JANUARY:
Lessons in Chemistry - Bonnie Garmus
5 stars
My absolute favorite book of the year happened to be the first. I’ve recommended this one to everyone, urging all to read the book first, quickly followed by binging the AppleTV adaptation that came out in October.
And we got to meet first-time author Bonnie Garmus at the Head of the Charles Regatta, pictured above. Garmus herself is a rower.
No Cure for Being Human - Kate Bowler
4 stars
A heavy subject with a hopeful message. Bowler has a multitude of resources available for those times when we struggle with being human.
Microadventures: Local Discoveries For Great Escapes - Alistair Humphreys
2.5 stars
This was my first foray into the 1000 Hours Outside (1KHO) Book Club, and it planted so many seeds for local outdoor adventures! Here is his definition of microadventure, and lots of tips for having your own. I now have one of his other books, The Doorstep Mile, on my list.
Why Can't We Just Play?: What I Did When I Realized My Kids Were Way Too Busy - Pam Lobely
3.5 stars
Loved Lobely’s exploration of a “1950’s” play-based summer experiment. Another one from the 1KHO list. Definitely a goal of mine this year is to let my kids just play more.
FEBRUARY:
Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby van Pelt
5 stars
Another of my all-time faves. According to this article, I’m not alone in that!
Good Inside: A Guide To Becoming the Parent You Want To Be - Dr. Becky Kennedy
4 stars
OK to be fair I haven’t finished this one quite yet, BUT I get to see her speak live in a few weeks, so I’d like to finish it by then!
MARCH:
4 stars
I think I first came across this one on the 1000 Hours Podcast (clearly a large source of my reading list). It is beyond fascinating to me to learn about each of the six generations (although I’m biased toward Millennials), how technology has shaped each one, and what that means for our future.
Spare - Price Harry
2.5 stars
To be fair I didn’t quite finish this one yet either. I’m not royally-obsessed by any means, and it’s a long one!
APRIL:
Outdoor Kids in an Inside World: Getting Your Kids Out Of The House and Radically Engaged With Nature - Steven Rinella
2.5 stars
Another one from 1KHO. Certainly more radical, per the title, but there are plenty of learnings for those of us who aren’t going to hunt our own game.
The Paris Apartment - Lucy Foley
3 stars
A good one not-too-scary psychological thriller. That’s my sweet spot for this genre - I don’t want to lie awake having nightmares. I have enough anxiety already.
MAY:
Hello Molly - Molly Shannon
3.5 stars
A comedy legend shares her grief-laden personal history.
Glucose Revolution - Jessie Inchauspe
4 stars
The order in which we eat has a measurable impact on how our food is processed in the body, specifically, on one’s glucose, or blood sugar. Inchauspe teaches us how to avoid glucose spikes, and what that means for our health. Fascinating and easy to put into action!
JULY:
Happy Place - Emily Henry
4 stars
A great summer or vacation read that I breezed through while on an LA family trip. Even in this light, rom-com genre I found the main character speaking to me in her quest to break away from expectations and chase her own definition of fulfillment.
AUGUST:
Banyan Moon - Thao Thai
5 stars
I came across this one after I started following the author’s substack! A beautiful and gripping multi-generational tale of three Vietnamese women.
The Paper Palace - Miranda Cowley Heller
4.5 stars
The Paper Palace is loved and somewhat dilapidated summer home on Cape Cod that holds many, sometimes steamy and sometimes sickening, secrets.
Screaming On The Inside: The Unsustainability of American Motherhood - Jessica Grose
3 stars
I am with Grose in her take on the state of American motherhood - outlook not good. Although the outlook many be bleak, shining a light on the unrealistic expectations facing mothers today is a positive in my book.
SEPTEMBER:
Gluing The Cracks - Katie Blackburn
3 stars
A short personal memoir of ASD-motherhood.
The Coddling Of The American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting Up A Generation for Failure - Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff
4 stars
An increasingly important read in our divided nation. I worry about the implications that an unnecessarily “safe” society will have on the grit and tenacity of the next generations. We’ve already seen the deleterious mental health effects in huge swaths of the population. This book gives insight and answers, but will we heed them?
OCTOBER:
Tell Me More: Stories About The 12 Hardest Things I’m Learning To Say - Kelly Corrigan
5 stars
PBS Host of Tell Me More, Podcaster, and generally brilliant mind, Kelly is one of my idols. I am always taking notes from her.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid
5 stars
I love everything by Reid, and this was no exception. It had me in tears on an airplane.
A Million Miles In A Thousand Years: How I Learned To Live a Better Story - Donald Miller
4 stars
An incredibly inspiring tale of storytelling - how to turn your own life’s story into the best version it can be. Again, on brand for the year! Am I seeking these books out or are they finding me?
NOVEMBER:
How To Know A Person: The Art of Seeing Others and Being Deeply Seen - David Brooks
4 stars
I had the privilege of seeing him speak live while on his book tour. A fascinating human study that I am now using as a how-to guide.
DECEMBER:
One Day in December - Josie Silver
4 stars
A holiday-themed love triangle that kept me up reading by the fire on many December nights!
The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact - Chip and Dan Heath
4 stars
Even small moments can have a lasting impact on our lives, if they are rooted in a few of these qualities: pride, connection, insight and elevation. These author-brothers have inspired me to chase and create more meaningful moments for myself and my family.
None Of This Is True - Lisa Jewell
4 stars
Blew through this thriller in three days! So many moments of cringe, and some great twists.
Not that I should be judging myself too harshly, but by my count, I didn’t even break 20 books completed in 2023. Plenty of room for improvement!
More importantly, there is a theme that sticks out to me here, and I don’t know exactly what to call it, but it’s exploratory. I am interested in breaking away from the expected path, the one I’ve been on without ever really questioning it. What is it that would be fulfilling to me? I imagine this as more than just my passions, but what am I called to do? And if I don’t explore that now, then when? Is this an almost-mid-life crisis? I want to know I’m doing what I can to live a full life - one of vulnerability and connection and gratitude. Do I sense there is more out there for me? I think what is holding me back is fear.
I think that is telling that I (unknowingly) spent a year reading about how to connect with people, what makes a great life story, having courage to go against the grain. This is essentially research, and thats the part I am good at.
Now for the hard part - to ACT. Make the decisions, take the actions, have the conversations that move my life from one of simply getting by to living with pride and purpose. For me, that means stretching outside my comfort zone.
The list of books I wanted to read this year are equally telling. Daring Greatly by the mother of vulnerability, Brene Brown, Finding Ultra by Rich Roll, The Thinking Life, and The Learning Game.
My draw to Lessons in Chemistry is fitting here too. I am inspired by Elizabeth Zott. I want her courage, and I feel I am one of the women in her Supper at Six audience who realizes, hey, it might be scary, and it certainly isn’t what’s expected of me, but I can follow my own dreams. I am in the driver’s seat of my own life.