Archive for the ‘Reads’ Category

May 2019 Must-Reads

Saturday, June 1st, 2019

Who is ready for all that summer reading? Today I’m sharing 8 books that I enjoyed this month and think you will too! This month’s stack includes a couple of incredible thrillers, a courtroom drama, a memoir, and some really fun women’s fiction novels that are begging to be added to your beach bag.

BTW- Did you see my FREE Summer Reading Guide I made for you? This guide should keep you very busy this summer with loads of beautiful reads.

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While you’re here, be sure to print out the 2019 MomAdvice reading challenge worksheet and join our free online book club! You can check out the 2019 MomAdvice Book Club picks over here. Don’t forget to send me a friend request over on GoodReads for more great book reviews!

Did you know Prime members get a read for free every single month? Grab your FREE book over here.

The Book of Month Club Selections Are Also Out!!

This month’s special: New members can now get their first book for $9.99 when they join using this month’s code: SUMMERVACAY and can cancel at any time.

A Nearly Normal Family by M. T. Edvardsson

Recursion by Blake Crouch (read my review on this one HERE)

Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams

Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane

Summer of ’69 by Elin Hilderbrand

Here are 8 must-read books I tackled in May:

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review- it allowed me to toggle between my hardback and Kindle this month. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I do not typically turn to courtroom dramas for reading, but the premise for this one was so intriguing that I decided to make Miracle Creek my Book of the Month in April. Don’t worry, if you missed that one, you can probably still add this one to your box this month! Honestly, this book really blew me away with it’s smart twists that it surprised me that such seasoned writing could be found in a debut novelist.

If courtroom thrillers aren’t your cup of tea or if you haven’t picked up one since the Grisham days, I encourage you to give this one a spin!

The book opens with the court case so it is one of those right-out-of-the-gates kind of books that I tend to gravitate towards these days. The story centers around a family who have immigrated to the states and decided to open an experimental medical treatment facility that utilizes a pressurized oxygen chamber as a therapeutic device to treat complex medical cases like autism and infertility.

When the device, known as the Miracle Submarine, explodes, killing two people, everyone becomes a suspect and each have their own motives that could throw their innocence into question.

Told from alternating perspectives, Kim really builds layered characters that are real and relatable. I found the mother, who comes under scrutiny, to be among the most compelling because she is dealing with the heaviness of the day-to-day grind of appointments and struggles with her son and her need to escape from these burdens.

If you are a fan of Celeste Ng or loved Defending Jacob, I have a feeling you will love this book as much as I did. Kim really uses her own complex background in a way that makes you feel sympathy in the Yoo’s family struggles of trying to make their life in America and not always feeling welcomed or at home.

5 out of 5 Stars

The Mother-In-Law by Sally Hepworth

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Don’t you love a deliciously good thriller in the summer months? I have a feeling if you are a Liane Moriarty fan that you will adore The Mother-In-Law this year.

It’s no secret that the mother-in-law gets a bad rap sometimes in literature. Hepworth though carves a marvelously complex character for her mother-in-law and builds all of these twists and tensions, among her family members, in a way that garners empathy for her role in the family.

Lucy knows right away that she is not the wife that Diana has envisioned for her son. Lucy struggles with the distance that Diana seems to create within them, despite her charitable spirit and working tirelessly for others as an advocate for female refugees.

When Diana unexpectedly dies of suicide, her family is surprised, but also realizes that her cancer diagnosis may have just been too much for her.

The problem?

The autopsy shows that she never had cancer, but the body does show traces of poison and evidence of suffocation.

Diana’s complex relationships really come into play as you try to piece together what has happened. Told in alternating points of view, through past and present, you realize just how many people had a motive in Diana’s death and how many layers she really did have to her own personal story.

I couldn’t put this one down and would recommend it for a strong thriller that genuinely delivers on those complex thriller plot twists. Fans of The Other Woman, in particular, are sure to enjoy this one!

5 out of 5 Stars

The Overdue Life of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms

Thank you to the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I hope you are snagging those free Kindle First Reads that you are being offered up as a Prime member! The Overdue Life of Amy Byler happened to be one of those free selections and I can’t tell you what a welcome escape it was for this mom!

Amy Byler’s husband unexpectedly left her and for three years she has been raising her teen daughter and tween son all on her own.

When her husband comes back he offers to care for their kids for the summer, to make up for lost time. It’s why Amy decides to escape her suburban life to head to New York for a conference and to visit an old friend in New York City.

Her old friend is impossibly stylish and working for a magazine and thinks Amy’s getaway would make for an excellent piece. Nicknamed her Momspringa, to mimic the Amish teenage passage of Rumspringa, Amy receives a makeover and is encouraged to try dating again. Amy finds herself quite at home in the city and grapples with the blissful absence of responsibility and the welcome joy of having New York City all to herself.

Do I want to leave my family?

Absolutely not!

I will say though that Amy’s fictional escape was just what this Amy needed. Escaping the day-to-day grind sounds pretty flipping amazing when I’m in the thick of end-of-school-year commitments. It also, equally, made me sweet on my kids and hubby again to be reminded of just how beautiful it is to be home and loved unconditionally.

I laughed out loud, there are loads of bookish references and nerd humor, an incredibly beautiful friendship, and a Nora Ephron-worthy love story all in one delicious little read. It is the perfect palate cleanser between some heavier reads. I have a feeling you will adore this as much as I did, especially if you loved Matchmaking for Beginners.

5 out of 5 Stars

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes (available for pre-order, available on June 25th)

Thank you to the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

NPR Pop Culture fans definitely won’t want to miss this heartfelt debut novel from Linda Holmes, hitting store shelves on June 25th! I’m a big fan of Linda Holmes and her thoughts on pop culture and couldn’t wait to get my hands on her first novel.

Evvie is recently widowed and has decided that taking in a tenant will be a great way to help her pay her bills. Dean, a former Yankees pitcher, happens to be on the hunt for a new place and is looking for a quiet place to escape from his own reality. Dean’s career is now struggling, as he has lost his ability to throw straight, and this apartment is a place for him to escape both the big city life and the media circus that follows.

