What I'm reading right now
I always love it when other people share what they're reading, so every now and then, I do the same.
Here's what I'm currently working through:
I'll just start at the top of the pile.
Frugal Isn't Cheap
is written by a CPA, and the book is borne out of her experiences helping people get their finances in order.
It's an easy read, and would probably be most helpful to people who are fairly new to the whole idea of smart money management. Those of you who have black belts in frugality might not learn a ton of new stuff from this book, but you know how reading through The Tightwad Gazette every now and then kind of restarts your frugality motor? Well, this book could easily serve the same purpose.
The book isn't just about frugality, though...she talks about mortgages, investments, and teaching children about money as well, and she does it in an entertaining manner, with plenty of stories and personal anecdotes.
I got Bargain Fever
as a review copy, and when I first read the PR blurb about it in my email box, I wasn't even too sure that I wanted to have them send me one. I'm not really into buying cheap stuff or using lots of coupons, and I thought it would be all about that.
I've been pleasantly surprised, though. The book has a lot of interesting history, covering things like the retail innovations of Harry Gordon Selfridge (which will be especially interesting to you if you watch the Mr. Selfridge show on PBS), and how things like the bargain basement idea got started, and it takes a much more critical view of the current bargain landscape than I expected (which I appreciate, because I share that view.)
Anyway, I'm only about halfway through, but I really love this book. If you're the sort of person who enjoyed the book Cheap (which I reviewed here) you'd like Bargain Fever as well.
Lastly, I bought The Ministry of Motherhood
after Money Saving Mom recommended it on her blog.
Because even though my children write me sweet notes like this one:
...I am acutely aware of deficiencies in my mothering and sometimes I find that reading a book on something really helps to bring about an attitude adjustment. As with the other two books, I'm not finished with this one yet, but I've found it to be encouraging and helpful thus far.
I always love to hear about good books from other people, so share! What have you been reading lately?
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Joshua's 365 post: Set in Stone
I like the sound of Frugal isn't Cheap and Bargain Fever.
I recently got The Art of Fermentation out of the library, which is all about fermenting foods and drinks and the history of it all over the world. It was very interesting and I've actually bought the recipe book by the same author (Wild Fermentation) to have in my kitchen as a reference book.
I just finished Pound Foolish, a book by Helaine Olen on the "dark side" of the personal finance industry. A central theme: if personal finance gurus really wanted a well-informed public, they would put themselves out of business; as with big banks and investment firms, it's in their best interest to keep us down. The whole book has a really negative tone, which is a downside - somewhat depressing. However, it really helped me contextualize my struggles with money (earning enough, saving enough, investing enough for retirement) in a larger political-economic environment, and has inspired some ways I might (a) cope with reality, and (b) help improve reality. For example, I feel better about not being able to save up for a 20% down payment quickly enough (I'm only 25, geez, and I have student loans!), and want to work more closely with my local and state representatives to identify laws, structures, and opportunities that can be created to improve outcomes for the middle and (increasingly large) lower classes.
I'm in the middle of Masterminds and Wingmen by Rosalind Wiseman, about the ways boys think and how that affects their interactions with others. It is fascinating.
Ooh, that does sound interesting!
Thanks for mentioning this book, Gretchen. I have a son starting middle school next year. I just checked it out and will be ordering today!
My Story: Elizabeth Smart
Dinner With the Smileys
The Whole Enchilada (cozy mystery)
I just finished browsing through Home Dairy by Ashley English which made me feel inspired to try making some of my own dairy products as soon as my broken foot is healed. I am also reading The Resilient Farm and Homestead which I find fascinating, but my dream is to start homesteading on my family's ranch someday.
I'm reading "Finding Ultra" by Rich Roll right now, about a now-ultra-triathlete who battled a ton of demons to get where he is today. As a marathoner and non-ultra-triathlete, this totally appeals to me. 🙂 (And blessedly I have not had quite as many demons to deal with, to my knowledge anyway, than Mr. Roll.)
I also just finished "The Astronaut Wives' Club," a biography of the wives of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo astronauts. It was a fascinating, well-written book that I just couldn't put down! Regardless of whether you're a space geek (like me) or not, I think you'll find the stories fascinating.
Gosh... I haven't had much time to read lately, but CatMan and I do enjoy reading together both in English and Spanish (we study Spanish together.) Currently we're on an Isabel Allende kick. We've read "Hija de la Fortuna" and "Retrato en Sepia", and we're currently working our way through "El Cuaderno de Maya".
If anybody out there is like me, and isn't a natural reader (I'm a bit dyslexic so reading can be a challenge for me sometimes) I'd suggest finding a reading partner who likes to read out loud. CatMan reads to me nearly every day, and it's one of the highlights of our day!
I'm an avid reader, but use my eyes to look at screens ALL day for my job. I love my S.O. reading to me - he read most of "The Time Traveler's Wife" to me on a road trip mini-vacation we took to Asheville, NC, about 1.5 years ago. It made the book and trip even more memorable.
I just finished reading "Mastering the Art of French Eating," by Ann Mah. The personal parts of the book were boring to me. Fortunately the majority of the book is about the author's learning about specific bits of French cuisine, which was more interesting. It's only middling-good though, and I doubt I'll read it again.
I'm job hunting, and in researching the boss of the department I have applied to, I learned he wrote a book so I bought it. The subject is a bit dry - it's about the industry overall and not the role I want to fill - so I'm not getting very far. I need to at least skim it.
I know it would be off topic for your blog, but do you read fiction? (Librarians are curious about this sort of thing 🙂
Very occasionally! I used to do that a lot more in my grade school/teen years, but now that my reading time is more limited, I usually feel more inclined to read some non-fiction that would be helpful to me.
You may have already mentioned this one but I recently read "Cleaning House: a mom's 12 month experiment to rid her home of youth entitlement" by Kay Wills Wyma who does the MOAT blog. I usually stick to fiction (I need the escape!) but I really liked the focus of this book. Often as parents, without meaning to, we actually undermine our children by doing so much for them. She feels that by expecting more of our children and making them responsible for more and by giving them the opportunities to try and either fail or succeed, we can more effectively build their self confidence and self esteem. I've often felt this way but really lacked follow through. After reading her book, I decided to take some steps of my own and have implemented some changes with my 14 year old son. Also, at one point in the book, she quotes another writer's opinion that a lot of what is wrong with today's society is a lack of personal responsibility that has become more and more common. This is an idea I agree with very much as well.
I totally agree with that premise...will have to see if my library has this book!
I own the Ministry of Motherhood, and The Mission of Motherhood, by the same author. While I liked them both, I think my favorite was the Mission of Motherhood - maybe you'll want to read that one too!
Good to know...I saw that one was available too, but wasn't sure what the difference was!
I'm working my way through {The Smart Woman's Guide to Retirement}. Although I would consider retirement to be a fairly boring subject, she actually makes it pretty interesting.