What I'm Into (March and April rolled into one!)
I completely missed doing one of these posts in March, and by the time I had a moment to write the post, it was mid-April.
So then I decided that it just made more sense to wait and do two months rolled into one.
What I Read
The BFG
My kids have all read (and loved) this Roald Dahl book, but I'd never read it (though I always loved many of Dahl's other books). When we heard that a BFG movie was coming, Mr. FG and I decided that we needed to read the book.
So, now I'm all ready for the movie.
So You've Been Publicly Shamed
A look at the way shaming works in our internet culture. It made me realize that it's kind of a double-edged sword, the way the internet allows us to be a horde of shamers. Sometimes, this ability can be used for good, but other times, we end up villifying people over things that really aren't that big of a deal.
The internet is such an enabling platform for our self-righteous rage.
The Light Between Oceans
I thought this was a really well-written novel.
And by that I mean that when you read it, you end up thinking very little about how well the story was written. I think that's the sign of a good writer. They're so skilled, you barely notice while you're reading!
Big Little Lies
I felt the same way about this book...the writing makes you get caught right up into the story. It's kind of a heavy story (thought with lots of lighthearted bits woven in), and domestic abuse is part of the storyline, so, fair warning there.
The Secret Keeper
I wasn't nearly as big a fan of this novel, largely because the writing just seemed forced. I felt like I was reading a novel on the level of something that I could write.
(And since I'm not a fiction writer, that's the opposite of a compliment.)
I finished it, but I'm not remotely inclined to check out more books by the author.
(Want to know something hilarious? I heard Anne Bogel recommend The Secret Keeper on her podcast, so I checked this out and the whole time I was reading it, I thought, "Wow, it is SO weird that Anne likes this book." And now I've realized she recommended a different book by the same name. Ha. The correct one is now on hold at the library and I have much higher hopes for that one.)
Daring Greatly
I've read this before, but I really thought I needed a re-read. I remember feeling like Brene's message hit me last time, but this time around, I was in a better place to accurately see myself in her writing.
Auggie and Me
This is a companion book to Wonder, which I wrote about a while back. I love how the author transforms her writing style so that you really do feel like you're hearing from a kid.
Of note: I'm not sure if I'm still supposed to hate Julian's parents after reading this, but I kind of do. Geez.
What I Watched
Nothin'. Pretty sure I haven't watched any TV/movies in the last two months.
What I Listened To
Well. I listened to an episode of Anne Bogel's What Should I Read Next podcast, which is why I checked out several of the books in the What I Read portion of this post.
Anne's podcast is a great place to get book ideas, although I don't think I will ever have enough time to read all the books she recommends! Just a podcast or two keeps me busy for a while.
I've also been intermittently listening to music by Peter Hollens. He does some neat a capella songs, and I really dig his version of Loch Lomond.
Also, Joshua's taking Music Appreciation this semester, which means the classical radio station has been on in the car a lot more. As a result, we've discovered that Frederick Delius' Florida Suite is pretty awesome, especially Daybreak.
Goal Updates
To recap, so far this year I've wanted to:
- Cook once a month with each one of my kids (January)
- Stretch 5 days a week (February)
- Track my time every week day (March)
I didn't do a goal post at the end of March, so April is rather forlornly sitting there with no goal.
But it's just as well, because I'm still having trouble keeping up with the first three goals for this year!
So, for May, I don't think I'm going to add a new goal; I'm just going to try to actually complete my first three goal for a month. 😉
To help me with the cooking goal, I'm going to plan a month of meals at the beginning of May and pencil in a kid-cooking session each week. If I write it down, I'm more likely to do it.
To help me with the stretching goal, I'm printing out the May calendar from Craft Street and taping it to my bedroom wall. My stretching mat is in my bedroom, so having the goal calendar taped to my office wall wasn't working. I'd see it and then completely forget about it by the time I got into the bedroom.
To help me with the time-tracking, I'm going to lay out a paper and pen each night before I go to bed. That way I won't have to remember in the morning.
I'll report back at the end of May to let you know if my new strategies helped me or not.
And that wraps up this two-month edition of What I'm Into!
Bravo for having a couple of productive months! I'm still trying to make the time to read more. This month I've been able to read three books (rented from the library, of course), but I hope to increase that number. I really liked a book titled "Gorgeously Green" by Sophie Uliano. I'm going to start using her recipes for natural, homemade moisturizer once I can hunt down all of the ingredients!
Yes! All of mine are from the library. The library is so fantastic.
I didn't like the "real" Secret Keeper myself. I know it is often recommended but to me it took way too long to resolve. Hope you like it better than I did!
Totally agree about The Secret Keeper. It was a decent premise, but the writing made me want to poke my eyes out and I won't read any more by her. I get that sentence fragments can be very effective, but I was starting to wonder if she could even write a complete sentence. It kind of got to be a game for me to see how far she could go. It was a style that just didn't work for me because I found it too distracting, but I know a lot of people who enjoyed it. To each his own. I happily returned to older fiction which seems to be more my thing.
I understand! I feel that way when I read Ann Voskamp's writing. I know some people adore it, but I couldn't even finish her book (and I almost ALWAYS finish books). It was so flowery and fragmenty, I felt like I was trying to see through a fogged-up window.
