Meredith’s Recommended Books: August
The Recommended Books for August are here! I have to be honest…I haven’t really felt like reading this month. I’m not sure why. When I’m outside, hanging out in the pool, I have no problem reading. But that’s my only motivation. Other than that, not really wanting to read. I read so many books on vacation which I loved but I think that might have just burned me out a little bit so I took a step back & only read a little bit this month. That being said…the books I chose for this month were good! One is perfect for navigating your everyday life and overcoming the obstacles & barriers that are in your way. The other book is perfect for the summer! Let’s get into it!
Onto the August Recommended Books!
August Recommended Book #1:
Own Your Everyday by Jordan Lee Dooley
Here’s the synopsis:
Does it ever seem like you still have to find your purpose or that you’re stuck with “unfigured-out dreams”? Do you feel the pressure to prove yourself or worry about what others will think?
You are not the only one.
From accidentally starting a small business instead of using her college degree, to embarrassing herself onstage in front of thousands, to wasting time worrying about what others think or say, Jordan Lee Dooley knows exactly how that feels—and she’s learned some important lessons about living a purposeful life along the way.
An influential millennial widely recognized for her tagline turned international movement, “Your Brokenness is Welcome Here,” Jordan has become a go-to source that women around the world look to for inspiration in their faith, work, relationships, and everyday life.
Now, in this approachable but actionable read that’s jam-packed with practical tools, Jordan equips you to:
– tackle obstacles such as disappointment, perfectionism, comparison, and distraction
– remove labels and break out of the box of expectations
– identify and eliminate excuses and unnecessary stress about an unknown future
– overcome the lie that you can’t live your God-given purpose until you reach a certain goal or milestone
If you ever feel you need to shift your mindset but don’t know how, this book will help you overcome shame, practice gratitude, and redefine success.
My Thoughts:
Let’s dive right into this book. Parts of this book resonated with me and parts didn’t…which I’ve found is somewhat common with these types of books.
Part 1 is just intro-ing Own Your Everyday and what that means and the things that hold us back from doing just that. Part 2 breaks down common barriers and that we have that stops us from being able to own everyday, like shame, disappointment, perfectionism, etc. Jordan shares stories from her life that correlate with those obstacles & shares how those things hurt us & get in our way. She then goes on to share a couple of ways we can break through the obstacles. Part 3 was probably my favorite. Jordan shares how to move forward & techniques that she has used to help her throughout her life. It contains action plans too. Part 3 is also kind of a pep talk of sorts, which I liked. It was practical but guiding & uplifting.
For each chapter in chapter 2, Jordan provides questions to ask yourself to work through those topics like perfectionism and disappointment and seeing where you stand on those them. At a couple of points, she even suggests getting a sheet of paper & answering the question she poses. I would say that part of this book is reading and learning and part of it is actually working through the book to help you Own Your Everyday. If owning your everyday is a challenge for you or you’re struggling with some of the things listed in Part 2, I would suggest reading this book. Jordan does a really great job of walking you through defining purpose, figuring out what it is, and helping you figure out how to actually Own Your Everyday.
August Recommended Book #2:
How To Walk Away by Katherine Center
Here’s the summary:
Margaret Jacobsen is just about to step into the bright future she’s worked for so hard and so long: a new dream job, a fiancé she adores, and the promise of a picture-perfect life just around the corner. Then, suddenly, on what should have been one of the happiest days of her life, everything she worked for is taken away in a brief, tumultuous moment.
In the hospital and forced to face the possibility that nothing will ever be the same again, Maggie must confront the unthinkable. First there is her fiancé, Chip, who wallows in self-pity while simultaneously expecting to be forgiven. Then, there’s her sister Kit, who shows up after pulling a three-year vanishing act. Finally, there’s Ian, her physical therapist, the one the nurses said was too tough for her. Ian, who won’t let her give in to her pity, and who sees her like no one has seen her before. Sometimes the last thing you want is the one thing you need. Sometimes we all need someone to catch us when we fall. And sometimes love can find us in the least likely place we would ever expect.
How to Walk Away is Katherine Center at her very best―a masterpiece of a novel that is both hopeful and hilarious; truthful and wise; tender and brave.
My Thoughts:
Let me just say, some of the characters in this book are something else. I would never say some of the things that these characters say. The audacity of them makes this book shocking & hilarious at the same time. The writing is fantastic. There’s so much humor in this book while also dealing with family, grief, trauma and an upended life.
This book is perfect to round out the ‘official’ end of summer. Read this one by the pool or at the beach or on the couch. It really doesn’t matter, you should just read this book. There’s some romance mixed in there too so I’d say it’s a pretty well-rounded novel. 🙂
It’s written like a memoir would be which to me, gives it a little bit of a different spin. So it’s not written from present day, it’s written a decade later.
My edition had a “Reading Group Guide” at the end of the book which featured a Q&A with the author and questions that would be great for a book club to discuss. I would recommend finding the “Reading Group Guide” version if you’re in a book club. There’s also a sneak peek of her next book (well, technically it’s the one after How to Walk Away not her most recent) which was fun to read because you briefly meet the main character of the next book in this book & their lives briefly overlap & you get a little more information about the day their lives overlapped. I liked having more knowledge there, especially after finishing How to Walk Away. That’s all I’m gonna say about that! 🙂 Go read this book!
That’s all for this month! I hope y’all enjoyed reading my thoughts on the August Recommended Books.
Tell me below: have you read any of the August Recommended Books? Or Katherine Center’s other books? What were your thoughts? Do you want to read them?
Love,
Want more book recommendations? Here’s a few: February’s, April’s, and May’s.
