Read These Books NOW

I know quite a few people who set a New Year's Resolution to read a new book (or two!) every month this year. I am a big fan of reading for pleasure outside of school or work commitments, and wanted to help contribute to this admirable goal.

I got a Kobo E-reader for a gift last year and although I sometimes miss the classic paperback, the convenient user-friendly format makes reading on the go extremely easy. Two of my favorite books I just downloaded and read are:

The Gifts of Imperfection: Let go of you who think you’re supposed to be and embrace who you are by Brené Brown

And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

After only one day, I was already halfway through Brené Brown’s new book. I first got introduced to her research through a Ted Talk, and have been addicted to her work ever since. This lady is AMAZING, she really knows how to DIG deep, get to the root of your problems and discover what thoughts, feeling or behaviors are preventing you from living your life to the fullest. One great example from the book is perfectionism and it’s destructive role

According to Brené Brown, “Perfectionism is the belief that if we live perfectly, look perfectly and act perfectly, we can avoid the pain of blame, judgment and shame.”

The feeling that we need to be perfect is 100% something I relate to and something that probably everyone has struggled with a some point in their lives. Moreso in the past, I had lots of perfectionism tendencies, whether it came to school, relationships, diet, exercise and even the cleanliness of my apartment. I used to think that if I was ______ (fill in smarter, prettier, thinner, blonder) I would make the people around me love me more, and I would be a happier person overall. This thought process had the exact opposite effect, causing strain on my personal relationships, creating undue stress, and blocking me from living an authentic and worthy life. You can strive to be the best you can be, but this doesn’t mean feeling the need to be perfect. Perfectionism is unattainable, no matter whom you are.

The book also spends a lot of time talking about courage, shame, resilience, love and other very important topics. Her writing it light, insightful and humorous, allowing the reader to connect with her thoughts and I can’t recommend this book enough.

If you have read The Kite Runner or A Thousand Splendid Suns, you will love Khaled Hosseini’s new Book And the Mountains Echoed. Each chapter is a different character’s personal story that leads you across several countries and families over many generations. The book is full of surprising twists and turns, and each new chapter and character will leave you thinking about your life, family, friends and commitment to one and other in whole new light. It focuses on the importance of personal bonds, romantic or plutonic, and I finished the book wanting to call all my family and friends and remind them how much I love them and appreciate everything they do for me.

Happy Reading!