3.  Eat Move Think:  The Path to a Healthier, Stronger

January was a month of thinking about resolutions and Eat Move Think was the book to inspire a few changes.  The book was a little light on research but it was an easy read to inspire readers to make healthy living goals for 2019.

I liked that it had references from Canadian sources and sparks thought which may lead readers to more research.  For me, this book helped me to set goals to some new 30 day challenges like not eating snacks after dinner, ensuring that I get in my 10 sets of stairs daily (easy to track with a fitbit) and get to bed earlier working towards at least 7 hours of sleep.

4.  The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules (Catharina Ingleman-Sundberg) 

For February Book Club, the plan was to finish the books from pas book club Christmas exchanges.  I had been especially delinquent and had a copy of The Doomsday Book, The Little Old Lady and The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle.  My goal had been to finish all 3 for our discussion but I did not quite make it in time!

This was a light, amusing read about a group of pensioners, frustrated by the lack of amenities and control of their own lives in their retirement home.  They began testing the boundaries and breaking rules which led to a life of crime!

Readers need to set aside their need for realism and just enjoy the antics of these seniors rather than judging the actual possibility of the success of these crimes.

5.  A Well-Behaved Woman:  A Novel of the Vanderbilts 

After loving Z, the novel written about Zelda Fitzgerald and the opulent life of parties and excess, I was happy to listen to A Well-Behaved Woman during my January commutes.  Based on the extremely wealthy Vanderbilt family, it was interesting to read about the lifestyle and challenges of being a woman at this time.

This thought-provoking, creative fiction was woven with actual history and told the story of women in the late 1800s.  It was a time where women did not always marry for love but had to consider their husbands with a focus on money and security.  Women could not vote and had limited ability to make independent decisions.

The Vanderbilt family lived a life of excess and it was interesting to read this book and think of the impact these family members had on their future generations.  As I listened to this tale, I reflected on what I had learned listening to The Rainbow Comes and Goes by Gloria Vanderbilt and Anderson Cooper.

6.  Good Night Mind: Turn off Your Noisy Thoughts and get a Good Night’s Sleep

As someone who periodically has sleep challenges, i was interested in learning some new tips for quieting my mind. Although there were helpful tips, there was nothing new but lots of common sense suggestions.

7.  Small Fry (Lisa Brennan-Jobs)

As I type on my MacBook Air, communicate on my iPhone and take notes at meeting with my Apple pencil and iPad, it is easy to see the genius and vision of Steve Jobs.  I had already learned about his eccentricities and selfishness in his biography but it was really quite sad to read of his daughter’s experience in her biography, Small Fry.

His daughter and ex lived in relative poverty during Lisa’s early years, her parentage was denied and there was no support despite his ample income.  When he did spend time with Lisa, his behaviours were often mercurial. He was mean, even mentally abusive at times yet loving and over the top at other times.  He lived in a mansion where he had not even been in some of the rooms.  The home was crumbling around him.  He attempted to get his family to eat his extreme vegan diet, stopped paying Lisa’s tuition and demanded she choose one parent over the other.

I am thankful for his vision which allows me to carry a “computer” (iPhone) in my pocket but it is hard to reconcile the technological brilliance with the selfish, petulant man described in Small Fry!