First time skiing at Silver Star in Vernon, BC. It was gorgeous!
January was full of skiing, school, routine, and planning. A lot of mental and physical energy were spent planning for the next two months (they'll be doozies!) and figuring out how everything can fit together like Tetris. I was also reading a very heavy book (that I finished on Feb. 2, so it won't be listed here) that I wasn't overly keen to grab most nights, but knew I needed to complete. I hope February will be filled with about 4 solid reads that I'm already counting on appearing from the library this week. What I have for January is a bit of a random list, but here we are.
*Real-Life Rules by Mariah Bruehl - This is a non-fiction, teacher-led activity book for tweens. I will buy anything Mariah Bruehl puts into the world (only 2 so far) because her books are warm, thoughtful, beautifully aesthetic and meaty. This book is all about guiding tweens and early teens through activities geared toward helping them become citizens in the world. That's a pretty broad statement, but we're talking life skills-from setting a goal list for your 25 year old self, to learning how to properly write a thank-you note to a few on internet etiquette and safety. In the back, she has printable pages and I printed...at least half of them for my own kids and I to go through in 2020.
*Your Future Self will Thank You by Drew Dyck - This book is about learning how to have self-control, and the disciplines that will help you to meet your goals. It's published by a Christian pub. house but aside from the chapter on fasting, it's not overly spiritual/religious if that's not your thing. There are so few books (please name me some in the comments if you know of some) about this topic that I was immediately intrigued when I heard it somewhere on blog/podcast-land. I think this is a topic our culture should be talking about at-large, but the church especially. I thought he had some interesting tips interspersed, but just a solid Good.
*Canadian Geographic: Nov/Dec 2019 - Something I look forward to every other month is sitting down and reading this magazine front to back. The pictures are stunning and I learn so much about this place I find myself these last 6 years.
*All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - Yes, I have FINALLY read this book. It was a Pulitzer winner a few years back, and it seemed like everyone loved it. That's my cue to not read it at least 3-5 years later, when the hype is gone. Hyped-up books, I generally find, annoy me and lead me to bloat my expectations. Well, friends. I am here to tell you that THE HYPE IS WORTH IT. This is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read. The writing, the story, the creative intricacies, and the history combine to make this 500+ page novel one of new all time "favorites". That coveted space of about 10 books that I'll hold onto. It's the story of a German orphan named Werner, who is mechanically advanced and curious, and a blind Parisian girl who is the daughter of a locksmith (don't be fooled, a create genius in his own right), and how their stories at the beginning, middle, and end of WWII connect. The writing is perfection.
Read Aloud with the Kids
*The Star of Kazan by Eva Ibbotson - This was a really fun book to read aloud to the kids, for a few reasons: we're studying Austria, the Lippizanners, and this book had both AND the main character's name was Anikka and her best friend's name was Stefan--how funny is that?! (For those of you who don't know me personally, those names are my daughter's and husband's!) This book was always wanted to be picked up by my kids, had a good mystery and a few plot twists, and lovable characters and good writing. I would definitely pick up more books by this author, just for fun. It fit in perfectly to our homeschool study of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and combined all three (!) in this story, unexpectedly.
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