My favorite part of long holiday weekends is the freedom to relish a good book.
According to research, even short sessions of reading fiction improve our understanding of other human beings (which makes us better leaders!)
But I find weeding through the massive selection of books available to be a daunting exercise.
So I established my Fiction Filter – my own set of rules to identify fiction books that are worth my time and attention:
- 4.5-5 stars on Amazon rated by thousands of readers (I trust the tribe that reads before me)
- No books where animals are hurt or killed (enough said)
- No WWII books (I’ve reached my lifetime capacity for reading about that war)
- No lazy editing (no meandering, verbosity, predictability, or inconsistencies)
- Feel-good, uplifting, soul-filling (I get great satisfaction from a happy ending!)
- Perspective-shifting, introducing different cultures or eras (one reason I read)
- Strong recommendations from other voracious readers (like my mom!)
I actually find great success in using filters to weed through many of life’s overwhelming choices: movies, TV shows, activities, food, websites, and even conversations. Not everything deserves our limited time and attention!
So if you want to sink your teeth into delicious fiction this holiday, I offer you my list of recent favorites:
- Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine (by Gail Honeyman)
- Where’d You Go Bernadette? (by Maria Semple)
- The Storyteller’s Secret (by Sejal Banani)
- Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell (by Robert Dugoni)
- This is How it Always Is (by Laurie Frankel)
- The Last Mrs. Parrish (by Liz Constantine)
- The Alice Network (by Kate Quinn)
- The Sense of an Ending (by Julian Barnes)
- The Silent Patient (by Alex Michaelides)
- The Invention of Wings (by Sue Monk Kidd)
Happy Reading and Happy 4th of July!
ps. I’m always looking for entertaining fiction, thought-provoking non-fiction, or inspirational memoirs, so send me your recommendations!
