LIFE'S A PEARL

I started this month with 6 February hopefuls to read. 4 were from my winter tbr to complete that.

I’m planning to share my spring tbr next week!

So far I’ve read 5 books this month. Three of these were hopefuls with 2 off my winter tbr.

One of the books was for my Pearls of Wisdom nonfiction book club on Fable. I’m currently reading Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan for A Dose of Romance Book Club so look for that review at the end of the month!

I’m hoping that one hits it out of the park! As you’ll soon learn below, my reading month is not off to a great start. I was geared up for an awesome month of book clubs and buddy reads but a few of those haven’t panned out.

Last month I didn’t have any 3-star or lower reads. So far this month, I’ve had two 3-star books.

Something that surprised me again was starting out the month with more nonfiction reads than fiction. Three of my reviews are for nonfiction books! This is heavily influenced by my deep dive into the enneagram personality framework.

I DNF’d one nonfiction book The Enneagram Type 1 by Beth McCord. I was really looking forward to reading a type specific enneagram book but I couldn’t get past the religious overtone. Usually I can reframe for my own spirituality but this was too tightly woven with only Christian practices for growth or change.

Here’s what I read in the first half of February.

Mid February Reading Recap:

The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Rating: 3 stars

This was the latest selection for The Reading Through Life Podcast’s Patron Book Club. They tried hosting it on fable this month but I was really bummed about the lack of participation on there.

This has been the month of reminding myself that there’s all kinds of ways to read together and not every way will appeal to every reader. Same as books.

Julia, an ordinary 6th grader living in Southern California, wakes up one morning to discover something has happened to the rotation of the earth. As days and nights grow longer, the disorder of the natural world mirrors the changes within her own family life.

My Thoughts

I was so intrigued by the premise of this book and then majorly disappointed in the execution.

That quote above holds so much promise for a family drama set within a climate fiction but none of that actually happens.

The climate part is touched on very little. There’s anxiety but never a struggle to survive. And very little knowledge is discovered about what’s actually going on.

The family aspects are constantly teased as these massive shifts. The author even writes things like “and then I never saw him again” but then that character literally comes back the next day? I just didn’t get it.

It also seemed like a very strange choice to write about a character who turns 12 for a young adult audience. Julia is written on the brink of puberty (she doesn’t yet wear even a training bra) but then there’s a high amount of sexually active children surrounding her? Again I didn’t get it.

The small moments that we glimpse into the changing world were interesting. The book did keep me hooked enough to finish reading but the promised pay off never delivered.

I didn’t find the end to be emotionally satisfying so this book was really just a downer. I know that works for many readers but it’s definitely not my preference.

The Story of You: An Enneagram Journey to Becoming Your True Self by Ian Morgan Cron

Rating: 4 stars

This is Ian Morgan Cron’s follow up book to The Road Back to You, which was a 5-star read for me last month.

In The Story of You, Cron explains that we all adopt different stories (depending on our enneagram type) in childhood as a way to cope and maintain attachments. As we become adults these stories stop helping us and instead hold us back from reaching our full potential.

Cron offers steps to take to rewrite your story and tools to aid reflection and change throughout a lifetime. Each type has its own chapter. Within these he shares other people’s stories of transformation and growth.

My Thoughts

I listened to this on audio and enjoyed Cron’s narration again. I then went back and reread the beginning chapters that covered his method for changing your story and the chapter on my type.

This book wasn’t as big an epiphany experience as the first one. Likely because now I’ve identified my type and am more familiar with the enneagram. Before this was all new knowledge.

I think his ideas for changing your internal story are interesting. I found the stories shared within my chapter helpful but there’s not a lot of concrete advice to put into practice here. Because it is such personal work, I understand it’s very abstract to discuss.

On first read there’s not a lot of tangible help here, but it’s likely a book I’ll refer back to.

I recently discovered Ian Morgan Cron has a podcast all about the enneagram, discussing and sharing other’s stories. It’s called Typology. I think many of the stories shared in this book originated as interviews for that podcast.

The Idea of You by Robinne Lee

Rating: 3 stars

This book is a favorite of one of my favorite podcasts, Reading Through Life. I put it on my winter tbr specially to enjoy this February! Unfortunately it was a big miss for me.

When Solène gets stuck taking her preteen daughter, Isabelle, on a weekend trip to meet her favorite British boy band, August Moon, she hardly expects to feel a spark with one of the members, Hayes.

Despite their age difference, the attraction is immediate for both of them and before Solène knows it, she finds herself meeting Hayes for secret hook ups all over the world. Soon she finds their relationship threatening her family, her career, and even her safety.

My Thoughts

This book is not a romance and marketing it as such is very misleading for romance readers. If you’re someone who cares about genre conventions, I’d suggest looking into this one further before picking it up.

I don’t want to yuck anyone’s yum but this was just not for me. I’m not a prude by any means. I was really excited to read an age gap romance especially a reverse one but as stated that’s not what this story is.

Honestly what this read like was an older woman’s steamy fan fiction of her boy band fantasy. There’s lots of spice but little storyline or character development.

