Sunday, January 7, 2018

My Reading List

How do you define an “avid” reader? Because I tend to hang out on planes and in hotel rooms, I always have a few books on the Kindle (which, thanks to the free Kindle apps, I can read on my phone and IPad as well as that handy little e-reader) and maybe a physical book in hand. When I’m home, I tend to go the other way – more books, less electronics. I always have several in progress as well as in the queue and as an average read between 10 and 20 books each month, more when travelling, less when home.

Several of my friends are involved in various book clubs and we often discuss what we are reading. I wrapped up the year by reading Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson – even though it weighed a ton when I took it to Cabo San Lucas on vacation last month, it was totally worth buying it in hardback for the beauty of the illustrations and artwork. I sort of justify buying a hardback/paperback because I pass them on to at least one person before dropping them off at a local used book store.


This is my “for now” stack – Dan and I are doing the Whole 30 this month (not an easy dietary task as those of you who have tried it know!) It’s a detox after all the excesses of the holidays. No dairy, no grains, no sugar, no alcohol (I miss my wine!), just real foods for a month. I can do this! So Whole 30 Day by Day is a chapter a day encouragement, recognition of the difficulties and coaching to get you through this. The concept behind a Whole 30 is to pare it down to only real foods, then after a month reintroduce food groups gradually so you can see how your body responds to them and pinpoint trouble areas. So, every day I read a bit .

Mark Manson’s The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck – my friend Andrea facilitates a book club that meets monthly at her Corrective Chiropractic office in Calabasas CA and this is the book she has chosen for next week’s meeting. I raced through it, gave it to Dan to read and plan to read it again so that I can mark it up. I tend to highlight and dog ear pages in this type of book and I didn’t want to call Dan’s attention to what resonated with me. I wanted him to approach the book through his own life filter. There is, obviously, language, so if you are offended by four letter words, you might want to skip this one.

The Queen’s Fool by Philippa Gregory is my “bathtub” book. After a long day, I love a soak in a hot bath with something fictiony and a little on the light side; I know some people take their Kindle into the bath, but dropping it would be an expensive oops, so I don’t. Plus there is a lot of info around that one sleeps better without electronica at the end of the day. Gregory is known for her historical fiction, most of it centered on the Tudors. The Other Boleyn Girl was probably the first of her books that I read, and I’ve read a few since because I really like her writing style. This one focuses on the reigns of Henry VIII’s children, most notably Mary, the daughter of Catherine, Henry’s first wife. These novels are written from the point of view of an observer of the court and are quite engaging.

What’s on my Kindle?


I usually have one book on my Kindle and another on an app that I can read interchangeably (and seamlessly – thank you, Amazon!) on my phone and IPad when I have down time somewhere.  On my Kindle right now, I am reading Ashes Reborn – it’s a “junk” novel of no value whatsoever except enjoyment! Great series where the central characters are Phoenixes (think rebirth amid many flames) – there are also Fae, vampires, werewolves and a bunch of other supernaturals.  Fun series!




This is what I’m reading on my phone. It’s an autobiographical romp by Shonda Rhimes – this is what the book description says: “The mega-talented creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal and executive producer of How to Get Away With Murder chronicles how saying YES for one year changed her life―and how it can change yours, too.” She has a great sense of humor and it is a fun read!

I’m always looking for new things to read, so what are you reading? What have you read and loved and recommend? Do tell!


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