“Clearly one must read every good book at least once every ten years.” ― C.S. Lewis
In my BLOG post Trust the Process, Lessons from Air Traffic Training, I outlined one aspect of my personal growth plan for this year: reading books. I talked about why I decided to be intentional about this, the benefits and the people who have been instrumental in this decision. Although I provided the list of books I completed this year, I did not go into the specifics of why and how I picked the books I did. If you have thought, “gee this might be a good thing to do, but what books should I pick?” “How do I decide?”
There are many ways you could go about this:Look at the various bestsellers lists – New York Times, USA Today, etc., etc.
- Look at various sites such as Good-reads for ideas
- Ask friends and family or, even teachers
- Go to the library and/or bookstore browse….
There is no limitation to options and, of course, you get to choose! This BLOG provides the resources and rationale I used this past year then how the books I read fit into a framework that emerged.
The resources I used to pick were:
- Books mentioned in podcasts I listen to regularly. The two from which many of the books came from are The Entreleadership Podcast and This is Your Life podcast.
- My own Book Shelf. I had a backlog of unread books that has been reduced to half this year. Yeah!
- Recommendations from a friend. Lisa is an author and avid reader. Our tastes are different but I value her input and took her up on several suggestions that I have enjoyed.
A Framework for Books
In my Hidden Life post, I talked about spirit, soul (mind, will, emotions) and body. In picking these books, they fit into informing and/or enhancing at least one of these areas. This was not conscious, but in looking over the list I can see this now. Sometimes these things become apparent after the fact. I provided links to many of the books:
Spirit – These books spoke to be at a level deeper than the intellect and emotions, so for me, they fit in this section.
- The Bible – my daily spirit food. Jesus said, “my word, they are Spirit and they are life…” John
- The Sermons of John G Lake
- Lay it On Me
- Racism in the Church
- To Fly Again
- The Search for God and Guinness
- Jungle Pilot
Soul – Mind. Will. These books challenged me this year. I am grateful.
- Weather Flying
- Platform, Get Noticed in a Noisy World
- The Success Principles
- Living Forward
- The Ambitions Woman
- Boundaries
- Retire Inspired
- Essentialism
- $100 Start-up
- Tribes
Soul – Emotions
- Andy Andrews Books (4) – Any book by this author is time well spent
The following group of novels/authors take me to places I have been or want to go. In most cases, I am transported back to locations I have been with new characters as companions.
- Peter Mayle Books (2)
- On The Road to Little Dribbling
- Evanovich Books (5)
- Colin Dexter – I got hooked on Inspector Morse through the BBC and Masterpiece Classic. I have to say, reading British English was vocabulary building!
This group of books was expanding for me. The two classics I had avoided in my school days. It is just as well, I doubt I would have appreciated them as I did this time.
As a consummate Downton Abby fan, I could not resist!
Body – clearly I need to balance out this area and may explain my lack of progress in the fitness area this year!
- Blue Zones – a really good read on the common characteristics of those who live past 100 years of age.
Books Balance
Reading books has added a balance to my life this year. We are very absorbed in this house renovation. It is not the extreme home make-over version, but rather the”one step in front of the other” version. Reading keeps me from losing myself in the tedium. Some may call it an escape, but what is wrong with that? Nothing, as far as I can tell.
Are you a reader? if so, what do you enjoy reading? IF not, let 2017 be filled with good reads! Please post your comments below.
Hi Nancy, wonderful post and thank you for the mention. Coincidentally, Elliot Figman of Poets & Writers magazine just sent subscribers an email that included these words, “In recent years a number of studies have linked reading fiction, in particular, to an increased capacity for empathy, and I can think of no quality more necessary at the present moment than empathy. There is an urgent need for deep attention to the experience and ideas of others.” Reading is a little bit like seeing the neighborhood from Boo Radley’s front porch.
Wonderful affirmation. I had several goals this year and of all I was able to achieve, the reading one is well toward the top. Thanks for your response my friend!