Must-Read Books



For several years now, my husband and I have been writing our New Year's resolutions on a piece of paper (yes, still on a piece of paper!) at the end of each year, which I will then place in my "Scrapbook" afterwards.
I think that writing our goals and objectives for the new year is a great way to view, analyze and correct what currently satisfies us and what satisfies us less in our daily actions. Whether it’s our diet, exercise routine or tendency to procrastinate, there is always room for improvement in the coming year. 

My point of mentioning this list (which I recommend everyone to do by the way!) is that every year my husband and I note that we want to read at least 1 book per month or an average of 12 books per year. This reading objective satisfies us I believe since we have never changed that number ever. 

Without lying, I must confess that some years, I have not always reached this goal and the reason being simple, the lack of time. Why does time fly so fast as we get older?

When all things in my life are working and flowing perfectly as I wish and desire,  I can reach easily my monthly reading goal by reading 30 minutes before going to bed...but only if : 

1) We are at home and in our bed at a reasonable time 
2) No alcohol has been consumed 
3) My eyelids do not close automatically when I get in bed

...In general, these conditions are not often met!


Sometimes life seems to roll on quietly and at other times, life seems to be moving at a crazy speed.

I must admit that at this moment, my life runs quietly and gently while waiting for the arrival of my little prince and, for this reason, (and because I can not consume alcohol and because I am experiencing pregnancy insomnia!!!) I have already read 8 books since the beginning of the year! (Yeah!! Why not read as many books as possible while I still can right?)

God knows that when my little prince is here, time will only be a thing of the past...

So, thanks to my pregnancy, I can now share with you my "top" books that I had the chance to read recently. I am always looking for book suggestions so please, I would love to know yours and if you have read some of my suggestions, I would really like to know your impressions.

If there were one list of absolute must-read books, what would you put on it? 


Lysianne


This was my first time reading a Taylor Jenkins Reid book. It's a love story about a woman unexpectedly forced to choose between the husband she has long thought dead and the fiancĂ© who has finally brought her back to life. It is about love, how love changes and evolves.  I loved it!  



The Glass Castle is a remarkable memoir of resilience and redemption, and a revelatory look into a family deeply dysfunctional. It is a true disturbing story. It's difficult to imagine a more dysfunctional household than the one in which Walls grew up. I love this book!


The most memorable and interesting mostly autobiographical novel I have read in many years. Thoroughly engrossing story worth every minute of every page. This book is set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay. The book begins when Greg Roberts arrives in Bombay after he escaped from an Australian prison where he had begun serving a 19-year sentence. He was imprisoned for
a string of armed robberies peformed to support his heroin addiction, which started when his marriage fell apart and he lost custody of his daughter. All of that is only the beginning...



I started reading this memoir without knowing what it really was about. When Breath Becomes Air details Dr. Kalanithi's life as a neurosurgeon and his fight against advanced lung cancer. Don't begin reading it unless you have the time to finish it in one setting. I couldn't put it down. I read this book when my daughter was 1 year old which made me relate to him in a very profound way.



Our bible at home.


This memoir is the story of RisĂ©. It is an incredibly moving memoir about a resilient and resourceful girl who fought her way through life to emerge as a strong, loving and beautifully inspiring woman. She rise above the chaos, abuse, and molestation of her childhood, eventually escaping the weight of her family, and learning to love and believe in herself. A beautifully written and inspiring story.



Nightline anchor Dan Harris embarks on an unexpected, hilarious, and deeply skeptical odyssey through the strange worlds of spirituality and self-help, and discovers a way to get happier that is truly achievable. A great practical guide to understanding the basics of meditation and it's funny!


With a notebook stashed in her diaper bag, living in Paris with a new baby, Pamela Druckerman, a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal, sets out to learn the secrets to raising a society of good little sleepers, gourmet eaters, and reasonably relaxed parents. She discovers that French parents are extremely strict about some things and strikingly permissive about others. And she realizes that to be a different kind of parent, you don't just need a different parenting philosophy. You need a very different view of what a child actually is. A must-read for all parents and parents-to-be. My husband read it as well and give stamp of approval! 



This is Mary Tyler Moore’s story of her life with Diabetes. She freely admits that her story is not a model for anyone else. She struggled through rebellion, and denial only to eventually arrive at acknowledgment and commitment. It took many years for her to overcome the struggles and challenges of diabetes. Mary Tyler Moore passed away on January 25, 2017. I wanted to read this book in remembrance of her, to learn about her life and her fight with juvenile diabetes, an auto-immune disease that I have been fighting as well for over 18 years. 




America’s Angriest Trainer, Vinnie Tortorich, exposes the nasty underbelly of the fitness industry while getting you into the best shape of your life. For over 20 years, Vinnie has been Hollywood’s go-to guy for celebrities and athletes looking to get fit fast. This is a helpful book in which the author shares his wisdom as well as some funny and touching personal anecdotes. It's not a diet book, it's a book on how to change the way you live your life. "Cut the crap" and you'll be on the way to a new you. It's about eating whole foods minus all grains and all sugars !

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