What I’ve Read So Far This Year: January-June

I find it helpful to see what other people are reading, so I thought I would share this here in the hope it inspires you to pick up a book this week and read. As with any reading list, remember not to try to replicate someone else’s list; your tastes are going to be different than mine sometimes, and it’s good to practice discernment as a reader as you consider what books are good fits for you. Read through the following and see if there’s a couple that intrigue you and start there. Rereads are denoted by an asterisk*.

1. Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux: This was our first book club read of the year, and it was so good! I’ve been a long-time fan of the musical, but I was still surprised by how much I liked this. Gaston Leroux was considered the French counterpart of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, and wrote from a police investigator background. Be sure to do some research online after reading this; you can absolutely go down the rabbit hole with all of the weirdly interesting facts it was based on (and find yourself wondering how much of it is actually true!).

2. *Journal Me Organized by Rebecca Spooner: This was a quick read to help me plan out bullet journaling, a new hobby I’ve taken up this year.

3. *A Lovely Life by Melissa Michaels: I love reading physical home decor books (as opposed to the Kindle version) because they’re just so pretty and because they always help me get excited about reading if I’m struggling to finish a book. I don’t spend a lot of time on home decor because I honestly don’t enjoy things like painting walls and arranging gallery walls, but I do like to bring seasonal touches to our home. This book is a great starting point if you want your home to reflect the seasons.

4. A Deep Divide by Kimberley Woodhouse: The first in the Secrets of the Canyon series, this was a sweet story of a young woman who has been in hiding working as a Harvey girl to escape a troubled and dangerous past. She finds herself at the new Harvey resort at the Grand Canyon and decides to stop living under an assumed identity, only to find the past catching up with her.

5. The Lazy Genius Kitchen by Kendra Adachi: This book is truly one of a kind. Not a cookbook, this walks you through how to determine what matters most to you in your kitchen and then find solutions to whatever’s getting in the way of it. If you find yourself struggling in the kitchen, this is a great resource, no matter what your particular struggle is.

6. Teaching From Rest by Sarah Mackenzie: Sarah Mackenzie is hands-down my favorite homeschool author and podcaster. If you’ve been homeschooling for any amount of time and find yourself struggling with overwhelm, you need this book! I love Sarah’s heart as she shares her own experiences, both the good and the bad, and gives practical solutions to bring peace to your homeschool.

7. *Welcome Home by Myquillyn Smith: Another seasonal home decor book, I love the ideas for creating a home that reflects the seasons through not only sight, but all the senses. I come back to this book each season for a refresher as I consider how to bring our home into the next season.

8. Celebrate Every Season by Six Sisters Stuff: I have several of the sisters’ cookbooks and enjoy all of them. This one is divided up by month and has ideas for recipes and activities for either specific holidays or seasonal events.

9. 1000 Hours Outside by Ginny Yurich: Another quick read, this has ideas divided up by season to get your kids outside. Our family LOVES nature study, but I sometimes have a hard time finding things to get us outside that aren’t too time-consuming or complicated. Ginny’s ideas are easy to implement and most can be done with simple household items. A special note to those of you who deal with long winters like we do: There are SO many ideas in here for playing in the snow! I’m planning to pull this out around mid-January next year when we hit that “I’m so sick of the snow” phase and do a couple a week to keep us getting outside.

10. Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White: White’s newest novel is a split-time world war story. I love that she wove into it bits from all her other series, as well.

11. The Number of Love by Roseanna M. White: Reading Yesterday’s Tides led me to read some of White’s other series I hadn’t read yet, including the Codebreakers series, of which this is the first. To me this book takes the medal for the most compelling and unique characters I’ve ever read about. Margot De Wilde, the main character, is a genius codebreaker who basically sees life in numbers (she even prays in numbers!). The theme of numbers is woven through the book in a really cool way, too.

12. *A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens: Another book club read, this book so moved me to tears that my 3-year-old asked me “Mommy, what’s wrong?” when she saw me sobbing through the ending. A beautiful story of redemption with the theme of resurrection tied throughout, I think this might be my favorite of all of Dickens’ works.

13. A Gem of Truth by Kimberley Woodhouse: The second in the Secrets of the Canyon series, this is the story of Julia who has spent her whole life making up elaborate lies because she is ashamed of her past. She comes to the Grand Canyon as a Harvey girl and is anxious for a fresh start, but fears her past will catch up with her again.

14. A Mark of Grace by Kimberley Woodhouse: The final in the Secrets of the Canyon series, this is the story of Ruth Anniston who is attacked by a mountain lion and wrestles with her feelings over how her appearance is altered.

15. Trim Healthy Indulgence by Esther Allison: I love all the cookbooks written by trim healthy mamas Serene Allison and Pearl Barrett, and this new one by Serene’s daughter-in-law looks awesome, although I have not made any recipes from it yet. If you’re looking for a healthy twist on baking and cake decorating, this is it.

