my favourite reads...

Whenever I'm teaching up at camp in the summer the discussion inevitably turns to books at some point during the week. There are three of us on the teaching team, and we each love to read. We especially enjoy sharing some of our yearly favourites, and jotting them down in our respective notebooks to read in the upcoming year.

Personally, I wish I had more time to read...but, I find I'd rather play with the munchkin, and then catch up on riveting reality television when she goes to bed! However, I still find time to read whenever I can.

In talking about this last week, I felt compelled to share some of my all-time favourites in case anyone else is looking for their next great read....enjoy!

The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill (or Someone Knows My Name in the US)
Lawrence Hill is actually from my home town, and I had the pleasure of working with him through a Creative Writing class I took back in high school. He critiqued some of my writing, and I remember it being a really great opportunity.  I love his writing style, and The Book of Negroes is an incredible story about one woman's journey through the slave trade. Its amazingly well written.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
With the movie having just been released, this story is heavily talked about in the media right now, so it's fresh in my mind too. I read the book a couple of years ago and fell in love. Who doesn't love the idea of eating delicious food in Italy, practicing yoga in India and becoming better acquainted with your true self in Indonesia? Well, maybe that's not for everyone, but that's my kind of trip.

Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky
This is an incredible story written by a woman as she experienced the German Occupation of WWII. Meant to be a 5-part 'suite', she was killed in Auschwitz in 1942, having completed only the first two parts. Her two daughters found the manuscript in a suitcase, in barely legible handwriting, 60 years later, and realizing the masterpiece they had on their hands, published it. It's an incredible story.

Well, let's start with those three, and I'll save more of my favourite picks for another day, another post.

Happy reading!