A Year of Backlist Books

Backlist Book Challenge March Reads

April 1, 2021 by Lynn 3 Comments

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

My backlist book challenge continues with my March Reads.

March was a great reading month for me. In fact, 2021 has been a great reading year for me. I know that could change, but my backlist book challenge is really helping me find some great books.

I read eleven books this month. That is a little more than normal, but not a lot.

For some people reading eleven books in a month seems like a lot. For others, eleven books aren’t very many at all. When it comes to reading don’t compare yourself to others. Any amount of reading is better than no reading at all.

We are all at different stages of life and have different things going on. My reading varies month by month and year by year. Yours will vary too. If you focus only on the number of books you are reading you will quickly become discouraged. Just read and enjoy it!

We have started adding some videos to our book reviews. These are quick videos that are only a minute or two long. We plan to keep adding videos to some of our reviews. We hope that it is a feature you enjoy.

Now for my March reads.

Backlist Books March Reads

Red Sky Over Hawaii by Sara Ackerman

This historical fiction book was published in 2020. I picked this book up because I was wanting to read more about Japanese internment camps during WWII. I learned a lot from reading this one. You can read my full review here.

Will the Circle Be Unbroken by Sean Dietrich

This memoir-style book was published in 2020. I own several books by Sean Dietrich, but this is the first one that I have read. I think reading his memoir will help me understand his writing better. You can read my full review here.

Hotel On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

This historical fiction book was published in 2009. It is another book that I picked up because I wanted to read more about Japanese internment camps. Click here for my full review.

Syria’s Secret Library by Mike Thompson

Would you risk your life for a book? This nonfiction book about Syria was published in 2019 and it makes you ask yourself that exact question. You can read why I loved this book here.

The Engineer’s Wife by Tracey Emerson

This historical fiction was published in 2020. This book was not for me and it wasn’t just the wrong book at the wrong time. I have some serious issues with what the author did to the story on this one. I have lots of thought about this book that you can read here.

Wicked Autumn by G.M. Malliet

This mystery series set in England was published in 2011. This was another book that wasn’t for me. Click here to read why it wasn’t.

When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill Manning

This WWII nonfiction book was published in 2014. This was a fascinating event that I didn’t know anything about. Click here to read my full review.

Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston

This nonfiction WWII book about a Japanese internment camp was published in 1973. It was another fascinating read that I wish I would have read a long time ago. Click here to see my full review.

Everything Beautiful In Its Time by Jenna Bush Hagger

This memoir-style book was published in 2020. You can read my full review here.

The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols

I am going to share a full review of this one soon, but my brief review is that I have told my husband and several others that this is a must-read. This book was published in 2017. The author is a professor at the U.S. Naval War College. The subtitle pretty much sums up the book. The Campaign against Established Knowledge and Why It matters. This is an excellent book for our current times.

Freedom’s Light by Colleen Goble

This week I wanted a quick easy Kindle read for when I was exercising on the elliptical. This book was just that. I read it in just a couple of days while exercising. It was easy to read and didn’t take a lot of thought. For a Christian romance, this was a decent book, but the story seemed very unrealistic to me. The beginning of the book was fine, but the more I read the more unrealistic the book seemed. In the end this one was not one that I enjoyed..

Backlist Books Challenge February Reads

March 7, 2021 by Lynn 6 Comments

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

I love finding great backlist books! Today, I am sharing my February reads for my backlist book challenge. It ended up being a good reading month for me.

My February reading included a great mix of fiction and nonfiction. It also included books that I really enjoyed.

A few weeks ago, I logged off of Instagram. I am not giving it up, but for now, I turned my blog Instagram over to my daughter. And it might be one of the best decisions that I have made recently.

I had no idea how much time I spent scrolling Instagram. Now instead of scrolling, and I find myself reaching for books instead. More reading is always a good thing!

Less scrolling meant more reading for me the last few weeks, and I am hoping that trend continues.

Today, I am sharing my recent reads. My list includes more fiction books than normal, but two of the nonfiction books I read were long books, so I think my actual fiction vs nonfiction reading was probably normal for me.

Backlist Books Challenge February Reads

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

After reading Murder On the Orient Express last month, I knew that I wanted to read more Poirot mystery books by Agatha Christie. I like to read series in order, so I started at the beginning with the first book in the Poirot books.

