Reading

Letter 34 {The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow}

April 3, 2018 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

This letter could also be titled, “when you are waiting for spring and feeling very Eeyorish.”

Rain, sleet, spring snow, thunderstorms…this is the Midwest! {tagline: variety is the spice of life}

I try not to whine about rain-it’s a blessing, I know. Rain is fine. I’ll adjust. Especially if I’m in London-my plan is always go to the nearest Tesco for an umbrella and then walk arm in arm with my sister to a cozy tea room. Rain in London is delightful.

I didn’t promise to never complain about cloudy grey days, though. One needs to complain about something.

What I’m telling myself is this: buck up, buttercup- when it does stop raining and greying for a moment, it’s going to be so green and bright my eyes will hurt from all the color and it will all be worth it.

…

Clarity & Stories

March 29, 2018 by Rachel

The dark felt darker this morning. When the early morning light arrived, it was heavy and dim with fog.

I love an occasional morning like this, but the repetition of gray days…well, it gets a bit old for me!

*googles SoCal real estate*

*resigns self to remaining in Midwest*

My brain felt just about as foggy as the weather. I was going round and round with a few things. To say I feel uncertain about which course of action to take in any number of areas is an understatement.

…

5 Things I’ve Been Working on in March

March 17, 2018 by Rachel

This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking through one of my links, I may receive a {very small} commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this blog! It means the world and a bag of dark chocolate to me.

You know I love a good list! Here are my top 5 focus areas for March….

∇ Getting up early. It’s hard for me to find space during a busy day of homemaking & homeschooling to have my own quiet and writing time. This past week I’ve been getting up between 5-5:30 am which is rather brutal for me. I’m not really a morning person OR a night owl-I’m a sleep person! However, I’m really appreciating the quiet and stillness of our small house during those hours before everyone starts the day. Not only am I getting myself all put-together and ready, I’m making the time for meditation, prayer, journaling, and writing. I’m willing to sacrifice some sleep to make it happen, but it’s not easy for me! As part of my devotions, I’m using my friend Ruth’s lovely book, GraceLaced-Discovering Timeless Truths Through Seasons of the Heart.

∇ One-on-one reading time with my youngest, Drew. I’m reading aloud A Wrinkle in Time to everyone, which we all enjoy so much, but Drew has long requested permission to finish the Harry Potter series (up till now I’ve only allowed him to read the first few books) and this is a way we can enjoy them together and I can help him process through the last and most difficult books. We just started Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and usually read together snuggled on the couch with a good cup of tea or in my bed with a fluffy blanket before nights out.

∇ Exercising and being more active in general. Along with rising early during these dark winter and early spring days, being outside in the cold isn’t my favorite! I’d much rather be glued to a leather coffee shop chair reading the hours away. As I mentioned in this post, I’ve been doing yoga 2-3 times weekly and now I’m being purposeful about adding in more activity in general. Even little things like parking at the far end of the Target parking lot so I can get some extra walking in! I am becoming an Exercise Person and shocking myself at the change.

∇ Saying “yes” more to my kids. Sometimes I feel like I say “no” more than is necessary, so I’m trying to stop and ask myself: How much does {fill in the blank} really matter in the big picture? Is it worth saying no, and if so, why? What will saying yes mean for my child? Saying yes has meant more time spent with friends as our schedule allows, letting them listen to the music of their choice as long as it fits within our family values (which means I’ve heard a lot more rap lately, ha!), deciding their own haircuts and styles, and making creative messes in the kitchen and around the house.

∇ Self-care. Everybody is talking about it these days; it’s a topic on trend and honestly, one I find a lot of value in and enjoy discussing. For me this has included working with a functional medicine doctor, consistently taking my list of prescribed supplements in order to address some deficits in my health, focusing on getting enough sleep, drinking more water, and in general engaging in things that feed my soul (this ties in with the first thing on my list!). Also, dark chocolate because #life.

Here is my last list of 5 things I’ve been working on. What about you? Anything on your list for this month?

Photo by Silvia Agrasar on Unsplash

Tommy & Tuppence

March 15, 2018 by Rachel

I was recently rearranging some books and came across a stack of well-worn Agatha Christie novels. {I mentioned one in my top favorites list here.} When I saw my copy of The Secret Adversary, I couldn’t help but smile. In this book we’re introduced to a charming couple I adore: Tommy & Tuppence.

