Reading Now

When the days turn cooler I have the insatiable urge to hunker down and read. Not that that particular desire ever truly abandons me, but there’s something especially cozy about reading in cool weather. We’ve had an unusually cool and rainy September so far, so you’ll understand the state of my reading now stack. It’s a doozy. You’ve been warned.

This month I’ve been reading the Maggie Hope Series by Susan Elia Macneal as my lighter read.

I’ve already read “His Majesty’s Hope” and “The Prime Minister’s Secret Agent”, and am now reading “Mrs. Roosevelt’s Confidante”.
This is such a great series. World War II, espionage, and a spunky heroine. So far there are plenty of satisfying twists, and nothing is too predictable. I am loving it. The first book is called “Mr. Churchill’s Secretary”, and I highly recommend reading them in order. Maggie has quite a lot of personal and professional development throughout the series, and personal friendships develop throughout the books. They are lighter reading, but not what I would consider fluff. Each book is meticulously researched, and adds at least 5 books to my to-read stack.

I’m currently working through the Sonnets of Shakespeare–a little slowly, but I do love them. This particular collection is available for free as a kindle ebook. Just click on the picture and you’ll go straight to Amazon!

These are my serious reads for the month. They are all fantastic for very different reasons. The Dictator’s Handbook sheds so much light on the dictators and rulers of our 21st century world. It is terrifying, enlightening, and riveting. In August I finished up Garry Kasparov’s “Winter is Coming” which gave me a decent introduction to Putin and Russia, but this is the perfect follow-up.

Brave New World is another kind of “follow-up” book for me. I read Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death” (fantastic, by the way) in August, and he mentioned Brave New World multiple times. Postman juxtaposed it with Orwell’s 1984, saying that he thought we were much more likely to attain the Dystopian society of Brave New World than 1984. Naturally, I immediately checked it out. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed it as much as I am, had I not had Postman’s conclusions fresh in my mind. So far, I am enjoying it and intrigued.

The Story of Western Science by Susan Wise Bauer is one of my favorite nonfiction books I’ve read this year. It’s not specialized by any means, but it gives one a wide, general background with which to begin the study of scientific discoveries throughout history. It is fascinating, and another book that is contributing greatly to the expansion of my to-read pile. Each chapter is quite short, but gives a good overview of specific scientists, and leaves you with suggestions for further reading.

So, those are the things I’ve read and am reading now.
I expect to finish off the Maggie Hope series and will be scouting for my next big light read. As far as more serious things, I’m planning to start tackling the “Well Educated Mind” Reading Lists. Bauer recommends starting with the Fiction List, but I’ve read many of the books on it, so I’m considering starting with Autobiography or History. What would you do?

What are you reading now? Let me know in the comments or leave a link to your blogpost! I love seeing other reading lists!