It was a slow reading month for me, but the two books I did read were good. I’m also halfway through All the Light We Cannot See so I look forward to reporting on that next month!

Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown – The philosophy of “less but better” is something I am 100% on board with, and this book about it was affirming and motivating. I wish it contained more practical tips, but the ideas here are some that I want to guide my entire life. I do want to note that I didn’t read it closely, but skimmed a majority. It has a lot of (great) examples, but I was most interested in the meat – the core principles and application. (4 stars)

The Martian by Andy Weir – I loved this book. It was funny, suspenseful, fast-paced, and creative. I enjoyed IMMENSELY the experience of reading it and I finished it faster than anything else I’ve read recently. But I do want to note that there is hardly any character development. We don’t learn much about the main character at all, except that he has parents and he is a botanist/engineer. You still root for him because by reading his journal entries you feel like you’re in his mind, and his humor makes him likable. But there is a definite lacking of depth. I think it’s going to make an AWESOME movie, though. And I wasn’t reading it for the back story anyway. (5 stars)