Lillas’s Summer Reads

Summer Reads

Here are books I have been appreciating and I am sure you will too!

Where the Crawdads Sing (2018), Delia Owens. Publisher: G.P. Putman’s Sons.

I absolutely loved this beautifully written book; its touching story and the celebration of nature as the story’s setting. It follows two timelines that intertwine. The first is the heartbreaking and heart opening life and coming of age of a younger girl, Kyla, growing up isolated in the swamps of North Carolina. The second is an intriguing murder mystery. This is one of those books that is hard to put down!

The Other Einstein (2016), Marie Benedict. Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark.

This book is about Albert Einstein’s first wife Mileva Maric and it starts when Mileva goes to Zurich Polytechnic in 1896 to study Math and Physics. She was the only woman with Albert Einstein and his fellow students in the Program. The story is first and foremost fiction, although it is based on love letters between Mileva and Albert, where they exchange ideas on physics projects – clearly a meeting of brilliant minds and hearts. There is controversy that she played a part in Albert’s groundbreaking theories that ultimately led to a Nobel Prize. 

I found myself in awe of her, imagining what it must have been like to be an intelligent, university educated woman, married, with children, and then divorced in the 1896 to 1919 timeframe. Her brilliance, aspirations and contribution largely unrecognized, marginalized and in the shadow of her very famous husband. A fantastic read! 

In Love with the Mystery (2010), Ann Mortifee. Photos by Courtney Milne. Publisher: Eskova Enterprises Ltd.

This beautifully illustrated book consists of inspiring short passages, each with a heading – for example WholenessIn Love with the MysterySimple,When to Let GoDisappointmentSurrender, BlessingStep Forward to name a few. I am using this book as my daily inspiration – picking it up at any page, reading a passage and allowing its words to absorb into my being and guide my day. My daughter, Marie, who gifted this book to me, is reading several passages in her restorative yoga classes. 

Watch for more recommendations in the upcoming weeks. We’d love to hear from you too. Contact us at info@womeninleadershipforlife.ca with your favourite reads.

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