I finished Quarter 1 with 14, so here goes:
Actual Books:
15. Percy Jackson and the Olympians 4
16. Percy Jackson and the Olympians 5-- read these aloud to the boys before bed, 10 pages at a turn. It took us nearly all school year to get through this series, but I think the boys liked it! Onto either the next Rick Riordan set or maybe Harry Potter?
17. Bellevue: Three centuries of medicine and mayhem at America's most storied hospital, David Oshinsky
18. Essentialism: the disciplined pursuit of less, Greg McKeown-- I thought this was going to fit into my de-cluttering reading theme, but instead it was a 20-something business person mansplaining how you need to decide what's really important for you and then saying no to any and all other offers in your workplace. And I thought... that's really great, if you're financially stable, but for most people that simply isn't an option and your whole book is awfully presumptuous
19. The year of cozy: 125 recipes, crafts, and other homemade adventures, Adrianna Adarma-- an example of why a successful blogger shouldn't necessarily write an actual book. Trite and of little substance. I only got a few ideas from this, not a lot I could or wanted to implement in my own life. (That sounds really negative, but I guess not all books can be life-changing, right?)
20. The midwife, Jolina Petersham-- semi-religious fiction about midwifery practice to the Amish (although she calls them Mennonite?) with shame-filled adoption and gestational surrogacy stories.
21. Being mortal: medicine and what matters in the end, Atul Gawande-- Discussing healthcare practice at the end of life and what people REALLY want, which is to spend their last moments in peace with their families, ideally at home, not hooked up to a ventilator and trying half-assed, dangerous, unhelpful remedies to eke out a few more minutes. An eye-opener about what I want and what I need to make clear to my family and in my living will
22. Doctored: the disillusionment of the American physician, Sandeep Jauhar-- Another good one about the state and practice of medicine in a for-profit healthcare system which prioritizes money over actual care. Came off as a little whiny because why else become a doctor except for the paycheck and prestige, but Dr. Jauhar had some really good points to make.
23. Wrapped in rainbows: the life of Zora Neale Hurston, Valerie Boyd-- because I was listening to the audiobook, below
24. Dietland, Sarai Walker-- cannot recommend this one enough! I didn't want it to end. AMAZING
25. Ready, player one, Ernest Cline-- good, video-game, fast-paced read
26. Hatchet, Gary Paulsen-- I got this from the library for Ben to read, but wanted to go through it myself before he did to make sure it would be ok. I think he'll be a little scared at the beginning, but the rest will right up his alley
27. Barracoon: the story of the last "black cargo", Zora Neale Hurston-- both the biography and the audiobook were checked out in response to this book, which came up on a recommended list. And I can't recommend it enough! So, so good and so necessary to read!
28. Birthing From Within; Pam England and Rob Horowitz
29. Secret Ceremonies: A Mormon woman's intimate diary of marriage and beyond; Deborah Laake
Audio books:
30. Improvement, Joan Silber-- an ok audiobook written from several POV, circling around a story of of two women who experience love in various forms
31. Yesterday, Felicia Yap-- a murder mystery about an alternate universe where people retain either one day's worth of memories or two... How will they every solve the crime?
32. The Little Book of Hygge: Danish secrets to Happy , Meik Wiking-- gave me some ideas on how to up the cozy factor around the holidays, and insight into some Danish culture
33. Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore: A novel, Matthew Sullivant-- a suicide at a bookstore leads a young woman to look back on her traumatic childhood
34. City of the Lost, Kelley Armstrong-- what if you wanted to disappear, off the grid? What if the off-grid town harbored a murderer?
35. Their eyes were watching God, Zora Neale Hurston-- I really liked this story of a woman who won't settle for anything less than what she wants in life and love and it was impressive that it was written so early in the 20th century, when the feminine role was so rigid. The description of the hurricane washing into the Everglades was incredible!
36. The lovely bones, Alice Sebold-- PBS is sponsoring a "Great American Read" for summer 2018, and this was on the list of 100 recommended books. I'm not sure who made up the list, because the 50 Shades of Gray trilogy is on there too, but I thought I'd work through what I could work through during the heat.
E-books:
37. Leaving the Saints: How I lost the Mormons and Found my Faith, Martha Beck
In 2017, my Quarter 2 reading list brought me up to 25 total. Obviously, listening to the audiobooks during my commutes is increasing my total this year!
In 2016, my Quarter 2 reading list was at 17 total. I'm at double that this year, wow!