I loved The Mysterious Affair at Style. It was published in 1938, so it is definitely a backlist book. I can’t wait to read more Agatha Christie books. I am not sure I will read them all in order, but I am going to try to.

Mad at the World by Willliam Souder

Mad at the World was published in 2020. It is a biography about the life of John Steinbeck. My husband and I are reading The Grapes of Wrath for a family book club.

I always find it fascinating to learn about authors and why they write the books that they do. I know very little about Steinbeck and thought this would be a good way to learn more about him.

This book was great paired with reading The Grapes of Wrath. I am glad that I read it, but I am not sure it is a book everyone would want to read. If you want to know more about Steinbeck, you will probably enjoy it, but otherwise, I would say skip this one.

No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I have been wanting to read a book by Doris Kearns Goodwin and decided this was the one that I would read first. I have read a lot of WWII books, but this book covered a lot of details that I was not familiar with. No Ordinary Time was published in 2009. So it was perfect for my backlist book challenge.

It was a long book with lots of details, but I am so glad that I read it. I love a book that gives you enough information that leaves you wanting to learn more about other topics. After reading this book, I am not wanting to read more about the Japanese Internment Camps during WWII and more about Eleanor Roosevelt and the White House during Roosevelt’s presidency.

Miss Graham’s Cold War Cookbook by Celia Rees

This book is one that I featured in recent reads about WWII. I enjoyed this book because it was different than any other WWII that I have read. It covers events after the war.

Miss Graham’s Cold War Cookbook was published in 2020. It is about a teacher, who loves food and cooking, who becomes a spy. It is a little PG-13 in some spots but besides that I enjoyed it.

Together Tea by Marjan Kamali

Reading takes you to places that stretches you and teaches you. That is exactly what this book did for me. It took me to a time and place I know very little about.

After reading The Stationery Shop, I knew that I wanted to read Marjan Kamali’s other book Together Tea that was published in 2013. I wasn’t sure what I thought of this book until about two-thirds of the way through it. The last third of the book really made the book and characters come together. A book, I wasn’t sure about, ended up being a book that I loved. If you like historical fiction or loved The Stationery Shop, I think you will enjoy this one.

Dorie by Doris Van Stone

I am not sure where I heard about the book Dorie: The Girl Nobody Loved, but it has been on my bookshelf for a while. It was published in 1979.

I picked it up on a Sunday afternoon and finished it that same day. It was a quick read. I really enjoyed this Christian biography. It was a tough story to read because of what she went through as a child, but she shares the story of God loving her in a way that brings Him Glory. One of the things that I found interesting is that the author was friends with Darlene Deibler Rose, the author of one of my favorite Christian biographies.

The Lost Lieutenant by Erica Vetsch

The Lost Lieutenant is the first book in the Serendipity and Secrets series. It is a clean well written historical romance book. A lot of clean Christian romance books are cheesy and predictable, this one wasn’t. Well, it was a bit predictable, but I thought the writing was creative and different.

The Lost Lieutenant was published in 2020. It is a regency romance. It involved a marriage of convenience, people from vastly different upbringings, family secrets, and ultimately love. If you are looking for a clean easy romance, you will probably enjoy this one.

The Gentleman Spy by Erica Vetsch

The Gentleman Spy is the second book in Serendipity and Secrets series. It is the continuing story of, Marcus, one of the characters from The Lost Lieutenant. When Marcus’s father and brother die, he becomes the new Duke of Haverly. However, becoming a Duke puts his life as a spy at risk.

The story involves his life as a spy, his new life as a Duke, and of course love. This book was also published in 2020. There is a third book in the series being released in March of 2021. This book was another easy to read clean historical romance. After reading a couple of slower more intense reads, these two books by Erica Vetsch were just what I needed.

Backlist Books Challenge January Reads

February 2, 2021 by Lynn 2 Comments

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

A backlist book challenge was just what I needed for 2021. I am pulling books off my shelves that have been on my TBR list for years and enjoying them.

Choosing to read backlist books this year has given me a challenge without a lot of restrictions.

January ended up being a fairly good reading month for me. I read a wide range of books. It included a good mix of fiction and nonfiction, which is what works best for me when it comes to reading.

Today, I am sharing what I read in January and what I am currently reading.

The rule I gave myself for my backlist books challenge was to read only books published before 2021. Books published in 2020 are not really backlist, but they aren’t the latest books being pushed either.

