I’m not sure whether it’s been caused by sleepless nights with a newborn or the busy-ness of the season, but I’ve found myself in a reading slump lately.  While I’ve got plenty of ideas of books to read and even several checked out from the library, I have been struggling to actually finish books lately.  I’m shocked to see so few books on this list, especially because one of them I finished months ago and just forgot to add to a previous list.  

What books have gotten you out of reading slumps in the past?  I’m all ears!

Dark Matter

Holy smokes. There’s a reason this book has a been talked about so much lately.  It’s a whirlwind from beginning to end.  And just when you think you’ve got it figured out, the author, Blake Crouch, blows your mind again.  I’m anxiously waiting for my husband to read this one (it’s much more his typical genre than mine) so I can talk to him about it.  He walked into the room one evening as I was finishing the book. I had my hand over my mouth and my eyes wide. He said, “what kind of book has you feeling like that with only three pages left to go?”. Well, this one. It’s intense. 

Language warning, for those who are sensitive to f-bombs. There’s quite a few.

Crossing to Safety


This much-beloved novel by Wallace Stegner is the opposite of Dark Matter. Slow and quiet, but in a good way. It’s about marriage and family, money and ambition. The book follows two young couples as they make their way through life and face challenges.  While I would describe it as a slow novel, I still found myself completely engrossed. The characters are so real, their lives so normal that it was like reading about people I know.  

Elizabeth is Missing

I actually finished this a few months ago but forgot to include it in a previous post.  The details are a little fuzzy now, but I do know that I loved this novel.  It was chilling to experience the confusion of an elderly Alzheimer’s patient through her own eyes. As you read, you figure out the mysteries one step ahead of the narrator, but it’s so interesting to watch as the truth finally comes to her. I’m trying not to give away too much, and it’s hard to know what to say.  This was an excellent book and kept me up turning pages way past my bedtime.

Bible Origami

I received a copy of this book to review.  I handed it off to my 12 year old daughter to see what she thought of it.  She said, “The instructions are very clear and it’s fun and easy and the patterns turn out really great!” Bible Origami would be a fun way to keep older kids entertained in the car, at restaurants or on a long rainy afternoon.  If you teach Sunday School, you could also use this book to go along with the lessons you’re teaching.  Such a fun, hands-on way to incorporate bible stories into everyday life! This is definitely going to live in my Sunday bag, so I can pull it out when my older kids need a little project.

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrill

I began reading this book because I heard someone refer to it as “Harry Potter for Grown-ups”.  I got halfway through (which is no small feat, the book is about 1100 pages long) and realized that I just did not care to finish. I was not invested at all in the story and had no desire to contine reading for 500 more pages. I really really wanted to love it, but it was not in any way on the same level as Harry Potter, for me.

I never know whether I should include books I decided not to finish in my review posts, but I feel like I read enough of this one to count it. 🙂

What have you been reading lately?

Head over to Modern Mrs. Darcy for more reading recommendations.