Happy new year, friends! I’ve sat down several times in the past couple of weeks to write about our not-so-minimalist Christmas and my thoughts on holiday celebrations–but, there are too many strong emotions there right now to write anything productive. So we’ll let sleeping bears lie for now.
In the meantime, we’re back to cold weather here, which feels right. January and February are mentally strenuous months for me with the extreme cold, ice and snow. Yet it feels unsettling not to have that weather, either, like last year. Our post-Christmas thaw was reminiscent of the 2023-2024 winter, and seeing the grass turn green in December makes the thought of climate change impossible to escape.
At any rate, onto more positive things. Last year was a big reading year for me, and I wanted to share some of my top books of 2024!
My Top Books of 2024
- The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Caused an Epidemic of Mental Illness, by Jonathan Haidt. (I know this is probably on a LOT of lists for last year but it’s with good reason!)
- The Montessori Child: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Capable Children with Creative Minds and Compassionate Hearts, by Simone Davies.
- Ultra-Processed People: The Science Behind Food That Isn’t Food, by Chris van Tulleken.
- Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit, by Lyanda Lynn Haupt.
- 10% Human: How Your Body’s Microbes Hold the Key to Health and Happiness, by Alanna Collen.
- The Open-Air Life: Discover the Nordic Art of Friluftsliv and Embrace Nature Every Day, by Linda Åkeson McGurk.
- One Yes At A Time: How Open Adoption Transformed Our Family, by Susan Strong.
- Elevate Your Life at Home: Inspiring Ideas to Add Joy, Peace and Magic to Your Homelife, by Jennifer Melville. I really enjoyed all of the Jennifer Melville books I read this year and was glad to discover a new-to-me favorite chic lifestyle author 🙂
- The Nesting Place: It Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful, by Myquillyn Smith.
- Financially Chic Vol. 2: How to be savvy with money in tough times, cultivate your rich lady lifestyle, and live fabulously for less, by Fiona Ferris.
A little bit of parenting, some health and science, and a lot of chic lifestyle inspiration… that’s my reading year in a nutshell. I’d love to hear about your favorite book(s) of this year in the comments, too!
xx Claire