What I'm Reading Now

For better or for worse, I tend to read multiple books at the same time. I thought it would be fun to share what I'm reading now, and ask you to share what you're reading (and would recommend) in the comments.

The Circle Maker: Praying Circles Around Your Biggest Dreams and Greatest Fears by Mark Batterson:

I put this book on my Amazon Wishlist over a year ago after Money Saving Mom mentioned it, and I purchased it when there was a temporary price drop. According to the Kindle app on my phone, I'm only 11% of the way through it, but as I read small sections at a time, I've been considering Batterson's thoughts on prayer, and I've found myself praying more. Not in circles, exactly, but certainly more specifically than I usually do. It should be interesting to see if this book produces any more changes in me.

The Good Mother Myth: Redefining Motherhood to Fit Reality, a collection of essays about not buying into the ideal that to be a good mother, you have to give your kids a perfect, idyllic childhood:

The Kindle app on my phone says I'm about 20% off of the way through this book. I've been reading one essay at a time, and I find that I relate to all of them. It's been something of a revelation how much I've bought into The Good Mother Myth. I don't think I've been unreasonable in what I've tried to give my children, but these essays are causing me to do some self-examination and to ask myself what's really important to me and to my children.

As my husband has pointed out more than once, these priorities are not necessarily the same. For example, I feel terribly guilty if I don't cook dinner for my family. But the reality is, my kids usually don't eat what I cook, unless it's hot dogs, mac and cheese, or other kid-friendly fare that I'm sick of {and my husband too, usually}. So if the kids are eating food from Chipotle, I shouldn't have the chorus in my head singing "You're a bad mother."

Like all of us, I'm good at some things and not others. Above all, I am not, and cannot be, a perfect mother. This book is helping me accept that, because I'm not alone.

Sigma Force series by James Rollins - I actually read Book 8 of this series (Bloodline) first because it was highly rated and a Kindle Daily Deal for $1.99 so I figured I'd give it a shot. It's Tom Clancy meets the Da Vinci Code, and if you like those types of books, I think you'll love Sigma Force.

So far, I've also read Book 2 in the series (Map of Bones), because it was $1.99 at the time. Book 1 (Sandstorm) was $5.99, so I bought the paperback for my dad for Father's Day and told him that I get to read it when he's done. {Of course, it's since dropped to $1.99 and now I'm sorely tempted to buy it for myself without waiting.} As you might guess, I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of this series :)

Image via FreeDigitalPhotos.net by Supertrooper.