Welcome to One Busy Momma! The Blog for Busy Moms by one Busy Mom.....

Welcome to my blog. One Busy Momma is my space to rant about my life and the things that happen in it. I have a crazy life - and instead of focusing on the crazy - I like to focus on the funny. Because if I focused on the craziness - well, I'd have been shipped off to an institution long, long ago. And while, I'll admit, there are some days when being institutionalized sounds PRETTY GOOD compared to making ANOTHER diorama at 1am - I'd rather be right where I am - in my messy house with my not so perfect kids making crooked dioramas in the middle of the night.

Saturday, June 21, 2014

Summer Reading 2014


Happy SUMMER Peeps! FINALLY - after all of that snow, the Polar Vortex, the other Polar Vortex, ice storms, and way too many snow days...it's time to put away the parkas and pull out the bathing suits. Busy Momma and crew are getting ready to pack it all up and hit the road for summer vacation. And, for us, summer vacation means catching up on some GREAT reading. (OK - for 3 out of the 4 of us it means catching up on our reading. For Jack it means a break from his mandatory daily hour of summer reading!)
This summer, all of the major publishing houses have some HUGE new releases. I already have 2 books by 2 of my favorite authors pre-ordered, waiting to be delivered to my Kindle! So - without further ado - here she is - the 2014 edition of : So- What are YOU Reading this Summer? 


Jennifer Weiner is a fantastic author. Very few writers can combat big, heavy topics - in this case a 40-something suburban mother's descent into prescription drug abuse- with the gravity it deserves but with enough comedic touches to make it palatable. All Fall Down is one of my summer pre-orders. It is sitting on my Kindle just waiting for me! If you haven't read any of Weiner's other books - get thee to the library!!! Good in Bed was my first introduction to this FABULOUS writer - it hooked me and I have read everything she has written and I haven't ever been disappointed!



Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead received quite a bit of buzz this spring. Maggie Shipstead wrote one of my picks for LAST summer - Seating Arrangements. I absolutely LOVED Seating Arrangements and think it is a perfect summer read. So I am REALLY looking forward to her latest release - Astonish Me. It is about a young American ballet dancer who helps a famous Russian ballet dancer defect while he is appearing in the US. Romance inevitably follows and the book tells the story of the consequences of this young dancer's actions. Shipstead is a terrific, young writer. I'm looking forward to cracking this one open.


It's ALMOST here!!! The third book in my beloved Discovery of Witches trilogy. It is being delivered to my Kindle on July 15th. I haven't been this excited for a book release since the last Harry Potter book. And if you know me - that's saying something!!! The trilogy centers around Diana Bishop - a witch and Matthew Clairmont - a vampire and their family as they battle forces bound and determined to destroy them. Now, before you go all Twilight-y on me, hear me out. This is NOT your daughter's vampire series. Harkness is a well-known and respected historian.She can also spin a fantastic, smart story. If you enjoy historical fiction with a bit of fantasy mixed in - then you will LOVE this trilogy. 


Speaking of my beloved Harry Potter - JK Rowling has done it again! You might remember the story that broke last summer about Rowling beginning another series under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. Brilliant strategy actually. Releasing another book, after The Casual Vacancy, under her own name would have been very risky. The lack-luster reviews of her first post-Potter effort caused many critics to question whether ANYTHING she released after the perfection that was Potter, would be judged fairly by critics and audiences alike. So, as any good story teller would do - she created a character - Robert Galbraith- and had HIM write last summer's The Cuckoo's Calling. In this GREAT mystery, she introduces a gritty, down and out private detective, Cormoran Strike. Along with his loyal "gal-Friday", Strike sets out to investigate the mysterious death of one of the world's up and coming super models. This summer Rowling, I mean Galbraith, brings Cormoran Strike back into our lives in The Silkworm. This time, Strike is investigating the disappearance of a famous novelist. It promises to be just as great as The Cuckoo's Calling! If you are looking for a page-turning, fast moving, gripping mystery for the beach - pick up either title. You won't be disappointed!

Elin Hilderbrand is another favorite of mine. This is her new release: The Matchmaker. It is a sad one - so be warned! It is about a woman dying of cancer who is trying to find the perfect "match" for the husband and family she will leave behind. This one certainly won't be the "feel good" read of the summer - but she is such an amazing author, it is sure to be amazing. In a cruel twist of fate - Elin herself was just diagnosed with breast cancer. She had a double mastectomy last week and is recuperating at home. She lives with her husband and children in Nantucket. Do me a favor and send her some good, healing vibes. Or better yet - like her FB page and send her some real good wishes. She reads them...and needs them. 




If you are looking for a great, big, juicy summer read - look no further. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt was the talk of the fall. It's a long one - 800 pages, but it is 800 pages that cannot be turned fast enough to satisfy the reader! The story spans about 20/25 years and brings the reader to the heart of New York City, the sleezy side of  Las Vegas and even brings us to Europe for the climax of this AMAZING, EPIC story. We meet the main character when he is in middle school, on the morning of his disciplinary hearing at his very chic, very expensive private school in Manhattan. When he and his mother decide to stop in at the MET on their way to the hearing, the trajectory of his life, and the story, is forever altered. Somehow, his mother's favorite painting - a priceless Dutch Master called "The Goldfinch" - ends up in his backpack! The story follows the painting and the boy over the course of his adolescence and into adulthood. If you only read one book this summer - make it The Goldfinch!


I'm not making any political statement here. I don't have any feeling for Arianna Huffington. I'm not interested in her politics, but what I AM interested in is the story that led to this book. Arianna is in her 60's and is a media mogul. ANd by definition, a mogul is a very busy person. Add motherhood to the mix - and you've got a crazy busy person on your hands. She knew she was doing too much, multi-tasking to an insane degree and juggling too many balls at once. She knew it, but she didn't do anything about it - that is until the universe forced her to deal with it. One day, she passed out from exhaustion while in her office and on the way to the floor, she banged herself up pretty well - broken cheekbones, eye sockets, a nasty concussion -plus various and sundry other injuries. When she woke up and realized what had happened - she came to a life changing realization. While she was living an amazing, exciting and very fast-paced life - she wasn't THRIVING. She wasn't enjoying any of it because she was never truly present in any given moment. She was always onto the next thing before she could experience or appreciate the moment she was in. So, she made some big changes and that is what this book is about. I am hoping to gain some perspective and learn how to thrive and not jusr survive.


If you haven't seen Brene Brown's TED talk about vulnerability - stop reading this and click on over to TED. It will change your life. I discovered Brene while on a silent,rustic hot-yoga retreat in the mountains of Peru. True story.

 OK - I saw her on Super Soul Sunday with Oprah - don't judge. Anyway - it doesn't matter how I found her - I am so glad that I found her! She is a researcher who studies vulnerability - weird, right? But it's NOT. Daring Greatly is a LIFE CHANGER people - I am telling you. Her other, amazing life changer is :

Again - for those of us too busy to stop and take a deep breath - LITERALLY - this is a MUST read. 

Phewwww - now I KNOW I won't get through all of these titles this summer. But, even if I'm reading them with a mug of hot apple cider, I WILL read them all! If these titles don't tickle your fancy - the following books have gotten some great reviews and are ALSO on my "must read" list...enjoy!







1 comment:

  1. I wonder if JK Rowling had any idea I would have gladly offered my name for her to write under. She's dreamy.

    What do you think constitutes a good summer read, by the way? If you had to sum it up. What makes a book one you want to tote to the coast?

    ReplyDelete