Many people are familiar with Agatha Christie the great mystery writer and her intelligent detective Hercule Poirot and character-discerning Miss Marple, but lesser known are her stories about stumbled-into-it sleuths Tommy and Tuppence. They meet after the first world war as young twenty-somethings and are depicted true to their time; the book was published in 1922. Tommy is genuine, reliable and thoughtful. He’s less likely to be rash and more likely to carefully assess a situation. Tuppence (whose true name is Prudence) is his natural balance with her impetuous and bold personality. She can be a bit of a goose sometimes, but her heart is good. The account of their friendship is very dear to me, and I find their stories to be nearly perfect in every way.

Postern of Fate is the final book in which they appear, having aged with the books and last shown to be in their seventies. It’s one of my recent re-reads and I love how it carries the story of a timeless couple. In fact, it’s not one of Christie’s best mystery novels but I read and appreciate it for the narrative of one of my favorite literary romances. Look at me, getting all sentimental over book characters!

I wrote the following to a friend and thought I’d share it here as well:

Christie’s books have been my companions since I was a teenager, and are especially delightful for travel. They make long car rides and trans-Atlantic flights bearable and even enjoyable. I first started out with “Ten Little Indians” and that made me an addict. I’m in the habit of purchasing cheap paperback copies of her books for such occasions, and leaving them at airports or other waiting areas when I’m finished with them, so someone else can fall in love with Poirot or Miss Marple or dear Tommy and Tuppence.

The Tommy and Tuppence books are my very favorite of Agatha Christie’s characters. When I read the following passage in “Postern of Fate,” I couldn’t help but think it highly resembled the dynamics of my relationship with Tom and similar conversations we’ve had, and was exceedingly funny:

‘Tuppence! Tommy called, as he came into the house.

There was no answer. With some annoyance, he ran up the stairs and along the passage on the first floor. As he hastened along it, he nearly put his foot through a gaping hole, and swore promptly.

‘Some other bloody careless electrician,’ he said.

Some days before he had had the same kind of trouble. Electricians arriving in a kindly tangle of optimism and efficiency had started work. ‘Coming along fine now, not much more to do,’ they said. ‘We’ll be back this afternoon.’ But they hadn’t been back that afternoon; Tommy was not precisely surprised. He was used, now, to the general pattern of labor in the building trade, electrical trade, gas employees and others. They came, they showed efficiency, they made optimistic remarks, they went away to fetch something. They didn’t come back. One rang up the numbers on the telephone but they always seem to be the wrong numbers. If they were the right numbers, the right man was not working at this particular branch of the trade, whatever it was. All one had to do was be careful to not rick an ankle, fall through a hole, damage yourself in some way or another. He was far more afraid of Tuppence damaging herself than he was of doing the damage to himself.

He had had more experience than Tuppence. Tuppence, he thought, was more at risk from scalding herself from kettles or disasters with the heat of the stove. But where was Tuppence now? He called again.

‘Tuppence! Tuppence!’

He worried about Tuppence. Tuppence was one of those people you had to worry about. If you left the house, you gave her last words of wisdom and she gave you last promises of doing exactly what you counseled her to do: no, she would not be going out except just to buy half a pound of butter, and after all you couldn’t call that dangerous, could you?

‘It could be dangerous if you went out to buy half a pound of butter,’ said Tommy.

‘Oh,’ said Tuppence, ‘don’t be an idiot.

‘I’m not being an idiot,’ Tommy had said. ‘I am just being a wise and careful husband, looking after something which is one of my favorite possessions. I don’t know why it is –’

‘Because,’ said Tuppence, ‘I am so charming, so good looking, such a good companion and because I take so much care of you.’

‘That also, maybe,’ said Tommy, ‘but I could give you another list.’

‘I don’t feel I should like that,’ said Tuppence. ‘No, I don’t think so. I think you have several saved-up grievances. But don’t worry. Everything will be quite all right. You’ve only got to come back and call me when you get in.’

But now where was Tuppence ?

‘The little devil,’ said Tommy. ‘She’s gone out somewhere.’

Often when I’m flying out the door to go somewhere, even just the grocery store, Tom calls after me, “Be good!” Be good? When am I NOT a good little wifey? Or he may add, “Don’t do anything that I wouldn’t do.” “Well that’s a lot of things,” I may grumble back.

If this amuses/interests you even slightly, I suggest you start with The Secret Adversary (where our couple reconnects as old friends, become inadvertent blackmailers, then find they want to pursue a life of detecting) and work your way through the five Tommy & Tuppence books after which we can Discuss over a proper tea and form our own book club. Just a thought.

