What I've Been Reading - January 2018

Welcome to What I've Been Reading, where I share my (quick and personal) thoughts on what I've been reading this past month. For specifics (plot summary, etc.) about each book, click on the provided links or book images.

Jane and the Wandering Eye by Stephanie Baron (3 stars)

I've really come to enjoy this cozy mystery series. Jane and the Wandering Eye is the third in the Jane Austen Mystery series and was the perfect book to pick up before settling in with some deeper reading later this month. It was a fun read.

The Secret of the India Orchid by Nancy Campbell Allen (3.5 stars)

I can't seem to get enough of this Proper Romance series. I saw The Secret of the India Orchid on one of my local library's book shelves and immediately picked it up. I figured it wouldn't hurt to fit in another light read before going deep. It was a read that didn't disappoint.

Daily Rituals by Mason Currey (2.5 stars)

I thought this would be an interesting read, but it ended up being not for me. Daily Rituals contains small snippets of artists daily rituals or routines, giving readers a peak into how they worked at their craft. I definitely enjoyed learning about artists I knew, but too many of the artists featured I didn't know. I just couldn't get interested in their specific lives, especially when so many were fueled by drugs and alcohol. Again, this read just wasn't for me.

Deep Work by Cal Newport (3 stars)

This was another case of an interesting book that just wasn't quite for me. Deep Work teaches readers how to focus in order to create deep or great work. I loved the concept, but the execution did not work for me. First off, its tone rubbed me the wrong way. Secondly, it felt too focused on the business man or woman. As I am not immersed in the business world, many of the examples used in the book were difficult to personally connect with. Thankfully, I was able to pull some advice out of this book. Overall, it was a fine read, but one I could have skipped.

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (No rating)

I don't know how to rate this book. I didn't love it. I didn't even really like it. Why? First, it had many, many characters. Personally, the characters were hard to identify with. Second, it didn't seem to have a plot. What plot was there was never resolved. Third, and finally, it leaped constantly from fiction to history, from narration to philosophizing. All that would normally lead to a 2-star rating from me, but I just can't do that to a book that is loved by many and considered such a great piece of literature. Since finishing it, I've done a little research on Tolstoy and War and Peace itself. I can definitely see and appreciate its merits. However, its merits don't resonate with what I am looking for in a book. Perhaps it deserves five stars as others have given it, but I can't personally give it those. (Though I feel I deserve five stars for finishing it.) But neither can I give it two stars. So, for now, I will leave it unrated.