It’s September already which means it’s time for another batch of Good Reads recommendations! Here we are a few days into the month and I haven’t even started my reading list. As you know, I started these challenges back in February and have shared some of my favorite media with you. When I say media, I mean all formats – paper books, audiobooks, podcasts and whatever I happen to stumble across during the month.

Movie recommendations will be offered in separate posts – typically on Friday nights. But they may be posted more often during some seasons like Halloween and Christmas.

I thought it would be a fun addition to share these finds with you every month. And you guys loved my recommendations for August – so – let’s get to it! If you want to follow me on Good Reads and find out what I’m reading, I’ll link to my profile below. We could totally start a book club and all read the same things together!

Talking as Fast as I Can – Lauren Graham

Lauren Graham is an actress and author who is most known for her role as Lorelei Gilmore on the hit 2000s show, Gilmore Girls. I’ve begun to watch the show on Netflix recently and forgot how great it was for the time that it aired. I think what made the show fun was how relatable the characters were.

I recently saw an interview with Lauren on TikTok and she is making a comeback to television with Emilio Estevez. The pair will be starring in a reboot of the much beloved 90’s series, The Mighty Ducks. As an Emilio fan, I’m actually a little excited for this and will be checking the series out. I just re-watched St. Elmo’s Fire last night and forgot how much of a crush I had on back in his days of Young Gun movies.

I haven’t listened to the book yet as I used up my free Audible credits last month. But according to reviews, Lauren talks about real life stories, inspiration and experiences while on set of Gilmore Girls and other projects including Parenthood.

The book is available in multiple formats including paperback, Kindle Edition or you can listen to Lauren narrate the book herself on Audible. If you have an Amazon Prime account, you can get a free 30 day trial and listen to two books in your first month. The cost to purchase the book is $24.32 on Amazon Canada. The audiobook is 4 hours and 35 minutes long and was released in 2016.

Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between)

Best Books of 2021

I decided to check out the Best Books of 2021 on Good Reads to search for something new to read. I may renew my Kindle membership and start reading digital books. I had to cancel my Ipad order as it was on backorder and Rogers had no idea when they would be in stock again. So, I’m relying on my phone which is not great for reading. I may just bite the bullet and get a cheap tablet from Amazon.

To be honest, I didn’t see anything that sparked my interest. But if you’re looking for something new to read, here’s the list. I guess I’m more into rereading books from my teen years these days or listening to autobiographies.

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/157516.Best_books_of_2021?page=2

Audiobooks on Spotify

You read that right. I just found out that Spotify has a collection of audiobooks! I’m already a Spotify premium member so I am excited to try this feature out. A quick search tells me that there are tons of channels and playlists dedicated to audiobooks. And if you’re like me, and prefer to listen to books while you work on other things – then you’ll have to check these playlists out.

Just head on over to Spotify, search for Audiobooks and you’ll find everything from literacy classics to podcasts by authors.

Good Reads Best Books Ever List

The thing I love most about this site is that they have lists upon lists of books to recommend. You can search for books you read as kid or search for new ones. I’ve mostly stuck to autobiographies, memoirs or podcasts in the last few years, but I hope to get back into reading again.

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1.Best_Books_Ever

My Good Reads Book List

I started my own Good Reads list last year. I’ve been slowly adding books that I read from my childhood too. There were so many of them. I think it would be fun to go back and reread books from my teen years. One book that I reread recently was Forever by Judy Blume. I think I read that last year. It still holds up today.

I don’t have a lot of books left from my teen years but as I discover digital copies online, I’ll share this journey with you. If you’re looking for a serious throwback to your past, then I recommend selecting some of your most memorable books.

For me, it was authors like Judy Blume, VC Andrews (oh man), Danielle Steel, Stephen King and series like Sweet Valley High – I still have all those books. And no, sadly, those are really hard to read as a 40s something woman. But my teen self in the 90’s, loved them.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/96153844-wendy-j

I wish I still had my 80’s copy of the book. The cover has changed!

Previous Recommendations

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Last month I gave some book recommendations that I wanted to read – which I haven’t yet. I finally finished listening to Carrie Fischer’s audio book “Wishful Drinking” which was just delightful. I still have to read Michael J Fox’s new book which my sister bought for me for Christmas. It’s on my to-do list this weekend.

