Quarter 3 Reading List

With the colder nights coming in, it's the perfect season for books.
Unfortunately I find summer nights really tricky to read in because I feel like I need to be outside or being more productive. I think it's all the natural light.

This past quarter has been a slower one on the book front, but I have read a bit of a mix of fiction and non-fiction which is quite unusual for me. I'm not usually a big fan of non-fiction books, but I'm trying to push myself outside my comfort zone with my reading, though I think this may have contributed to me reading less.

So what have I read this quarter?

Happy Mum, Happy Baby by Giovanna Fletcher
I'm a pretty big fan of Giovanna now, having fallen in love with her fictional writing. Her non-fiction debut was brilliant. I took a little while to get into it, but once I was fully in the book, I could literally feel myself nodding along with some of her thoughts and opinions of bringing up children. She doesn't pretend to know it all, but shares all her wealth of knowledge and experience. I have to admit I was slightly jealous of how good she is at giving birth (her words, but I'm in total agreement, the woman aces birth). I also found her experience on getting Buzz to sleep through the night actually really helped me get Henry to sleep through the night. So thank you G!!

The Shadow in the North by Philip Pullman
Philip Pullman was one of my favourite authors when I was younger. More renowned for His Dark Materials series, the Sally Lockhart series is one of my all-time favourites. I still have two of my original books from when I was younger... hence the yellow, sun-bleached pages. I decided to go back to my loved novels for a bit of childhood nostalgia. I think the first book in the series is my favourite as I love the development of the characters and the imagery of London. Sally was always such an inspiring heroine for me and I would hugely recommend this book and the entire series to all parents of little girls.

The Ruby in the Smoke by Philip Pullman
The sequel to The Shadow in the North is another great story, full of suspense and intrigue. I think the story line is slightly better than the first, with a more interesting tale to tell, but I'm a romantic and love a happy ending so I always struggle with the ending of this story. It's also the reason I struggle to read the third and fourth books, but I'm hoping to go back to them soon.

The Little Book of Lykke* by Meik Wiking 
From the author of the highly popular Little Book of Hygge, this is all about happiness. Like his previous book, this delves into how the Danish, and nationalities around the world, approach happiness. And more importantly, what makes us happy. There are anecdotes from his life and experiences, as well as case studies, snippets from research and real life stories. To be honest, it's a great book and has made me want to read the Little Book of Hygge all over again because it's been a welcome reminder that we all need to focus on what really makes us happy and content. It's put me in a better mood just in general knowing that I can make a few adjustments to my perspective and could ultimately make myself and my family happier. It's a self-help book but it also isn't, and I think that's why I love it so much.

I'm going to be trying a mix of books to see in the last of 2017 and really broaden my horizons. Ideally I'd like to make it to 25 books for the year, so just another six to go! Then maybe 2018 we'll aim for 50 books!

What books do you recommend for my next quarter?

*book sent in exchange for review - all opinions as always are my own.