What the two didn’t realize though is how these holes in their life can be filled with their friendship and how this friendship will lead them back to themselves and to each other.

Holmes has such a way with words and has created a perfectly charming story that will have you rooting for each of these sweet characters. If you appreciate a good comeback story or happen to be looking for a little rom-com for your beach bag, this book is it.

4 out of 5 Stars

The Night Olivia Fell by Christina McDonald

If you are on the hunt for an audiobook for the summer, I highly recommend adding, The Night Olivia Fell, to your earbuds. This isn’t your typical shallow thriller, it has a deep and compelling storyline that really builds believable twists and is filled with rich character development.

Abi Knight receives a call in the middle of the night that her daughter, Olivia, has fallen off a bridge. Upon her arrival, she is informed that Olivia is brain dead and, as an enormous surprise to her mother, she is also pregnant. The doctor believes that they *may* be able to keep her baby alive if they keep Olivia on life support and want to do their best to give her child a fighting chance by keeping the baby in her womb as long as possible.

The police rule her death as an accident, but Abi is troubled by the bruising around Olivia’s wrists and begins to stumble upon a web of secrets that Olivia has been keeping from her. With the help of a detective, she has to confront her own troubled past, find out who the father of Olivia’s baby is, and figure out who would have a motive to kill her daughter.

McDonald writes Abi’s journey with such raw honesty that it brought tears to my eyes. The relationships between our children is so layered and much of the book focuses on her own reflections and guilt for not being enough to her daughter, despite being an incredible and protective mom. I was completely swept away in this story and McDonald builds believable motives that leave a reader guessing right up until the very end.

5 out of 5 Stars

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

Thank you to the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

There are good summer reads and then there are PERFECT summer reads and I have to say that, The Unhoneymooners, fell into the PERFECT camp.

Twin sisters Ami & Olive couldn’t be more different. Ami seems to always have the absolute best luck and Olive is her poor unlucky sister. When the entire wedding party gets food poisoning, at Ami’s wedding, Ami decides to forfeit her honeymoon to Olive and Ethan (the brother-of-the-groom) to both go in their place. After all, Ami won the honeymoon free of charge (of course she did!) and this vacation is nonrefundable.

Unfortunately, Olive & Ethan have never gotten along, but decide to form a temporary truce to take advantage of the free vacation. Being together in such close quarters definitely muddies the waters and they begin to uncover hidden layers to each other…and their siblings.

If you have been struggling to get back on the reading bandwagon or if you are just looking for something light and funny for your bag, I can’t recommend this one enough. This is my first Christina Lauren novel, but it won’t be my last. I was laughing out loud through the entire book at the antics of Olive & Ethan. It is, truly, what summer reading is all about!

5 out of 5 Stars

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

I decided to use my Book-of-the-Month credit on, “Maybe You Should Talk to Someone,” and I’m so glad that I did. Although I am not a big nonfiction reader (and maybe you aren’t too?), I found this book to read as easy as fiction while being incredibly compelling and thought-provoking. It is the type of book that you read and then immediately hand off to someone who might need the sage advice and wisdom of a good therapist too.

What makes this story unique is that the therapist, Lori, is now in a difficult break-up with a boyfriend and finds herself needing a therapist of her own. With the blurred boundaries of working in the very profession you need, Lori finds herself seated in Wendell’s office. Wendell is a therapist she discovered through a colleague by pitching to her an imaginary client that she was searching for the right person for him to talk to. Everything in his office is different than Lori’s, including some of his tactics to understand her better, and Lori is both equally bewildered and admiring of Wendell’s abilities to get to her own hidden truths.

Weaved in, Lori shares about some of her most compelling clients and a bit of the psychology of our own actions and how we can learn to understand the motives of others. Honestly, the insights are worthy of a good highlighter and a revisit through the tougher times in our lives. I found myself to be quite teary-eyed, particularly through a difficult case of a woman facing cancer. Lori shares her most difficult cases and how to love people even when they seem unworthy of it.

I doubt you could read this and not take away something that would make your life a little better. We also can look forward to this one coming to television, telling Lori’s stories through an ABC series. I would definitely encourage you to read this one and to also pass it on to someone who could benefit from these lessons too.

5 out of 5 Stars

The Friend by Sigrid Nunez

We read The Friend for this month’s book club chat. This one was selected because it won the 2018 National Book Award and I was really excited to read something that had garnered this award.

The story is about a woman who unexpectedly loses her friend and finds herself burdened with the unwanted elderly dog he has left behind. Although she initially doesn’t want to connect with this animal, they both find companionship with one another as each of them deal with the grief and loss. Unfortunately, she is threatened with her own potential eviction because dogs are prohibited in her apartment building.

The story of this narrator and the dog was what I connected most with and I think that is where the story, truly, shined. There were gorgeous passages and the idea of these two finding one another through this grief was really beautiful.

Where it didn’t shine, for me, was the rambling rants that the story would trail into that felt as though you were reading someone’s stream of thought. It felt more like a memoir of Nunez and how frustrated she is with the craft of writing and literature. At just 212 pages, I had a hard time concentrating amidst her stream of consciousness and it pulled me away from the story I really wanted to hear.

Our book club seemed pretty divided on this one- they either REALLY loved it or they REALLY hated it.

This was definitely not my favorite in the stack, but I do think it can connect with people who crave a meatier piece of literature.

3 out of 5 Stars

Read With Me This Year

January 2019 Must-Reads

February 2019 Must-Reads

March 2019 Must-Reads

April 2019 Must-Reads

What did you read this month? Looking for book ideas? Check out our entire Book section of the site! Don’t forget to friend me on GoodReads! xo

*this post may contain affiliate links- I only recommend what I love though.

