Whoops – I did it again! Apparently forgot to post the last few book review summaries. I have been reading a lot more but writing fewer reviews. So easy to fall behind…. but not sweatin’ it. Some of what have I been reading (besides Tremendous Tractors Dazzling Diggers, work journals and a bunch of ‘why is my toddler insane’ type books…)

Motherhood Martyrdom and Costco by Whitney Dineen

This book is funny and full of straight up truths. See my full review for some excerpts that stuck with me. The influence of PPD comes up throughout the book, connect the dots and opening doors. Reading felt like a conversation on a topic more of us need to be talking freely about.

“It’s no reflection of the person they fundamentally are, it’s only a reflection of the monster that’s taken up residency in their heads.” (p. 42).

Go Sleep in Your Own Bed by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Lori Nichols

Again, truths, or at least dreams …

Six quotables in an unexpected summer read: Why Not Me? By Mindy Kaling

This was a fun one to stumble into during our summer vacation. I heart Mindy Kaling!

Invisible Lizard by Kurt Cyrus 

Shashay! Shante! That’s the hook 😉

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

Did you love Judy Blume as a young reader? Then you will love this book for penned for adult readers (although young adult would like enjoy too, more?). Set in the 1950s (any Mad Men fans?) in Elizabeth, New Jersey featuring thee plane crashes (true story) and the impact on the characters, mostly tweens dealing with all the favorite Blume-in’ topics.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by by Katarina Bivald

A book about books and life. Worthy of its own post, and listing of all their ‘recommendations’.

Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-made World by Mark Miodownik

I consumed this party trivia, fact filled book in its audio format (several work trips), compliments of my public library. I loved the care the author took to break down seemingly mundane substances to their historical origins. I finished the book with great appreciation for basic substances like metal, glass, plastic and despite their ubiquity, how pivotal and fortunate their discovery was to life as we know it today (good and bad). Ponder for a minute, bending a paperclip…  I think this book would be also great to listen or read with older children/young adults, as it certainly generates the key sense of wonderment for science and hopeful inspires future scientific inquiry.

“We may like to think of ourselves as civilized, but that civilization is in large part bestowed by material wealth. Without this stuff, we would quickly be confronted by the same basic struggle for survival that animals are faced with.” Mark Miodownik

Reach & Read: S is for Stanley Cup

Hockey fans – This is for you.

Reach & Read: Good Night, Reindeer

Good Night, Reindeer takes us all through the North Pole, saying good night to each of Santa’s sleigh team.