Photo by Josh Felise on Unsplash

Letter 31 {A Return}

March 10, 2018 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

It’s been almost 30 weeks since my last letter. {Letter 30} It’s like I planned this!

I did not plan this. I plan nothing.

As I reflect on that last letter and our time at the ocean, it seems much more distant than 30 weeks. That’s what winter does to you. Winter keeps you in its winter grip, dimming memories of sunshine and warm. I miss warm. Please don’t console me with words of spring; I prefer being melancholy right now.

Here are the top things you need to know about the past 30 weeks, in case I’ve forgotten to mention them:

I’ve been reading more, so that’s a good thing. In fact, I just devoured Ann Rule’s The Stranger Beside Me so fast I’m still dizzy. At almost 500 pages, it’s no light read. I chose her book on Ted Bundy, convicted serial killer (who I knew very little about), over numerous piles of laundry and I feel I made the right choice.

Ann writes carefully, thoughtfully, honestly. She humanizes Ted as she grapples with what her friendship with him meant as well as her slow discovery that, unbelievably, he really was capable of and responsible for atrocious crimes. She compassionately brings the victims’ stories to light so they will not be forgotten or overlooked. I need you to read this ASAP so we can DISCUSS.

Following a somewhat dark (or at least sobering) thread, I also recently read Everything I Never Told You, by Celeste Ng. Even though the story is fictional, the relationships and scenarios described were very relatable. The real life ending left me alternately devastated and hopeful. It’s a book I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

It was fun times helping pull off a Bachelorette party for my sister Naomi. {Instagram picture here.} She’s getting married at the end of the month! Do I have a dress picked out? That would be a NO. I’m trying, though, I really am. I’ve tried on so many dresses the inside of dressing rooms have begun to feel like a familiar cell.

For the Bachelorette, instead of a fancy dinner at one restaurant, we visited three different small-plate style restaurants in St. Louis which was perfect; props to my sister Keturah for planning our destinations: Taste, Planter’s House, & Bridge. Before the party officially started, I managed to lock us all out of our hotel bathroom with a hot iron on inside. I’d been brushing my teeth at the time while wandering around (?) and had a mouthful of spit when I tried to get back in the bathroom. Why do hotel bathrooms need locks, anyway? We waited around in our finery, me with fuzzy toothpaste all over my teeth, until hotel staff came up to unlock the door, which was not awkward for me at all.

My insomnia is better and I’m SUPER thankful for that. It’s annoying to not be able to sleep well and soundly, and this experience has deepened my sympathy for people with chronic sleep issues more severe than mine. I’ve been working on a bedtime routine to aid in successful slumbers; I’ll have to share more about that. I feel like I’m concocting a magical sleep recipe every night, complete with a bunny eye mask-!

What else? I traveled a little. By myself to CO for a retreat, with the family to TX for hurricane relief work, to TN for holiday celebrations. I must’ve done a few other things, too, but now all I can think about is all that laundry I put off…

Thanks for reading; you’re the best-

Rachel

Letter 30 {Beach Bums}

Letter 32 {Don’t be Rash}

This letter contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking through one of my links, I may receive a {very small} commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this blog! It means the world and a stack of letters to me.

Photo by Jeffrey Wegrzyn on Unsplash

What is Saving My Life Right Now

February 2, 2018 by Rachel

Remember that thing called SUMMER? It feels like a myth to me right now. The vaguest of dreams. These depictions of January by cartoonist Rox Chast pretty much sum up all my January feelings:

Year-At-A-Glance

Cruellest Month

Yet here we are, halfway through winter! {And everyone in the Midwest said, “Amen.”} Inspired by Anne at Modern Mrs. Darcy, I’m sharing things which are positively contributing to my winter days in big and small ways. At the end you’ll find a sources list, should you want to check them out yourself.

∇ Hygge in the form of white unscented CANDLES. During my visit to Copenhagen fall of 2016, I fell in love with the Dane’s use of white candles. Every restaurant and cafe had them. They burned in masses on silver platters in niche boutiques, single pillars on outdoor tables, coffee shop candelabras, in every size and form imaginable, tucked into nooks and crannies, but always white, always cozy, always inviting one to sit awhile and just be. While I do love the right kind of scented candle, I’m very picky about them, and only burn one on occasion. The white unscented variety is perfect for everyday use, especially when I’m using my next favorite winter save, which is…

∇ An essential oil air DIFFUSER. I’m not an oils aficionado by any means, but I definitely appreciate how the diffuser has a way of cleaning and refreshing the air in my home {word: boys} without toxicity or giving me a headache. I’m still using Christmas blends because who doesn’t love that fresh evergreen scent mixed with a bit of citrus?