Tags: Evvie Drake Starts Over Review, May Must Reads, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone Review, Miracle Creek Review, The night Olivia Fell Review, The Overdue LIfe of Amy Byler Review, The Unhoneymooners
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Amy’s Notebook 05.23.19

Thursday, May 23rd, 2019

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Don’t these vegetarian meatballs look divine? Adding this one to our planner!

Why we gossip and how to stop.

Buying too much stuff is driven by our own uncertainty. Wow, this piece was powerful.

A clever strategy when your dream house is out of your budget.

Friends make everything better.

Don’t use my family for your true crime stories.

I’m bookmarking this chart for how often I should be watering my plants.

38 beginner Instant Pot recipes to try! These looks so yummy!

I’ve got this book in my earbuds this week.

I’m hoping to tackle this project again this week.

Just got this for our outdoor living space and I’m madly in love with the pattern.

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This tasseled mirror is giving me ALL THE DIY FEELINGS. So cute!

This killed me– hahaha!

10 of the best vacation books to check out this summer. I always love a good list!

The cost of being disabled.

Can’t wait to try this Anthropologie-inspired essential oil recipe in my diffuser.

Do you struggle with chronic pain? I was moved to tears reading about this- part 1, part 2, part 3.

These homemade lip balms would make a great gift or fun summer project with your kids.

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How clever is this idea for uniquely displaying your vacation photos? I am in love!

I stayed up way past my bedtime with this fun read. You gotta get it!

The surprising mantras that can help you boost your productivity.

An easy trick for taking better phone photos.

This was a long one, but I think you should read it.

Don’t want to splurge on a manicure? This looks like the next best thing!

I hope you enjoyed our notebook, a collection of gathered links to DIY crafts, food projects, thrifty ways to spruce up your home, and thoughtful reads. Nothing brings me more joy than to highlight other fabulous bloggers. Follow me on Pinterest for daily inspiration!

Please note, there are affiliate links in this post- thank you! xoxo

Tags: Amy's Notebook, Crafts, Decorating, DIY, Food & Recipes, Recipes
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April 2019 Must-Reads

Thursday, May 2nd, 2019

April 2019 Must-Reads from MomAdvice.com

It is getting to that fun time of year where I start trickling out some of my thoughts on the BIG summer reads this year! This summer you can expect an OVERWHELMING amount of incredible books to enjoy poolside or with your feet up in the backyard!

Today I’m here to share about SEVEN amazing reads that you can pick up now (or start pre-ordering for your summer beach reading)!

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Did you know Prime members get a read for free every single month? Grab your FREE book over here.

The Book of Month Club Selections Are Also Out!!

This month’s special: Check them ALL out HERE!

Book of the Month has a new coupon code to get a FREE book credit when you use code SPRINGFEVER at checkout!

OR For a limited time only, use the coupon code MOMKNOWSBEST to save $10 on a 6+ month gift subscription + a free book for you! Perfect time to buy Mom a gift for Mother’s Day!

What will you be picking?? I decided to go with Necessary People this month!

Here are 7 must-read books I tackled in April:

The Girl He Used to Know by Tracey Garvis Graves

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Looking for a novel that you just won’t be able to put down this month? The Girl He Used to Know is a beautiful contemporary fiction escape that features a really incredible love story with characters that seem to lift off the pages.

Annika is an English major at the University of Illinois. She struggles to make sense of social situations and college, in particular, is a very scary time.

When she joins the chess club, she immediately beats Jonathan Hoffman, who can’t help to be captured by Annika. She is different than any girl he has ever been with, a worthy chess opponent, and she’s stunning (without even being aware of it!). They begin a beautiful relationship together, but an unforeseen tragedy forces them apart and ends their relationship.

One decade later, Annika and Jonathan are reunited and happen to be living in the same town. The two begin rekindling what was lost, but must also address why they lost each other in the first place.

Annika is a character that you can’t help but to fall in love with and you also can’t help rooting for these two to work their relationship out. Graves rounds out her story with beautiful supporting characters that help Annika navigate the world in really incredible ways. I can fully admit that I may have teared up in a few places in this sweet read.

Definitely add this one to your book bags this summer! I have a feeling you will love Annika & Jonathan as much as me!

I’m recommending this one for fans of The Light We Lost!

5 out of 5 Stars

Recursion by Blake Crouch (pre-order for June 11th!!)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Dark Matter is one of my favorite science fiction book recommendations to give and ended up making my top ten books list in 2016. To say that I had HIGH expectations for the next Blake Crouch novel would be putting it mildly.

I am so happy to say that this book DID NOT disappoint!

In this story, Barry Sutton is an NYC cop who has been investigating the phenomenon the media has called, “False Memory Syndrome.” It is a mysterious affliction that makes its victims mad with memories of a life that they never lived.

Helena Smith is also trying to understand memory and wants to find a way that it can be captured, through her work as a neuroscientist. Inspired by her mother’s struggles with dementia, she has decided to study memory and focus on a piece of technology that will allow people to preserve their most precious memories.

As Barry begins searching for the truth, he discovers what happens when we play God with memory and how Helena’s technology has helped to create this False Memory Syndrome. While sheltering ourselves from our most devastating memories, by rewriting our history, Barry & Helena begin to realize how altering memories can change our identity, our relationships, and how altering circumstances doesn’t always yield the results we are after.

When the technology gets into the wrong hands, they realize how it can destroy the world, as they know it, and they will stop at nothing to get it back, forced to repeat their lives over and over again, to try to change their circumstance.

Once again, Crouch blends science fiction with a thriller pace and a beautiful love story. His storytelling is masterful and the suspense is so incredibly good in this one.

I immediately passed this book on to my husband who loved it just as much as me. I am so glad I got to screen this and feel confident recommending this one to our Dark Matter fans.

If you haven’t dipped your toes yet into the science fiction world, I have a feeling you will find this to be a compelling read that will pull you right out of your literary comfort zone.

What are you waiting for?

Be sure to pre-order this for June!

5 out of 5 Stars

Chronicles of a Radical Hag by Lorna Landvik

A couple of the ladies in our book club were RAVING about, Chronicles of a Radical Hag, and managed to convince me to order this for my trip.

