100 books by women, well over half, and that included some really great memoirs like “First, We Make the Beast Beautiful: A New Story About Anxiety” by Sarah Wilson, “Becoming” by Michelle Obama, “In the Country of Women” by Susan Straight, and “The Education of an Idealist” by Samantha Power. All of these books provided me with both a window to see another part of the world and a mirror to better see myself.
“One of the dear, dear things about getting older, is that it does eventually dawn on you that there is no guidebook. One day it suddenly emerges: No one bloody gets it! None of us knows what we’re doing.
Thing is, we all put a lot of effort into looking like we did get the guide, that of course we know how to do this caper called life. We put on a smile rather than tell friends we are desperately lonely. And we make loud, verbose claims at dinner parties to make everyone certain of our certainty. We’re funny like that.”
– “First, We Make the Beast Beautiful: A New Story About Anxiety” by Lori Gottlieb
I no longer have multiple book clubs going on. In fact, I have gone from five book clubs to none. That is one of the reasons that taking part in the 2019 Read Harder Challenge through the library has become important to me. Reading can seem so solitary, and even antisocial at times, that I really need ways to bring the social aspect to it and the library meetups with other book loving people have given me that outlet. The Read Harder Challenge has also pushed me in directions I would not have otherwise gone. One of the harder categories for me to read was the Manga, which is a Japanese graphic work. I had never read one before but I was surprisingly pleased with “My Brother’s Husband” by Gengoroh Tagame. I thought reading backwards (my back to front and left to right) would completely frustrate me but I took to it in no time at all. I also really enjoyed the sweet story of a big burly Canadian meeting his Japanese niece and brother-in-law. And, although I read a lot of great books for the challenge, my favorite was “Circe” by Madeline Miller about the goddess/witch who kept Odysseus on her island. Miller took a minor character in the Greek tale and made me fall in love with her. You can see the rest of my challenge here. Needless to say, I will definitely be taking part in next year’s challenge (I may be already mapping out my list).
If you see me in the library, stop and chat and let me know what some of your favorite books for the year have been. I have made a list of my favorites. Most of them were released in the past two years but there are a few older titles there too. Enjoy and here’s to a happy and book filled New Year! Cheers!
Another year of reading is in the books (see what I did there?) I had thought that I would cut back from last year’s 170 books but I’m right there again with 168 books. I thought I would do more hiking. I thought I would hang out with friends and family more. But hours and hours of laundry, house cleaning and driving around town have kept me busy with audiobooks. My family also just seems to be busier (if that’s possible) and going in different directions. I will readily admit that I go to books out of boredom to seek entertainment, but I also use books as a refuge to hide from the world. That’s not completely a bad thing. Right?