∇ Next on my list is READING. I mentioned this in my “5 Things I’ve Been Working on in January” post. Reading aloud with the children (history after breakfast, a novel during lunch), aloud to Tom while he drives, and finally to myself at the end of the day brings me so much joy.

∇ SOUP. We’ve been having some kind of comforting soup at least once a week since Christmas. When everyone had a head cold, it was homemade chicken and veggie soup. Then thick and creamy chana dal. Spiced cauliflower soup, curried pumpkin lentil, hearty beef stew…there is a soup for every mood and preference! I gravitate towards simple, healthy and hearty. I refuse to slave over soup. I cannot.

∇ YOGA. My sister Mara has been encouraging me to try yoga for a long time, but I whined (“your class is too far away from me”) and procrastinated (“I have too many other things to do”). We joined our local YMCA last fall, and it’s literally 5 minutes from my house. There was no excuse left in my bag of excuses. I needed to practice self care and get my body moving more, and it wasn’t happening at home like it should. So I made myself go to the Y and take a couple classes before the holidays, and I was hooked. Immediately in January I started up again. Do I get tangled up with myself in class? Yes. Does the instructor have to come and gently correct me so I don’t injure something? All the time. Yet I LOVE it! It’s gentle, focused, and a wonderful way for me spend an hour on mental and physical health.

Where to find all the things:

I usually purchase white unscented candles at IKEA. Also, Amazon.

This is the diffuser I’m using in the living room. I love how it fits with my semi-mid-century look. Here are some favorite winter blends I’ve used recently:

Balsam Branches {5 drops balsam fir + 3 drops orange +3 drops cinnamon bark}

Evergreen {4 drops balsam fir + 3 drops blue spruce + 3 drops pine}

Cider {4 drops orange + 2 drops nutmeg + 1 drop cinnamon bark + 1 drop clove}

Books mentioned: Exploring World History, Derwood, Inc., Your Best Year Ever, Salt to the Sea

Soups:

Chicken & veggie-I usually don’t use a recipe, but this one from Pioneer Woman is basically what I do!

Chana dal-again, no recipe but I do variations like this Hearty Chana Dal Soup and Instant Pot Chana Dal Soup

Spiced Cauliflower

Curried Pumpkin Lentil

Beef Stew-by now it’s clear I like to wing-it for certain recipes, so I give you Sunday Night Stew and Beef Stew with Beer from Pioneer Woman because they are LEGIT.

Yoga online: my daughter loves Yoga with Adrienne! And I love Jennifer, my instructor at the Y. If you’re local to me, please come join me for a class. I will wear my “Majestically Awkward” shirt and it will be fun!

What’s saving your life this winter? I’d love to hear!

Photos by John-Mark Kuznietsov on Unsplash

5 Things I’ve Been Working on in January

January 22, 2018 by Rachel

January is generally a time for looking back and looking forward, reassessing what works and what doesn’t, and taking the opportunity at the start of a new year to have purpose and make plans. {I feel very Adult saying as much, but truthfully I’ve loved this sort of thing since I was a teen.} Here are some things I’ve been working on this month:

∇ Reading consistently, both for my own personal enjoyment + education and aloud to the children.

∇ Our weekly morning routine: we got oh so lazy over the holidays and it was delightful.

∇ De-cluttering & organizing around the house. {Currently a mess but they say it gets better.}

∇ Eating mindfully. I haven’t had any fries this month, which is cause for equal rejoicing and mourning.

∇ Thinking about the year ahead and working on setting and implementing seasonal intentions for myself, for Tom and I, for each of the children, and as a family unit. That is A LOT for my brain to undertake, by the way. I need a whole month for it.

What about you? I’m curious to hear, please share!

Photo by Yousef Espanioly on Unsplash

Gifts From the Gracelaced Retreat

November 16, 2017 by Rachel

This post is not sponsored in any way. It contains a couple affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking through one of my links, I may receive a {very small} commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this blog! It means the world and a chilly autumn photo shoot to me.

For the Gracelaced Retreat, some of Ruth’s thoughtful friends generously sent us gifts and we were completely “wowed!”

Thank you to my photographer friend, Candace, for helping express my gratitude through pictures. Below you will find links to all the lovely things:

Tribal crepe blanket scarf from Grace and Lace.

Super soft and perfect for draping, this scarf has quickly become a go-to piece in my closet. Grace and Lace is one of my favorite companies to support-a couple years I ago I purchased a few of their layering pieces and they’ve washed and lasted well: long sleeved top extender, chiffon high-low extender, pointed lace top extender

A beautiful leather shoulder bag from Better Life Bags.

