Current & Recent Reads

I wanted to write a quick post talking about some of the books I am currently reading and have recently finished. I have been going through a bit of a reading slump that I think was brought on by Covid-19 quarantine so I am trying to be kind to myself and get back into reading without forcing it. If anyone has any suggestions for managing reading slumps as a mood reader(I am a notorious mood reader) I would really love to get some ideas.

First I will talk about the books I have finished reading.

I listened to the audiobook The Five: The Lives of Jack The Ripper's Women by Hallie Rubenhold. It was amazing and I highly recommend it. She does not talk about the actual murders but writes 5 biographies about each of the women and focuses on how history had painted them as prostitutes when in actuality only one of them was. She also really dives into the social and cultural atmosphere of London and public welfare of the time. I read this book shortly after reading the entire Call The Midwife trilogy and I highly recommend reading the Five in conjunction with those books. It paints a fascinating picture of the East End of London and welfare.

I also listened to a couple of Audible Originals. Caffeine by Micheal pollan was interesting to listen to as an avid coffee drinker. He talks about the social and economic development and impact that coffee or rather caffeine has had on specifically the western world. My other listen was The Science of Sci-Fi. I really enjoyed as a lover of science fiction, especially how much the author talks about Star Trek. If you enjoy Sci-Fi I highly recommend giving this a listen.

Now on to what I am currently reading.

First I am so close to finishing Reclaiming The Atonement. It is a bit more of a heavy theological but there have been so many interesting bits in it. I know it is the first book and I am looking for books two and three to add. I really enjoyed Reardon's chapter where he talked about how St. Paul was educated by the tradition of the church.

My other current reads are The Innovator's Mindset which I am reading for work. The author focuses mainly on innovation in education but there are some takeaways I have for my future in social work. My last current read is The Power of Self Compassion. I started this book as it seemed good timing with current events in the world and there are some bits about science and practice. What I am not enjoying is the guided practices maybe there are people who need that but I would much rather read about the science of why and various options for self-practice and then do it on my own. But that is just me.

What are your current or recent reads?