Good morning, friends! How is your Saturday going? The weekends are even more sacred around here than ever before, because I love getting to hang out with my baby and my husband at the same time. The three of us sit around on the couch, sipping coffee and playing with Milo while watching soccer or reading books. It’s really so lovely, and I’ll treasure these slow, playful mornings.
Today I’m sharing all of the books I read in February. (Click here to see my January reads.) Since my time is much more limited since I’ve become a mom, I’m pickier about the books I choose to read. I’ve been guilty of powering through a book, even if I didn’t love it, but now I’m much quicker to close a book 25% of the way through if it’s not resonating with me. And that’s good news for you! It means I’ll be sharing more really great books, rather than saying “half of them I loved and half them were ‘meh'” on these book reviews.
Ok, here are the three books I read in the month of February:
1. Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo
Ever since I read Michael Hyatt’s book as a hardcover in January, I’ve become interested in the idea of buying a physical copy of a self-help book, rather than reading it on my kindle through a library rental. I love using my local library as often as possible, but there’s something powerful about A) spending $25 on a book and then appreciating it more, and B) being able to go back through it and re-read certain parts throughout the year.
I went to Book People and bought a copy of Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo. (They still had a few signed copies on the shelf, which was a fun treat.) In case you don’t know about Marie, she’s a self-made millionaire who run a very popular online course called B-School, a training program for business owners. She has a podcast and a self-hosted TV series called MarieTV, and she’s a superstar coach and motivator. And her book was SO GOOD!
It’s packed with good stuff. It’s no-nonsense and super inspiring. This is one of those books that has a journaling exercise at the end of every chapter, and I made myself do them. (I never do that, but I did with this book.) It was powerful. I loved it so much that I ordered a copy for my sister, too.
Everything Is Figureoutable is fun, upbeat, high-vibe, super inspiring. It’s currently in my desk drawer so that I can reference parts of it at arms length when I need a motivational boost. It’s like my own little private coach sitting right inside my desk, haha.
2. The Whisper Network by Chandler Baker
The Whisper Network is good for you if you binge-watched The Morning Show like I did. It was one of Reese Witherspoon’s book club picks, and it’s fast and fun and deep all at the same time. It’s a novel about a four women, all with varying relationship to their CEO, who are dealing with the aftermath of his sudden and cataustrophic death. There have been secrets and gossip and whispers about the way that he’s treated in female colleagues in the past, and his death brings everything up to the surface. It’s a lot like The Morning Show on Apple TV: completely addicting, fun to consume, but it also really makes you think about our work culture and the #MeToo movement.
3. The Power Of Now by Eckhart Tolle
I read The Power of Now last year, and I decided to re-read it this year. In full transparency, I had a rough month at the beginning of the year. I’m not going to get into a whole lot of details, but I had a few things going on that were making my life miserable…or, at least, that’s what I thought. I chose to read this book again because I really don’t want to allow myself to think that circumstances have the power to make me feel a certain way; I want to be able to feel the way I want to feel, despite my circumstances. The Power of Now altered my life the first time I read it, and I needed a refresher. I needed to remember how to stay present and focus on the NOW, instead of living in my past or worrying about my future. The concepts in this book are simple and radical at the same time. And while it’s not a fun, fast, colorful self-help book like Everything Is Figureoutable, it’s timeless, philosophical, and made to be consumed slowly.
I own this book as an audiobook, and I’ve been consuming small chunks of it (15-minute sections) as if they were mini podcasts. Sometimes I’ll listen to a small section two or three times in a row to absorb it. The first time I read the book, I read it straight through, cover-to-cover. Any way you choose to read it, I believe this is one of the top 10 most powerful books I’ve read in my life, and I highly encourage you take a look at it if you’re interested in removing emotional pain from your life and finding deep joy and peace in the present moment.
I’m always so happy to chat about books with y’all! You can see all of the books I’ve read in 2020 right here. I’m diving into a few new books for March, so I’ll be back at the end of the month to talk about those. As always, comment or message me on IG if you’ve been reading anything that you think I’d also enjoy! I’m always open to suggestions. XO.