This goes with me just about everywhere!

You can stuff quite a lot of books in this bag…

See my Gracelaced book peeking out?

I was delighted to receive The Life Giving Table by Sally Clarkson!

Can you spot my Soli Deo Gloria necklace from Lovishly? It’s delicate and perfect.

A handcrafted “Greatest of These” cuff from Fashion and Compassion.

Also given to each of us was a GraceLaced plaque from Carpentree Gifts & Decor.

{You can find their entire GraceLaced collection here and my “live a quiet life” fringed plaque here.}

Styling and coziness created by my friend, Candace. 😉

Sweet treats came from Tudor House Cookies and passed the test of deliciousness as well as incredible artistry!

I call this my Narnia tote bag. It’s from The Adopt Shoppe and you can find it here.

From the bottom of my heart, to all of you, thank you! ♥

Top 10 Favorite Books From the Last 100 I’ve Read

November 5, 2017 by Rachel

Choosing my ten favorites from the last 100 books I’ve read was quite a difficult task and I bit my lip and sighed a few times over the stress of it all. Besides the following 10, I read 90 more books and most of them were really quite good. These, however, stand out as beyond ordinary. In no particular order:

1. Kristin Lavransdatter

by Sigrid Undset

It’s possible this may be the book I choose as my lifetime favorite, the one that left an indelible impression on me and the one that started this journey of “reading to a 1000.” The experience of holding this book was another one altogether. I found it at my local childhood library, where I have many memories of being sprawled out on the cool leather couches to read, and the hardback copy was decades old with translucent pages printed in the original translation. I was the first to check it out in many years. This was seven years ago now, but I keep thinking I want to go back and see if that library (which I’ve since moved away from) still has the same copy I read. I think holding it in my hands again will give me a thrill.

Written by Sigrid Undset, who was born almost exactly 100 years before me in 1882, this is what I call a sweeping saga. {It’s actually a trilogy, though I read it bound in one volume without really taking note of the three subtitles: The Wreath, The Wife, The Cross.} It encompasses the life of a Norwegian woman, Kristin, whose surname indicates the custom of the patriarchal traditions of the day: she was, quite simply, the daughter of Lavran; therefore, Lavran’s daughter or Lavransdatter in Norwegian. A historical novel taking place in the 14th century, this is unlike anything I’ve read before or since. The translation of the old language used took me a bit to adjust to, but it was worth the few pages of plodding before I completely fell into the book Wonderland-style. Love, grief, regret, joy, courage, faith, uncertainty-it’s an epic tale I’ve yet to find a match for. Sigrid was a remarkable storyteller, and her depiction of a strong woman in a remarkable time will stay with me long after I’ve forgotten many other books.

2. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

I love this book! I can’t say it more succinctly than that. Whenever I find a copy in Goodwill, as I have many times, I squeal and snatch it up. I always want an extra copy on hand to give away. This is a comfortable weekend read recommended by my friend, Kim, who I adore. Over the course of a couple years she kept bringing it up as one of her favorites and I just never got around to it. {Lazy.} Until. Until I came across a copy (BLESS YOU GOODWILL) and finally read it. Kim, I’m sorry it took so long for me to listen to you. I’ll never procrastinate again when you tell me to read something since now I trust your taste implicitly.

Okay, all ramblings aside, here’s what you need to know: this is a series of letters but don’t let that put you off. It’s charmingly written and engaging from the start. World War II is barely over and as the world begins picking up the broken pieces, a London writer, Juliet, begins a correspondence with inhabitants of the island of Guernsey (located in the English channel, naturally I looked it up). The island had been occupied during the war and a sort of resistance group was formed when islanders banded together. As they share their stories with Juliet, she becomes captivated and ends up traveling to Guernsey herself. Juliet’s voice resonates with me more than any other character I can think of; I felt we understood one another and shared similar impulsivities. I suspect other readers feel the same way…

I’m not really doing this book justice; if you look it up on Amazon you’ll see it gets almost 5 stars and over 4,000 reviews! If you need more convincing, check some of them out then order the book for a perfect, cozy fall read. {Or come to my house and I’ll give you a Goodwill copy! #notsponsoredbyGoodwill #ipromise}

3. The Harry Potter Series

by J. K. Rowling

Maybe I cheated a little by including all 7 books in the Harry Potter series as one of my top 10 selections, but the rules on this blog are bendy so there you have it. If you just came out of an underground bunker and have never heard of Harry Potter before, you are in for an imaginative, delightful experience. Harry is an orphan whose ordinary life is upended by the discovery of a magical side to the world, a school of magic called Hogwarts, and his own mysterious past. There is more to this series than simply the charm of a world where magic is possible. There are deep and moving themes of growing up and understanding oneself, friendship and love-the kind that includes laying down your life-and the complexities of making hard choices during difficult times. There is laugh-out-loud humor and memorable, everyday pleasures captured magically.

