2018 Books in Review

2018 was the year of the audiobook. It just made sense. I easily spend an average of 2 hours per day in the car with three different school drops off, three different school pick ups, dance rehearsals, band and dance private lessons, soccer practices and games. Who has time to actually look at a book?

My audible subscription is definitely a gift that I give to myself that keeps on giving all year!  I just do one book per month subsciption but when they have periodic sales throughout the year when you can pick up extra credits for less than the monthly price, I tend to take advantage of those. Still I probably only average about 1-2 books per month as I also like to listen to music as well.

I started the year listening to the book How Not to Die. This book is full of the best health advice I have ever received and explained in a way that anyone can understand. I highly recommend it but will warn you that if you are a big meat eater, you won't like what you will hear but still I think everyone should listen to this and then decide for themselves what they want to take away. I ate a mostly plant based diet for some time after listening to this but have reverted back to some poorer eating habits again. I made need a re-listen! Definitely read if you want to know more about diet and the "whys" behind eating plants.

The next book I read was The Wife Between Us. This was a good mystery/suspense with plot twists that you don't see coming. Very much like Gone Girl if you are into those type of books. This personally wasn't my favorite but I know many loved it. I think I just didn't get invested enough into the characters.

After that, I read When Life Gives you Lululemons. This was a cute, quick read. I enjoyed it though it felt a little predictable at first but stick with the story because it definitely gets unique. The author did a really good job with character development in this one and made you really like the characters. The ending did feel a little like.... well, didn't they wrap that up with a pretty bow? But it still works in my opinion.

Next I read Then She Was Gone. I will be honest. This one was soooo boring to me. I honestly don't think I even finished it. The plot sounded like you would be hooked... but the author spent so much time dwelling on mundane things that really didn't support the story... anyway, I say PASS.

How to Walk Away was next. This was cute. The story was very endearing. But that was just it for me. I know a lot of people just loved this and it was one of their favorites from last year but it was meh for me. One sidenote, I started reading this one on the plane ride home from a girl's trip last summer and the book starts with a plane crash. Don't do that.

The next read (listen) was Educated: A Memoir. This was probably my second favorite book of the year. I don't know what it was about the main character that I felt I identified so much with, but I did. Which is sad because she really had one of the very worst childhoods that I can think of a child having other than maybe one who grew up on the streets. She and her siblings were abused emotionally and physically by their father and sometimes their other siblings. It is a story about rising above the circumstances you are born into and maybe that was the part I most identified with. But the author of this story just has that way of drawing you in and not letting you go. I definitely recommend this.

Next up was the audiobook Little Fires Everywhere. This book was a good, solid choice. It deals with a lot of tough topics and makes you really think about things from different points of view. I usually love any book that is able to do that. The way that the author intertwines the characters' lives is definitely unique and this book will have you thinking about your own life, your own community and how you may or may not identify with the characters in the book.

This past fall I read my favorite book of the year, The Great Alone. I shouldn't have been surprised. Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale was my favorite from a few years ago. The Great Alone has stuck with me since I read it. It makes me want to visit Alaska and I often find myself thinking about the characters. Again if you like a good book about rising above... especially if you are into the whole land being its own character thing, you will love this book. I really think Kristin Hannah is one of the best current writers out there.

The last book I read of the year was probably my least favorite, Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. If you are okay with a book with very little plot and mostly all just character development, then you may be one who really likes this one. I mean lots of people do. It gets thousands of five star ratings and I believe Reese Witherspoon is playing Eleanor in the movie, right? But there just wasn't enough going on for me despite the fact that Eleanor is a very complex character who can, I guess, carry a story all on her own. It just didn't do it for me. I forced myself to finish it.

Well there you have it. My 2018 reading list! What was YOUR favorite book of 2018? I need to update my wishlist for the year on Audible and would love your suggestions. If you spend a lot of time in the car and like to read, I would highly suggest an audible subscription. $15 a month for a new book that I don't have to leave my house to get? Yes, please!