A Reading List to Get Your New Year Off Right

Welcome, 2019!

Well, folks, we made it!  It’s January 1st, and I’m curled up in my PJ’s on my sofa in Boston reflecting on some of the better moments of 2018 (Florida! Charleston! Seattle!) and gearing up for 2019. We spent the Holidays in England visiting P’s family, so there were lots of dinners, hugs (and cheese) and tons of catching up with everyone.  But unfortunately, my phone completely died on Christmas day, so I have zero photos!  It was a forced break from social media, and it allowed me to realize what I did and did NOT miss about that whole scene.  (more on that in another post!)  I’ll have my new phone tomorrow, and will be back to posting and being in touch with you all via comments and DM’s.  Hands DOWN, the best part of being a blogger is the ability to meet and interact with people who I wouldn’t otherwise have crossed paths with.

Bringing Back the Reading Lists!

I have tons a great content planned for you all, including some bigger posts coming this month-giving you the lowdown on summer festivals, another one on taking auditions, and loads of advice on how to get ready for both!   As for me, I’m starting off 2019 by bringing back my reading lists from a couple of years ago.  Some of you might remember that I would choose 4 books a month–one from each of 4 pre-determined categories.  In year’s past, I would pick one book at a time and wouldn’t start a new one until I had finished the first.  But we’re not always in the mood for a particular kind of book, are we?  Sometimes I want to escape into a bit of fiction, other days I’m looking for something more grounded.  Different moods call for different books, right? And since I need to finish them all in the same 4-week period, I don’t let them just sit there lingering on my nightstand.  This year’s categories are : music, fiction, auto-biography and business/personal development.  At the end of 2019, I will (hopefully) have read 12 books on Music, 12 Auto-biographies of inspiring people, 12 books on business and personal development and 12 novels.  That’s not too shabby!  I’m always open to suggestions for future lists, and love it when you guys follow along with my lists–we’ve had some great discussions here!   But please feel free to make your own categories (and share them with us in the comments!)  For the month of January I have picked:

Drumroll, please…….

1. Music: The Power of Music by Elena Mannes

2. Fiction: Persuasion, by Jane Austin (because P and I spent a couple of days in Bath over the weekend, and I need to relive those scenes ASAP).

3. Auto-biography: Becoming by Michelle Obama (who else is reading this now? I’m on page 2 and it’s SO good!)

4. Business/PD: The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy