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Any type of lists can be overwhelming, if we let them. However, lists are supposed to free up space in our minds, so that we can spend our time doing other things. Like instead of trying not to forget a certain book we want to purchase, we can spend that time reading. So, the books we’re interested in buying and or reading in the future go on a list, freeing up more brain time for reading in the present. Or so the idea goes.

The thing about lists though is they grow and grow and grow. Or multiply!

And I say that this is okay. It’s better than forgetting what we wanted to remember. And every now and then, if it bothers us that bad, we can trim those lists down some.

Below are some of my growing lists of books (no links). If you’ve read any, and would like to offer or share your pros or cons with me, I’ll welcome them. So, please feel free to do so.

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To Be Read Piles (Already Own)

These books are ones I have purchased more recently. I own many more than the ones on this list, however, they’re still packed up in boxes in our onsite storage Conex. Once our “Little Casita” is finally built, I’m hoping to move my three tall bookshelves into the small living room. Then, I’ll unpack all my book boxes. There are so many books I’ve missed having on hand, and I can hardly wait to see, and feel, them again.

A Perry Mason Casebook by Erle Stanley Gardner

A Portrait of My Father by George W. Bush

Absolute Friends by John Le Carré

Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah (I believe I read this one when it was first published in 2003)

Dead Poets Society by N. H. Kleinbaum

Einstein by Walter Isaacson

Enough Already by Valerie Bertinelli

Five One and a Half: The Origin Story by Casie Lynn Fowler

Forever, Erma by Erma Bombeck

Fried: How You Burn Out and How to Revive by Joan Borysenko, Ph.D.

Here’s the Story by Maureen McCormick

Inferno by Dan Brown

Memories: The Autobiography of Ralph Emery by Tom Carter

My Story by Ann-Margaret

Now by Lauren Bacall

On the Couch by Lorraine Bracco

Paula Deen by Paula Deen with Sherry Suib Cohen

The Collected Essays and Occasional Writings of Katherine Anne Porter (Houghton Mifflin/Seymour Lawrence)

The Constant Gardener by John Le Carré

The Golden Hour by Beatriz Williams

The Women of the Bible Speak by Shannon Bream

Women of Passion by Gene Vanderzanden

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To Be Purchased (and Read) Lists

This list of books are ones which I have not bought yet, but hope to in the coming future. I see one or two on the list which I may have already – somewhere in those 45+ boxes waiting to be unpacked. This list will continually be updated, I’m sure.

A Piece of Peace by Sweta Srivastava Vikram

A Very Typical Family by Sierra Godfrey

Almost Perfect by Claire Cain

Among Thieves by M. J. Kuhn

Carrying My Father’s Torch by Gail Gaspar

Colors of the Spirit by Sr. Dorothy Ederer, O.P.

Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg

Everything We Didn’t Say by Nicole Baart

Five One and a Half: The Enlightening by Casie Lynn Fowler

Her Hidden Genius by Marie Benedict

In the Heart of Paradise by Jamie McGillen

In Light of the Summit by Jamie McGillen

In Sight of the Mountain by Jamie McGillen

Inside Passage by Keema Waterfield

Keep Moving by Maggie Smith

Love the Way They Lie by Linda Smolkin

Momentos: Inspiraciónes para tu día (Diario) by Mary Olivia Patino

My Daily Bread by Anthony Paone

No Memes of Escape by Olivia Blacke

On Becoming A Role Model by Lynne Schmidt

Paper Airplanes by Tabitha Forney

Spirituality, Healing and Me by Ilana Estelle

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser

The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel

The Disharmony of Silence by Linda Rosen

The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu

The Eves by Grace Sammons

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

The Ocean in Winter by Elizabeth Deveer

The Parish Bookseller by Kerri Maher

The Reading List by Sera Nisha Adam

The Secret Life of Groceries by Benjamin Lorr

The Space In Between by Signe Myers Hovem

The Things We Keep by Julee Balko

The Treehouse on Dog River Road by Catherine Drake

The Way We Weren’t by Phoebe Fox

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These lists are only the tip of the iceberg. There are so many books I want to read. And books I have already read that I wouldn’t mind reading again. But there’s only so much time in the day for reading. So, I’ll read what I can and hope that you get to read and enjoy some of these, too.

If you are an author friend who doesn’t see your book on my list, please mention it to me. I tried to capture as many as I could, and I’m sure I’ve missed a few. Sadly, some of my handwritten lists have gotten lost in our move over the summer and the continued upheaval around here.