Due to the Covid-19 craziness, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get my hands on these books from my usual vendors. I try to support local as much as possible, so if they can’t get the nonfiction and inspiration titles I have on my May TBR, then I’ll just have to wait. Totally not sad about that… except for how much I am.

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Nonfiction:

Joy at Work by Marie Kondo & Scott Sonenshein

The workplace is a magnet for clutter and mess. Who hasn’t felt drained by wasteful meetings, disorganized papers, endless emails, and unnecessary tasks? These are the modern-day hazards of working, and they can slowly drain the joy from work, limit our chances of career progress, and undermine our well-being.

There is another way.

In Joy at Work, bestselling author and Netflix star Marie Kondo and Rice University business professor Scott Sonenshein offer stories, studies, and strategies to help you eliminate clutter and make space for work that really matters.

Using the world-renowned KonMari Method and cutting-edge research, Joy at Work will help you overcome the challenges of workplace mess and enjoy the productivity, success, and happiness that comes with a tidy desk and mind.

Goodreads | Amazon

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Comic book:

Little Nightmares by John Shackleford, et. al.

A nine-year old girl named Six is kidnapped from her home and taken to work in The Maw – a surreal underwater resort that caters to the whims of the powerful elite, and where everything is built to towering and frightening proportions.

The Maw is a grim feeding trough for the swollen, corrupted souls of the world. A place where excess is encouraged and dark secrets kept far out of sight.

When an unexpected twist of fate offers her a chance at freedom, Six takes a journey through the bizarre and unpredictable world of The Maw, and catches a glimpse at the corrupt heart of modern happiness, in a thrilling new story that delightfully connects to the deranged video game.

Goodreads | Amazon

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Inspiration:

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” asked the mole.

“Kind,” said the boy.

Charlie Mackesy offers inspiration and hope in uncertain times in this beautiful book based on his famous quartet of characters. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse explores their unlikely friendship and the poignant, universal lessons they learn together.

Radiant with Mackesy’s warmth and gentle wit, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse blends hand-written narrative with dozens of drawings, including some of his best-loved illustrations (including “Help,” which has been shared over one million times) and new, never-before-seen material. A modern classic in the vein of The Tao of Pooh, The Alchemist, and The Giving Tree, this charmingly designed keepsake will be treasured for generations to come.

Goodreads | Amazon

It’s all nonfiction, all the time, in April!

I did choose to cut my #TBR down to just the one book because of my upcoming O.W.L.’s and the fact that I’ve been kind of obsessed with knitting… can’t hold a book and knitting needles at the same time. So frustrating!

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Nonfiction:

The Vanishing Fleece by Clara Parkes

Join Clara Parkes on a cross-country adventure and meet a cast of characters that includes the shepherds, dyers, and countless workers without whom our knitting needles would be empty, our mills idle, and our feet woefully cold. Travel the country with her as she meets a flock of Saxon Merino sheep in upstate New York, tours a scouring plant in Texas, visits a steamy Maine dyehouse, helps sort freshly shorn wool on a working farm, and learns how wool fleece is measured, baled, shipped, and turned into skeins.

In pursuit of the perfect yarn, Parkes describes a brush with the dangers of opening a bale (they can explode), and her adventures from Maine to Wisconsin (“the most knitterly state”) and back again; along the way, she presents a behind-the-scenes look at the spinners, scourers, genius inventors, and crazy-complex mill machines that populate the yarn-making industry. By the end of the book, you’ll be ready to set aside the backyard chickens and add a flock of sheep instead. Simply put, no other book exists that explores American culture through the lens of wool. 

Goodreads | Amazon

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In terms of reading goals, I’d say that February was pretty successful for me. I was able to read both fiction and nonfiction, listen to audio books and read paper ones, and just enjoyed learning more about the world through reading.

Let’s see if I can keep up the pace in March!

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Nonfiction:

The Radium Girls by Kate Moore

The Curies’ newly discovered element of radium makes gleaming headlines across the nation as the fresh face of beauty, and wonder drug of the medical community. From body lotion to tonic water, the popular new element shines bright in the otherwise dark years of the First World War.

Meanwhile, hundreds of girls toil amidst the glowing dust of the radium-dial factories. The glittering chemical covers their bodies from head to toe; they light up the night like industrious fireflies. With such a coveted job, these “shining girls” are the luckiest alive — until they begin to fall mysteriously ill.

But the factories that once offered golden opportunities are now ignoring all claims of the gruesome side effects, and the women’s cries of corruption. And as the fatal poison of the radium takes hold, the brave shining girls find themselves embroiled in one of the biggest scandals of America’s early 20th century, and in a groundbreaking battle for workers’ rights that will echo for centuries to come.

Goodreads | Amazon

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Young Adult:

Running With Lions by Julian Winters

Bloomington High School Lions’ star goalie, Sebastian Hughes, should be excited about his senior year: His teammates are amazing and he’s got a coach who doesn’t ask anyone to hide their sexuality.

But when his estranged childhood best friend Emir Shah shows up to summer training camp, Sebastian realizes the team’s success may end up in the hands of the one guy who hates him. Determined to reconnect with Emir for the sake of the Lions, he sets out to regain Emir’s trust. But to Sebastian’s surprise, sweaty days on the pitch, wandering the town’s streets, and bonding on the weekends sparks more than just friendship between them.

Goodreads | Amazon

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Science Fiction:

The God Engines by John Scalzi

Captain Ean Tephe is a man of faith, whose allegiance to his lord and to his ship is uncontested. The Bishopry Militant knows this — and so, when it needs a ship and crew to undertake a secret, sacred mission to a hidden land, Tephe is the captain to whom the task is given.

Tephe knows from the start that his mission will be a test of his skill as a leader of men and as a devout follower of his god. It’s what he doesn’t know that matters: to what ends his faith and his ship will ultimately be put — and that the tests he will face will come not only from his god and the Bishopry Militant, but from another, more malevolent source entirely…

Goodreads | Amazon