So, here we are, nearly at the halfway point of the year, and I’m trying to sum up the best books I read in the second three months of 2014. (For a look at first quarter’s best books, check out this post.)
Why is this so hard?!?!
I’m sorry if you think me dramatic, but I’m reading great books this year, and if you can’t find a good book to read, ask me for a recommendation! Because I’m super picky about the books I read and review, and if I don’t think they’re amazing, I’ll let you know. Here’s an attempt at the best books I read in the April-June range (in no particular order). And if you want to see what all I’ve read this year, find me on Goodreads. I track all my reading there. 
- Just missing the date cutoff for the first quarter was Katie Ganshert’s A Broken Kind of Beautiful. This novel features one of my favorite fictional heroes. Possibly of all time. Ganshert writes contemporary romance but it’s not light reading. I compared this book to Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love, which is on my all-time best books list.
- Next up is The Waiting by Cathy LaGrow. Non-fiction that reads like fiction, and it is a tear-jerker, heart-breaking, hope-filled story of family reunion.
- Jennie Allen’s Restless was a book that took me almost the entire quarter to read, and I still need to return to it and flesh out more of the questions it raises. If you’re lacking purpose or vision or wonder how and if God can use your life, this book will help.
- I was surprised by how much I identified with the story in Girl at the End of the World by Elizabeth Esther. This is a memoir of the author’s years growing up in a fundamentalist cult. Her experiences are heartbreaking and her insights are challenging.
- I’m going to give this last one to a category of books: war novels. Daisies Are Forever by Liz Tolsma and The Sentinels of Andersonville by Tracy Groot have renewed my interest in history. Tolsma’s book is set during World War II. Groot’s is a Civil War novel. Both are based on historical events and places, and both I would consider must-reads for any history buff out there.
Seriously, these lists pain me, so why I keep trying to pick favorites, I don’t know. But, if you’re in need of a summer read yet this year, check out one of these.
And tell me, what are the best books you’ve read so far this year?
A surprise favorite from out book club was A Whistling Season by Ivan Doig. Not at all my normal type of book, but interesting and enjoyable.
I love surprise favorites! It means I’ve dared to venture outside my normal genres. 🙂