my 2013 reading list

This fall, Stella read a book to me, cover to cover. Each turn of the page proved to be a fascinating experiment in watching her “try” turn into “can.” Sincerely surprised herself, she closed the book and asked, “Can I read it to Daddy?” Wiping the tears from my cheeks. Of course, of course. Then, excitement not subdued, “Can I read it to Eli?” As I wrestled the little man from the beginnings of his slumber and laid him next to his sister, I continued weeping. Again, again, again. More, more, more. Just one more book. Could be my life’s motto. Some of my most cherished memories as a child are roller skating up and down our thirty foot wooden hallway tearing through the pages of Nancy Drew and Beverly Cleary and Judy Blume and Sweet Valley High and the Babysitters Club and anything I could get my hands on! Those stories drew me in, gave my imagination a place to play.

In dark times in my life and bright times in my life, I have always found refuge in books. Fiction, non-fiction, historical fiction, self-help, spiritual, biblical, biographies. I want to read it all. With a little spot of empathy, books allow you to become anyone: you can rescue someone you love, shoot the game winning shot, discover if you believe in absolute truth, be crowned the Queen of England or fall in love. And that moment with Stella bore in my heart a hope for a shared love for books, for stories, for words.

Ann Lamott says in Bird by Bird:

“For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you. Books help us understand who we are and how we are to behave. They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die.”

I love looking back on the year and seeing what I read so I made a list here of the books I can remember reading in 2013. I delighted in each one but if you want my recommendation on just a few, start with Wonder, then head over to The Only Necessary Thing which you could also just read a bit of each day, and then when you’re ready for a little excitement, join Bob Goff on the journey of Love Does. And finally, if you really want to get wrapped up in ideas, then you must read Ben Zander’s The Art of Possibility. I can’t wait to hear what you think! What would you recommend go on my reading list for 2014?

The Art of Possibility -by Benjamin Zander & Rosamund Stone Zander

Bittersweet - by Shauna Niequest

Chasing Daylight - by Gene O’Kelly

The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World - by Lewis Hyde

Gone Girl - by Gillian Flynn

Heart of Palm - by Laura Lee Smith

Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers - by Anne Lamott

How to Talk so Kids Will Listen and How to Listen So Kids Will Talk - by Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish

Joker One: A Marine Platoon’s Story of Courage, Leadership and Brotherhood - by Donovan Campbell

Love Does - by Bob Goff

Manage Your Day-to-Day: Build Your Routine, Find your Focus and Sharpen your Creative Mind - by Jocelyn K. Glei

One Thousand Gifts - by Ann Voskamp