October was the month to curl up with a favourite quilt, a book, and a cup of tea. I have been going between a denim quilt made from worn-out jeans and a turquoise and red log cabin quilt. My favourite tea has been Earl Grey unless is it evening and then I switch to Twinnings Cranberry & Raspberry. I was sad when they discontinued the Cranberry and Blood Orange. I had a stack of books. So here are some of the books I read in October.

Remember I am still recovering from surgery and on chemo so I have lots of time when my body says, “just sit down.” Often that means with a book.

I was pleased to see that my books read stack was taller than the to be read pile. Don’t worry I have books on the shelves to read and I have two book-loving friends that share books with me.

October Reading

I am just sharing a few highlights of what I read. I do have all the details on GoodReads.

84, Charing Cross Road, Helene Hanff – I feel like I am late to the game reading this book. I received it for my birthday and began it that evening and finished it in 24 hours. I enjoyed the story of correspondence and relationships that develop from that. It is a book that I am keeping on my shelf as I want to read it again.

Eye Can Write,  Jonathan Bryan – This was a birthday gift from a friend. It is short and easy to read. I posted on Instagram but I think this is a book everyone should read. As a mom of a child with special needs, this was encouraging. This book will help you see the intelligence and caring personality of someone unable to do much but move his eyes. There are moving parts in the book. I highly recommend this book.

Safe and Sound: Standing Firm in Spiritual battles, David Powilson – I have read other books that he has written and had him as a lecturer for a Biblical Counselling course. This the last book that he wrote before his death. It did not disappoint. It is short but packed with truth.

Even Better than Eden: Nine Ways the Bible’s Story Changes Everything about Your Story, Nancy Guthrie – I actually read two books this month by Nancy Guthrie. In this book, the author traces 9 themes from the Eden to Eternity and show us how eternity is much better. I highly recommend both this book and God Does His Best Work with Empty which traces the theme of empty through Scripture showing how God used the emptiness in people’s lives. I also recommend Nancy’s Biblical Theology Workshop for Women.

The Shadow Land, Elizabeth Kostova – A friend loaned this book to me. It is always good to have book-loving friends. She had mentioned that it was about Bulgaria and since I didn’t know much about Bulgaria, I said I was interested in reading the book. It is a novel which is set in modern time but weaves in bits of a story from after World War II. It was an interesting read.

The Grand Design: Male and Female He Made Them, Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock – The thing I really liked about this book is that it was written to both men and women. So often this type of book is written for women and a few men are brave to read them. I think it is a message that needs to be told to both male and female.