I read a lot of Landvik’s earlier books so I knew she approaches stories with a lot of heart and humor, something she does well again in this latest novel.

Haze Evans is a local legend, writing as a columnist for over fifty years, for the Granite Creek Gazette. Her past columns were filled with liberal ideas and her column was nicknamed the “Chronicles of a Radical Hag,” by conservative readers. She lived without censorship and would reply to her naysayers with tongue-in-cheek recipes to help them melt away their misdirected anger, unafraid to speak her mind about anything and everything.

Haze is unexpectedly hospitalized though and unable to write her column. This is when Susan, who works for the paper, has her son (Sam) help work at the paper for the summer and Sam begins discovering that this older lady’s stories are brave, hilarious, and her political struggles are not too different than today. He finds these columns so fascinating, in fact, that he begins sharing them in class and other kids begin to look forward to Haze’s storytelling AND the hilarious and heartfelt replies from people who read her column.

I am recommending this one for fans of Dear Mrs. Bird or anyone who needs a little bit of humor mixed in with the heaviness of the political world.

Landviks’ trademark humor really shines in this book and you can’t help reading these columns and responses with a smile, especially when a younger generation is discovering how history is repeating itself today.

4 out of 5 Stars

The Floating Feldmans by Elyssa Friedland (pre-order for July 23rd!!)

Thank you to the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I’m such a sucker for dysfunctional family stories and The Floating Feldmans is a fun one, if those are your cup of tea too!

The premise of this one is that Annette Feldman has decided that she is going to book a cruise for her entire family, in honor of her 70th birthday! It has been over a decade since they have all been together and getting them all on a boat has them trapped into oodles of family time together.

Each of these siblings has come on their boat with an extra set of baggage though (sorry, I can’t resist a good pun!) and this luggage harbors a lot of old secrets and the terrible kinds of hurts that only a family member can seem to hold against you.

Some have grown up for the better, some have secrets that threaten their future, and the grandkids just might have a couple secrets of their own.

Told from alternating perspectives, this is over-the-top fun and had me laughing out loud at various points.

If you just want a fun escape, add this one to your beach bag. I’m recommending this one for fans of, This is Where I Leave You.

4 out of 5 Stars

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center (pre-order for August 13th!!)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

I never thought I would be such a sucker for a good love story, but I was completely head-over-heels for, How to Walk Away, and Center’s beautiful writing. The author is now back with another beautiful love story, perfectly named, Things You Save in a Fire.

Center’s uses her husband’s firefighter background to craft the story of Cassie Hanwell. In this fictional story, she is the only female firefighters in her Texas firehouse and is respected by her colleagues and boss. After a public incident though, that taints Hanwell’s image, she finds the timing of her estranged and ailing mother’s request to move to Boston lines up with when she needs to step down.

She joins the Boston firehouse and finds the environment to be a bit of a “boy’s club.” Her ability to separate her work from her personal life has never been an issue, but Cassie has never seen a guy like the rookie that she must train with on her new job. Cassie has built up walls for a reason and the rookie seems to be disregarding them, no matter how hard she tries.

This is a later coming-of-age story where Cassie must resolve her old hurts with her mother, confront the issue of aging parents, and admit why she has been unable to be close to anyone because of a traumatic incident in her past.

That’s not all though…she also must fight off someone who is stalking her and doesn’t want to see her succeed at the fire station.

These characters are deeply flawed, just like we are, and Center’s does an incredible job making them feel real and relatable.

The love story, I have to say, is FIRE and you can’t help but root for these two brokenly beautiful people to love each other.

Definitely, pre-order this one for your summer stack!

I’m recommending this beautiful read for anyone who is a Taylor Jenkins Reid fan! I know you will love it too!

5 out of 5 Stars

Little by Edward Carey

Have you joined our free book club yet? Even if you aren’t looking for a discussion, it is such a great place to connect with your fellow bookworms. This month we dove into Little , a historical fiction novel about Marie Tussaud. Marie was an orphan in the 1700’s who ended up being taken in by an eccentric wax sculpture and develops a growing curiosity and fondness for the art.

To pay for her food and shelter she begins as an apprentice and later tutors a princess on the art of creating wax sculptures.

Does Tussaud and wax figurines bring to mind any famous tourist attraction?

Carey writes AND illustrates this unusual novel that reminded many of our book club participants of a good old-fashioned Dickens novel.

Learning about the craftsmanship that went into these wax figures, particularly back in those days, was equally fascinating and horrifying.

As someone who appreciates the wildly weird, I was really taken into this element of the story.

Admittedly, this was a slow starter and took awhile for me to get into and I can’t say this book would be for everyone. For me, the beauty in historical fiction is always the rabbit trails it leads me on and this one was a fun find for exploring the art of wax sculpture, a subject that I would have never really thought to explore.

Our chat ended up being an excellent one so I would definitely recommend this for any of your own upcoming book club chats.

4 out of 5 Stars

Trust Exercise by Susan Choi

Not many of you could probably guess that I’m an old-fashioned theater nerd….well, maybe you could?

This is one reason why I was so excited to dive into the contemporary novel, Trust Exercise, this month. This was a big buzz book for Spring and has gotten a lot of positive press, in particular, about it’s exploration of the #metoo movement, told through these reflective stories.

I am having a hard time reviewing this one because the concept was brilliant, but I felt like the entire plot could have been tightened up entirely. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it. The writing, while excellent, didn’t always have a story that I felt entirely connected to.

This novel is set in the 1980’s at a highly competitive arts high school. Along with the talent and greed to get ahead, hormones are raging and relationships between students began to splinter and friendships are tested.

In a spiral of events, Choi begins to flip the plot on its head that makes everything flip upside down for the reader. What you think may be happening, isn’t happening, and a new perspective on the story changes the plot entirely.

It is these new glimmers of truth that allow the reader to see that everything is not as it seems and the power that comes to play in the arts world.

