Looking for Something to Read?

When I had a giveaway recently, I asked participants to recommend a "good read" for 2014 in exchange for a bookmarklet.  In case you are looking for some book titles, I thought I would compile the list of recommendations for you here!

1. A Fine Romance:  Falling in Love with the English Countryside, by Susan Branch
2. The Art of Silliness:  A Creativity Book for Everyone, by Carla Sonheim
3. Bird by Bird:  Some Instructions on Writing and Life, by Anne Lamott
4. The Language of Flowers:  A Novel, by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
5. The Paris Wife:  A Novel, by Paula McLain Jacqueline Winspear
6. The Reason I Jump:  The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy With Autism, by Naoki Higashida
7. Sing Them Home:  A Novel, by Stephanie Kallos
8. The Maisie Dobbs Mystery Series, by Jacqueline Winspear
9. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shafer and Annie Barrows
10. Major Pettigrew's Last Stand:  A Novel, by Helen Simonson
11. Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey:  The Lost Legacy of Highclere Castle, by the Countess of Carnarvon (This was recommended by more than one person!)
12. The Art of Happiness:  A Handbook for Living, by the Dalai Lama
13. Love in the Time of Cholera, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
14. I Dare Me:  How I Rebooted and Recharged My Life by Doing Something New Every Day, by Lu Ann Cahn (A timely recommendation, since I got to see her speak at a local library just two weeks ago!)
15. Fifteen Minutes:  A Novel, by Karen Kingsbury
16. The Rosie Project:  A Novel, by Graeme Simsion
17. Promised Land:  Thirteen Books That Changed America, by Parini
18. Stitches:  A Handbook on Meaning, Hope, and Repair, by Anne Lamott
19. Blink:  The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, by Malcolm Gladwell
20. 29 Gifts:  How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life, by Cami Walker
21. Harriet the Spy, and The Long Secret, by Louise Fitzhugh
22. The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak
23. The Chaos Walking Trilogy, by Patrick Ness
24. Mark Hearld's Workbook, by Simon Martin

It looks like there is a little something for everyone:  some art and creativity, some fiction and some non-fiction, some self-help, some childhood favorites, some single books and some series. 

As I checked the Amazon web site to find authors and confirm titles for this list, I enjoyed reading the subtitles and getting a peek at the book covers.  I will be checking my library system's web site, first, though, to see if I can access them there. 

As "they" say, be careful what you wish for!  I asked for all of these book recommendations in spite of the fact that I have hundreds and hundreds (I'm serious) of books on shelves and in basement bins here at home waiting to be read.  (And I continue to go to the library instead of grabbing one of them!)  For me, though, books are a delicious excess.

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I have included some peeks into my most recent journal throughout this post.  It is the result of Lisa Sonora Beam's Root:  30 Day Journal Project.  I will share more of my pages in upcoming posts, so stay tuned!