27. Anytime, Anywhere, by John H. Groberg - (finished 7/10) Thoroughly enjoyable, as with all of Elder Groberg's books. Written in much the same style as his other 2 books about serving in Tonga, this one covers stories and experiences from his service around the world as a Seventy. Fascinating to hear bits of other cultures, and inspiring to read about his example of being willing to serve whenever, wherever, and however the Lord calls.
28. The Promised Messiah, by Bruce R. McConkie - (finished 7/21) I made it a goal to read McConkie's Messiah series this year. This first book took me much longer than I intended. I really haven't read many dense, scholarly religious books, and I found there was a bit of a learning curve to get into it. This one was also hard because it just felt like a compilation of prophecies about the Savior without much organization or continuity other than "here's some prophecies about his mission, here's some prophecies about his birth" etc.
29. The Faith of our Pioneer Fathers, by Bryant S. Hinckley - (finished 7/29) This was a quick read, just short biographical sketches of some of our pioneer fathers. It's one of the books we inherited from Grandpa Willis.
30. Stalwarts of Mormonism, by Preston Nibley - (finished 8/2) Same as the one before, one we inherited from Grandpa. A quick read of short biographical sketches. Definitely learned some interesting stories about some interesting people!
31. The Orphan Keeper, by Camron Wright - (finished 8/6) Wow! This was a crazy story. It's a novel, based on a true story, about a young Indian boy who is kidnapped from his family, taken to an orphanage, and adopted by a family in the U.S. The people at the orphanage don't care when he tries to tell them he has a family, and he can't tell the family who adopted him because they can't understand each other's language. It really was an amazing, miraculous story. I stayed up one night to read one chapter before bed...and ended up reading until 2 or 3 in the morning because I couldn't put it down. Definitely one I'd recommend!
32. Sir, that's a Book of Mormon! (How One Baptist Minister Discovered the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ), by Lynn Ridenhour - (finished 8/27) Interesting, short little book. He's a Baptist minister who preaches from the Book of Mormon. I enjoy biographies, so it was neat to hear about where life has taken him.
33. The Abolition of Man, by C. S. Lewis - (finished 8/28) A very short book, but not necessarily a quick read. Also very applicable to today. The premise is that certain values are intrinsic (a waterfall is beautiful because it is beautiful in and of itself, not just because someone finds it enjoyable), and when you try to remove the source of values and morals, their foundation, the values and morals will eventually be lost as well. Or in today's terms - moral relativism is a lie.
34. The Mortal Messiah: From Bethlehem to Calvary Book 1, by Bruce R. McConkie - (finished 9/1) This was much easier to read than The Promised Messiah. Partially because I had been introduced to the style of writing, but also because it had much more organization and flow than the first. I really enjoyed the background it gave me for Israelite life at the time of Christ's birth.
35. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, by Susan Cain - (finished 9/3) I really enjoyed the information in this book, although it was a bit dense and harder to get through. There were definitely some fascinating studies and insights though. Something I can very much relate to. ;)
36. Life's Lessons Learned, by Dallin H. Oaks - (finished 9/4) This was a very quick read, one that I borrowed from Mom and Dad. Pretty much what the title says, it's a bunch of short chapters relating experiences from his life that have taught him important lessons. I think my favorite take-away from this one was his chapter on tithing. He talked about how when he and his wife would experience an unexpected financial gain, or an unexpected decrease in expenses, they would refer to it aloud as a "tithing blessing". Gabe and I have started doing the same and appreciate the reminder that it is to us of the true source of our blessings.
37. The Mortal Messiah: From Bethlehem to Calvary Book 2, by Bruce R. McConkie - (finished 10/4) Next in the series. Although they take some time to get through, I appreciate what I'm gaining from them.
38. Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, by Cal Newport - (finished 10/7) I finally read this book after 2 of my friends talking about it at Literary Society (instead of a traditional book club, we get together once a month and share with each other whatever we've been reading) and highly recommending it. And I completely agree with them! I especially appreciated the chapter on solitude. We are so surrounded by constant access to the internet that we rarely, if ever, experience true solitude anymore. Even what used to be our moments of forced solitude (waiting for an appointment at an office, going for a walk/run/drive) are now filled with pulling out our smartphones to entertain/pacify ourselves rather than sitting with our thoughts and pondering.