January Reads

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear has been in my TBR pile for years. It was published in 2003. I own it in both the paperback and the Kindle version. I don’t remember where I first heard about this series, but I love to read mysteries that are not super graphic. I ended up buying the next couple of books in the series because I couldn’t wait to read more of them.

Sweetness of Forgetting by Kristen Harmel

My husband got my Sweetness of Forgetting by Kristen Harmel for my birthday last month. I read The Book of Lost Names last year Kristin Harmel and loved it. For my birthday and Christmas, my husband got me a couple of her other books. I really enjoyed Sweetness of Forgetting. It was published in 2012, so it worked great for my backlist book challenge. This book combines WWII history, family, romance, and food. Those are some of my favorite things in a book. I felt like the ending was a little bit too Hallmark movie-like, but overall, it was a good read.

Frontier Follies by Ree Drummond

Frontier Follies was published in 2020. I bought this last fall shortly after it came out. It was easy to pick up and down because each chapter was written in an essay style. If you are a fan of The Pioneer Woman, you will probably enjoy this one.

Murder On the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Grace convinced me to read Murder On the Orient Express by Agatha Christie, and I am so glad that she did. It was published in 1934, so it is definitely a backlist book. I have said for years that I wanted to read an Agatha Christie book, but I always picked up other mystery books instead. I loved this book and can’t wait to read more Agatha Christie books.

Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear

I think I was on a mystery reading kick in January. Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear was the third mystery book I read and the second in the Maisie Dobbs series. I enjoyed this one but not quite as much as the first one in the series.

The Kitchen House

The Kitchen House, published in 2010, has been in my TBR pile for years. I bought this book a long time ago at a used bookstore. I am glad I was able to read it this month. I can see why this is a popular book club book. I am not sure I love the book, but there is a lot to be discussed in this one. I kind of wish I was reading it with a book club. Have you read it?

A Way with Words

A Way with Words by Daniel Darling is a book that I just started a few weeks ago. I read multiple books at a time and like to always have a Christian book going. This book was published in 2020. I bought this book last summer shortly after it came out. This book made me think so much about my online life. It made me ask myself what my mission is? Why am I sharing the things I am sharing? Am I sharing helpful information or am I just adding to the noise? I feel like this book is a great read for anyone sharing on social media today.

Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Ma rshall

Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Marshall is a Christian book that was published in 2020. I enjoyed this book. It is exactly what the subtitle says. It is about the beauty of ordinary perseverance in a demanding world.

Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain

Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain is a memoir of WWI. It was first published in 1933. I love memoirs, but most of the memoirs that I have read are modern memoirs. I don’t think this was called a memoir when it was written, but that is exactly what it is. This book took me a while to read, but I am so glad I read it. The author, Vera Brittain, was a nurse during WWI. After the war, she wrote about her experiences. The book has three sections. The first and second sections were my favorite. The third section is about after the war, and it was a slower read for me.

Currently Reading

No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I had high hopes for finishing No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin this month but didn’t make it. In fact, I am not even halfway through it. This is the book I picked after hearing from a few readers on what Doris Kearns Goodwin books I should read first. I am really enjoying this book and am learning a lot about the Roosevelts and their administration during WWII. However, at well over 600 pages, it is a slower technical type of reading for me. My new goal is to finish it in February.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Did you see my post about our family book club? My husband and I decided to read a classic together and we picked The Grapes of Wrath. I am only a few chapters into this, but so far it is better than I thought it would be. 🙂 I plan to read this book slowly since my husband and I want to take time to discuss it.

Mad At the World: The Life of John Steinbeck

I also started Mad At the World: The Life of John Steinbeck, I knew that it would be a great book to read with The Grapes of Wrath. This book was published in the fall of 2020 and has been fascinating to read along with The Grapes of Wrath.

Backlist Books Challenge Update

January 14, 2021 by Lynn 6 Comments

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

A Year of Backlist Books

This year I challenged myself to read only backlist books.

After 2020, I knew that I needed a challenge to get my reading life back on track. I work better with goals, and so I started working on finding a goal for 2021.

I wanted a goal that did not have super strict rules. I wanted a challenge that didn’t put me in a box of specific books I had to read or a specific amount of books.

I have always loved backlist books. Some of my favorite books are the older, often forgotten about books. I want to find more of those hidden gems, and I want to help you find them as well. Having a year where I focus on backlist books will help me find some of the older books that have been forgotten.

