Over the past 8 years, I have been sharing an annual “What I Read” list with you. I have many people that have read through, asked me for my top picks from the bunch, and have given me recommendations as well! It has been a pleasure sharing one of my favorite hobbies with you. I am also fully aware that there are phone apps now that you can share your favorites reads on but sharing on a blog post felt more “me” and, to be honest, I just couldn’t download one more app that I could scroll on for hours!
As much as I have enjoyed posting these reading updates over the years I have decided that this will be my last year sharing my personal reads. While I definitely plan on continuing to post pictures and reading updates from time to time over on my Instagram page (@myjoyousheart), I feel that keeping up with my reading list and seeing a number of books I’ve read consistently grow throughout the year is not something I want to continue for the future.
What I noticed was that I was looking back at previous years and, naturally, wanted to read “more” than the previous year. I saw this as a personal benchmark for literary growth and increasing my reading speed. What happened, however, was the creation of an unwanted internal competition with myself that started to make reading become more work than fun.
Reading is one of my very favorite things to do! Whether it’s a new book on the bestseller list, an old classic, a new children’s book, a fun book from my childhood, or an encouraging book I’ve read 3 or so times already, curling up with a book on my couch with a warm drink is my idea of peace.
I want reading to continue to be fun for me and not something that ends up on my mental “to-do” list. I encourage you to also read for fun and read something that might be “outside the box” for you! I think reading is something that can be shared with others or kept private depending on what God is teaching us at the time or even what season of life we are in. I want to honor that choice of what to share for myself going forward.
So this year, the final count ended up being 40 fun, entertaining, thought provoking, and encouraging books from 2021. I have to say, this list holds some really incredible reads! It was an excellent book year!
Do you have a favorite book from this year?
I hope this makes you want to go grab a book, get your cozy blanket, and enjoy the end of this year in literary style. I pray you have a blessed, peaceful, and enjoyable new year ahead!
Happy Reading!
Mandy
- Let It Snow – John Green, Maureen Johnson, & Lauren Myracle
- The Next Right Thing – Emily P. Freeman
- That Sounds Fun – Annie F. Downs
- Adventurous Prayer – Women of Faith
- Thank You for Rejecting Me – Kait Warman
- Outdated – Jonathan “JP” Pokluda
- American Royals – Katharine McGee
- Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness – Andrew Murray
- Josh & Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating – Christina Lauren
- Don’t Believe the Swipe – Mandy Hale
- The Power of Praying – Stormie Omartian
- A Short History of the Girl Next Door – Jared Reck
- Get Your Life Back – John Eldredge
- Breaking Free from Body Shame – Jess Connolly
- Get to the Publishing Punchline – Joy Eggerichs Reed
- Vampires Don’t Wear Polka Dots – Debbie Dadey and Marcia Thornton Jones
- Persuasion – Jane Austen
- Secrets to a Man’s Heart – Michelle McKinney Hammond
- Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table – Louie Giglio
- Tour de Force – Elizabeth White
- In the Flo – Alisa Vitti
- Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery
- The Bookshop on the Corner – Jenny Colgan
- The Finches’ Fabulous Furnace – Roger Drury
- Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen
- Anne of Avonlea – L.M. Montgomery
- Little House in the Big Woods – Laura Ingalls Wilder
- Anne of the Island – L.M. Montgomery
- More Than a Carpenter – Josh McDowell & Sean McDowell
- Small Favors – Erin A. Craig
- Becoming Lean and Free – Kris Doran Williams, MCHC
- Why? Trusting God When You Don’t Understand – Anne Graham Lotz
- The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living – Louise Miller
- Loving God, Yourself, and Others – Joyce Meyer
- Holding On When You Want to Let Go – Sheila Walsh
- The Twelve Dates of Christmas – Jenny Bayliss
- Nearing Home – Billy Graham
- Muggie Maggie – Beverly Cleary
- Alone with God – Michael Warden
- Unshakeable: 365 Devotions for Finding Unwavering Strength in God’s Word – Christine Caine