At the beginning of the year I made a reading list. First it was one spiritual formation book a month, most of which were pulled from Sarah Bessey's annual list. Then I added some social justice type books since those tie in well with my job. Leadership books are good too but I decided for the most part I will listen to a podcast or two each month for those. At this point it was morphing into a spreadsheet, not just a list. And apparently my brain also wanted to throw in some fiction books. Sometimes I read those with Grace at bedtime but I found a few this month at the library in the adult section. I tend to be more picky about what fiction I read, because well, a lot of adult fiction books are just not really appropriate for what I want to put in my brain.
So for January I read:
Spiritual Formation: Invitation to Solitude and Silence by Ruth Haley Brown. I had read some of this over the summer in the one week where I had a bit of down time. Then I returned it to the library. I tried again this month. For me, the first bit of the book is compelling. I tried her practice segments of solitude and silence. I felt like I was in time out. The latter half of the book seems more appropriate for someone who has been able to practice these disciplines and I could not connect. I don't see that it was a problem with the book--I just am not there. I do connect with the need for solitude and do that regularly while running, or at home on my days off, especially while sewing.
Community/social justice: Beating Guns: Hope for People who are Weary of Violence by Shane Claiborne and Michael Martin. Full of stats. Insightful book. This is such a loaded topic (I guess pun intended) that I am not going to say much except that I live in a state that is mostly rural with a strong hunting culture, and just changed the law so that anyone 21 or over can carry a gun without a permit. With rumors of gun restrictions on college campuses as the next target.
Leadership: Divine Direction by Craig Groeschel. This was a "I found this at the library" add. I listen to his Leadership podcasts every month of so, when I'm tired of all that silence while sewing, especially if a title really captures my attention. In the book he outlines 7 disciplines to adopt, small changes to make each year that can have a big impact over the course of a lifetime. Lots of examples and great to read at the start of a new year.
Fiction: Again, two books I picked up at the library--and liked enough after the first few pages to keep reading.
Faithful by Alice Hoffman. As I read this, I remembered that I had read it before. It was long enough ago that the book was a surprise but I would remember bits as I read. I know I picked the book off the shelf both times because of the beautiful blue cover. The cover does matter. The main character rebuilds her life bit by bit after recovering for a horrific car crash, and the ensuing guilt, shame, and depression. I think I like the book because she recovers, bit by bit.
The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri. Beautifully written book and I highly recommend. There is much I don't understand of the history of the Syrian war, which is the backdrop of the story. As I got to the middle of the book, the main characters make it to Istanbul. They post an email, and I'm looking at the dates and have to go see when I went to Istanbul. My brain finally started making some connections from my trip there a few years ago, a trip that included a morning working at a Refugee Center.
And I also read a book with Grace this month. She mentioned they were studying the Andes in Social Studies so I grabbed the biography of Klaus-Dieter John by Janet and Geoff Benge. Along with the tie-in with what she was learning in school, she could connect even more because this is a contemporary biography. We could look online at Diospi Suyana, the hospital he and others built in the Andes.
So for January I read:
Spiritual Formation: Invitation to Solitude and Silence by Ruth Haley Brown. I had read some of this over the summer in the one week where I had a bit of down time. Then I returned it to the library. I tried again this month. For me, the first bit of the book is compelling. I tried her practice segments of solitude and silence. I felt like I was in time out. The latter half of the book seems more appropriate for someone who has been able to practice these disciplines and I could not connect. I don't see that it was a problem with the book--I just am not there. I do connect with the need for solitude and do that regularly while running, or at home on my days off, especially while sewing.
Community/social justice: Beating Guns: Hope for People who are Weary of Violence by Shane Claiborne and Michael Martin. Full of stats. Insightful book. This is such a loaded topic (I guess pun intended) that I am not going to say much except that I live in a state that is mostly rural with a strong hunting culture, and just changed the law so that anyone 21 or over can carry a gun without a permit. With rumors of gun restrictions on college campuses as the next target.
Leadership: Divine Direction by Craig Groeschel. This was a "I found this at the library" add. I listen to his Leadership podcasts every month of so, when I'm tired of all that silence while sewing, especially if a title really captures my attention. In the book he outlines 7 disciplines to adopt, small changes to make each year that can have a big impact over the course of a lifetime. Lots of examples and great to read at the start of a new year.
Fiction: Again, two books I picked up at the library--and liked enough after the first few pages to keep reading.
Faithful by Alice Hoffman. As I read this, I remembered that I had read it before. It was long enough ago that the book was a surprise but I would remember bits as I read. I know I picked the book off the shelf both times because of the beautiful blue cover. The cover does matter. The main character rebuilds her life bit by bit after recovering for a horrific car crash, and the ensuing guilt, shame, and depression. I think I like the book because she recovers, bit by bit.
The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri. Beautifully written book and I highly recommend. There is much I don't understand of the history of the Syrian war, which is the backdrop of the story. As I got to the middle of the book, the main characters make it to Istanbul. They post an email, and I'm looking at the dates and have to go see when I went to Istanbul. My brain finally started making some connections from my trip there a few years ago, a trip that included a morning working at a Refugee Center.
And I also read a book with Grace this month. She mentioned they were studying the Andes in Social Studies so I grabbed the biography of Klaus-Dieter John by Janet and Geoff Benge. Along with the tie-in with what she was learning in school, she could connect even more because this is a contemporary biography. We could look online at Diospi Suyana, the hospital he and others built in the Andes.
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