I can see this leading to heated discussions in book clubs about our own past experiences with adults and teachers, in particular, in the arts community. The changing narrative, in itself, becomes a trust exercise into itself.

Not only are the kids doing these trust exercise in their classroom, but Choi is giving us an exercise in who to believe.

Had the plot been tighter, I could see this being a 5-star read, simply for the value of the discussion and the smart twists Choi uses. I struggled to connect though as the chapters felt a bit clunky at times and I found myself having difficulty to keep attention through it.

For reference though, I listened to this one on audiobook! It might lend itself better in print format and I still found the topic and plot twists to be solid. I can’t wait to see what Choi writes next.

3.5 out of 5 Stars

Read With Me This Year

January 2019 Must-Reads

February 2019 Must-Reads

March 2019 Must-Reads

What did you read this month? Looking for book ideas? Check out our entire Book section of the site! Don’t forget to friend me on GoodReads! xo

*this post may contain affiliate links- I only recommend what I love though.

Tags: 2019 Book Club Picks, Book Club Book Ideas, Incursion Review, MomAdvice Must Reads, The Floating Feldmans Review, The Girl He Used to Know Review, Things You Save in a Fire Review, Trust Exercise Review
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Amy’s Notebook 04.18.19

Thursday, April 18th, 2019

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I’ve been dying to make an Instant Pot Cheesecake and this recipe looks perfect.

What it is like to grow up with more money than you’ll ever spend. Fascinating!

These are some really creative ideas for ways to squeeze in more books.

Things I wish my therapist would say to me– hahaha!

A simple conversation starter for any social situation.

This was your favorite purchase this week.

22 Whole30 recipes you can eat all week long. YUM!

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I can’t get over how stunning this bike wheel wreath is! Such a smart upcycle!

These embellished braids would be so pretty for Easter Sunday.

I’ve got this book on my nightstand this week and this book going on my earbuds.

This piece really hit the nail on the head about friendships & parenting in your 40’s. (*language*)

I loved reading this piece on the new microblading eyebrows trend that’s going on.

Loved volunteering for this organization this week. I wish more schools would do this!

Speaking of South Bend, this was the highlight of my week.

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How good does this broccoli and cheese stuffed chicken breast look? YUM!

This has been my year of branching out and I love this advice on making new friends.

This one-pot dish looks delicious!

We are going to have to try this recipe for our next Indian night.

This is a great gathering of beginner cooking tips. A lot of these are things I learned through trial and error.

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How fun is this faux woven pendant light?

30 foolproof ways to deal with difficult people.

What’s behind the elective-sobriety trend.

Looking for a mocktail to start with? This recipe caught my eye!

It’s harder to focus these days and it isn’t your fault.

I hope you enjoyed our notebook, a collection of gathered links to DIY crafts, food projects, thrifty ways to spruce up your home, and thoughtful reads. Nothing brings me more joy than to highlight other fabulous bloggers. Follow me on Pinterest for daily inspiration!

Please note, there are affiliate links in this post- thank you! xoxo

Tags: Crafts & Celebrations, Decorating, DIY, Food & Recipes, Recipes
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Let’s Talk About Books and TV!

Tuesday, April 16th, 2019

I had the honor of being a guest on The Couch Podcast with Mary Carver this week! Mary asked if I would join her to talk about TV and books and it was such a blast. My homework to prepare was to take a list of great television shows people are loving and share them a couple of books I think they would like, based on their taste in television.

When I got done piecing together my notes, I sent them off to Mary so she could create a giant reading guide for you that you can take to your local library for some books you just won’t want to put down!

We chatted about Arrested Development (bring on the quirky characters), Outlander (you know I love a good time travel story!), The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (I love female characters that buck the system), Friends (specifically, Ross & Rachel), The Handmaid’s Tale (fight the power!), & Stranger Things (the weirder the better).

We ran out of time to talk about The Crown, but I managed to squeeze in my recommendations in today’s reading guide. Phew!

Head HERE to grab your free reading guide and to listen to this fun podcast!

Thank you, Mary, for giving me a space to share about my favorite books!

Looking for more great books? Here are some posts you might want to visit!

53 historical fiction novels to escape with

19 thrillers to keep you up all night

the best books of 2018

join our FREE MomAdvice Book Club

grab you free reading challenge worksheet

I hope these posts inspire you to curl up with a great book this week! Happy reading!

Tags: Book Recommendations, Books Based on TV Shows, If I like TV What Books to Read, MomAdvice Book Reviews MomAdvice Podcast, Picking Books from Television Series, The Couch With Mary Carver Podcast
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Amy’s Notebook 04.11.19

Thursday, April 11th, 2019

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How gorgeous is this centerpiece made from spray painting these inexpensive vase fillers?

This looks like a fun new spin on cauliflower– yum!

How sobriety made me a better cook. Love this inspiring story!

Along the same thoughts, millenials are sick of drinking.

No points for busy. Amen.

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How yummy does this Instant Pot spaghetti & meatballs recipe look?

I am screening summer reads right now and am telling you now, add this to your summer must-read stack. It was amazing!!

I love the idea of quiet maximalism in room styling. This was a whole bunch of eye-candy too!

I have to agree that this is a slippery slope.

Beautiful and simple tips for becoming a better listener. I need to work on this.

The YA books your favorite YA authors can’t stop raving about. I need to add a couple of these to my stack!

Here is your favorite purchase this week. Well done, friends!

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This vegan creamy curried carrot soup looks like the perfect way to celebrate spring.

This piece made me laugh out loud.

Your smartest friends are using this setting on their phone.

We don’t buy things with money, we buy them with hours of our time.

You can’t be everybody’s cup of tea.

I feel this SO very much. It is exhausting.

How to declutter your house using the root cause method.

Do you have any financial self-care rituals? Love this mindfulness idea.

I hope you enjoyed our notebook, a collection of gathered links to DIY crafts, food projects, thrifty ways to spruce up your home, and thoughtful reads. Nothing brings me more joy than to highlight other fabulous bloggers. Follow me on Pinterest for daily inspiration!

