This year I am continuing to apply 5 guiding principles to my reading life.

In February those guiding principles served me quite well. It was personally a hard month, and those guiding principles helped me make reading choices, and because of those choices I feel as if I was led to just the right books.

While I read less than usual, I gained MORE from the books I did read.

As I’ve had to do with many other things, I’ve tuned out what the world is saying and focused on what I know to be true - receiving book recommendations from trusted friends and going back on lists of books I’ve always wanted to read. (After all, the goal of my reading life is to focus on what is true, beautiful, and GOOD.)

A Favorite Reading Resource

One resource I’ve loved is Scribd.

For $9.99 each month I have a wonderful selection of audio and digital books. Audiobooks have been my constant companions the past year, and eBooks have been a way for me to keep reading in bed at night and not disturb my husband!

We use Scribd on multiple devices, so my husband is taking advantage of the membership as well!

February 2021 Books

There are only two books this month that I would say were not for me: Lady in Waiting and Keeper of Lost Things.

While Lady in Waiting was a bit intriguing because it gave me more information about the British royal family, (I loved The Crown and have been interested in royal history) I didn’t think the book was very well-written and the waste and playboy lifestyle of the aristocracy in the book truly bothered me.

Keeper of Lost Things had a lot of cursing (in the same sentence as taking the Lord’s name in vain) and it automatically turned me off. There were parts of the story that made me chuckle and that were also quite clever, but I can’t recommend the book to anyone in good conscience.

Here are my three favorites of the month:

A Circle of Quiet

Madeleine L’Engle’s memoir was a balm for my soul. I listened to the audio on Scribd and found it so relaxing!

I would recommend this book, especially for homeschooling mothers, because L’Engle has a lot of wisdom about educating children - as well as general life wisdom, too. I’m looking forward to listening to the other books in the Crosswick Journals.

Beyond the Bright Sea

In my efforts to read more middle grades, I’m so glad I’ve found Lauren Wolk. Beyond the Bright Sea is historical fiction about an actual island off the coast of Massachusetts that housed lepers in the early 1920s. Next I would like to read Wolf Hollow, which is already on my nightstand!

The Splendid and the Vile

This book was my slow and steady read throughout the entire month of February. It was packed full of interesting details - both about Churchill and his PIVOTAL role during WWII and other interesting (but obscure) details about the cast of characters surrounding the Prime Minister. I look forward to reading more by Erik Larson.

Beyond the Bright Sea The Coincidence of Coconut Cake A Circle of Quiet Suffer Strong: How to Survive Anything by Redefining Everything Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz The Girls with No Names: A Novel The Keeper of Lost Things: A Novel

To see more detailed reviews of the books, please visit my Instagram book account.

I love to share all things bookish there - and following the #bookstagram hashtag and some of my favorite accounts brings me so many great recommendations.

What can you recommend to me?

Leave your choice in the comments below and I’ll add it to my list!

You might also like:

20 Favorite Books from 2020

Reading Widely and Well

Reading is a large part of my life. And - as with so many other things - it is a part of my life I now want to refine and sharpen.

While I look back at my 20 Favorite Books from 2020 and am so pleased with the books I deemed favorites, I also remember the struggle I had with intentionality in my reading life last year.

Time is limited, and I want to spend my time reading truly beautiful, worthy books. I also love to escape through reading, but that cannot be an excuse for reading subpar books.

Is my struggle coming into focus?

Cultivating a More Intentional Reading Life

One of my goals for 2021 is to be a more intentional reader. This means choosing books in advance, setting some reading goals, and not falling down so many reading rabbit holes!

This is nothing fancy - just a few guiding principles I hope to follow this year. After I share the principles with you, I’ll share the books I completed last month.

(I’m very proud of my January reading actually!)

Include More NonFiction

I want to have more to show for my reading time.

Searching out interesting nonfiction books is a big goal for 2021.

