As far as I’m concerned, there’s never a bad time to read, but I especially love spring reading here in Idaho. The weather is still cold outside but things are starting to come back to life and I love sitting near a window, soaking up sunshine from the warmth of my house, with a good book in my lap. Here are some of my favorite recent reads for your spring reading list!
WIDOWISH
by Melissa Gould
Get ready for a cry-fest of a memoir from a young widow who loses the love of her life, leaving her as an only parent and widow in her mid-forties. While dealing with her horrible loss, she also has to manage navigating a world where most widows are 30 years her senior and the challenges that poses to her own mental health and the available resources to help her heal. While there were loads of tears in this reading, there is so much power, joy, healing, community, family, friendship, and bonding and it’s ultimately an uplifting and satisfying read. It’s a timely reminder that nothing is guaranteed, we should live each day like it’s our last, and remember that we are stronger than we ever know.
Yeah, No. Not happening: How I Found Happiness Swearing Off Self-Improvement and Saying F*ck it All – And How You Can Too
by Karen Karbo
Chock full of LOL moments and legit science, this was an engaging read I could not put down. Like lots of women these days, I’m ever chasing my best self, whoever she is. I don’t even know how I’ll know her when I find her, and that’s kind of Karbo’s point. The author doesn’t want us to stop pursuing our ultimate awesomeness, but she does want us to get clear on what WE want versus what the world is telling us we should want. So if 5 a.m. mediation makes you feel like you can conquer the world before anyone is even out of bed, go ahead, sister! But if you’re peeling yourself out of bed in the dark in order to meditate because that’s what all the “successful” people do, that’s the time to say yeah, no, not happening. It was a refreshing reminder that falling behind on our to-do lists of things we have to do to be the best possible women we can be, is actually more detrimental than NOT having a to-do list for self-improvement. She brought clarity and levity to a topic that’s begun feeling a bit weighty to me, and I have been recommending this book non-stop since I finished!
The Girl Before
by Rena Olsen
Woooooo, do I love a good psychological thriller and this was an unusual one. There are no chapters, just sections that alternate between past and present as you get to know the narrator, Clara. Clara thinks she’s part of a normal family with a husband and their daughters until the day that armed men storm in, arrest her husband, remove the girls, and place Clara in protective custody. She comes to learn that the life she’s been living isn’t at all what she thought it was. Her journey of discovery, probing her past and confronting her present, is riveting and page-turning. You’ll be tempted to judge her and pity her in equal measure. A very compelling read!
The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho
This is a classic book I’d heard of a million times but never got around to reading until recently. It’s a short and easy read, but it’s a powerhouse of poetic language and simple lessons packed into a small package. The story follows a young man who dreams of travel and treasure. As he explores the world, he learns lessons and finds riches different than he could have ever imagined, and he finds satisfaction and wisdom as he learns to listen to his heart. It’s an old-fashioned fable that is still perfectly applicable to the present day.
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