I’ve been listening to Dax Shepherd’s podcast “Armchairs” and it’s quite entertaining. He’s had some impressive guest stars including one of my favorites – Matthew McConaughey. I first fell in love with him with the movie A Time to Kill which was a dark movie about racism in the southern states. A movie that would be very “questionable” today. But back in the day – it was one of the best movies – Donald Sutherland, Sam L Jackson, Keifer Sutherland, Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd and Matthew as the lead. An all star cast. The book was amazing too by John Grisham.

This podcast episode is hilarious because Dax is just fan-girlin’ over Matthew. It’s cute.

I’m listening to Dax’s interview with Matthew right now. I think what I like about him is he’s so articulate and well-spoken. It doesn’t hurt that he’s got a sexy southern Texas drawl. But he tells stories in such a fascinating way that you can’t help but stop what you’re doing and listen.

It’s a great way to have background noise while working on Etsy products. I’m working on a new line of daily planners and journals for you.

So, here are my good read recommendations and books to read for February 2021. For me – I’m only picking 3 but I’ll more than likely just read one.

Matthew McConaughey – GREENLIGHTS

Oscar winning actor Matthew McConaughey spent some time alone in the desert to put together this book about his life. I was interested to learn that Matthew was also a “diary” kind of person and wrote daily to keep track of life’s little and big moments. One day he decided to go through his collection of diaries and chose some of his favorite stories to put in this book. The podcast episode with Dax was so interesting – that I signed up for a 30 day free trial with Audible just so I could listen to Matthew’s audiobook. I just like audiobooks better than reading because I can do other things while listening.

Greenlights was published in October 2020 and Matthew has been working hard to promote his book. I think I’ve watched just about every interview did in the last year. That’s how much I love this guy. Matthew has done so many movies but you might know him best from hits like Interstellar, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, A Time to Kill, Dazed and Dallas Buyer’s Club and The Wolf of Wall Street.

He also has a sleep app called “Calm” in which he speaks to you in that soothing Texan drawl to help you fall asleep. I’ve listened to it via YouTube and it’s fantastic.

LAUREN GRAHAM – TALKING AS FAST AS I CAN

Fans of the 90’s hit show The Gilmore Girls will recognize this author’s name. Lauren Graham was the main star of Gilmore Girls and played the role of Lorelai Gilmore for seven years. She joined the cast again in a reboot of the series in 2016 which I have to say was extremely disappointing. But aren’t most reboots?

Lauren has had a steady acting career and has written four books – according to her author profile on Good Reads. I didn’t even know that Lauren had written any books until I listened to her interview with Dax. This is why I love podcasts! You learn so much about artists that you never would have guessed.

Quote: I must work harder to achieve my goal of not seeking approval from those whose approval I’m not even sure is important to me.”

I’m excited to listen to this audiobook. I’ve always enjoyed Lauren as an actress and she seems like a genuine kind of person.

BORN STANDING UP – STEVE MARTIN

Steve Martin is one of those actors I grew up with as a child of the 80’s. He was the funny man along with greats like Billy Crystal, Robin Williams and the legendary John Candy. One of his most popular movies, Planes, Trains and Automobiles plays on a loop every Christmas season.

I fell in love with Steve Martin in the movie Parenthood which was a great family comedy that starred a young Keanu Reeves and Rick Morranis. Other notable movies include The Jerk, The Man with Two Brains, Roxanne, Father of the Bride, The Pink Panther, and more recently – It’s Complicated. A hilarious coming of age movie about mid-life dating starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and John Krashinksi.

Steve recently paired up with another favorite of mine, Martin Short (Father of the Bride) and performed in a slap-stick comedy tour – at least until COVID restrictions came along. Steve is mostly retired from acting but is one heck of a banjo player! He plays often with his bluegrass band The Steep Canyon Rangers – and let me tell you, they are just a delight to listen to. Steve’s instagram accounts is one of my favorites to follow.

Born Standing Up is Steve’s story about why he left stand up comedy and what he’s doing now with his life. I can’t wait to read this book!

That’s it for my February recommendations – what are you reading? Let me know in the comments. I’m on a memoir kick right now as I often find them to be highly entertaining and an easier read. I’m not interested in politics or history. I will get back into fiction reading – but most of my time is spent working on my own artistic projects.

If you’re interested in following me on Good Reads – here’s the link. I update my reading list about once a month. I feel like everyone has a book these days. It’s motivation for me to keep writing!

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/96153844-wendy-j

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September Good Reads