What Are You Reading?

Inspired by Heather's post of a few days ago (thanks Heather!), I decided to share a list of some of my favorite books of 2013. Lest you think that bloggers ever tire of words, I've found that my reading has actually become more voracious ever since I became a blogger. That probably has a lot to do with other life changes as well (no grad school consuming my days) but I really do think that writing on a regular basis has made me crave reading even more than before.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some but these are the ones that really made an impression. Happy reading!

The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman. This book made the nurturing/mothering part of me hurt inside, and I ended up sobbing through the ending. A beautiful, soulful read.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. My mom and I read this together and I was so glad to be able to talk through it with her. This is an epic tale, beautifully written, incredibly sad and full of human rawness. In some reviews it was compared to a Dickens novel. Very much worth reading.

Becoming Who You Are by James Martin. This is a non-fiction book and a quick, uplifting read. James Martin writes about how the 20th century Trappist monk, Thomas Merton, inspired him to be his true self. A lovely little book.

Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I can't believe it took me so long to pick up this American classic. I started it when I got my wisdom teeth out and it kept me nice and distracted! I'm so glad I read this while living in the South--it helped me to see things from a slightly new perspective.

Crossing To Safety by Wallace Stegner. I blogged about this poignant book here and here as I was reading it. Wonderfully bittersweet. I highly recommend it.

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. This is another one I read with my mom. It's a classic that everyone should get to! Especially if you love New York, as I do.

The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins. Oh, this is mystery at its finest. I sped through this thick tome in a matter of days.


I thought I'd also share the books that are in my queue. I've got some really great ones lined up for the first few weeks of 2014!


How The West Really Lost God by Mary Eberstadt. This book was a birthday gift from my Dad but I've been a bad daughter and am just getting to it now! I'm really enjoying it so far. It's non-fiction, obviously, and I'm fascinated by the way she has linked the decline of family and the decline of Christianity. This is a subject that interests me very much.

The Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton. After finishing Becoming Who You Are I knew I had to read this Thomas Merton classic. My mom read it and loved it, and I also remember talking about Merton in a college class I took my sophomore year. I'm excited to learn more about this admirable man.

Humans of New York by Brandon Stanton. More of a picture book than anything, but a book nonetheless. I actually pre-ordered this for my little brother as a Christmas present but he beat me to it and got one for himself! So I kept this copy for me. I love the HONY blog and Brandon's photographic census of my favorite city is fascinating.

The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. My husband has a weakness for any fantasy series so I got him these for Christmas. On our car trip, I ended up reading some of the first book aloud to him while he drove and I got hooked. So now we're both reading them and passing the books back and forth (I dog-ear on the bottom and he dog-ears on the top).


What are you reading these days? I'd love to know.