I don’t have a strategy for finding these books, but I am trying to solicit recommendations from people I know who enjoy nonfiction.

Make Time for Middle-Grade Novels

I always enjoy middle-grade novels when I read them. In my opinion, they are some of the finest pieces of literature out there.

Reading this literature can serve two purposes for me: pure enjoyment and also research for my SQUILT Music Appreciation curriculum. (You’ll see when you look at my January 2020 books how they tied in with music appreciation.)

I will be depending upon a few avid teen readers I know to provide me with recommendations, as well as trolling Instagram and Goodreads.

Give Me All The Historical Fiction

Oh, how I love historical fiction. It’s my go-to genre.

Each month I am striving to include at least one big juicy story that fills my needs!

Over the past few years, I have gravitated to several authors of historical fiction. Visit my bookstagram account or my Goodreads account to see the authors that show up the most in my reading life.

Allow A Little Room for Escape

I do enjoy reading for escape, so I will be choosing one “escape” book each month.

These books will be “just because” books - but I want to be very careful that they are free of foul language, explicit sex scenes, and social agendas.

Piggybacking onto the social agendas… I will largely be avoiding “Best Sellers” and my beloved Book of the Month Subscription (which I have suspended). I’ve found that sometimes the most “popular” books are also the books pushing the biggest agendas. There is too much of that through our news media as it is - I don’t need it in my reading life, too.

Tackle Those Classics

I have also set a goal of reading one “classic” each month.

The definition of a classic can be very broad - but I like this one:

A classic is a book that’s been found valuable generation after generation

There are several classics I’d like to tackle this year and I’m excited now that I have committed to reading one each month.

Quality, Not Quantity

I’m done with book challenges that stress how MANY books you read.

I read 123 books in 2020, but what does it matter if it wasn’t meaningful?

Hopefully the guiding principles I’ve listed here will help me stick to the quality, not quantity mantra.

My reading journal from 2020 - I love having a physical record of the books I have read.

January 2021 Books Read

Fates & Traitors: A Novel of John Wilkes Booth and The Women Who Loved Him (Jennifer Chiaverini) - I learned a great deal from this piece of historical fiction. Jennifer Chiaverini is a favorite author of mine - and after reading Christmas Bells and loving it, I knew I needed more!
Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale (Adam Minter) - This nonfiction book opened my eyes to what happens to all of our “stuff” when we get rid of it. Not only did it inspire me to acquire less and get rid of more, but it also taught me about the entire secondhand economy around the world and how important it is for our global society.
That Distant Land: The Collected Stories (Wendell Berry) - This was an audiobook, and I would highly recommend it in audio version. The narrator was wonderful and there is something so soothing about listening to Wendell Berry’s stories read aloud. These collected stories set the stage for his other books (Hannah Coulter and Jayber Crow, for example). They were funny, touching, poignant, and comforting.
Crampton Hodnet (Barbara Pym) - British literature has a big appeal for me! After reading Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice last year I just wanted MORE. Barbara Pym’s books are farcical and easy to read. I’m looking forward to reading more.
I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith) - more British literature from the author of 101 Dalmatians, actually. This book - which I am assuming is a “classic” was written in the 1940s and is the journal of a seventeen-year-old, Cassandra. It was such a delight!
It All Comes Back to You (Beth Duke) - This was my escape book for the month. I love Southern Fiction, and this book - which took place in Alabama and Georgia - was the perfect escape.
An Elephant in the Garden (Michael Morpurgo) - Middle grades historical fiction - This book will stick with me for a long time! I’ve already gifted it to one young person I know.
Riding the Rails to Home: A Newsie Rides the Rails to Home (Cleo Lampas) - This book went along with our month of musicals in SQUILT LIVE! It would be a great read-aloud (or alone) if you are learning about this time period in American history
The Journal of Finn Reardon: A Newsie (Susan Bartoletti) - Another book for SQUILT LIVE! - I loved this book, and I’m sure it’s because I love all of the Dear America books.