Books!

It's been a while since I last posted. I tried a few times, but Instagram is so much easier. August was a beautiful month. I had lovely visitors. I took a vacation with B and 5 other adults, all of whom loved playing with Brycen so I could have some downtime and keep my feet up. There was baseball playing, campfires, s'mores, kite flying, miniature golf, ice cream, biking around the porch 60,212 times, rocking chairs and after the youngster went to bed, Cards Against Humanity - naughty, naughty game. And when he was tired from all this, he sat next to me to color, or play with stickers, or do a puzzle.

 I currently have chemo every 2 weeks, (as long as my bilirubin is low), which has had some nasty side effects, but has bought me the gift of living longer, so we take the side effects. I have slept a lot. I have read a lot. I need to find an online book club. Maybe even an online book club for cancer patients. And yes, I have read The End of Your Life Book Club. Sometimes my mom reads a book after I read it, and we discuss it, and it's just like that book, except in the book the mother had cancer, not the son.

I am babbling and running my mental energy down. Here are the books I've read so far in 2015:

(they are not in the order I read them in)

1. The Red Tent - highly recommend

2. All the Light We Cannot See - hard to get into, but a page turner after that. Highly recommend

3. The Blue Bistro - fluff read, no thinker, chic lit, beach read. Whatever lingo you use. It was ok.

4. Barefoot - fluff read, but I really enjoyed it. Definitely a good beach choice.

5. Beautiful Day - fluffer. It was ok. 

6. Summerland - not sure I remember what it was about. I am sure it took place in Nantucket and I am sure there was an affair thrown in. 

7. Where’d You Go Bernadette? - yes, yes, yes. Highly recommend. 

8. The Boston Girl - Highly recommend

9. The Rosie Project - could NOT put it down. 

10. The Rosie Effect - a little disappointing after the first book.

11. Me Before You - ick. I didn't get the hype for this book.

12. Still Alice - Wonderfully written on a very sad topic.

13. The Girl on the Train - thriller, I could not put it down

14. Orphan Train - highly recommend

15. The Vacationers - another fluff read. I am sure there was an affair involved. I wasn't too into it. 

16. Sharp Objects - Gillian Flynn gives me nightmares. But she does it well! Not sure how I ended up reading this one and not Dark Places, but the latter is on my to-read list. 

17. An Abundance of Katherines - I saw this book in a pile of books someone brought over and just started reading. I would have liked it 20 - 25 years ago. 

18. The Husband’s Secret - here starts my obsession with Liane Moriarty, who's books are placed in Australia. I thought the books were going to be no thinkers - no effort needed on my part except to keep her 20+ characters straight, but her books have more to them then I thought. I recommend anything by her. 

19. What Alice Forgot - There is always a character named Jane in her books. Is Jane the most common names in Australia?

20. Big Little Lies - If you like her other books, I recommend this one too!

21. The Invention of Wings - Best Sue Monk Kidd book, in my opinion. Sad topic, but I highly recommend it

22. The Book of Unkown Americans - quick read but very well written. Told my mom to put it way up in her book pile. 

I sometimes get asked how I pick my books, especially lately. 1. I have favorite authors, so I often stick to them. 2. I see books being recommended on Instagram - when it gets to 3 different people liking the same book, I start to take an interest. 3. I look on best seller lists. 4. I listen to what friends are reading and raving about, especially friends who have the same interests as me. And when it all lines up, I know I have to try that book.

I am now exhausted from writing all this! And it was not even what I would consider good writing. Stupid chemo. Stupid cancer.