16. *100 Days of Adventure by Greta Eskridge: A quick read with great ideas to help your family get out of your comfort zone. I like to look back through this when planning a new school year and see if there’s any ideas I want to incorporate, and my kids love looking through it and getting ideas, too.

17. The Time-Saving Mom by Crystal Paine: While I don’t ever see myself implementing Crystal’s full time management system, I definitely think there are lots of great ideas in here to make the most of your time and live out your priorities.

18. *When Less Becomes More by Emily Ley: If you’re finding yourself caught up in the craziness and busyness of life, this book is an excellent reminder to slow down and focus on what’s most important. This is less practical than Emily’s other books (like A Simplified Life and Grace, Not Perfection) and is more focused on the ideas behind living intentionally.

19. *Trim Healthy Mama Plan Book by Serene Allison and Pearl Barrett: I’m hoping to take some steps with eating healthy this year, so I read this as a refresher of the Trim Healthy Mama plan.

20. On Wings of Devotion by Roseanna M. White: The second in the Codebreakers series, I enjoyed this story of a nurse and Royal Air Force pilot during World War I.

21. A Portrait Of Loyalty by Roseanna M. White: The final book in the Codebreakers series, I read this in less than 24 hours and stayed up WAY past my bedtime to finish it! This book was interesting in that it addressed some of the effects of World War I I hadn’t thought about, particularly as it pertained to Russia, and it was interesting to see how some of the beliefs held at the time have trickled down and influenced our current culture (there were actually a lot of feminist roots in the rebellion in Russia).

22. A Name Unknown by Roseanna M. White: This is the first in her Shadows Over England series, which comes before the Codebreakers series (so I actually read them backwards, like a prequel!). Rosemary Gresham (a part of London’s most “talented” family of thieves) goes undercover as a librarian to work for Peter Holstein and try to steal from him. This was such a good story of the power of words to fight against prejudice.

23. An Hour Unspent by Roseanna M. White: This is the third in Shadows Over England (and if you’re paying attention you’ll notice I didn’t read the second in the series; I started it and just couldn’t get into the story, so I skipped ahead and this story still made complete sense). This is about Barclay Pierce (Rosemary’s adopted brother) and follows him after he’s turned from his life of crime.

24. A Lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting by Sophie Irwin: This might be the funniest book I’ve read this year. Irwin writes with the same wit as Jane Austen, and this was also set during the Regency time period like Austen’s works. A light-hearted rom-com, I recommend saving this for a day when you need a pick-me-up (I read it when I was sick).

25. *Plan Your Year by Pam Barnhill: I reread this every year before I start homeschool planning. This is a great resource for helping you think through all the moving pieces of your homeschool ahead of time, but I wouldn’t actually recommend it for first-time homeschoolers, as I think it might be a little overwhelming.

26. *Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: Rereading this this year sparked the idea for this blog. I first read this in elementary, and, of course, I loved it then; but rereading it now as a mom I found myself paying more attention to Marmee and how she guides her daughters through the different challenges of growing up and later adulthood. My prayer is that I could have the same heart for my children that Marmee did for hers.

27. *Cozy White Cottage Seasons by Liz Marie Galvan: Another seasonal home decor book with lots of beautiful pictures, but if I’m being honest I’ve yet to implement anything from this book as it’s a little more involved than what I usually enjoy. But I still find it inspiring as I think about how to create a beautiful, welcoming home for my family and anyone who comes through my doors.

28. *Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: Last year our book club read Persuasion and it made me realize how long it had been since I had read any Austen (I read all her books in high school!).If you somehow haven’t read Pride and Prejudice yet, then start here for your next book! And if you watch the movie, PLEASE watch the 6-hour BBC version, I promise it’s worth it!

29. The Awakening of Miss Prim by Natalia SanMartin Fenollera: I read this on a recommendation from Book Girl by Sarah Clarkson and absolutely loved it! Miss Prim is a librarian (I have actually read a lot of books by librarians this year, which was unplanned but also really fun) who goes to work in the village of San Ireneo de Arnois, a town where various people have gone to escape the hustle and bustle of modern city life. I loved this book for so many reasons: 1) The old-fashioned air of San Ireneo; 2) The interactions between the townsfolk that so reminded me of growing up in a small, country town; 3) the allusions to the importance of liberal arts in education and the unique combination of homeschooling and public schooling the town uses; 4) even the fact that Miss Prim’s employer never gets a name in the whole book but is always referred to as “The Man In the Wing Back Chair.” Definitely one of my favorite books read so far this year!

30. The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin: Martin quickly rose to fame two years ago with her novel The Last Bookshop In London (which is one of my favorites), but I really liked this release from last year, too. I will add a word of caution that this is much more intense than The Last Bookshop was, some might even say a little gruesome, but I still really enjoyed it and thought it gave a realistic picture of what life in France during the German occupation would have been like.

31. The Bridge to Belle Island by Julie Klassen: Klassen writes Regency-era Christian romance/mysteries. This one is about Isabelle, a young woman who refuses to leave her family’s home on Belle Island because she believes a curse is on any of her family who does leave.