I usually feel guilt-ridden when I read Ann Voskamp's blog — doubt I'd even try her book. :/
I don't feel guilty...I just can't understand what she's getting at most of the time! Ha. Maybe if I could see thru the fog I could feel guilty, but as it stands, I can't even get that far.
I know she's touched so many people's lives, but it's just not the right language for me.
I SO agree regarding Ann Voskamp's writing. My sister read 1000 Gifts twice over and gave me a copy. I tried three times, but couldn't get past the second chapter. I got so frustrated with the grammar... or lack of it!
Oh, I hope you like Kate Morton's The Secret Keeper. It's one of my very favorite books. I listened to the audio (on Overdrive from the library, natch) and the narrator is fantastic. In fact, she narrates Liane Moriarty's books, too.
I'll let you know in next month's What I'm Into post. I'm quite certain I'm going to like it better than the Secret Keeper that I read. Ha.
I LOVE Kate Morton. She does such a good job of weaving the past and present together into a seamless story.
I love Kate Morton's books too! I think my favourite of her books is The Forgotten Garden. I find her a skillful writer. I read a lot of fiction, so I often can figure out where a plot is going, but she manages to catch me completely off-guard with her plot twists. So great!
I'm reading a book called Quiet. I think you would like it. It's non-fiction and it's about the power of the introvert in an extroverted world. I'm only a couple of chapters in but I think it's really interesting! I kind of think everyone should read it. Although, really I shouldn't recommend until I'm finished 🙂
I loved this one too! It gives some great insights into personality, motivation, and human relationships.
I just finished reading "What Alice Forgot" by Liane Moriarty which I enjoyed immensely. I picked it up thinking it was Still Alice, the based on the Julianne Moore movie. I'm glad I made the mistake though and will now be looking for Big Little Lies!
As far as classical music goes...listening to movie soundtracks can be a great introduction to classical/orchestral music. (John Williams in particular.) On Saturday afternoons, our classical station devotes an hour entirely to soundtracks, and if you didn't know they were soundtracks, you wouldn't know they were soundtracks, if you know what I mean.
The funny thing is, I'm classically trained, so he's been exposed to plenty of classical music in his lifetime. But the class has really made him more interested in it, so he's listening to and playing way more classical music than he was before!
He has a really great professor in this class, so I think that's what's made him so interested.
How funny that you picked up the wrong "Secret Keeper!" That sounds like something I would do. My latest read, that I just finished, was "Prayer" by Tim Keller. As someone who always struggled with prayer, it was a great read for me. And I agree, it took me a while to adjust to Ann Voskamp's style, but I was reading her Advent devotional, so the readings came in small bites, and I got used to it enough to finish and start "flowing" with it.
I'm also into sewing right now -- I hope to get my projects finished within two weeks. TV and movies -- nope, nada. The final thing I'm into is herbs (legal ones, folks!). I'm getting an herbal education, some of which is a little too "fairies and moonbeams" for me, but there is solid info there, too. I've already used some herbs with success as medicines, so I expect to get some good use out of this.
Oh! We're doing Keller's book on prayer in my small group right now.
Aside, thank you for using the correct homophone for horde.
😀
I currently have "The Secret Keeper" on my bookshelf waiting for me to ready, however, I cannot seem to get through the 2-foot pile next to my bed that I wanted to get through first! I really need to get back into a reading groove.....maybe this summer poolside would be a perfect time! Ha!
I just read "Augie & Me" last week after reading "Wonder" a few years ago. Julian's parents were not likable although I did feel more sympathetic to Julian. I'm curious to see what Palaccio comes up with next. I feel like "Wonder" was such a great book and I don't know how anything else can compare!
Yeah, that's how I felt too: more understanding of Julian, but still very, "Come on!" about his parents.
I loaded the complete works of Ernest Hemingway to my Kindle. ( 1.99 ) I just finished one of his longer pieces and absolutely loved it. I am not so sure how I missed all of these when I was younger. I guess it was because it wasn't required reading. He was an incredible writer and the stories are great.
Been reading a lot lately, mostly historical fiction, but a total favorite was TEN by Mark Mitchell. Outstanding teaching on the ten commandments. I highly recommend it. (available on Amazon)
I LOVE Beverly Lewis's Amish books! The last one (The Atonement) was a little harder to get through, and I didn't make it through the ones she co-wrote with her husband. But otherwise, I reserve her new ones at the library the minute I hear they are being written and can't put them down until finished! There have been many nights that I stayed up all night reading them. But I'm retired, so have the luxury of napping if I need to the next day! : )
I hope you'll stick with the time-tracking goal this month. I would love to hear what you see from the log! My short-takeaway from my long-term log: I always joke about people not working nearly as many hours as they think they do. I tracked my time and guess what? I don't work nearly as many hours as I think I do either! You'd think I would have seen that coming.
Embarrassingly enough, I haven't the faintest idea how many hours I spend working on my blog (which is my main source of income). Blog work is inevitably hard to track, because it comes in bits and pieces, but I'm curious to see what it adds up to, as I've long wondered what my hourly rate ends up at!
I decided to go back in time and am re-reading Gone With the Wind after having visited Atlanta and learned more about Margaret Mitchell.