Summer Reading List

Oh, the dreaded summer reading list.  I used to have one of those from 3rd grade on up.  Every summer, I would wait until about a week before school started, and then do nothing but read...cramming all the books in, and then skimming the ones that didn't hold my interest.  (That was most of them.)  Books like The Hobbit...all I remember is the description of Gollum, those endless songs and poems in italics, and some place called Murkwood.  I'm sure if I read it today, I'd find it more interesting, but it was pure torture for me back in high school.  I'm also pretty sure that at this point in my life, I'll just wait for the movie.  Don't judge! ;)

Life is so ironic.  NOW, I can't get enough reading done.  My "to-read" list is a mile long.  If I finish a book and don't have another one to start that night, I get irritated.  Emergency trips to the library happen.  (I'm pretty sure I'll be the last person on earth to get a Kindle!  That's OK with me.)

My new year's resolution to "read more" is actually going awesome-ly.  Being on Goodreads helps - it keeps track of the books I read, and it's a great place to find which books I want to read next.  Tons and tons of reader reviews.  Here's my profile - if you're on it too, friend me!  I love to see what my friends are reading!

Anyway, this summer I've read the following:

The Bishop of Rwanda: Finding Forgiveness Amidst a Pile of Bones by John Rucyahana

Becoming More Than a Good Bible Study Girl by Lysa TerKeurst

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream by David Platt

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
(well, I read half of it.  I didn't finish this one!)

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
(currently reading)

It's purely coincidental that I read two circus books in a row.  I don't have a big interest in the circus, really!  But I have to say that Water for Elephants is my current "summer favorite" so far.  I loved that book.  But be warned: there's some language, which I can usually handle, but in this one there is a fair amount of using the name of Jesus as a curse word and that just makes me queasy.  There is also a smattering of sexual content that in my opinion, is more detailed than it needs to be.  But the scenes are short, and there are only a few.  OTHER THAN THAT, the story and characters are so engrossing...I actually felt sad that it had to come to an end.  And speaking of the end: one of my favorite endings ever.

My other favorite book this summer has been Radical.   But it totally deserves its own post.  I'll do that someday soon.

So...what are YOU reading this summer?