Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most by Cassie Holmes

I really loved this time management book as well. I thought she gave some really good, scientifically based information. Everything she talked about was based in social science studies, most of which she conducted herself, and about what makes people happier. Very well done. Shocker: it's about relationships and not about getting stuff done. 

The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow

I really, really loved this book. It was a look at Mary Bennet as her own character, explaining why she acted the way she did during the story of Pride and Prejudice but also then what happened to her after. I loved seeing how Mary could be a well-rounded, full character and how she developed and grew over time. I really loved it. My only complaint was that it felt a little long and started to drag about 3/4 of the way through.

Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean

Princess Diaries set in Japan. What's not to love?

Tranquility by Tuesday: 9 Ways to Calm the Chaos and Make Time for What Matters by Laura Vanderkam

I like that Vanderkam is a mom of five kids, spread out over a wider spread of ages than our kids are. She isn't writing about time management from her white tower. She's super busy and gets how hard it is to implement things. But I really liked this book and the 9 techniques she talks about. I especially want to implement having a bedtime and doing one big adventure and one little adventure each week. 

A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny

This may have been one of my favorite ones yet. I love Armand Gamache and every mystery Louise Penny puts out. 

Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C. S. Lewis

I honestly found some of this book hard to follow. Lewis is clearly one of the smartest people I've ever read--he remembers almost everything he ever read and had references to every classic in Latin and Greek in every other sentence. As someone who doesn't know any classics, it was hard to catch all the references. But it was fine. Not really a memoir as you'd think by the title. 

The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik

This was the third book in the Scholomance series, and I think this series as a whole was brilliant. I love El and her character as this grumpy unwilling dark sorceress heroine, and I thought this book was amazing at tying together the entire series. There were several scenes where El sleeps with other characters that really bugged me and I felt were totally unnecessary for the plot--I wish those had been kept out. But the other 99% of the book was excellent and I loved the end of this trilogy. 

My Body is Not a Prayer Request by Amy Kenney

I heard about this from several different people and thought it would be a good thing to learn about. Kenney is writing about disability in the Christian religion and how we can do better to include and not try to "fix" or change the disabled members of the church. I definitely feel that I could do better with this and think this is such a good introduction to how and why.

A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis

After reading Becoming Mrs. Lewis, I wanted to read all of the other books by Lewis that I could find. This one he wrote after Joy Davidman died, and I think this would be a great book to read while going through grief (or maybe not, depending on how you're feeling). You could really feel his anguish. 

Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan

I didn't know much, if anything, about C. S. Lewis's wife or their relationship before this, but it made me want to read everything Lewis wrote (although I've read a bunch of his books already). It was a cute story (but I think was too long) and I love Joy Davidman now.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

This book had a lot of heart in it. I loved a lot of it. I thought Celie's growth as a character was the best part of the book. It was amazing what she went through and that she could still have love in her heart for people after it. 

Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe

This was absolutely mind-blowing. Mind-blowing. I kept having to stop to tell Tommy about what I was learning from it. I still can't believe some of it. So insane.