Grateful for...

One of my favorite things about summer when I was younger was the summer reading lists. I know, I know, its probably a really dorky thing to love but reading has always been one of my favorite pastimes. As an adult I actually miss having someone more knowledgeable in literature than I am make up lists of excellent books for me. For the past few summers I've tried to come up with my own summer reading lists in the hunt for that perfect summer read. Last summer I found it in Little Women. The summer before was The Freedom Writer's Diaries. And for whatever reason this summer has been a mix of autobiographies.

So far I have read Tina Fey's Bossypants. I loved it (note: the only parts I didn't love were the ones heavy with explicit language. I chose to skip those areas). Tina Fey is a wildly funny writer and her stories of making it to SNL had me constantly laughing. I think this was the gateway book for me in terms of autobiographies.

Then I moved on to Rob Lowe's Stories I Only Tell My Friends: An Autobiography. I decided to read this because 1. I read an excerpt from it and it was surprisingly funny and 2. because I absolutely love The West Wing. Rob Lowe is actually a really great writer and I now know way too much about him. (note: similar to Tina Fey's, I chose to skip some parts...he recounts his life as a teenager and young adult and while those were not the most wholesome times in his life, he admits to the many mistakes and shares about the struggle to get out of it all)

Currently I am reading an autobiography of a little more substance: Long Walk To Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela. I am only a short way in but I am already so fascinated by his life and upbringing. Learning about his childhood and education its no surprise that he grew up to be the man he is.

So I guess this is a roundabout way of saying I am grateful for books and the stories that people share of their own lives. I'm still looking for some other books to read this summer (its not unusual for me to have 4 or 5 going at once) so if you have any suggestions, please, do share.