My rules for this challenge are simple. Any book that I read in 2021 has to be published before 2021.

A book published in 2020 is not exactly what some would consider a backlist book, but it is not really a new release either. So books published in 2020 are allowed.

Backlist Books Reading Update

Today I am sharing my first backlist book reading update for my backlist book challenge. I know that it is only the second week of January, but so far I am loving my backlist book challenge.

I have picked up two books that have been in my to be read pile for a long time, and I loved them both!

So far I have finished four books and have a couple more books that I am currently reading.

Are you joining my backlist books 2021 challenge?

I have had several readers say that they are also challenging themselves to read more backlist books and more books from their TBR list. I would love to hear what books you have been reading! Please leave a comment sharing what backlist books you have been reading!

What I Have Been Reading

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear has been in my TBR pile for years. It was published in 2003. I own it in both the paperback and the Kindle version. I don’t remember where I first heard about this series, but I love to read mysteries that are not super graphic. I am more of a cozy mystery reader.

This book was just what I needed to start 2021. Maisie Dobbs is set in England after WWI. Maisie was a nurse during WWI. After the war, she opened up her own private investigation agency. This is the first book in the series, and it introduces the main characters and what they went through during the war.

I loved this book! Maisie Dobbs was a great mystery that wasn’t overly graphic or full or gory details. I have already ordered several more books in the series.

Frontier Follies by Ree Drummond was published in 2020. I bought this last fall shortly after it came out. This book was so much fun to read. It was easy to pick up and down because each chapter was written in an essay style.

In Frontier Follies Ree Drummond shares stories about kids, ranching, living in the country, and life with snakes and skunks, and more. It really did remind me of her old blog posts that were about her family and life on the ranch. A few of the stories were ones I remember from her site, but most of them were new stories.

Murder On the Orient Express by Agatha Christie was published in 1934, so it is definitely a backlist book. I have said for years that I wanted to read an Agatha Christie book, but I always picked up other mystery books instead. I decided this year would be the year I finally read one.

I started Murder On the Orient Express because Grace said I would enjoy it. I started it late last week, and I finished it Sunday. I loved it! I can’t wait to read more of the books in the Hercule Poirot series.

Everyday Faithfulness by Glenna Marchall is a Christian book that was published in 2020. I enjoyed this book. It is exactly what the subtitle says. It is about the beauty of ordinary perseverance in a demanding world.

This book was a good basic book on being faithful every day in small and big ways. I liked this book but did feel that it could have gone deeper. I felt like this book skimmed the surface, and I was left wanting a little more.

Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain is a memoir of WWI. It was first published in 1933. I am currently reading this and am really enjoying it. I love memoirs, but most of the memoirs that I have read are modern memoirs. I don’t think this was called a memoir when it was written, but that is exactly what it is.

The author, Vera Brittain, was a nurse during WWI. After the war, she wrote about her experiences. I heard about this book years ago and finally picked it up a couple of months ago. I love this book, but it has been a slow read for me.

Testament of Youth is over 600 pages. It is a serious book about war. I have picked it up and down many times over the last couple of months, and I am still not finished with it. Because of the subject of the book and the fact that the last year has not been easy, this isn’t a book that I can read for hours at a time. It is a book I pick up and read for 20 or 30 minutes and then put down for a day or two. However, I think this will probably make my list of all time favorite memoirs. It is that good.

A Way with Words by Daniel Darling is a book that I just started on Sunday. I read multiple books at a time and like to always have a Christian book going. This book was published in 2020. I bought this book last summer shortly after it came out. It is by the same author that wrote The Characters of Christmas that I read and enjoyed last year.

I am only a few chapters into this book. I am enjoying it but will wait to give it a full review until I read more of it. I do feel like it is a very timely book for right now, and it is one that more people probably need to read.

What have you been reading?

A Year of Backlist Books

December 16, 2020 by Lynn 8 Comments

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

For me, 2021 is a year of backlist books! That is the reading challenge I have given myself for 2021.

Reading Challenges

I have done a few reading challenges over the years. I have challenged myself to read 100 books in a year or another set number of books. A set number of books works for me, but I always find myself focusing more on the quantity, not the quality when I set a goal for a certain number of books.