32. *Better Together by Pam Barnhill: Another good reread for homeschool planning time; I like to get ideas from this to add to or change up our morning time. Morning time has been a HUGE part of our homeschool for all three years we’ve been homeschooling, and it continues to be our favorite way to start our homeschool day, enjoy great books, and learn about a variety of subjects as a family.

33. *Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen: Another Austen reread; this is probably my favorite of all her books. I love the character growth you see in both sisters and the importance of their bond.

34. Rooted In Wonder by Erin Lynum: This has been one of my favorite nonfiction reads this year. I saw it recommended by a homeschool blogger and picked it up thinking it would give us more ideas for nature study but was surprised by how deep it was and how rich the theology was in it. Lynum writes on the premise that as parents we should be using nature to point our kids to God and His Word. She had a lot of points that I’ve never considered in the “God and nature” discussion, and I found myself reading out whole pages to my husband to discuss.

35. The Heart’s Choice by Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse: This was a fun historical fiction read since it’s set only four hours from my home in Montana. I enjoyed reading about an area that we visited when we went to Glacier National Park as a family last year, and it made me excited to visit Kalispell (where the book takes place) again.

36. *Rainbow Valley by L. M. Montgomery: I started rereading the Anne series last year but only got through book 6 (Anne of Ingleside), so I picked back up this year with the next in the series. When I read the books as a kid I actually didn’t love this title that much because it isn’t really about Anne’s family like the other books are, but rereading it as an adult I loved this story of the local pastor’s kids (and was struck by how good of a job Montgomery did writing about the realities of ministry life, which shouldn’t be surprising since she was a pastor wife herself).

37. Wild and Free Book Club by Ainsley Arment: I love all the Wild and Free books and this was no different. If you’re looking for ideas to enjoy some great stories with your kids along with hands-on activities based on the books (done with others in a book club format or this could easily be adapted to do with just your family), this is a quick read that will be sure to spark inspiration for you.

38. *Rilla of Ingleside by L. M. Montgomery: I felt like I had a completely new perspective rereading this after reading so much World War fiction the last two years. Rilla is the youngest of Anne’s children and one that I honestly don’t enjoy reading about UNTIL this book (she’s pretty spoiled in the other stories). This is a charming coming-of-age story that we can all recognize ourselves in, and the strength and kindness Rilla shows as her world crumbles around her is sure to move you. We also see a different side of Anne in this story as she wrestles with the painful realities of war and yet keeps moving forward for the sake of her family. Warning: keep your tissues close by!

39. *Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery: I was still in the mood for more Montgomery novels after finishing the Anne series, so this was another fun reread from my childhood. If you liked reading about Anne Shirley, you’ll definitely like this, too.

40. *Emma by Jane Austen: I was first introduced to this tale through the movie version starring Gwyneth Paltrow, and I was so obsessed with it as a kid that I literally rented it from our local gas station anytime I could (and I eventually bought their copy when they decided to stop carrying it!). I think most of us have been failed by our pride at some point in time like Emma, and I love the humility she shows in the end as she recognizes her mistakes. I also think Austen’s wit is probably best shown in this book, and it feels much lighter than her other ones.

41. Fairest of Heart by Karen Witemeyer: This was a super fun retelling of the Snow White fairytale set in Texas, complete with retired cowhands as the seven dwarfs, a Texas ranger as the prince, and a traveling actress as the evil queen. As a child of the ‘90s who grew up watching the Disney version of Snow White, I loved all the small things Witemeyer included that pointed back to that particular version.

42. Create Anyway by Ashlee Gadd: I cannot say enough good things about this book! Gadd is a beautiful storyteller who weaves her real-life experiences as a mom into each chapter and connects them to creative ideas, while still giving practical suggestions to help all moms find their own inner creativity. Even if you don’t consider yourself a creative person, I highly recommend you read this.

43. The Letter From Briarton Park by Sarah E. Ladd: This is the first book I’ve read by Ladd and it was so-so. I felt like it started off a lot slower than I expected, but for some reason I kept reading it, maybe because I was in the mood for a light read. The ending did have an unexpected twist that surprised me.

44. The Girl In the Gatehouse by Julie Klassen: This is an older Klassen book I’d never read, but I really enjoyed it. Lots of good literary references and I enjoyed learning about what it would have been like to be a female author at the time of Jane Austen.

45. My Money, My Way by Kumiko Love: This was very different from any other finance book I’ve read (which, let’s be real, isn't a lot because it’s just way more fun to read pretty much anything else than finance books!). I liked her approachable style and that she shared her own struggles along the way of her finance journey, and I didn’t feel like she was “talking down to me” like I sometimes feel with other finance experts. Lots of good strategies to help you win with money, and I’m excited to start using her Budget By Paycheck workbook.

There you have it! If you enjoyed this, be sure to check back at the end of September; I think I’ll share my reading updates quarterly moving forward.