39. Insights From a Prophet's Life: Russell M. Nelson, by Sheri Dew - (finished 10/17) I loved this one! It is written so well. And President Nelson has led such an interesting life, with so much struggle as well as opportunity. I loved learning about his life, his faith, and his service.
41. As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride, by Cary Elwes - (finished 10/29) This was a fun read, with some very funny backstory to some of the actors and movie scenes. (Like the fact that when Count Rugen knocks out Westley after he comes out of the fire swamp...Carry Elwes was literally knocked unconscious, haha). Anyone who loves The Princess Bride would enjoy reading it.
42. Hubener vs Hitler, by Richard Lloyd Dewey - (finished 11/7) Very interesting story, although written very UN-interestingly (I'm pretty sure this is actually an academic paper, because over half the book is footnotes citing sources, and instead of synthesizing different sources he details every single version of the story from each source.) Anyway, it's the story of Helmuth Hubener, a teenage Latter-day Saint boy in Germany who determined to actively resist Hitler and his regime and was eventually tried and killed for his actions.
43. Be Thou an Example, by Gordon B. Hinckley - (finished 11/12) Another one I borrowed from Mom and Dad. Like Standing for Something, it was fun to read President Hinckley's voice. Although I definitely enjoyed Standing for Something more - it felt a bit more polished and put together.
44. The Magnolia Story, by Chip and Joanna Gaines - (finished 11/22) If you enjoy Fixer Upper and Chip and Joanna, you'll enjoy their book. You'd never know the crazy things they've gone through to get where they're at (plus just the funny details about their life story). You can definitely hear their voice in the writing, their personality as well as their faith. My favorite was the story of Chip being left in charge of their first baby while Joanna went running and him forgetting him at home - twice, haha.
45. I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban, by Malala Yousafzai and Christina Lamb - (finished 12/11) Eye opening, and interesting to hear from the perspective of someone living within the terror of the Taliban and a country torn apart by corruption and war. There are so many innocently suffering at the hands of others.
46. Book of a Thousand Days, by Shannon Hale - (finished 12/11) I read this one in one day. I love Shannon Hale, and she didn't disappoint with this one. It's the story of a handmaid who is locked in a tower with the princess she serves after the princess refuses to marry to the man her father has promised her to. A love story, fantasy, just an enjoyable read.
47. The History of Joseph Smith by His Mother, by Lucy Mack Smith - (finished 12/19) I decided to read this one as part of my preparation for next General Conference. I loved reading it, although it's more of a history of Lucy Mack during the life of Joseph (which was also very interesting and faith-promoting, it just didn't always follow him directly like I expected). I especially loved learning about the faith of his family and his father's dreams. A great resource for learning more about Joseph Smith and the early history of the church.
48. One More Strain of Praise, by Neal A. Maxwell - (finished 12/31) This is (clearly) one of the ones that I finished last minute on New Year's Eve. Oh how I love Elder Maxwell's books! He writes with such beauty and such faith. Reading his books always encourages me to try harder and be better.
49. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll - (finished 12/31) Although I was only a couple chapters into this one before New Year's Eve, I finished it pretty quickly because it's such an easy read. It really is a very whimsical story. My biggest thought when I finished though is that the movie is nothing like it! Seriously...the movie is missing so much, and added in a bunch of random stuff, too. But I guess they are the same in that they're just silly, random stories of a child's daydreaming.
The Temple Letters, by Claude Richards - I got so close to finishing this one, too! This is another book we inherited from Grandpa Willis. It's a compilation of letters a man sent out to his family to encourage them to be more engaged in temple and family history work. The best part of it was the quotes he shared from prophets and the brethren.
Increase in Learning, by David A. Bednar - Another one I borrowed from Mom and Dad. In true Elder Bednar style, over half the book is "related readings" following each chapter where he shares scriptures and past talks related to the principles/doctrine he's just explained. I'm enjoying it, just didn't get around to finishing it during the crazy month of December.
The Mortal Messiah: From Bethlehem to Calvary Book 3, by Bruce R. McConkie - Clearly I didn't finish the series by the end of the year like I'd intended (there's still 2 more after this one, too). After I finished book 2 in October, I got about 50 pages into this one and then just stopped. I definitely plan to finish it and the rest of the series this year, I just stopped working my way through it.
Now, for my own list-loving sake, a breakdown of genres of the books I read:
Fiction/Novel: 7
Biography: 20
Non-Fiction: 6
Gospel: 16
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