February Books

I read seven books this month.  I guess I'm in quite a groove.  There is definitely more time for reading when I don't watch as much tv.  Sometimes I miss the mindlessness of tv!

To be fair, I started this book, The Grace of Yes, long before Christmas and for some reason did not finish the last chapter and a half until this month.  It is a book written by a local Fresno writer, Lisa Hendey.  She is the creator of the website CatholicMom.com. I've seen Lisa speak at several different conferences over the years and she is very inspiring.  The book was a great read about saying yes to God in all of its forms.

The second book I read was The Choice by Nicholas Sparks.  I typically don't like his books, but I do like the movie adaptations.  Weird, because it's usually the other way around.  I decided to grab this book because another blogger (Mix and Match Mama) recommended it strongly on her blog.  I am so glad I read the book.  I loved the idea that we make certain choices for love.  I'm not sure I want to see the movie because I really liked the book and I don't want to see any changes that a movie adaptation might have made.

The third book I read was The List.  I bought this one at the same time that I bought The Choice.  I really enjoyed The List as well and read it in a day.  It's about a high school list that is created by an unknown person at the beginning of the school year.  On the paper is listed the prettiest and ugliest girl from each of the four classes.  The book goes on to explore how being labeled as prettiest or ugliest affected each of the eight girls.  I would not recommend the book to my junior high kids due to language, but I could see it as a good high school level book.  It explores peer pressure, bullying, the need to fit in, and holding true to your personal standards.  I'd like to read more books by this author.

My next book was Seven Miracles That Saved America.  I chose to read this book because I had read a book by the same author, The Mark of a Giant, that I talked about in my January book review.  I liked this book as well.  Just as with the Giants book, I found some chapters to be definitely more appealing than others.  This book chose seven miracles, or almost unexplainable events, that had they not happened, could have seriously altered the course of our country.  Very interesting to read.

I usually like the books I read.  I always consider myself to be decently easy to please.  I like most tv shows, most movies, and most books.  That being said, I did not like Hatchet.  To be fair, I didn't think I'd like it going into it, so I sort of turned myself against it before I even gave it a chance.  Why, you ask, did I read this book if I knew I'd probably not like it?!  The answer is simple: Evan.

My 11-year-old is not a big reader, but he is having to read more books in 6th grade than ever.  He also has to do a report each month.  He has been complaining that we don't have any "good" books at home that are at his reading level.  One day we were at Costco and he saw Hatchet and asked me to buy it.  I did!  He doesn't know this, but I'd probably buy him any book he asks for at this point.  The next week I school, I was in the 7th grade classroom and noticed that my partner teacher was using Hatchet as a class set.  I asked to borrow a copy so I could read it and be able to talk about the book with Evan.  He really likes the book, and for that, I am willing to read what I term a "boy book."

Not that the book is awful, but it is designed for a boy at the junior high level, of which I am not!  Many of the girls in my class like the book, so there is that.  I like books with lots of witty dialogue.  This book is about a boy who is the sole survivor of a plane crash.  He talks to the fish.  Not much dialogue going on here.  Lots and lots of descriptive paragraphs.  Not my thing.  Gary Paulsen is a well respected author, so I am pleased to say I have read the book.  And I also have to admit that as I reached the end of the book, I was curious as to what was going to happen to the kid in the story.  I sort of enjoyed the story!

Eric bought me One Question by Ken Coleman for my birthday.  We are going to a Dave Ramsey Smart conference in May, and we'll be seeing many speakers, and Ken Coleman is one of them!  This time around I'd like to have read several books by the speakers ahead of time!  I liked this book because it is broken up into many little chapters where the author explores one concept at a time such as integrity, failure, forgiveness, and so many more.  He starts each section with a personal story and then leads into an interview with someone who discusses the concept at hand.  Each chapter is only 2-3 pages long, so I was able to easily read several chapters a day.  I always like books that get me thinking.  This one did just that.

My last book this month was The Tipping Point.  I found this title while reading One Question.  I was scrolling through my library app and saw the book, borrowed it, and could not put it down!  So, it was sort of an accidental book for me, but I'm so glad I read it!  The premise is discovering the reasons behind why certain products or events or ideas are successful and some aren't.  Everything experiences this "tipping point" where things go from good to bad, or from unknown to known, etc.  The book breaks down the concepts behind what "tips" an idea or an epidemic.  This book reminded me of Freakonomics.  If you enjoyed that book, you would probably enjoy this.  If you like learning how seemingly unrelated ideas come together to cause a central event, you would enjoy this book.

There you have it for the month of February.  I'm already in the middle of two more books for a jump start on my March reading.  So many books.  So little time.