This Mama Needs Grace

While looking back at the goals I wrote down for 2022, I felt a slight tinge of disappointment. It seemed like a good handful of my goals were not fully met. Sub 2:50 marathon, about 5-minutes over. Weekly date nights, more like every other month. Serve in Hudson’s class; I could barely manage to pick him up on time! Yet, a major goal I accomplished that I am actually very proud of is that I read more books! 18 books to be exact! This feels like a huge accomplishment for me. More than just the amount of books I read, I rediscovered my hidden love for curling up with a good story after a long day. Picking up a book fills me up in a way that scrolling on my phone never satisfies.

The books I gravitated towards this year were mostly novels. A lot of magical realism. A lot of Rebecca Serle. I found myself longing to get carried away into a good story and I felt like most the books I read did just that.

For the sake of time, I am not going to include a description for each book. I did write a couple notes on a few that can be found below the title. I would recommend every book on this list, expect I would skip The Jetsetters. That was by far my least favorite. Every other one on the list I think is worth the read.

1. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

2. The People We Keep by Allison Larkin

3. Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

4. The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

5. The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller

This one took me forever to finish, but it was one that I was glad I did. Slow at parts, but overall a good and interesting story.

6. Crying in H-Mart by Michelle Zauner

7. Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund

This was one of the books we read together in our small group. A beautiful reminder of the heart of Jesus.

8. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

9. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

This was one of my favorites. I picked it up again after not touching it for a couple years. I was motivated to finish it before the movie, which I also very much loved.

10. Embrace Your Almost by Jordan Lee Dooley

11. Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I love this author, but this one was not my favorite. Still an interesting story about how the choices we make can create totally different life outcomes.

12. One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle

Rebecca Serle has become one of my favorite authors. This book was my favorite read of the year! The story is fascinating and she really transports you to feel like you are taking a trip in Positano. I can’t wait to one day visit and go to some of the same restaurants she described in the novel. Not to be confused with Our Italian Summer, which has a similar cover and also deals with a mother daughter relationship. I recommended this book to my mom and she read the Our Italian Summer and we had a good laugh as we were very confused because the storylines are very different.

13. Live No Lies by John Mark Comer

This was another small group read. A really important and relevant read.

14. Good Rich People by Eliza Jane Brazier

15. The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle

16. This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

17. The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward

This one wins for my least favorite read of the year. I found the storyline to be superficial. I almost did not finish it and it never really got better.

18. The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes

The last book of the year for me! I just have a couple chapters left that I will finish today on NYE. This was a great story to finish the year on. It took me a few chapters to get into, but I have really loved it. A great one especially if you love libraries, horses, and even murder mystery.