Whether you’ve read the books or not, here are some discussions about them I thoroughly enjoyed:

Harry Potter Love @ The Art of Simple

Raising Kids on Harry Potter @ The Art of Simple

4. Pride and Prejudice

by Jane Austen

If you are feeling annoyed by our modern colloquialisms and rather habitual bad grammar, the language in this book is the ideal remedy to restore your good humour. {I spell humour in proper British English as that is what Jane Austen would do and it suits the word perfectly.} As chapter one famously begins, “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”

Having read and re-read this cleverly told story full of wit and sarcasm, and seen every movie version made, I most definitely call it a favorite. Here we have unmarried sisters, rich men, lovely English countryside, jilted love, misunderstood intentions, scathing pride, stubborn prejudice. Elizabeth Bennet is the second child in a family of five unmarried daughters {gasp} with an unaccountably ridiculous mother, a lovingly complacent father, and capable sense of self. What happens when she meets her intellectual yet haughty match in rich, distant, annoying Mr. Darcy? I laugh, I cry, I swoon, this is a classic I’ll always return to.

I must mention this Jane Austen inspired etsy shop-perfect for fans of her literature! I’ve given several items as gifts to fellow readers and I’ll take a “half agony, half hope” mug any day.

5. Columbine

by David Cullen

Confession: I have a thing for true crime. While I voraciously consume podcasts on the topic, I’m pickier about my literature selections. This is an exceptionally written, thoughtful, well-researched account of the Columbine High School shooting which took place near Littleton, Colorado on April 20, 1999. I was 17 at the time and it made a tremendous impression on me. I read all the newspaper articles on the story that came my way, and a couple months after it happened I found myself driving by to see the memorial during a visit to Colorado. I felt the displacement and confusion familiar to many teenagers at the time…what exactly had happened, and why? David Cullen does an excellent job answering many of those questions. If you don’t read any other true crime account, read this one.

6. The Man in the Brown Suit

by Agatha Christie

“It is really a hard life. Men will not be nice to you if you are not good-looking, and women will not be nice to you if you are.”

“I dare say it is good for one now and again to realize what an idiot one can be! But no one relishes the process.”

A longtime fan of Christie’s mystery novels, this is absolutely one of my favorites and perfectly quotable. We have an “accidental” death, a cryptic message, a girl named Anne longing for exciting exploits, the odd behavior of a man in a brown suit, and the glories of London in the 1920’s. What more could you ask for?

“I had the firm conviction that, if I went about looking for adventure, adventure would meet me halfway. It is a theory of mine that one always gets what one wants.”

7. Blue Like Jazz

by Donald Miller

This is another book I heard people reference for years before I finally picked it up. The title continues: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality. I appreciated this book very much, even when I didn’t agree. I would categorize it as a memoir; a thoughtful, intimate examination of Christianity and God in the everyday. Donald Miller is honest and personal as he talks about his faith journey, and that’s one thing I love about his book. Also this:

“There is something quite beautiful about the Grand Canyon night. There is something beautiful about a billion stars held steady by a God who knows what He is doing. (They hang there, like stars, like notes on a page of music, free-form verse, silent mysteries swirling in the blue like jazz.) And as I lay there, it occurred to me that God is up there somewhere. Of course, I had always known He was, but this time I felt it, I realized it, the way a person realizes they are hungry or thirsty. The knowledge of God seeped out of my brain and into my heart. I am imagined Him looking down on this earth, half angry because His beloved mankind had cheated on Him, had committed adultery, and yet hopelessly in love with her, drunk with love for her.”

8.The Hiding Place

by Corrie ten Boom

Corrie tells the story of her life, her family, and Haarlem in the 1940’s during Nazi-occupied Holland. A single watchmaker in her early 50’s, Corrie lived with her father and sister on a cobbled Haarlem street where they were well known and respected in their community. The ten Boom family had a great love for Jewish people and their home was a safe house during the war when they participated in the underground resistance movement and were instrumental in saving many lives. Corrie and her sister Betsie were sent to a concentration camp when their activities were discovered and…well, you’ll have to read it for yourself!

