2011 Reads Update

It's Memorial Day weekend and we are nearing the half way point of the year.  With only a few weeks to go, I decided it was in my best interest to evaluate my reading progress and see what I need to do to maintain momentum.  That last sentence is code for "look at the list of books I was supposed to have read and have not and cram as many of them into the next four weeks as possible". 
 In my defense however (you knew that was coming), I have read books.  But like everything else in life, I've been distracted from my goal.  This is the result of a few things.  Number 1:  My children still live with me.  This will be the excuse I use for the next 12-16 years.  It is valid.  Get used to hearing it. Number 2:  My dear husband, after dealing with his inevitable remorse for the "You're not a reader" comment, did in fact buy me a Kindle for my birthday.  I am happy to say that I love it and use it often!  However, it posed a problem I didn't anticipate.  I now feel guilty reading anything other than my Kindle for fear that he will assume I'm not interested in it anymore and revert back to his previous opinion regarding my affection, or the lack thereof,  for literature.  Furthermore, I cannot bring myself to purchase Kindle books that I have sitting on my shelf.  Number 3?  Evidently I have guilt issues.  This is a topic for another time.


All that being said, I am happy to report that I have finished the following books:
Stuff Christians Like by Jon Acuff (frighteningly accurate, but did make me laugh out loud on more than one occasion)
Crazy Love by Francis Chan (not funny in any way, shape, or form, but completely alters the way you look at your relationship with God and will challenge you to change the way your faith looks to others)
So Long Insecurity by Beth Moore (about 1/3 of the way through this one- Wow!  Dealing with some issues I never knew I had and some I did.  Tough stuff)


I've also begun  reading Extravagant Worship by Darlene Zschech, which is on my original list and am working my way through Fearless by Max Lucado.   I'll tell ya, it's not like tackling J.I. Packer or Charles Spurgeon, but that's some heavy reading right there.  I think I'm going to need to take a break from the soul-searching next and read Calvin and Hobbes or something equally mindless.

Short-term goal?  To finish So Long, Insecurity and Extravagant Worship by the mid-year point.  Which means, it's time to get off the computer, grab a cup of coffee and get reading!

2011 Reads

I was informed yesterday that my husband was going to buy me a Kindle for Christmas until he realized, and I quote, I'm "not really a reader". The words unintentionally cut me to the core and I've been in a self-induced funk ever since. Why? I LOVE to read. I admit, I don't always run to it the first chance I get. But, those of you who are mothers can attest to the fact that free time is a precious commodity and is often spent seeking pleasure other ways- like showering. The truth of the matter is that I don't have a lot of time for myself but I'm convinced that I can make some progress in this area this year and convince my family (namely my husband) that I am in fact a READER.

So, here we go again! It's time to scour the shelves of our personal library and decide which books I want to attempt to read this year. I must admit, I didn't accomplish what I set out to in 2010, but my list did help me to focus on a few particular books instead of staring blankly at shelves lined with them until I was completely overwhelmed and reverted to playing "Angry Birds" on my phone. I must also add that I did read a couple books that were not on my list originally.

My 2011 Reads are as follows-

• The Lord of the Rings Trilogy- J.R.R. Tolkien
• Extravagant Worship- Darlene Zschech
• The Sacred Echo- Margaret Feinberg
• More Letters from Pemberley- Jane Dawkins
• Before Green Gables- Budge Wilson
• Sizzling Sixteen- Janet Evanovich (this series is my guilty pleasure. I read the first 12 books in 2 months, when I had one child. I have now owned this book six months and have manged to get through 3 chapters)

This list is much more concise than last year's. This is largely due to the fact that, in the past 12 months, I've gotten a healthy dose of reality and have learned that I'll feel much more accomplished if I set the bar a tad lower. Ultimately, it is because I have promised my husband that I will begin the year with Tolkien (since he's been reappearing on my list for quite some time now) and, having not read these books since high school, I am anticipating that I'll need about 8 months to get through all three of them. That's being optimisitc.

Happy reading!