|| Books || January

January 29th 2012

As part of my New Year's Resolutions... I am going to 'check up' on myself once a month.

See how I am really doing with all those goals that I set for myself.

I've already modified/adjusted some of them so that I can really accomplish what I want.

Two of my goals were to read.

1 spiritual book

1 'other' book.

I did this to push myself to read more. 

I felt like at the end of last year I really hadn't read that much.

And I love reading.

So this month, here are the books that I've read.

The Brothers by Chris Stewart

I counted this as my spiritual book for the month,

 though it is not an in depth discussion of spiritual habits or direction, etc.

My Thoughts: I really liked this book. It is the 'story' of life before we entered this earth. I looked at it in this light, and therefore was not offended by ways that he presented things that we really don't know. It was heart-breaking in the beginning {I cried and had to put the book down}... but he then goes into all the happenings and chaos that might have happened in the pre-mortal life. Very interesting, and it did make me think about ways that I allow Satan to tempt me.

Recommend? Yes

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey 

by Trenton Lee Stewart

This is the second book in a continuing series. 

My thoughts: I love light, easy reads. And the first book captured my interest, so I decided to give the second one a chance. I think it was better than the first. The characters develop more as you go along, and there are pieces of the story that are so much more funny because you know the characters more. This is by no means a 'deep' read, it is a children's book. But that is what makes it so fun and enjoyable.  

Recommend? Yes

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

This is the book that was picked for book club for February

My thoughts: First word, Heart-wrenching. I was rocking back and forth on this book like a person who gets sea-sick. You have these periods of pure bliss, that then turn into the bitterest of memories. It was so fascinating, and yet devastating. The title says it all. It will really make for an interesting book discussion that is for sure. In the end, I really did enjoy this book. It was mesmerizing. I couldn't put it down once I started. If you are looking for a book with some romance, a little intrigue and a bit of history {it's set during WWII} than this is a good place to start. 

Recommend? Big YES

The New Strong-Willed Child by Dr. James Dobson

Recommended to me by my parents because of the strong-willed nature of my little man.

My thoughts: I haven't totally finished reading this book. I will admit that I have been gleaning information here and there to apply to the situations that we have been in with Eithan recently, but all in all. Wonderful Information. He has filled this book with examples and explanations. There are many studies that validate his points, and he is constantly re-explaining why he thinks the way that he does so that if you don't really 'get it' one way... you will for sure get it later on. I am going to continue to glean from this book. But if you are looking for child-rearing advice {especially when it comes to discipline and punishment} I believe this to be a good place to start. Especially since he does focus from birth to the adolescent years. 

Recommend? Yes

I am going to do this every month so that I can check-up on how I am doing. 

I will also be doing this periodically with other goals that I have set. 

I hope that those of you who do read this will find some of this information interesting. 

If not, OK. 

Now, I'll have a way to go back and see what I've read for the year. {smile}