January + February 2020 Reads

It's that time again where several months slip by and now I need to update you on some of my favorite reads so far this year!  January was a slow month for reading, but I also don't have a set reading goal this year.  February was a bit better.  I read all of these books:

• The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
• Pumpkin Heads by Rainbow Rowell
• Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula by Andi Watson
• White Rose by Kip Wilson
• If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson

For the first time in a long time, I did some rereads (Of Mice and Men and If You Come Softly) and I hope I'm able to do more rereads going forward in 2020.  I think that'll be nice to revisit some of my favorites.  But!  These books really stood out to me in January/February:

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo

I finished this book on January 1, 2020.  I had been reading it pretty passively before, but suddenly there was a spark in me.  January 1, for me at least, really brings on a zest for life and I just want to hit the ground running and accomplish all the things.  But this year, with a baby due to coming in for a landing at the end of May, it really dawned on me how much needs to change at home.  Namely, I have too much crap in my house and since we're about to enter a, I assume, chaotic time in our (my partner's and I) lives, I want some semblance of order and I want a sense of what actually matters to us.  That's where this book comes in.

This book made me think about cleaning up my space in an entirely different way.  It made me examine my relationship with stuff (because let's face it, a lot of the things I was holding onto didn't carry the meaning I thought it did).  My partner and I have been going through her method (not sticking to it 100%, but still hitting each of the categories) and it's amazing how much we have gotten rid of so far.  Someday I'd like to do a post on this and go more in-depth about what our experience has been like.  But yes.  What an amazing read and what a good way to start 2020-- by getting rid of the extra and focusing on what is most necessary in my life right now.

Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell

I haven't read a book by Rainbow Rowell since Eleanor & Park (and let's just say, I have some strong feelings about this book...).  This book is quite different though.  I wouldn't call this a romance, per se, but it was cute and whimsical.  I love Deja and her no-nonsense attitude and Josiah is sweet, but definitely needs to grow a backbone.  I thought their chemistry was really neat.  I also love that even though this story could have easily gone along as a typical romance story, but because of the characters, it doesn't quite work out like that.  It gives agency to young people in love-- you can't just wait for someone to approach you or wait for life to happen to you.  Sometimes you have to actively seek out what you want in life and just come out and tell people how you feel about them.  Even if they don't return your feelings.

But anyway, this was a wonderful read, it was an easy read, and it was pretty darn cute.  Highly recommend!

White Rose by Kip Wilson

The cover is what immediately stood out to me about this book, so without really learning too much about it, I put it on my wishlist and voila!  It turned up Christmas Eve :)

I didn't expect this book to be a book of narrative poetry, but I was pleasantly surprised.  I can't think of other historical reads that I've read that are written in a style like this.  But it also added elements of letter writing, which I enjoyed.  

I think what I like the most about this book is that it's taking one of my favorite (I'm not sure if that's an appropriate choice of words) parts of history and it's also not super well-known compared to other parts of World War II in Nazi Germany.  It makes it accessible to a younger audience, which, as a teacher, I greatly appreciate.  Maybe some of my students will be like me and will read it and want to know more and will read everything in sight about this part of history.  I hope they find that passion even if it's not about this part of history.  

I can't wait to see what other good reads come my way this year!

Thanks for Reading!

--Jude