**THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS. PLEASE READ OUR DISCLOSURE POLICY HERE.**
.jpg)
Fairly frequently, I share what I’m reading over on instagram or instagram stories using the hashtag #lauraslitlove. This year, I’ll share a monthly or bi-monthly roundup of recent reads with a short review.
- Beartown
by Fredrik Backman – Bear Town takes place where darkness and cold are the norm and hockey is a way of life. Not knowing much about either of those things, I truly felt transported as the drama on the ice and off unfolded. Written by the author of the bestseller, and a book I adored, “A Man Called Ove,” this novel is said to be a departure from his typical uplifting fiction. But Backman did it just as well as Ove and his others.
- Anything Is Possible
by Elizabeth Strout – President Obama listed this book as one of his favorites in 2017. I have to agree. I read Strout’s previous novel, “My Name is Lucy Barton,” which I enjoyed but didn’t connect with Lucy. Seeing Lucy through the people of Amgash, Illinois eyes’ made me appreciate her story so much more. Each of the vignettes illuminates a different part of the human experience, and all of them are beautifully written.
- The Confusion of Languages
by Siobhan Fallon – This book explores the lives of two women living in Amman, Jordan. Their husbands work for the US Embassy, and they develop a necessary friendship. I enjoyed reading about life as an American in Amman, as my sister lived there for several years, but I wish the author delved deeper into the cultural questions that she brings up the last half of the novel.
- Keeping Place
by Jen Pollock Michel – I listened to this one, but I found myself stopping to type up quotes. Michel touches on so many topics and manages to connect them all to the idea of home. I found the section devoted to the history of home and homemaking fascinating. Her gentle encouragement that the work of “home,” in all its facets, is worth it, made me truly appreciate this book. “Marriage isn’t everything. It isn’t our home or final hope. Nevertheless, it is worth the routine work of “I do”. After all, marriage is its own kind of stability.”
- The Likeness
by Tana French – After seeing rave reviews of French’s Dublin Murder Squad series, I saw one for a buck and decided to give it a go. I definitely don’t feel as strongly as all the fans, but the writing is fantastic. I’m going to try one more in the series because it was left in my little free library! - Peace Like a River by Leif Enger – I finished this book late one night with tears streaming down my face. When a fiction character, who’s son is a murderer, can make you want a deeper faith, you know the author has created a special piece. This is one I want to tell everyone to read, and it’s definitely in my top ten of all time. I laughed. I cried. I loved each of the characters in equal measure. Enger’s description of heaven is worth the read alone. “Listening to Dad’s guitar, halting yet lovely in the search for phrasing, I thought: Fair is whatever God wants to do.”
- The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd – This was our January book club read. I’ve only read one other by Kidd – The Invention of Wings – and I preferred it. Kidd’s beliefs in the feminine divine seep into every part of the plot of Bees.
- Liturgy of the Ordinary by Tish Harrison Warren – “Everyone wants a revolution. No one wants to do the dishes.” This book reminded me of the sacred in the quotidian, the beauty in the ordinary. It’s one I want to read again and again – and I actually listened to this one as well, so I’ve added it to my Amazon list to purchase so I can highlight every other paragraph.
by Fredrik Backman – Bear Town takes place where darkness and cold are the norm and hockey is a way of life. Not knowing much about either of those things, I truly felt transported as the drama on the ice and off unfolded. Written by the author of the bestseller, and a book I adored, “A Man Called Ove,” this novel is said to be a departure from his typical uplifting fiction. But Backman did it just as well as Ove and his others.
by Elizabeth Strout – President Obama listed this book as one of his favorites in 2017. I have to agree. I read Strout’s previous novel, “My Name is Lucy Barton,” which I enjoyed but didn’t connect with Lucy. Seeing Lucy through the people of Amgash, Illinois eyes’ made me appreciate her story so much more. Each of the vignettes illuminates a different part of the human experience, and all of them are beautifully written.
by Siobhan Fallon – This book explores the lives of two women living in Amman, Jordan. Their husbands work for the US Embassy, and they develop a necessary friendship. I enjoyed reading about life as an American in Amman, as my sister lived there for several years, but I wish the author delved deeper into the cultural questions that she brings up the last half of the novel.
by Jen Pollock Michel – I listened to this one, but I found myself stopping to type up quotes. Michel touches on so many topics and manages to connect them all to the idea of home. I found the section devoted to the history of home and homemaking fascinating. Her gentle encouragement that the work of “home,” in all its facets, is worth it, made me truly appreciate this book. “Marriage isn’t everything. It isn’t our home or final hope. Nevertheless, it is worth the routine work of “I do”. After all, marriage is its own kind of stability.” 
by Tana French – After seeing rave reviews of French’s Dublin Murder Squad series, I saw one for a buck and decided to give it a go. I definitely don’t feel as strongly as all the fans, but the writing is fantastic. I’m going to try one more in the series because it was left in my little free library!
by Leif Enger – I finished this book late one night with tears streaming down my face. When a fiction character, who’s son is a murderer, can make you want a deeper faith, you know the author has created a special piece. This is one I want to tell everyone to read, and it’s definitely in my top ten of all time. I laughed. I cried. I loved each of the characters in equal measure. Enger’s description of heaven is worth the read alone. “Listening to Dad’s guitar, halting yet lovely in the search for phrasing, I thought: Fair is whatever God wants to do.”
by Sue Monk Kidd – This was our January book club read. I’ve only read one other by Kidd – The Invention of Wings – and I preferred it. Kidd’s beliefs in the feminine divine seep into every part of the plot of Bees.
by Tish Harrison Warren – “Everyone wants a revolution. No one wants to do the dishes.” This book reminded me of the sacred in the quotidian, the beauty in the ordinary. It’s one I want to read again and again – and I actually listened to this one as well, so I’ve added it to my Amazon list to purchase so I can highlight every other paragraph.