My first memory of this book was when mom read it aloud to my sister and I one winter when I was perhaps 11. I fell in love with the “Beje” as Corrie affectionately called her home, and the stories of life and faith that took place within those walls resonated with me. During a trip to the Netherlands a few years ago I walked the streets of Haarlem where Corrie rode her bike, climbed the narrow stairs of the Beje, and stood in the hiding place built into the wall of Corrie’s room. It is no exaggeration to say it was one of the most singular and moving experiences of my life.

9. In the Garden of Beasts

by Erik Larson

Erik Larson is a masterful researcher and storyteller. Here he lays out the events which began in 1933, when American ambassador William Dodd and his family moved to the heart of Berlin and growing force of Nazism. Martha, his socialite daughter, vivacious and colorful, led a life behind the scenes which would have scandalized her American friends back home. The family watched in horror as the Nazi regime grew stronger and the world payed little attention. Goring, Goebbels, the first chief of the Gestapo, and many other notable characters whose stories are interwoven with the Dodds and what was happening in Berlin at that time are described in a magnetically readable style.

I found this book a vivid and fascinating read! Larson has a way of taking you back to a time and place in history and giving you a front-row seat to the truth that is quite often stranger than fiction.

10.The Hobbit

by J.R.R. Tolkein

I read aloud to the children the story of Bilbo’s adventures during chilly fall days a couple years ago, and now it makes me think of steaming mugs of hot chocolate, since we often had them in hand during reading time. That or tea-lots of tea!-is highly recommended during the reading of this book. The first chapter begins:

In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

Bilbo is a hobbit living in the Shire who has no intention of grand travels or daring escapades. He enjoys his ordinary, cozy life full of comfort and reading, thank-you-very-much. All of this changes when his friend, the wizard Gandalf, and a motley crew of dwarves show up on his doorstep. He’s needed on a dangerous quest…to the Lonely Mountain where a buried treasure is said to be hidden under the watchful eye of the dragon Smaug. What happens when he says goodbye to his beloved Shire and ventures out in the big unknown? This book is legendary, and perfect for reading aloud to share with an enthralled audience; I’m just sorry I didn’t read it sooner!

And that wraps up my first list of top 10! Thanks for checking it out. Have you read any of these books? If so, I’d love to hear what you think of them!

Photo by Anjeli Lundblad on Unsplash

The Last 100 Books I’ve Read

September 25, 2017 by Rachel

I love reading, discussing books, books about books, book lists, podcasts on books: all things books. Even the aged and sweet smell of paperback perfume. I save book recommendations on Instagram, look them up on my favorite blogs, add to lists on my phone, in my planner, and am generally always thinking about what to read next.

At some point I thought it would be a grand adventure to see how long it would take to read 1000 books. {Hint: a lot longer than I thought!} I began keeping a record every time I completed a book. Not long ago I reached my first milestone of 100 books read {insert 100 exclamation points}! As you’ll see, I like to read from a variety of genres.

{New friends who think I’m an innocent… please don’t be too shocked.}

You Should Know…

I faced a hard truth here: It took me seven years to read 100 books! I began this reading adventure in 2010, and finished in 2017. That’s just a little over 14 books per year. I have friends who easily read that many in one month, even 100 or more books in a year! I was honestly surprised that, as voracious a reader as I once used to be, it took me so long to reach this first milestone.

However, instead of berating myself for not reaching some non-existent standard, I decided to be grateful. Grateful because at a time in my life when I wasn’t reading as much as I had in previous years (oh to be 15 and absorbed in the work of Dickens!) and was struggling with depression and grief, I chose to start, somewhere. I picked up one book, and then another. I may not have felt capable of much, but I could read and engage my mind in life-changing literature and was changed in the process. It’s about the journey, not the time it takes to get there!*

Most of these books I read the traditional way-you know, with an actual book in hand. A few I read on my Kindle, mainly while traveling. I am just now at the cusp of the world of audio books…we’ll see where that takes me!

A couple books here are re-reads. For example, every few years I re-read The Hiding Place and the Harry Potter series. As a teen I read all of the Anne of Green Gables novels (favorite: Rilla of Ingleside) and then recently read aloud the first and well-beloved one to my children.

This list does not include the Bible, devotionals, or countless children’s books and homeschooling material (The Story of the World, Vol 1-4!) I’ve read aloud. It also doesn’t include a large stack of books I’m almost, oh-so-close to finishing. I’ve counted only the books I’ve read completely cover-to-cover, even if some are waiting for me to finish just two more pages before being added to the list.

