Books The Spark Joy: The Marie Kondo Tag

I, like many other people, spent the week after New Years binge-watching the Marie Kondo special on Netflix and folding my clothes into teeny-tiny squares.  As far as I am concerned, the Kondo method is pretty solid.  However, I did have a major issue with her stance on books.

GET RID OF MY MOST OF MY BOOKS?

Nope. No, thanks.  But, then again, I do realize that a healthy tidy is always a good thing.

Her method really did get me thinking about the books that “spark joy for me”.  The books that make me want to squeal with delight and then immediately force everyone around me (mostly against their will) to read them and discuss plot points with me.

So, I have begun to tidy my books and make a donate pile As I am tidying my books, I’ll be adding to my list.

First up in my pile:

Harry Potter

Okay.  Fine, I cheated a little bit here.  I included an entire series; how could I not?  Harry Potter is one of those things that spark so much joy that I find myself overwhelmed! Truly I find re-reading these books to sort of be “the solution” to everything.  Feeling sad?  Read Harry Potter.  Feeling nostalgic?  Cuddle up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione.  Feeling like life has you down?  Read some HP and realize that your luck could be WAY worse; I mean all my problems seem small when I take into account that an evil wizard is not my arch nemesis and constantly trying to destroy me.

 You

I just can’t quit Joe.  I know I should.  I know it’s wrong.  I know it’s bad.  Whenever someone tells me they haven’t read this book, I find myself internally screaming and trying to keep my cool.  I usually force them immediately to borrow my copy and then message them every few days so I can experience it again for the first time.  So creepy; so good.   Joy sparked.

Flowers in the Attic

Love. Love. Love.  Not only was this one of the first books I distinctly remember reading as a preteen but it was also one of the first books my mom remembers reading as a teen.  I guess this one feels like one of the OG creepy novels; one of the first novels that had me looking over my shoulder and reading late into the night.  Definitely feel like doing a Kondo-coo when I hold this one.

The Great Gatsby

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book.  I have multiple copies.  I remember the exact place I was when I opened this book for the first time.  Oh, old sport, what a spark of joy you give me!

Which books “spark joy” for you?  Which ones would stay on your shelves no matter what?

Let me know!

 

 

 

Book Review: Her Pretty Face (Robyn Harding) @SimonSchusterCA

Anyone still out there?!

I’m alive and well over here after a very extended blogging break.  Between a new position at school, adjusting to married life and general life, I found myself in one of the biggest book slumps that I have ever had!   However, this past week, I felt the urge to read and found myself completely drawn to one of my favourite authors, Robyn Harding, and her sophomore novel Her Pretty Face.

Now, a little back story here, I have been listening to the My Favourite Murder podcast on my 45-minute commute pretty much daily and I recently listened to a live episode that talked about killer couples (specifically a Canadian couple who were active near my hometown!).  As soon as I read the synopsis for this book, I knew that I had to read it ASAP!

Kate is everything Frances is not: beautiful, wealthy, powerful, and confident. And for some reason, she’s not interested in being friends with any of the other Forrester moms—only Frances. As the two bond over their disdain of the Forrester snobs and the fierce love they have for their sons, a startling secret threatens to tear them apart…because one of these women is not who she seems. Her real name is Amber Kunick. And she’s a murderer.

I binge read this one in a single evening and, days later, found myself thinking about it still!  I love the writing style of Robyn Harding; she has the uncanny ability to captivate her reader with quick prose and eloquent storytelling.  This novel is NOT a traditional domestic thriller and if you are expecting Gone Girl-esque thrills, you are opening the wrong book.  However, if you are after complex characters, strong plot, and realism, then this is the book for you!

Essentially, the story unfolds through multiple narrators and throughout varying time periods.  In the present, as Kate’s present unravels and mixes with her past, I found myself torn with a moral dilemma.  Can someone change?  Should people be judged based on their past?  In true Robyn Harding style, like The Party, the chapters were short and sweet.

I am absolutely floored with some of the negative comments that I was reading about this book on Goodreads.  I didn’t feel like this novel was even supposed to be a domestic thriller, instead, I found it to be a character study, a domestic drama and a snapshot of a psychopath.

I’d recommend this one, it got me out of my slump!