Please note, there are affiliate links in this post- thank you! xoxo

Tags: Amy's Notebook, Crafts & Celebrations, DIY, Food & Recipes, Recipes
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March Happy List

Monday, April 8th, 2019

Well, hello there! My husband and I just got back from our Iceland adventures and I can’t begin to tell you how amazing it all was. If anything topped my happy list in March, it was FOR SURE visiting the Blue Lagoon and celebrating my husband’s 40th birthday.

As amazing as it all was, there really is no place like home. I couldn’t be happier to be reunited with our kids and our fur baby.

Perhaps, not as excited to be reunited with laundry, dishes, and cleaning the house.

Ah, you gotta love real life.

You will be happy to know though that I still have a few amazing reads for you put together for March so don’t miss this month’s must-reads list.

Also, can I brag for one moment before we get started on the happy list? Check out who is up for Mom Blog of the Year again this year!

I can’t tell you how honored I am and to be listed among such incredible women that I admire and respect.

Have you been missing the 3 little things list each week? Just so you know, this feature didn’t go away…it just moved over to my newsletters each week.

Sign up is super quick over here. I will even send you some free printables to help you put together this incredible home management binder.

Today I wanted to share what you might have missed this past month in one big giant happy list!!

I Got that Glow Going

As I have aged, I feel like my skin has gotten duller in appearance and I’ve been looking for some ways to bring the glow back to my complexion.

I discovered these Aveeno Maxglow Infusion Drops and have started adding 2 drops of this to my moisturizer and it really works at adding a subtle glow to your face.

Paired with this tool that I have in my makeup arsenal, my husband has even started commenting on my glowing skin (trust me, that NEVER happens).

I really love this stuff and a little goes a long way! I highly recommend adding these to your makeup routine!

We Have Been Doing a Little Time Traveling

My husband and I were married in 2000 so we thought it would be fun to relive those good old days through this amazing series you can find on Netflix.

This CNN docuseries, produced by Tom Hanks, explores each season through the pop culture, social, and political trends of a different decade, starting with the sixties.

Each decade is explored through about eight episodes and it is filled with amazing interviews with people who played some part in these stories and through the eyes of historians.

After finishing the 2000’s, we moved on to the 90’s and now are enjoying reliving our high school days. I highly recommend diving into these if you haven’t before. It has been both fun and informative!

A Selfie Clip-On Light for Picture Taking

Our home doesn’t have a lot of natural light in it and I often struggle to take photos for my feed because of it.

I happened to stumble upon this e.l.f. selfie light at Walmart and I can’t rave enough about how much light it can bring to your pictures.

It illuminates you with three settings, that ramp up the brightness, and it comes all ready to go with batteries and everything.

It is so small that it is perfect to tuck in your purse for those selfie moments with your kiddos. Priced at just $12, it is one of those inexpensive gadgets that make a huge difference in your photos.

Stitch Fix for Men

I knew as soon as my husband found out we were headed to Iceland, he would start panicking about what items he would need to wear while we are there. Did you know that Stitch Fix now styles for men? I remembered that I read that in my emails and decided to utilize this service for his birthday gift.

If you are pulling off a surprise getaway somewhere or planning a vacation where you know your wardrobe isn’t prepared, I can’t recommend this fun service enough.

In my husband’s box, for example, were two REALLY amazing waterproof packable jackets, a heavy-duty flannel shirt, and a thick sweater.

It was just what he needed and it took the stress out of shopping for him. If you want to give the service a spin for a gentleman in your life, here’s $25 to spend on your first purchase!

My Trusty Dinner Bell

If you have read my blog for a long time, you may already know about my little bell, but I had to mention again how much I love our little antique hotel bell for getting everyone to to the dinner table.

I forget that other people don’t do this so when my brother came for dinner, he started laughing when I gave it a little ding-ding-ding and the whole family came to the kitchen.

As an INFJ, I can’t stand yelling and our split-level home means that people scatter in all directions.

A little tap of the bell and everyone gathers, saving me from yelling and running around our house to find everyone.

We found our bell at an antique shop, but here is an inexpensive alternative if you can’t find one for your house. I can’t rave enough about how much I love this low-tech item.

ALDI Tikka Masala Simmering Sauce

I might be dating myself, but when I was growing up, we ate a lot of Chicken Tonight.

All you had to do was brown some chicken and then you poured the sauce over it to simmer in and called it dinner.

When I saw that ALDI was carrying a tikka masala simmering sauce, I decided to give it a try and now we eat it every couple of weeks or so.

I shared about it on Instagram Stories and had several people send me DM’s back that they decided to give it a spin after my endorsement and absolutely loved it.

The best part is that you can choose what you want to simmer with it for your own spin. Chickpeas, tofu, chicken, and shrimp all make for a delicious (and way easy!) weeknight meal. We serve it with rice and the baby naan that the store carries (it is the perfect size!) and I consider it almost like a night off from cooking.

I hope you love this sauce as much as as we do!

Slip Shorts

After dressing for one week in a dress this month (to help raise funds for Junior League!), I can tell you that my favorite slip shorts were worn and loved daily.

If you have parents with Southern roots, you know you were not allowed to be running around in a dress without a proper slip.

I can still see images of my mom shaking her head and pointing to the door when I would come out for church without a slip.

That is why I love this more modern approach with these slip shorts for helping smooth those lines and to give a clean finish underneath your dresses.

If you are not a fan of compression garments, give these a try! While still minimizing lines, they are comfortable to wear all day long!

I don’t think we can always say the same thing about Spanx- hahaha!

Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs

I also went without tights for a week and it was a CHILLY experience in the Midwest.

Spring, where are you?

Luckily, my legs weren’t turning blue thanks to my favorite beauty hack- Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs.

Simply squeeze a little on your hands and spread on your lightly moisturized (but dry) legs.

Then just use your hands to spread the make-up on your legs and it all air dries in one minute. It is truly an airbrushed leg experience and, provided you blend well and pick the right shade for your own coloring, it gives a beautiful finish to your legs.