Many of these books have become a part of me and changed or expanded my thinking in some way. A few were forgettable; others I wouldn’t recommend. One last thing-it may have taken me SEVEN FREAKING YEARS to read 100 books, but many of them were over 500 pages long! So, there’s that. #somewhatjustified #bookbrag

I’ll give you an update on my top ten favorites from these 100! For now, here is the raw list:

Kristin Lavransdatter, Sigrid Undset
The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom
The Lost Horizon, James Hilton
Gossamer, Lois Lowry
The Eyre Affair, Jasper Fforde
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling
Almost French, Sarah Turnbull
Lost in a Good Book, Jasper Fforde
The Well of Lost Plots, Jasper Fforde
Something Rotten, Jasper Fforde
Faking Grace, Tamara Leigh
The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
Bringing Up Bebe, Pamela Druckerman
Searching for Mary Poppins, Susan Davis and Gina Hyams
A Stolen Life: A Memoir, Jaycee Dugard
My Life and Lesser Catastrophes: An Unflinchingly Honest Journey of Faith, Christina Schofield
The Girl from Montana, Grace Livingston Hill
Secret Adversary, Agatha Christie
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
The Scarlet Pimpernel, Baroness Emmuska Orczy
Heaven is For Real, Todd Burpo
The Golden Goblet, Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Dawn of the Morning, Grace Livingston Hill
The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins
In the Garden of Beasts, Erik Larson
The Best Ghost Stories Ever Told, Stephen Brennan
A Matter of Basic Principles, Don Veinot
The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien
Giant’s Bread, Mary Westmacott (Agatha Christie)
Absent in the Spring, Mary Westmacott (Agatha Christie)
In Cold Blood, Truman Capote
Finding Chandra, Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz
Unto the Daughters, Karen Tintori
Divergent, Veronica Roth
Insurgent, Veronica Roth
Thirteen Reasons Why, Jay Asher
All You Need to be Impossibly French, Helena Frith Powell
The Help, Kathryn Stockett
Looking for Alaska, John Green
Call the Midwife, Jennifer Worth
Shadows of the Workhouse, Jennifer Worth
Farewell to the East End, Jennifer Worth
The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton
Same Kind of Different As Me, Ron Hall and Denver Moore
Eleanor and Park, Rainbow Rowell
Fangirl, Rainbow Rowell
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon
Son, Lois Lowry
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green
The Book Thief, Markus Zusak
Dead Mountain, Donnie Eichar
A Rip in Heaven, Jeanine Cummins
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Mary Ann Shaffer
Warm Bodies, Isaac Marion
The Life of Pi, Yann Martel
The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger
Lord of the Flies, William Golding
Animal Farm, George Orwell
The Money Saving Mom’s Budget, Crystal Paine
Say Goodbye to Survival Mode, Crystal Paine
Living Well, Spending Less, Ruth Soukup
The Man in The Brown Suit, Agatha Christie
The Beautiful Daughters, Nicole Baart
Austenland, Shannon Hale
What Alice Forgot, Liane Moriarty
Devil’s Knot, Mara Leveritt
Every Secret Thing, Laura Lippman
Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn
A Child Called “It”, Dave Pelzer
Paper Love: Searching for the Girl My Grandfather Left Behind, Sarah Wildman
Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Make It Happen, Lara Casey
The Fringe Hours, Jessica Turner
#Girlboss, Sophia Amoruso
Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Jenny Lawson
If You Find This Letter, Hannah Brencher
What The Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast, Laura Vanderkam
Postern of Fate, Agatha Christie
I Used to Be So Organized, Glynnis Whitwer
Dear Mr. Knightly, Katherine Reay
168 Hours, Laura Vanderkam
Nourished: a Search for Health, Happiness, and a Full Night’s Sleep, Becky Johnson & Rachel Randolph
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress, Rhoda Janzen
Anne of Green Gables, Lucy Maud Montgomery
Columbine, Dave Cullen
Helter Skelter, Vincent Bugliosi
Money Making Mom, Crystal Paine
I Know How She Does It, Laura Vanderkam
Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller
In a Dark, Dark Wood, Ruth Ware
The Signature of All Things, Elizabeth Gilbert
Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert

Now on to the next 100…

{Update: here’s my list of top 10 favorites!}

*I’m sure some smart and wise person already said this, but I have no idea who.

Photo credit, in order of appearance: Kari Shea, Jessica Ruscello, and Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash