Books to Read ~ 10 Random Favorites

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for great books to read.

Snuggling up with a good book is one of my very favorite things in the whole world. So I thought I’d share 10 of my very favorite books!

I’ve linked up the titles and the pictures to Amazon in case you’re interested in any of them. And let me know what you think in the Comments. If you like hearing about new books to read, I have about a zillion to recommend. And since I’m finding new ones all the time, I’m happy to post more!

So without further ado, here are 10 of my random favorites.

———- Gardens ———-

Tasha Tudor’s Garden

Tasha Tudor was one of my very favorite gardeners. She was also a famous children’s book illustrator and author, speaker, and my perfect ideal of a free spirit! She lived her life exactly how she wanted to, and part of how she wanted to, was to garden. This book is chock full of beautiful photos, garden tips, crafts, her quirky personality, and sage advice. I’ve spent so many happy and inspiring hours with it!

———- Mysteries ———-

Traitor’s Purse

I love an old English style mystery, and this is one of my favorites by one of my favorite authors. One of the Queens of Crime, Margery Allingham. Her famous detective is Albert Campion, a funny, whimsical, adventuring, and sightly mysterious aristocrat whose name is “known to be a pseudonym.” She wrote a whole series, and this one is smack in the middle. It’s not hard to figure out the various characters, though, as our hero has lost his memory!

Leaving Time

This was a fascinating book! It’s another mystery of sorts. A teenage girl sets out to find her mother who went missing years ago – the night one of her mother’s colleagues was murdered. As well as detailing her search, the novel explores grief, abandonment, helplessness, and mental illness from several perspectives. The setting is interesting too – an elephant sanctuary!

The Likeness

Can I just say – this was one of the most gripping mystery novels I’ve ever read! (And that’s covering a lot of ground.) I literally could not put this book down! Nuff Said.

——— Personal Development ———

Atomic Habits

Here’s a super interesting, concisely written, easy to understand plan to make big changes through little actions. Our author breaks it down into just a few steps. And he explains it so well that you wonder why you’ve never seen it that way before! An excellent book and program.

———- Decorating ———-

Make It Beautiful

Ah – the book that really inspired me to do more table setting! I came across this one in the book store one day, and had to buy it! Monica sets 10 tables for different events – a baby shower, graduation party, and wine tasting, among others. The photos are big and lush and beautiful, and her insights are enlightening. And fun!

French Country Cottage

Oh and then we have this beauty by one of my first blogging heroes – Courtney Allison, the writer of French Country Cottage. She is one of the most amazing stylists and photographers out there. And her first book is everything you’d expect! Gorgeous interiors, stunning photos, beautiful flowers, and lovely words. And her adorable dog, Sweet Pea, too! Be sure to get the hardcover version of this one. Nothing beats holding something this beautiful in your hands!

———- Food ———-

Garlic and Sapphires

Garlic and Sapphires is one of my favorite food books to read of all time! Ruth Reichl is a marvelous story teller, and her recipes are so tempting. Plus the descriptions of her meals and wines are out of this world! But even with all that, it’s the stories of her various disguises that I love the most. What goes through her mind as she plans, creates, and executes the different personalities? How do people react? And how do those personalities affect her? That’s the meat of this book. And it’s delicious!

———- Fiction ———-

A Gentleman In Moscow

Have you ever read a book that made you want to be a better person? That’s what A Gentleman in Moscow was like for me! It’s about a Russian nobleman imprisoned by the Bolsheviks. He has to stay inside the hotel where he lives for the rest of his life. Whether or not this story could have actually happened, it’s worth every second you spend with it. Not only does Amor Towles create wonderful characters and authentic emotions, but his writing is the most beautiful I’ve ever read.

What Alice Forgot

And last, but certainly not least, is this one from our book group. As you can probably guess, it has to do with memory loss. Just imagine how freaky it would be to wake up from an accident with no memory of the last 10 years! That’s what happens to our heroine. She thinks she’s in a happy marriage and pregnant with her first child. But in reality, she now has three children and is in the process of a divorce! What happens to both her memory and her marriage makes for a pretty wild ride.

———- Organizing ———-

And for a special bonus suggestion, check out THIS POST for my favorite organizing book ever – one that will change your life!

———- Listen With Audible ———-

I love hard copy books! As I mentioned, there’s nothing I love more than snuggling up with a good book to read. However, I spend a lot of time in my car, so I listen to a lot of books too, and that is wonderful! I just buy the Audible version, and listen on my commute.

If you’d rather listen than read sometimes too, you’ll probably want to get yourself an Audible membership.

Audible Monthly Membership & 30 Day Free Trial

• 30 days of membership free, plus 1 audiobook and 2 Audible Originals to get you started.
• After trial, you’ll get 3 titles each month: 1 audiobook and 2 Audible Originals of your choice.
• Easy exchanges. Don’t like your audiobook? Swap it for free.
• Cancel anytime, your audiobooks are yours to keep forever.

Audible Gold Annual Membership

This is a great thing! You still get your free audiobooks, plus you save %30 off additional audiobooks, and $30 off the monthly membership!

• 12 audiobooks all at once and 2 Audible Originals from a curated selection every month.
• Easy exchanges – swap any audiobook you don’t love.
• Keep all your audiobooks, even if you cancel.
• Get 30% off additional audiobooks.

So whether you read or listen, I hope you’ve gotten some inspiration from my list of books to read! Leave a Comment and let me know your favorite books to read – I love recommendations too!

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