Every month I try to read at least one book from the following categories: nonfiction, devotional, and fiction. And this year I’m participating in the 2017 Modern Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenges, so I’m also going to be listing which category my books fulfill. If you want to join in on the fun, you can check out the list of categories here! This is What I Read in February 2017, my brief book recommendations and reviews. Hopefully I’ll provide you with some inspiration for your future reading as well!
Books Finished:
The Family: A Journey into the Heart of the Twentieth Century
2017 MMD Reading for Growth Challenge: an immigrant story
This is the story of three branches of a Jewish family originally from an area that was part of Russia/Poland/Germany at various times. One branch remains in the area during the Holocaust; another moves to Palestine and are settlers of Israel; and a third moves to America and founds the Maiden Form Bra Company (among other ventures). The writing is solid and kept me extremely interested in the story. Although the names were a bit tricky for me (think the difficulty of keeping people straight in Russian literature), there was a family tree at the beginning that helped immensely.
The Music Lesson
I really enjoyed this short little book written by a woman who teaches fiction writing at Yale. It was extremely well written, and very tight without wasted words or extraneous materials. It is the story of a Vermeer stolen by an IRA splinter group, and an art historian/research librarian who gets mixed up in the plot. I would recommend it.
Social Media Marketing
I picked this book (or rather three books in one) out on Amazon, because I was hoping for some tips to better promote Luggage and Literature and my law office on social media. This was a real beginner guide, things that I’ve been doing for quite some time, so it wasn’t terribly helpful. But if you were brand new, this might be good for you. There were a few typos in it, which drives me nuts.
THE ENDLESS JOURNEY: 50 YEARS OF PINK FLOYD
I received two credits from IHG toward Kindle Singles and picked out this one (in addition to The Syrian Tragedy that I talked about last month). Lately I have found that I sort of enjoy memoirs and biographies about bands and musicians. I liked this one, and it even got me started listening to a bit more Pink Floyd. I’d listened to their music before, mostly on the radio, but never full albums. Their music is simply weird and wonderful. And this is a great book all about the band.
Number the Stars
2017 MMD Reading for Growth Challenge: a Newberry Award winner or Honor book
I really love Lowry’s books, but have only really started reading them as an adult, which is strange for books geared more toward children. The Giver was amazing. I’d had Number the Stars in my wish list for quite some time, and read it this month due to Amazon’s newest program, Prime Reading. With Prime Reading, there are a whole host of books that can be downloaded for free, and this was one of them. So it was a perfect opportunity to read it.
This book is about two little girls who are best friends in Denmark at the beginning of World War I. Germany has occupied Denmark, and is beginning to persecute the Jews, including the family of one of the girls. This book looks at friendship, bravery, and doing what is right even when it is difficult. I recommend this book for readers of all ages.
Travel Writing
Another free download from Prime Reading that I’ve been meaning to get to for a long time, this book is helpful to writers in finding a unique voice about subject matter that’s been extensively covered already. It gives me hope that I too can tell a new story about old subject matter. But it also showed me that I need to focus more on creating a story, rather than just a bunch of information about the places I visit. So, be prepared if you see a few essays on the blog from time to time. 😉
Books in Progress:
The Broken Way: A Daring Path into the Abundant Life
A Tale of Love and Darkness
Books Abandoned:
None.