It has a little shimmer to it too, but not overly noticeable.

The best part is that it is waterproof so if you are even at the beach, you will be fine.

You need soap to get it off, otherwise it stays right where you put it.

Since it has good staying power, one bottle usually gets me through the entire summer!

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

The New Season of Queer Eye

I was such a fan of the original cast and the work they did, but I feel like the reboot of Queer Eye is on another level!

It sounds kind of cheesy to say that each episode teaches me something, but it REALLY does.

The guys help makeover people that are often overlooked by others and embrace them with warmness and inclusion.

The ability to meet people where they are and provide solutions for them is a valuable lesson in how we help others in our life.

I, honestly, bawl through every episode because of these beautiful moments.

Through the show, they are able to teach people to embrace others with compassion and empathy.

This is one that we watch with our kids and has given us a lot to talk about- especially the focus on inclusion.

It is easy to judge others if we aren’t walking in their shoes and many of these people have felt let down by the world.

The lessons that are garnered from this are impactful and beautiful.

My favorite episodes this season (so far) have been Jones BBQ (two strong business woman who have put family first before themselves), When Robert Met Jamie (a lesson on how we talk about ourselves and present ourselves to others- really good lesson for kids!!), and Black Girl Magic (not allowing boxes and labels to determine if we are displaying characteristics of our own race & how to form family if you are rejected by your own).

You guys should watch it if you haven’t yet.

Also, thanks for coming to my Queer Eye TED Talk!

Here are a few of my favorite March captures (follow me on IG for more)!

Enormously excited that I got a signed copy of Mayor Pete’s new book and that I got to hear him speak. You would have to be hiding under a rock to not know that South Bend’s mayor is getting a lot of buzz on the news as we all ready for his official announcement that he is running for President! If you are unfamiliar with him, this is one of my favorite interviews that he has done (and, yes, I’ve watched them ALL!!).

I participated in the Little Black Dress initiative to help raise funds and awareness for the work we do locally in Junior League. If you are local and interested in joining, send me a message and I’m happy to connect you! I’ve volunteered more hours than I ever have and feel more connected to my community and its organizations. REALLY excited to volunteer this month at this organization, that is making national news, through the done-in-a-day projects that this organization offers.

Loved this sunset we caught as we boarded our plane to Iceland. It is one of those little things that I will never get tired of!

Top Ten Most Purchased Items in March

Top Ten Books Purchased in March (join the club to be notified of daily deals!)

I hope you enjoyed this month’s round-up of March fun and I look forward to sharing more in April! I hope my month of happy brings a month of happy to you too! If this post doesn’t convince you my newsletter is fun, I’ve got nothing. Sign up over here to get this fun weekly in your inbox.

*this post may contain affiliate links- I only recommend what I love though. Check out past editions of It’s the 3 Little Things!

Tags: Aldi Tikka Masala Review, Aveeno Maxglow Infusion Drops Review, ELF Clip On Light Review, Jockey Slip Shorts Review, March Happy List, Sally Hansen Leg Makeup Review, Stitch Fix Men Review
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March 2019 Must-Reads

Monday, April 1st, 2019

How are you? I am so excited to hear about what YOU read this past month since I didn’t get to as many book as I had hoped. March was a slow month of reading, for me, but yielded a couple of books that I can definitely see on my top ten list for 2019. Between preparations for an upcoming trip and taking some coursework for my job, I didn’t have as much free time to read as I hoped.

Next month should be a lot more fruitful now that life will be slowing down a bit after the spring break holiday. I have big plans to share about some of the most anticipated summer novels so you can start thinking about all those wonderful lazy days of summer filled with gorgeous new reads. I don’t know about you, but this Midwest girl can’t wait for that summer weather and iced tea sipping in the sunshine.

While you’re here, be sure to print out the 2019 MomAdvice reading challenge worksheet and join our free online book club! You can check out the 2019 MomAdvice Book Club picks over here! You can also friend me on GoodReads for more great book reviews! I love connecting with you there.

Did you know Prime members get a read for free every single month? Grab your FREE book over here.

The Book of Month Club Selections Are Out!!

This month’s selections:

Miracle Creek by Angie Kim

Normal People by Sally Rooney

Beyond the Point by Claire Gibson

All That You Leave Behind by Erin Lee Carr

Lost and Wanted by Nell Freudenberger

This month’s special: Using code APRILSHOWERS, new members can get a free book when they join today.

Here are 5 must-read books I tackled in March:

The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

It has been a long time since I have read a historical fiction book that I was this swept away in, but The Things We Cannot Say, was incredible from start to finish. If you like your historical fiction to jump from past to present, told through alternating viewpoints, I have a feeling you will appreciate the format of this beautiful story.

Since Alina Dziak was nine, she knew that she would marry her best friend, Tomaz. At fifteen she is engaged and unconcerned about the reports of Nazi soldiers at the Polish border, believing that they are her neighbors and not a threat. She instead fills her head with dreams of the day that Tomasz will return from college so they can be married. Alina could never know though how the Nazi occupation would take over her rural village and how it had the power to destroy her relationship with her one true love.

Presently, Alice is struggling with the challenges of her special needs child, a husband who doesn’t get the work that goes into keeping their family floating, and her grandmother who is hospitalized. When her grandmother begs her to return to her childhood hometown, Alice begins to realize there is more to her grandmother’s story than meets the eye. Leaving is never easy, especially with her juggle, but she makes the promise and heads to find out more about her grandmother and the secrets she has been keeping.

This is a beautiful love story weaved in with the all-too-relatable struggle of being a modern day woman. Rimmel finds ways to weave this story very creatively that allows the slow unveiling of secrets to the reader. This time in history is a heavy one and the shifting viewpoints really benefit in helping create a story that you can connect with in a myriad of ways. You can help but root for Alina and Tomaz through this haunting read. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

5 out of 5 Stars

I’m Fine And Neither Are You by Camille Pagán

Thank you to the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

This is just a friendly reminder to always check for those free Prime books. Lucky readers were able to score I’m Fine and Neither Are You for free this past month. Since I really loved the author’s last book so much, I was excited to dig into this next read.

