Book Worm

Some suggestions on how to read more. Some of the Books I loved reading in 2022 ane 23 books I want to read in 2023.

I’ve seen so many people posting their books in review, Goodreads summaries OR asking for book suggestions for 2023. I love it. I literally read hundreds of books a year. Feel free to find me on Good Reads. Each month(ish) I summarize the books I have read and pair it with a playlist. Here is an example.

Unlike most people, my reading goals the last few years have been to read LESS. This is because I’d like to slow it down. Take more in and frankly get off my couch. People ask me how I read so much…and well, mostly I’m just a very fast reader and I don’t get car sick while reading. I’m zero help if you want suggestions on how to lose weight or organize your kitchen, but if you have a goal to read more, I am likely your girl.

1. Get a library card. Learn how to place books on hold online and how to navigate the Libby app. I almost always have a full list of holds online.

2. Don’t finish a book you aren’t into —even if everyone else loves it. I give myself 40 pages and if I’m not into it I set it aside. Sometimes it isn’t the right book for me, sometimes it just isn’t the right time. I have no shame about DNFing a book (did not finish).

3. Figure out what you like….but occasionally read out of your lane. I know what I love. I love some complicated family dynamics. I love coming of age stories. I love books that make me think, feel or learn something. I don’t have to read the new “it” book….unless it has really great reviews. Reading books you actually like rather than books that you feel like you should like -make you want to keep reading. That being said, the best thing about reading is that it can broaden your perspective…mostly read what you love but occasionally read voices or genres that you don’t normally hear from.

4. I generally have 2 books going at once. I have a faster paced fiction book and another that I want to take my time with (religious, self improvement, poetry or informative). I read a small chunk of the slower book in the morning and then read from the other book the rest of the time.

5. Have a TBR (to be read) stack or list going. That way you are likely to pick up a new book once you finish rather than wait for “inspiration” that may never come.

6. Listening to audio books is reading. There are tons of free books on Libby. The most current releases are sometimes even easier to get on audio than paper at the library. However, figure out what works for you. For example…I can’t track fiction very well on audio but can do nonfiction. I’m also a sucker for a narrator with an accent.

7. I read in places where most people scroll their phones. (yes, I scroll plenty too). I read while I dry my hair. I keep a book in my bag and read when I'm stuck waiting somewhere. I even read at half time of soccer games. I try hard to not to read when I should be engaging with actual people.

8. Find someone to talk books with or a podcast that talks about them or even follow some bookstores/reviewers on social media. Reading books is only part of the fun – talking to (or listening to ) others talk about books will make you more interested in reading something new. Some podcasts I occasionally listen to are From the Front Porch and Currently Reading (but there are tons!).

23 Books I want to read in 2023. I’m always open to recommendations:

1. A Quiet Life - Ethan Joella

2. Surrender: 40 Songs, one story: Bono

3. All the Broken Places - John Boyne

4. A World of Curiosities - Louise Penny

5. I’m Glad my Mom Died - Jeneatte McCurdy

6. All This Could be Different - Sarah Thankam Mathews

7. I have Some Questions For You - Rebecca Makkai

8. Inciting Joy: Essays - Gay Ross

9. Flight - Lynn Steger Strong

10. The Undoing Project - Michael Lewis

11. The Power of Writing it Down - Allison Fallon

12. Signal Fires - Dan Shapiro

13. Strong Like Water - Aundi Kolber (Releasing in Feb)

14. Small Things Like These - Claire Keegan

15. The Levee - William Kent Krueger (out in Feb)

16. Hang the Moon - Jeannette Walls ( out in March)

17. The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett - Annie Lyons

18. An Immense World - Ed Yong

19. Pineapple Street - Jenny Jackson (out in March)

20. Romantic Comedy - Cutis Sittenfeld (out in April)

21. A Curious Faith - Lore Wilbert

22. The Lives We Actually Have - Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie (out in Feb)

23. Bad Vibes Only:(and other Things I Bring to the Table) -Nora McInerny

Some of my favorite books I read in 2022: (These are not in any particular order and there are so many more….I already linked this in my Christmas newsletter and each 4-6 weeks I email out a list of most of what I've read with a short description and a matching playlist. You can sign up for it to land in your inbox here )

Bomb Shelter -Mary Laura Philpott

She says what I’m thinking only better. I almost never re-read books. I plan to read this a dozen times. Occasionally I will read a book and think that the author and I should be friends. In this case I have already bought the best friend heart necklace. (Non Fiction - essays)

We are the Light - Matthew Quick. I have not stopped thinking about this book. It is told as a series of letters from the narrator to his therapist after a mass shooting in his city. There are parts of this book that are heartbreaking but it is also full of redemption. There are a few parts that are just plain weird but it is so achingly hopeful and honest that I didn’t mind. I have a soft spot for any one (real or fictional) that writes long rambly letters. (Fiction)

Lessons in Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus

Marie Curie meets Julia Childs. In other words I loved every page. (Fiction)

Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby Van Pelt

Can a widow and an octopus be friends? YES. THEY. CAN. Five-star read for me. I can’t explain it, it just works. (Fiction)

Marrying the Ketchups -Jennifer Close

I was hungry for this entire book, but mostly I never wanted it to end. A complicated family relationship with the backdrop of a family restaurant. Anthony Bordain meets Ann Patchet. Get yourself some steak fries and a copy of this book. (Fiction)

I Guess I Haven’t Learned that Yet - Shauna Niequist

Lost? Read this. You won’t find your way but you will find that you are not alone. (Non fiction, religious essays)

The Measure- Nikki Erlick

This book has to be talked about. Make someone read it with you. The premise is that each person in the world wakes up with a gift of a piece of string. The length is proportional to the length of a life. The characters all grapple with short vs. long strings. It brings up so many questions (as if mortality is not enough): discrimination, love, parenting, opportunity and religion. I’m not sure if it was the author’s intention - but I found it to be a book about wrestling with the concept of hope. (Fiction)

Demon Copperhead - Barbara Kingsolver

If Huck Finn had been addicted to oxy this might have been the story. Kingsolver is a master storyteller and she takes you for a ride with an unlikely cast of characters from the Appalachian mountains. Demon is a modern day David Copperfield in that they are both tales of survival and poverty. You can’t help but root for the narrator, a self-professed screw up doing his absolute best to save the people he loves and maybe even himself. (Fiction)

The Winners - Fredrik Backman

I had no idea how invested I could be in small town hockey teams. This is part 3 in the Beartown series. The book is 672 pages and I only wish there were more. One review said this “ there are stories that make you feel everything and then there are stories that leave you empty. This story is both” and I have to agree. This is not a stand alone - start with Beartown. (Fiction)

Agatha of Little Neon - Claire Luchette

I’ve never wanted to befriend a fictional nun so badly in my life. This little book felt the best kind of honest. Don’t let my short review dissuade you. This book was a delight. (Fiction)

Atomic Habits - James Clear

“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.” Damn you James. I hear you loud and clear. (Nonfiction - Personal Development)