I couldn’t connect with the main character, Solène. Her biggest trait was that she’s French so therefore sexy and not like other women. She saw all of the issues that arise coming, did nothing to prevent them even when it hurts her daughter, made some blatantly terrible choices, but yet was shocked when it goes exactly as she predicted. Hayes was often the mature one in their relationship.

Her constant referral to Hayes and the other band members as boys got to the point that the steamy scenes made me very uncomfortable.

Chalk it up to another one where I just don’t get the appeal but I know a lot of other people loved it.

Rating: 3.5 stars

This is Suzanne Stabile’s follow up to The Road Back to You, which she cowrote with Ian Morgan Cron.

From goodreads:

“Most of us have no idea how others see or process their experiences. And that can make relationships hard, whether with intimate partners, with friends, or in our professional lives. Understanding the motivations and dynamics of these different personality types can be the key that unlocks sometimes mystifying behavior in others—and in ourselves.

This book from Suzanne Stabile on the nine Enneagram types and how they behave and experience relationships will guide readers into deeper insights about themselves, their types, and others’ personalities so that they can have healthier, more life-giving relationships. No one is better equipped than Suzanne Stabile, coauthor, with Ian Morgan Cron, of The Road Back to You, to share the Enneagram’s wisdom on how relationships work—or don’t.”

My Thoughts

I listened to this one on audio. Fun fact: Stabile talks so quickly I had to slow down my listening speed for the first time in a long while.

Once you know your enneagram type it is tempting to just listen to or read those chapters, as Stabile understands and warns against doing in the beginning of this book.

This was another curious look into the enneagram. Similar to The Story of You, there were no big epiphanies and I had even fewer moments of insight.

I did enjoy the way Stabile tries to frame each type’s chapter as a way of understanding where others are coming from. How they see and experience the world differently.

The parts I found most interesting were actually her observations into her grandchildren’s possible types.

I wish there had been more time and information given to the relationships between each type. There were only a sentence or two. It would probably be worth taking a deeper look into the chapter covering my type or those close to me.

I enjoyed Stabile’s positive personality and gentle bluntness. She has a more recent enneagram book, The Journey Toward Wholeness, that I’ll likely check out soon. She also has a podcast (because who doesn’t these days) called The Enneagram Journey, though I’m not sure how heavy it gets into religion.

Tranquility by Tuesday: 9 Ways to Calm the Chaos and Make Time for What Matters by Laura Vanderkam

Rating: 4 stars

I previously read and enjoyed Laura Vanderkam’s 168 Hours so when a bookish friend put this newer release on my radar I picked it for my winter tbr and my February Pearls of Wisdom book club selection.

In Tranquility by Tuesday, Laura Vanderkam shares the results of her tranquility and time management project. Rather than waiting for life to slow down or trying to figure out how to do less, she believes you need to better design your life to make room for the things you want to happen now.

Vanderkam boils her findings from studying 150 time diaries down into 9 rules you can implement to create more room for what’s important in your busy life. That in turn brings more feelings of tranquility.

The rules are broken down into three parts. The first set helps calm the chaos. Part two is all about making sure the good things in life happen first. The last section is dedicated to wasting less time. In her study, participants implemented one rule per week. The rules are in an order to build on one another.

My Thoughts

In the beginning I struggled a bit with not comparing my life to the author’s. My first year as a parent of only one child still sometimes overwhelmed me. Even with a loving partner, Grandma around the corner, and the ability to stay at home! With Vanderkam’s call to have it all – a high power career, 5 kids, regular exercise, and hobbies – it was difficult not to feel inferior.

That’s not her intention obviously and she states in the introduction that this book is geared toward busy people and will be most helpful to those balancing work and family life.

I found her level of life scheduling efficient but not something that will appeal to everyone. I don’t think I even want to be that busy, to where I have every moment of the week on a schedule. Her methods do build in some flexibility and her point is that you’re scheduling what matters because otherwise it doesn’t happen.

If you set aside those things as well as her large amount of privilege, there are several great insights into time management, mindset shifts, and intentionality throughout this book.

I struggle more with mindset and staying motivated but I found plenty of helpful nuggets in those areas too. One of my favorite rules was three times a week is a habit. I also loved the move by 3pm rule.

I enjoyed the reasoning behind using weekly adventures to create nostalgia. This slows down our perception of time and helps make memories. Especially important when you’re solidly in the routine and sameness of family life.

I loved reading the participant responses because I often felt seen in their struggles and emotions. I found Vanderkam’s pep talks and tips that followed those helpful.

Stay Tuned!

I’m currently reading Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan for my romance book club. She’s a favorite author – I loved her Kingmaker series! – so I’m hoping she delivers a true romance. I’m happy to be reading that with my friends Ashley and Nicole!

This month I joined someone else’s buddy read of Babel by R.F. Kuang but it seems that everyone else DNF’d it already. I set it aside to get through some other books but am still planning to pick it back up.

I’m currently listening to The Governess Game by Tessa Dare. Lately I have not been into historical romance but I enjoyed The Duchess Deal. Tessa Dare is an author on my reading life bucket list to pick up again this year. So far it’s really funny! I love the way she plays on typical historical romance tropes and infuses feminism into her world.

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What’s on your mid February reading recap?