Penelope Ruiz-Kar is a relatable character as she is constantly treading water at her job and with all of her duties in the family. Meanwhile, her best friend, Jenny Sweet, seems to have everything together. She writes a popular lifestyle blog, keeps a tidy home, has a child with impeccable manners, and a perfect marriage.

It is why Penelope is genuinely floored when a shocking tragedy reveals that Jenny’s life is far from what Penelope believed. In light of this turn of events, Penelope and her husband (Sanjay) agree to each write a list of changes they want to each other to make and then commit them with honestly. The plan quickly begins to backfire though as secrets and resentment are revealed and the couple must deal with them. This experiment changes the landscape of their relationship entirely, making Penelope question if honesty really IS the best policy.

I won’t reveal the tragedy that happens, but the narcissist in me wishes that the story was focused more on Jenny and her struggles because I think it could have been a deeper discussion to be shared in a book club than what it was. The tragedy, to me, was the most compelling part of the story, despite it being a bit controversial. The truth is, Jenny’s life is where many of our Pinterest-filled heads are and it is important people see that online life a little differently.

The marriage challenges though and Penelope’s “just keeping swimming,” life are equally relatable for many. I found a lot of vulnerability in these characters and this experiment to be one that all marriages could benefit from, in some way. I have a feeling you will love this read as much as I did!

4 out of 5 Stars

Finding Dorothy by Elizabeth Letts

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Once in a blue moon I run across a book that I think I could put in just about anyone’s hands and they would love it. The book this year is, FOR SURE, Finding Dorothy. I did musical theatre for years and one of my favorites is The Wizard of Oz. That said, I didn’t know a lot about the history of the book it was based upon or the behind-the-scenes events that had happened during the filming of the movie. I think that is why this book was such a treat because of the meticulous research by Letts to create this story.

The book shares the true story of Maud & Frank Baum. Frank wrote the story of Oz, but the journey to success was a long one. His wife, far ahead of her time as a feminist, leaves behind her education to marry this magical man and start a life together. Their life is what shapes the story of Oz and it is incredibly beautiful.

Later in life, Maud learns that M-G-M is adapting her late husband’s masterpiece for the screen. Somehow this seventy-seven-year-old firecracker finds a way to make it into the studio for the filming, something she really feels tasked to do. It is of the utmost importance that Frank’s story is held in the same spirit that it was written. As Maud hears Judy Garland rehearsing, she recognizes the yearning that was her own yearnings as a girl. This yearning is why Maud decides she must protect Dorothy at all costs, just like she did so many years ago.

I can assure you that this book will be in my top ten of 2019. It is magical and is recommended, in particular, for fans of The Greatest Showman. I couldn’t put it down and now see the story of Oz in such a different way than I did before.

5 out of 5 Stars

On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

On the Come Up was a fantastic audiobook treat this month and powerfully narrated by Bahni Turpin. I had high expectations after devouring The Hate U Give, and Thomas delivers once again with this beautiful coming-of-age story.

Bri’s family is always desperately struggling to make ends meet, but they seem to face one hurdle after another, especially after the loss of her mother’s job. Bri decides to pour her frustrations into songwriting and writes a powerful anthem about her struggle called On the Come Up. The lyrics are a lot harder than the way she actually lives her life and when her song goes viral, she is encouraged to be the things she is not to keep riding the success.

With an eviction notice on their door, Bri has no choice but to lean into the image people have of her. She also feels an additional pressure to be legendary because of her father and his rap career legacy. This mounting pressure is a major theme in Bri’s life and in this story’s pages.

While I don’t think the lessons were as hard hitting as the ones in her first book, Thomas still gives us a true coming-of-age story that will really make you root for Bri.

I just have to say, once again, Turpin as a narrator is just GENIUS because the girl can RAP. The rap battles that Thomas writes are unreal good and Turpin handles them like a pro. They were so good, in fact, that I had my husband grab an earbud to listen to a few of these with me.

Fans of old school rap will really dig this ode to hip hop that Thomas has crafted. The author proves that she is no one-hit-wonder and I can’t wait to read what she comes up with next!

4 out of 5 Stars

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

One thing I’m REALLY proud of us this year is really pushing people (myself included!) outside of our comfort genres through our book club. I am not a mystery reader, but when I heard about the plot of The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, I thought this might be just the plot ticket to get me reading one.

First of all, put your wine glasses down for this one because you will need ALL those brain cells to help solve this murder mystery!

There are three rules of Blackheath House:

Evelyn Hardcastle will be murdered at 11:00 p.m.
There are eight days, and eight witnesses for you to inhabit.
We will only let you escape once you tell us the name of the killer.

Agatha Christie fun meets Groundhog Day in this wildly inventive debut that will keep the reader guessing from start to finish. The reader knows that Evelyn Hardcastle will die. In fact, she will die every day until Aiden Bishop can identify her killer and break the cycle. Aiden finds himself waking up in a different body and repeating the day over and over again, armed with new information when he wakes. Some of his hosts help him while others make his job very hard. Leaving clues for himself to find, he must win the game in order to leave the property…but that’s just what everyone else wants to do to. It will be a fight to the surprising finish.

Turton crafts some unlikable characters and creates beautiful tension when Aiden has to fight the impulses of the body he inhabits. His confusion though is the reader’s confusion too so that is why the story keeps the reader on their toes throughout.

Read on Kindle, I missed one of the most important elements to the story…the map and cast of characters to flip to. Although they are there, they are not easy to read on the Paperwhite so be sure to print out the pages from the sneak peek so you can keep everyone straight.

This felt a bit like Clue in book form and I would highly recommend it, in particular, for Agatha Christie fans. We had one reader who has read her entire body of work and said this is the first book she’s read that actually delivered on the Christie hype.

This book was a confusing challenge and I loved it.