Book List: Food For Thought Edition

It's been forever since I've done a book list post, but I have been reading-- A LOT actually, but I haven't slowed down long enough to blog about them. To be honest, most have not really been blog worthy. They've been enjoyable reads, but nothing to write home about. Anyway, three of my recent reads have stuck out as books I'd recommend to others so here they are. I guess the difference between these and most of the others is that they really made me think a lot about different things and I think that is a good thing.

The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond: I started reading this book when I went to visit my in-laws in Ohio. I hadn't brought a book and was missing reading when I spotted this one sitting on a shelf in the guest bedroom. I picked it up and read the back and then put it back down. The next day I picked it up and read a few pages and put it back down again. To say that I was reluctant to read this book is an understatement. You see I get really into books when I read them. I get totally sucked into the characters and emotions and at times it can be very powerful...and this book is about a child disappearing and I just didn't know if I could handle it. But slowly I started reading a page or two at a time and eventually I got sucked in and went along for the ride. I found this book to be very powerful. It wasn't predictable and had some interesting twists and viewpoints. I would definitely recommend it. My only warning: ever since I read this book, I've been more anxious when out and about with my boys. I'm sure it will pass with time, I hope it will pass with time, but I definitely think about the possibility of child abduction more now.

The Ocean Between Us by Susan Wiggs: This is a book I read while visiting my parents in Virginia. My mom had bought it after I recommended the author. Most of the Susan Wiggs books I had read were romances, but this is just a good novel. It's about a woman whose husband is an officer in the Navy. As in her other novels, Wiggs does a great job with character development--both of the main characters and the more periphery ones. This one was a very powerful, poignant tale which just seems so relevant in these times of military involvement in places like Afghanistan and Iraq. I know several people whose spouses have been overseas in the military and I just heard of a friend whose little brother was just killed in Afghanistan so this book really hit home right now. I highly recommend it. I hate it when B travels, but at least I know it will only be for a week at most and that he is not actively in danger when he is gone. This book really puts things in perspective.

Lift by Kelly Corrigan: I just picked this one up on a whim from the library. It's a mother writing a letter to her children talking about her role as their mother. It's a quick read (I think I read it in about 2 hours) full of little stories and tidbits, but I found it to be very powerful and relate-able. She says a lot of things that I have thought, but she said it so much more clearly. She talks about how she is telling her children now about herself as she is now because when they are old enough to remember she will have become a different mother already. Anyway, there are lots of little "a ha" thoughts like that. I really loved it. It made me want to write a letter to my boys and tell them about their mom as I am today. It's hard to explanin, but this book really touched me. Must find and read her first book.