Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We are halfway through 2021 and I am well ahead of my reading goal. Last month I only finished a couple of books, but I had started several of these. Summertime in NWA is hot and humid, which makes for good stay-in-the-AC-and-read weather. Here are the books I read and my opinion on them. Click the underlined titles or images for Amazon links.
The Assassin’s Blade
I have been a little heavy on the nonfiction lately, so I was in the mood for fantasy. I previously read Throne of Glass, and I had some issues with it, but I decided to give the series another go by starting with the prequel. I’m rereading Throne of Glass now, because I couldn’t remember details and Assassin’s Blade did a good job of getting me interested again. Read my initial impressions of TOG here. I keep hearing that the series gets better and TOG was written when Sarah J. Maas was basically a kid, so I’m trying to commit to the whole series and get to the good stuff. Assassin’s Blade made me optimistic. I think it corrected a lot of the stuff that infuriated me about TOG. I especially liked the visit to the Red Desert. 4 stars.
The Fifth Season and The Obelisk Gate
I asked for fantasy suggestions in a Facebook group and someone mentioned The Broken Earth Trilogy. I listened to the first two audiobooks in June and the third in July. The Stone Sky will count towards my July books, but I have finished it by the time I am writing this. First, I am grateful for a fantasy series that was not for a YA audience. Some of the characters are kids, and there is some talk about sex and maybe an F word. There is love in this book, but not a lot of romance. The characters are diverse, not just skin tone and language but all along the LGBTQIA+ spectrum as well. There are layers of messages to this story, with a key one being about a certain group of people treating another group as if they are less than human. Then there’s the fact that the broken earth in this epic is “Father Earth,” not Mother. And let’s just say he’s pissed. I also gave both of these 4 stars, but they were better than Assassin’s Blade.
Atomic Habits
This is an audiobook I have sworn to listen to once a year. While I was doing some task-oriented work, it was a good time to play it in the background and try to reinforce the really good advice that James Clear shares. As I mentioned in my last post, I am doing self-development coaching. This is a book I would recommend to every client. If you want to break a bad habit or start some good ones, this is an excellent resource. 5 stars!
The Confidence Gap
This was another audiobook I listened to while tasking, but this one doubled as research for a specific class I was giving in the PBT (Post Betrayal Transformation) Institute. I was talking about overcoming doubt, and I found this rather short book on Audible free with my subscription. I also thought this was a great intro to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, which I have discussed with my therapist before, but with some of my brain issues, it’s helpful to hear things a few times. I enjoyed this book, but I did see a review on Goodreads that took a bit of the wind out of my sails about it. To paraphrase that review: “He says I’m not going to tell you to feel the fear and do it anyway, then he tells you to feel the fear and do it anyway.” I thought that was kind of true, but I still enjoyed the book and found some helpful tips to share in my class. I will share that class content on my new YouTube channel soon, so subscribe and follow me HERE. 4 stars for this book too. I would give everything 5 stars if I didn’t stop myself, so now I give everything 4 stars.
First Half of 2021, Done
As I mentioned in the intro, I am well ahead of my reading schedule. You might have noticed, I am a total nerd for planning and goal-setting. That’s how I got into the Self-Development coaching gig. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to pass the midpoint of the year without giving an update on my 2021 goals, so stay tuned for that in the next day or two. Books have to come first! Please leave a comment and let me know what you are currently reading!
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