Favorite Books I Read in 2015

Wrapping up another year reading a book a week, I thought I'd take the time to share reasons why the ten books listed here are my favorites from the 52 books I read in 2015. My reading this list year included books read for fun and books for professional and personal growth.

My favorite books read for fun in 2015

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

With all the conversations about immigration in America right now I think it's important that we remember people and their stories. In this novel, Henriquez's characters tell their stories and reasons for coming to the United States. One character says "We're the unknown Americans, the ones no one even wants to know because they've been told they're supposed to be scared of us and because maybe if they did take the time to get to know us, they might realize that we're not that bad, maybe even that we're a lot like them." Check out the short review I wrote for Cake and Whiskey Magazine's blog here.

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

This book makes the list because, well, because I'm not funny and Amy Poehler is. Honestly, I avoided this book for the longest time because I never really followed Amy Poehler carefully and wasn't sure I'd enjoy her humor, but when I had to drive to the other side of our state (10 hours round trip) for the second time in one month's time span, I knew I needed something other than my thoughts and music to occupy the time. Cue the audio book version of Yes Please. Poehler's humor was just what I needed in those ten hours, and each time I stopped I could hardly wait to get back in the car for more life wisdom from this comedian. No review from me on this one, but check out this fun review from another blogger.

Exposed: Tragedy and Triumph in Mountain Climbing 

by Brad and Melissa McQueen

Coincidentally, the authors of this book were in Steamboat Springs for a talk at a local bookstore at the same time we were there this summer. Their book kept me on the edge of my seat; I read it in two days while vacationing in Steamboat Springs. It's not just the adventure and beautiful scenery that keeps me reading books like this. I also appreciate the perseverance and experiential learning the authors share in their journey.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott 

For years I've followed Lamott's writing but hadn't read Bird by Bird, so when I received the book for Christmas in 2014, my 2015 reading journey started with this one. Terrific start to my year with numerous quotes applicable to life. Read more about what I thought of the book here.

Becoming Odyssa: Epic Adventures on the Appalachian Trail 
by Jennifer Pharr Davis

My interest in hiking/adventure memoirs continues and I read several more this year including Becoming Odyssa: Epic Adventures on the Appalachian Trail by Jennifer Pharr Davis. This was her first book about her early journeys on the AT. You can read about her record setting AT hike in Called Again. You can read my short review for Cake and Whiskey magazine's blog here.

The Light of the World by Elizabeth Alexander

This memoir reminds you of the importance of being grateful for life, and it helps you appreciate creativity while also maintaining hope. I blogged about the book for Cake and Whiskey and then wrote a follow up post around Thanksgiving on my own blog because this book had just that much impact on me. It's one of those books I won't forget.

Americanah by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie

Another favorite novel I enjoyed this year included Amercanah by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie. This was the first book I've read by Adichie, and I suspect it won't be the last. Her ideas resonate with me, and I appreciate her writing style too. This was another book I blogged about for Cake and Whiskey.

My favorite books read for professional growth in 2015

Most Likely to Succeed by Tony Wagner and Ted Dintersmith

This book by Tony Wagner and Ted Dintersmith probably had the biggest impact on me professionally because of the multiple opportunities I have had to see the film and to meet Dintersmith. His ongoing passion for reimagining education is incredibly authentic and refreshing. For more information check out this blog post about Most Likely to Succeed: Preparing Our Kids for The Innovation Era.

Smart Parents: Parenting for Powerful Learning 

by Bonnie Lathram, Carri Schneider and Tom Vander Ark

This book had the biggest impact on me as a parent and a blogger because Getting Smart contacted me through my blog to see if I would be interested in reviewing the book. Not only was it fun to review and promote the book, I enjoyed the wealth of information available for parents and educators, and I learned about the Smart Parents movement. You will feel empowered if you read this book...so go for it!




What Connected Educators Do Differently
by Jimmy Casas, Todd Whitaker, and Jefferey Zoul

There's really no comparing the amount of reach and connection this book has brought me. First of all, I wrote this post about how the book describes my own journey as a connected educator. Second of all, the authors are engaging and encouraging, and they even participated in a book Twitter chat I hosted this year. Finally, amazingly, somehow, my blog post about this book skyrocketed to the number one most read blog post in my four years of blogging. Really, if you are not connected much yet you should read this short and informative book right away.

