What I Read {Three Things Thursday}


A major goal this year is to engage this wonderful blogging community consistently. What better way than to link up with blog friends! Together, the three of us came up with Three Things Thursday. Just three things to talk or write about. Five seemed like too many and "one thing" was like we weren't even trying! So any three things that are on your mind. Any three pictures from Instagram. Three complaints about your day/week. Three of your favorite treats. Seriously. Any three things! 
So write it. Publish it. Yell it from the mountain tops! 
Just be sure you come back and link it up here!

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Use the #threethingsthursday, and let's start talking!




Reading is one of my favorite things to do. I have books stashed all over the house, much to the Hubbs dismay. They tend to get a little messy, even when stacked. Last year I read thirty five books. No joke! To keep track I write down the titles in the margins of my planner. The more I read, the more I feel like I need to share those titles with you. Here are three books I have read that I really love, and will now recommend to you. 
                      
Life and Other Near Death Experiences - Camille Pagan


The story of Libby Miller could be seen as utterly tragic. The day she finds out she has cancer, she also finds out a major secret about her husband. Instead of doing what is expected of her, she kind of goes off the deep end. Which is kind of amazing. Libby takes an emotional and physical journey into the unknown. Of course she meets people along the way that help her decide if she wants to live or die. This is not a book about cancer, it's a book about living on your own terms. Libby Miller has stayed with me. It's one of the best books I have read in a long time.

The Ruins of California - Martha Sherrill



I loved this book because it's told in the style of a memoir. It's like reading the history of someones beautiful life. Inez Ruin grows up before your very eyes starting at the end of the sixties in Southern California. As she travels up and down the California coast during the 70s and 80s, she finds family, love, friendship, and herself. Her family is totally dysfunctional, sometimes she doesn't emote in the right ways, but Inez Ruin is now one of my favorite characters. I actually read this book years ago, I found it in the discount section at Barnes and Noble. I fell in love with the story and Inez Ruin, I like that she felt familiar to me, but the descriptions of California and life in the seventies were what made me fall harder for this story. A big thanks to my mom for finding the book on Amazon and buying it for me for my birthday.

If You Only Knew - Kristan Higgins


I cut my teeth on Harlequin Romance novels. I'm not even kidding, my Mom had them peppered all over the house. I haven't read many Harlequins since high school, but this one popped up in my Facebook feed (thanks to their nifty ads). Most times I ignore them, but I read the synopsis, and for $3.99 took a chance. I didn't expect to like this book or the main character Jenny Tate as much as I did. Jenny is a bridal dress designer for the rich, getting stepped on by her ex-husband, and trying to be the perfect daughter. Total recipe for disaster, but it works. Of course there is a man that she is interested in, and a sidebar story includes the break down of her sister's marriage. Which also seems like it would be disastrous, but I promise it's not. It really helps the story along. I wasn't even jaded that the book ended happily wrapped up with a pretty bow.

These are just three of the books I've read so far this year. I still have a few more stacked an waiting for me. Any suggestions on what I need to read this year? Leave those in the comments. And if you get the chance link up with us today!