How can it be only one week until Christmas? I'm pretty much ready except for wrapping gifts, which I always procrastinate on since I dislike it so much. How about you - are you done with everything?
I had a goal of reading 50 books this year. I've read 46 so far, so I have four more to go in less than two weeks. We'll see! I read more non-fiction than fiction this year, but my favorite novel was Three Floors Up by Eshkol Nevo. The story is in three parts; each story is about the residents on each floor of a three-story apartment building in Tel Aviv. This author draws you in right away and grabs you by the heart. His writing is deep and compelling. Brian read this book after me and he was immediately hooked, too.
Anne Lamott is one of my favorite authors. She writes about the hard stuff ~ but at the same time, is laugh-out-loud funny. I didn't care for her book before this one (Hallelujah Anyway), but Almost Everything was back on track with what I expected from Lamott. I was flagging pages with sticky tabs as I was reading and by the time I was done with this book, it looked like the book had grown little feathers.
My dear friend, Dewena of Dewena's Window recommended this book to me, as we have a lot of the same tastes in reading. The author weaves tales of her mother and friends and relationships as she finds comfort and comraderie in her kitchen. It's like you pulled up a chair in your best friend's kitchen.
Who doesn't love Susan Branch, the American author and watercolorist? You're probably familiar with her paintings on notecards and calendars and journals and maybe you've even seen some of her cookbooks, but have you read any of her books? Her trio of stories: The Fairy Tale Girl, Martha's Vineyard - Isle of Dreams, and A Fine Romance - Falling in Love with the English Countryside are so enchanting and home-y, that I wanted to crawl inside the books and never leave. I rarely pay full price for books, but I did with these three, as they are books to be treasured over again. The best part is that she's in the middle of writing book four in this series! I can't wait to add it to my collection. And if you're not familiar with Susan's blog, you can find it here. It'll give you a little taste of her writing and illustrations. You'll want to pay a visit to Martha's Vineyard and knock on her door.
Please share your favorite reads of 2018!