Thoughts on The Opposite of Loneliness

Browsing the newly released books in our small town local bookstore, I paused in my tracks upon seeing a book jacket portraying a young woman in a yellow pea coat smiling brightly. When I picked up The Opposite of Loneliness and read the back cover, I was instantly jarred to read renowned Yale Professor, Harold Bloom, refer to the book’s author in the past tense. “I will never cease mourning the loss of my beloved former student Marina Keegan.“

The passing of a young woman leaves me thinking about what could have been—the talent, the beauty of a writer and reader of literature. I didn’t know Marina or even of her until the release of her book, but I was drawn to this young woman’s story because it reminded me of one of my former students, Morgan, who also died instantly in a car accident a year and a half after Marina’s tragic accident.

Instead of dwelling on what could have been, I find comfort in reading the writing left behind by Marina. A lover of nonfiction myself, I quickly read her short stories, aiming to speed through the nine works of fiction so I could feast on my favorite nonfiction. But then something happened while I was reading. Marina’s stories took me to different places, both literal and figurative, and I found myself devouring her fiction with rapid intensity.

From “Winter Break” in suburban Michigan when Addie is home from college on vacation hooking up with her boyfriend and visiting her parents as their marriage declines to “Reading Aloud” where Anna, an older woman, calls on Sam, a man who is blind, to read aloud to him his mail, his textbooks, his cooking directions. Marina’s writing transports us into the lives of ordinary people carrying on with life. The vast differences in the subject matter of the nine short stories struck me because some of the stories surely required research as they were well thought out beyond Marina’s 22 years. The stories conveyed a sense of hope, a hope we find when we connect with people. A feeling, the opposite of loneliness, that Marina found at Yale.

 In the essay with the same title as the book, The Opposite of Loneliness, optimism abounds. "We're so young. We're so young. We're twenty-two years old. We have so much time." Marina's last essay, written for the Yale Daily News upon her graduation went viral. Indeed, Professor Bloom's assessment of her talent reminds us of the "extraordinary promise that departed with her."

February 2014 Reads

February brought more nonfiction, but that's not a surprise since I'm always drawn to it.

Monkey Mind:  A Memoir of Anxiety amused me while I traveled in the early part of the month.  A tragicomedy by Daniel Smith,  the book made for a perfect read while traveling because it kept me smiling. Smith's narrative reminded me of the stories I enjoyed by Oliver Sacks during my college years as a psychology major.  An intense desire to learn more about self and others can drive a person to major in psychology.  Indeed, my degree and psychology studies have proved useful in multiple aspects of my career and work in education.  While reading Smith's memoir, I thought about my students and family members who cope with anxiety, and I realized even while lauging at Smith's hilarious portrayals of anxiety, that it's not funny when you're helping someone who deals with massive amounts of debilitating anxiety.  If you are a teacher, parent, spouse, or friend of someone with anxiety disorders, you should consider reading this book because the raw material Smith describes might help you better understand people who suffer from anxiety.

Hatching Twitter inspired an entire blog post of its own because of my fascination with the world of business and start-ups and my lack of experiential knowledge around either.  The book still has me thinking about the power of social media, and I'm even dismayed when I hear of others who think social media is a useless waste of time given that entire revolutions began in places around the world because of social media.  The activists and educators who use Twitter for making change are most interesting to me, I guess because those are ideas that matter to me in the grand plan of making a difference in the world.

Formative Assessment:  Making it Happen in the Classroom fed a professional need to revisit a topic for a post on this important aspect of a more balanced approach to teaching and learning.  For my book a week goal, I didn't set out to read a certain number of professional books, nonfiction or fiction, I just knew I would read what was most relevant to me in a given week.  The week I read this book began with a Twitter edchat (#nctechat) about formative assessment, and instead of speaking only from experience and knowledge I've gained over the years, reading this book by Margaret Herritage reminded me of important pieces of research that have been written to prove the impact formative assessment can have on student achievement and learning.

The Three Weissmanns of Westport, the only work of fiction I read this month, was not my favorite read of the month.  Initially when I purchased this book by Cathleen Schine off a bargain table at Barnes and Noble, the blurbs on the back sounded interesting, literary, and reminiscent of a Jane Austen novel.  The book has won awards and is listed as a New York Times Bestseller, but it's not one I would ever read again or recommend.  For me the contemporary version of a genteel society is not one for which I have any care or interest.  Had I known the book is classified as "chick lit" I might have known better than to pick it up since that genre typically does not appeal to me.  I'll make a better choice next time and pay better attention to why a book is on the bargain table in the first place.