Reading: It’s Always in Season!

Winter has arrived full force, and some things just aren’t in season. Swimming, gardening, shorts, and flip-flops will all have to wait for another day — a warmer day. But reading? Reading is always in season.

Since winter has a way of inspiring us all to curl up with a good book, I thought it might be fun to once again talk about what we’re currently reading and to share what we’d like to read in the coming months. I’ll go first :)

I’m about to finish A Sweetness to the Soul by Jane Kirkpatrick, a book I won last year in a promotion by WaterBrook Multnomah. It’s categorized as a Western so I might not have chosen it on my own, but I’ve enjoyed the read nonetheless. Not too surprising given the fact that it won the prestigious Western Heritage Wrangler Award for Outstanding Western Novel of 1995.

My reading list for the coming year is growing quite lengthy since I’ve been downloading free books right and left to my new Kindle :) Don’t worry, though, I’ll still be reading plenty of regular print books, too. I’m not about to give those up.

In fact, I just bought Susan Meissner’s White Picket Fences last week when I ran across a copy for $3. Couldn’t pass that up. It was cheaper than I can get it on my Kindle right now, plus I still love the feel of a regular book. I’m anxious to read another by Susan since I enjoyed The Shape of Mercy so much. I just might have to dive into White Picket Fences next — if I can hold off the urge to start reading on my Kindle :)

I’ve downloaded several classics, all the way from Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women to Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, and I’ve also found several books from the past few years temporarily available for free download. My problem now will be deciding what to read next!

So now it’s your turn. What are you currently reading? What do you hope to read this year? By the way, I’ve downloaded three versions of the Bible to my Kindle as well. Let’s pray God’s Word is always on our reading lists helping us to “…be prepared in season and out of season…” (2 Timothy 4:2)

Aren’t you thankful that reading — and the Word of God — are always in season? I know I am.

*Flickr photo by Zitona

**The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, will come out in early February. Sign up is free and to the right!

Comments

  1. Cheryl, you are near & dear to my heart, now. I have several stacks going at all times. I just started reading “Large Family Logistics” by Kim Brenneman. I tend to alternate fiction with non-fiction. I just read “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society,” which I really enjoyed.

  2. Aw, thanks Kirsten! I’ve heard “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” recommended before. I may have to add that to my to-read list. I try to throw in some non-fiction every now and then, too. Last year I ready “The Same Kind of Different As Me” and was totally blown away by it.

  3. I’m like both you and “comfortablydomestic” – lots going at once. No fiction yet, though, and I’m looking forward to thumbing through the ones you mentioned. I met Susan Meissner at the San Diego Christian Writer’s Guild conference in Oct and loved her books too, from what I saw. For me, the reading is mostly learning and growing. I love books on coaching and inspiration since that’s what I do. Raising Your Spirited Child (Mary Kurcinka) and A Place of Healing (Joni Eareckson Tada) are my two favorites right now.

    Glad to meet you – thanks for sharing your blog at Moms Together!

  4. Laurie, thanks so much for visiting my blog! How fun that you got to meet Susan Meissner! Hope you enjoy her books as you get a chance to read them. Thanks for mentioning a couple of your current favorites. Always good to hear a personal recommendation. Blessings to you!

  5. I don’t really think I read quite the same style as you, Cheryl! My latest read was Stephen King’s newest! :)

    Then I read “Parenting with Love and Logic” and “Unconditional Parenting”, so it all balances out somehow!

  6. Hey Jessica, I’ve read Stephen King! Okay, so it was his “On Writing” book, but still… :) And I so love suspense. Guess that fits in with my love for disaster flicks :)

  7. Currently reading Margaret Feinberg’s “Scouting the Divine” and LL Barkat’s “God in the Yard.” Also have an Amish series going (some of my favorite, lesser-challenging reads). I’ve never read so much in my life! Better than t.v. as I convalesce in this season.

    Enjoy your Kindle!

    peace~elaine

  8. Oh a woman after my own heart :) I love to read! I can’t fall asleep at night without spending some time reading to get my mind off my own life and into something else. I have several mommy parenting books on my nightstand right now, and am just finishing up a memoir of a mom whose son has down syndrome. Of course I cant remember titles at the moment and have a baby on my lap so I’m not going to get up to check, but I’m excited to dive into my stack of books this year :)

  9. Elaine and Emily, thanks for chiming in! Emily, hope you get some great tips from your parenting books, and Elaine, I love that title “God in the Yard”. Makes me curious! :)

  10. I just started reading Experiencing the Resurrection by Henry and Melvin Blackaby. Very good but I’ve just gotten started.

    I don’t think I could give up the feel of a regular book either. I downloaded Angie Smith’s book and I enjoyed it but missed holding a real book. And being able to loan it out when I was done. : )

  11. I know what you mean about loaning books out, Kay. I think I heard that Kindle is going to make it possible to loan books for a couple of weeks to other Kindle users, though. Even so, I like to donate certain books I’ve bought to our church library, too. Am definitely not ready to give up hard-copy books yet…

  12. I love to read a good book! I am hooked on Karen Kingsbury. She writes so well you think about the characters throughout your day. It’ like they are part of your family.
    A good book, cup of chai tea and a cuddly blanket is great!

  13. Nanette, I’ve never read Karen Kingsbury. Sounds like I need to give her a try!

  14. All over my house are books in various stages of being read. I love http://www.half.com, which has gotten more than it’s fare share of my book-buying dollars.

    I tend towards non-fiction, be it Christian growth material, biographies, history, etc.

    Enjoy your reading season,
    Kathleen

  15. I can totally understand your excitement for you kindle mine is being shipped and I already have a full list of stuff to down load onto it.

  16. I’m finishing up The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson. What a touching and creative read. It’s given me lots of food for thought.

    A Kindle interested me but the idea of my book running out of battery life scares me silly. That’s what I love about paper and ink. They can sit for years on end and never lose power. With that said, we do have an iPod that has the Bible, a concordance, and more on it. It’s handier than a pocket on a shirt when sitting in a waiting room. In that regard, not having to tote a book around is rather nice. I guess I like both in their own right. I’m glad you can enjoy both as needed.

    Blessings!
    Nancy

  17. Kathleen, I’ve never heard of half.com. Will have to check that out. And Nancy, love the sound of The Dream Giver. Another to add to my list I guess! :)

    V., welcome to my blog! Hope you enjoy your Kindle, too!

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