Worth the Read

Reading? Reading! What, reading? Me, read?  Haha! That's the biggest joke I ever heard. I hate reading.  Well, I use to hate reading.  Growing up I never read.  I don't even think I read in school, even though it was required.  Have you heard of Cliff Notes?  I had so many copies that I probably should have owned stock in the company.  It's still a mystery how I graduated at the top of my class, and was a member of the National Honor Society.  I'm pretty sure I would never make it through high school today.  When I see what kind of work my kids have to do these days, it blows my mind.  I tell them all the time that they are way smarter than I ever was.  Unfortunately, I think my kids inherited the "I hate reading" gene.  They also inherited the "I can't sing to save my life" gene.  Those genes are both from me.  My husband Mark (their dad) is an incredible singer and he is constantly reading.  Same goes for my Dad.  He sings just beautifully and usually has two or three books going at a time.


Anyway, I digress.  I now enjoy reading. What?  Did I actually say that.  Yes I did. I'll even say it again "I enjoy reading".  I actually woke up one day and thought that it would probably be a good idea to read more.  My idea of reading was to peruse the latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens or Coastal Living magazines.  Although enjoyable, and the pictures are to die for, probably not doing too much to expand my vocabulary or exercise my brain too much.  Did I just pick up some random book and start reading, you ask?  Well, no.....sort of.  I joined a book club.  It made me think I was back in school again because it made me read.  I had a deadline to meet and I didn't want to be the only one at our next meeting to not have read the latest.  So I did everything in my power to finish on time, even if it meant pulling all-nighters or bringing my book with me to my kid's latest band concert in school.  Oh, come on, don't tell me you haven't done that, or at least thought of it?  I can proudly say that because of book club I have become a reader.  I even read different books in between book club books.  That brings me to why I decided to do this post.  Most of the books I read on my own have been inspirational or spiritual type books.  Here are a few of my favorites. 

Mackenzie Allen Phillips's youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation, and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later, in this midst of his great sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change his life forever.

A dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery. An upscale art dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel. A gutsy woman with a stubborn dream. A story so incredible no novelist would dare dream it.


It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana . . . and an East Texas honky-tonk . . . and, without a doubt, in the heart of God. It unfolds in a Hollywood hacienda . . . an upscale New York gallery . . . a downtown dumpster . . . a Texas ranch.


Gritty with pain and betrayal and brutality, this true story also shines with an unexpected, life-changing love.

When Colton Burpo made it through an emergency appendectomy, his family was overjoyed at his miraculous survival. What they weren't expecting, though, was the story that emerged in the months that followed-a story as beautiful as it was extraordinary, detailing their little boy's trip to heaven and back.

Heaven Is for Real will forever change the way you think of eternity, offering the chance to see, and believe, like a child.

A lot of professors give talks titled "The Last Lecture." Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can't help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave--"Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams"--wasn't about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have...and you may find one day that you have less than you think"). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.
In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.
"We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." --Randy Pausch

This beautifully written, heartfelt memoir touched a nerve among both readers and reviewers. Elizabeth Gilbert tells how she made the difficult choice to leave behind all the trappings of modern American success (marriage, house in the country, career) and find, instead, what she truly wanted from life. Setting out for a year to study three different aspects of her nature amid three different cultures, Gilbert explored the art of pleasure in Italy and the art of devotion in India, and then a balance between the two on the Indonesian island of Bali. By turns rapturous and rueful, this wise and funny author (whom Booklist calls “Anne Lamott’s hip, yoga- practicing, footloose younger sister”) is poised to garner yet more adoring fans.

This one is my favorite.  It answers anything and everything you might be wondering.  It's the one book that I keep with me all the time.  It is either next to my bed, on the kitchen table, at my desk or in the family room.  Pretty much wherever I am.  I highly recommend it.  Another one I recommend:

Jesus Calling is a devotional filled with uniquely inspired treasures from heaven for every day of the year.  After many years of writing in her prayer journal, missionary Sarah Young decided to listen to God with pen in hand, writing down whatever she believed He was saying to her.  It was awkward at first, but gradually her journaling changed from monologue to dialogue.  She knew her writings were not inspired as Scripture is, but journaling helped her grow closer to God.  Others were blessed as she shared her writings, until people all over the world were using her messages.  They are written from Jesus' point of view, thus the title Jesus Calling.  It is Sarah's fervent prayer that our Savior may bless readers with His presence and His peace in ever deeper measure.

I have this book in journal form.  It gives me room to write down my thoughts and prayers each day to accompany what Jesus has to say to me.  It's like I'm talking to Him through my journaling.  Nothing feels more comforting.

These are two books that I currently have on reserve at the library.  I'm in line.  It seems everyone else wants to read these too.  I've heard wonderful things about each of these books.  What I like to do sometimes is borrow them from the library first and if I like them, then go and purchase them.  It's nice to have them to write in, hi-light or fold pages back.

So there you have it.  These are definitely "Worth the Read".  What's on your night stand now that you are reading.  Let me know and maybe I'll add it to my "pile" of up coming "reads".

Thanks for stopping by,

Holly

sources: www.amazon.com

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