A new year and a new decade and still so many books to read!
My TBR list for this month is small. These are books I’ve read about in other books or already have on hand for other projects. I’m a huge library fan – go to your library! – so will look there first for the few I don’t actually have already. One is new and one has been out for a while, so not sure where I’ll end up finding them.
This month’s list:
Working Daughter: A Guide to Caring for Your Aging Parents While Making a Living by Liz O’Donnell – I joined the Working Daughter Facebook group just after my mom passed – or possibly just before. That time is fuzzy in my memory. It is full of like souls who are also caregiving or who have lost the loved ones they were taking care of. Been wanting to read this book ever since the admin of the group shared that it was being published.
The Other Side of Sadness: What the New Science of Bereavement Tells Us about Life After Loss by George A. Bonanno – Jill Smolowe, the author of Four Funerals and a Wedding (which is pending review) said this book was hugely helpful in her own grief experience after the loss of her husband to cancer. In her book she talks about Bonanno’s research pointing out that the five stages of grief are true for those facing death but not quite accurate for those facing life after loss. I’m very interested in what this book says.
Birth Order by Linda Blair – The tagline says “What your position in the family really tells you about your character.” Interested in seeing how this compares to the other books on the topic.
Growing Bolder: Defy the Cult of Youth, Live With Passion and Purpose by Marc Middleton – This book is related to my day-job and I started reading it a few months ago. But a few chapters in, it got a little scary, as the author admits. He says he has to include a chapter to help us see the importance of re-imagining aging. I may skim that chapter or read it surrounded by puppies and unicorns before finishing the rest of the book, which promises to be a good read. I really enjoyed the first few chapters, which were very inspiring. If we can envision a better future, it just could help us create it.
Novels! Okay, that’s too broad. Novels currently on loan from the library are:
The Beginner’s Goodbye by Anne Tyler – I like stories about families and Anne Tyler is a great author of those. This one looks especially appropriate for the blog since the main character is a recent widower.
Postcards from the Past by Marcia Willett – Another British author I like whose books feel a lot like Maeve Binchy’s. In this novel, the two main characters are older brother and sister. But that didn’t matter when I saw it at the library. I just know it will be good and will feel good to read.
The Carousel by Rosamunde Pilcher – Love her novels mostly set in Cornwall and am hunting down any used copies I can find right now. She also writes stories of family secrets. This mass market size should be a quick read.
An Unsuitable Match by Joanna Trollope – another author of family doings (do we sense a theme?). In this one, two adults with 5 grown children between them want to get married. What could go wrong?
And currently on audio for the work commute:
House Rules by Jodi Picoult – Picked this CD up at a used bookstore (yes, my car has a CD player). I’m about a third of the way into this one about a young man with Asperger’s who is obsessed with crime scene investigations. Told through the point of view of his mother, his brother, a detective, a lawyer, and of course, himself. Each character is read by a different narrator. Liking it so far except for the occasional dark detail. I like the occasional television crime drama, but I don’t usually read true crime stuff.
Have you read any of these? What did you think? What’s on YOUR January list?
