My Favorite Books of 2019

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2019 was the year that I finally started reading again. If you've read some of my other posts, you'll know that I gave up hobbies when I went back to college and started my new career. Overtime I've shifted my focus and my time, taking up old hobbies, finding rest and peace. It's not like I hadn't read at all in the last 8 years, but I used to be a voracious reader and 2019 is the year I began making intentional time for reading again.

My reading time began on vacation in July, so I read only 14 books. Looking back, there were a few that really stood out to me.



Self-Compassion by Kristin Neff

I've spent my life being chronically hard on myself. If that really worked, it would have gotten me somewhere by now, but as we probably know, being tough on yourself is not an effective growth strategy. Kristin addresses the common miconceptions that self-compassion is weakness and uses scientific studies as foundations for the power of using self-compassion in your own life.

Mothers, Daughters, and Body Image by Hillary McBride

2019 was a big year towards self-acceptance for me. Through therapy, reading, podcasts, and lots of self work, I realized a LOT about the messages I believed about my body. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen this book heavily referenced there. If you are a woman, I cannot suggest this book highly enough.

Woman Code by Alisa Vitti

Woman Code completely changed my understanding of my hormonal cycle. It makes me sad how little information women receive about their bodies through formal education, and that lack of knowledge is passed down generationally as well. I will be diving deeper into the lessons from this book another time, because it has revolutionized my out home work schedule, but you should definitely check it out! Alisa has a new book called In the Flo coming out at the end of this month that dives deeper into the biggest lessons I took from Woman Code, and I can't wait to add it to my reading pile!

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

This was my final book of 2019, and it was the perfect way to end the year. As a huge proponent of therapy, the title was all I needed to hear before adding it to my reading list. Coming in at 432 pages, this is the longest book listest and probably the quickest book I read all year. Lori weaves together her own life, the lives of her patients, and her own time with a new therapist in a way that is completely captivating. Each chapter is a different point so you never tire of the narrative. It was fascinating to watch her patients lives unfold in the winding (not straight) path of therapy through their own work and moments of realization. I couldn't help but wonder what my own tale would be written out, and which a-ha moments are still on my horizon.