I have also done a nonfiction book for every state challenge. I loved that challenge. It took me two years to do, but I read so many books that I never would have picked up if it had not been for that challenge.

Then there was 2020. It was not great for my reading life. I know I am not alone in that. 2020 was tough on many of our reading lives.

I knew I needed a challenge for 2021 to get my reading life back on track. I work better with goals, and so I started working on finding a goal for 2021.

I wanted a goal that did not have super strict rules though. I wanted a challenge that didn’t put me in a box of specific books I had to read or a specific amount of books.

Over the last few years, I have bought a lot of books. One of the things that we love to do when we travel is to visit used bookstores. When we visit a used bookstore, we almost always leave with a stack of books. We didn’t travel a lot in 2020, but in 2018 and 2019 we did. That means we visited quite a few bookstores and bought quite a few books.

2020 might not have been a good reading or travel year for me, but I still ended up buying a lot of books.

Many of them were newer books published in 2020. I am not usually tempted by the newest books all over social media, but in 2020 I was. I bought more new releases in 2020 than I think I ever have.

Backlist Books

I have always loved backlist books. Some of my favorite books are the older, often forgotten about books. I want to find more of those hidden gems, and I want to help you find them as well.

Social media and book websites are full of popular new releases. The books that are popular right now. The ones that everyone seems to be reading.

This is especially true when it comes to fiction. You see the latest most popular fiction books everywhere on social media and books websites.

We understand why that is the case. Publishers and authors want to get the word out about their books.

The reality is that many great books are released each week, but there are so many older books that are also worth reading. Books that were released last year, five years ago, or even ten or more years ago.

Great books are often called great books because they have stood the test of time. They are the books we recommend now and will still be recommending five years from now. They are books that get attention because they are well written books, not just because they are the hot new books that everyone is reading.

A Year of Backlist Books

My to read pile has turned into a whole bookshelf that is now overflowing onto the floor. That overflowing to be read bookshelf is why I have declared 2021 the year of backlist books.

I need to read the books I own before I buy anymore. I also need to stop being distracted by the new shiny books. Older books are worth reading too. So my reading goal for 2021 is to read backlist books only.

My rules for this challenge are simple. Any book that I read in 2021 has to be published before 2021.

A book published in 2020 is not exactly what some would consider a backlist book, but it is not really a new release either. So books published in 2020 are allowed.

I am also hoping to limit the books that I buy. Hopefully, we will be back to traveling at some point in 2021. If I find books at a used bookstore or at a bookstore when traveling, I will still buy them. I am not going to be that strict, but when I do buy books, I want to focus on buying older backlist books.

In order to limit me from buying new releases, I made an Amazon wishlist for 2021. Anytime I find a book new release book that I really want to read, I will add it to my 2021 wishlist.

If I still want to read the book after next year, I can buy it then. I have plenty of books to keep me busy without buying new releases next year.

The exception to this will be my Book of the Month books. I am keeping my subscription to Book of the Month. If I really want to read a specific book that I get from Book of the Month, I will read it, but most of them will probably go in my to be read later pile.

My plan is to give monthly updates on what backlist books that I am reading. As always, I will also share the reviews.

Do you want to join my year of backlist books challenge?

Do you have a huge TBR list or pile? Do you focus on older books, not just the new releases that are getting all the attention?

Do you want to join me for this challenge? I would love to have some readers join me. If you decided to join, leave a comment letting me know. I would love to figure out a way for us to talk backlist books together as a group. We could easily do this in our Facebook group. Let me know what you think!

Let Us Help You Find Great Books!

A Year of Backlist Books

Backlist Books March Reads

Red Sky Over Hawaii by Sara Ackerman

Will the Circle Be Unbroken by Sean Dietrich

Hotel On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

Syria’s Secret Library by Mike Thompson

The Engineer’s Wife by Tracey Emerson

Wicked Autumn by G.M. Malliet

When Books Went to War by Molly Guptill Manning

Farewell to Manzanar by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston

Everything Beautiful In Its Time by Jenna Bush Hagger

The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols

Freedom’s Light by Colleen Goble

Backlist Books Challenge February Reads

January Reads

Currently Reading

A Year of Backlist Books

Backlist Books Reading Update

Are you joining my backlist books 2021 challenge?

What I Have Been Reading

Reading Challenges

Backlist Books

A Year of Backlist Books

Do you want to join my year of backlist books challenge?