Books, books and more books! My 100 Days of Books project is still in full swing over on Instagram. I’m approaching the halfway mark – Day 50 is next Tuesday! – but I’m heading into what I anticipate is going to be the most difficult stretch.

I have plans to be traveling for a good chunk of the next three weeks, visiting friends, heading up to our family’s cabin, and going to New York for BookExpo. I’ve tried to work ahead on the project, taking photos at home and writing up some quick reviews for days when it’s too hectic, but I’m not sure how it’s all going to play out. However, that’s my problem, not yours – let’s get to the reviews! (And check back on Days 1 through 10 from a couple weeks ago).

11. Cork Dork by Bianca Bosker

If you’ve ever pondered over the elaborate, almost comical descriptions of wine on a tasting menu, or wondered if there’s a difference between $20 and $200 bottles of pinot noir, this might be the book for you. Journalist Bianca Bosker quit her job as a technology reporter to see if should could become a wine expert and pass the Court of Master Sommeliers’ Certified Sommelier Exam. Channeling Mary Roach’s blend of personality and reporting, Bosker really dives in, joining underground tasting groups with elite sommeliers, meeting with olfactory scientists, and shadowing some of the rising stars in the wine industry. Cork Dork was a fun, educational read about wine, and the life lessons that those who are obsessed with taste can help teach the rest of us.

12. The Rules Do Not Apply by Ariel Levy

In 2012, when Ariel Levy left for Mongolia on a reporting trip “she was pregnant, married, financially secure, and successful on her own terms. A month later, none of that was true.” The Rules Do Not Apply is a beautifully honest look at a life built in total freedom and what happens to that life in the face of devastating loss. This book offered so much illumination for my own circumstances – both how to survive and how to live again – that I can’t really think of it objectively. But I do think others who are struggling with their own sense of loss or overwhelm at the world will find something in this book.

13. Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

Happy Easter! This 2000 essay collection contains my favorite David Sedaris essay, “Jesus Shaves.” While taking a beginning French language class, Sedaris has to explain Easter – from the Resurrection to a big candy-delivering bunny – to a Moroccan classmate. As one might expect, it does not go well. I love the humor and the heart in that piece especially, but also in most of his other writing. He’s especially great on audio if you have that option. And with that, I’m off to stuff my face with ham.

14. Riverine by Angela Palm

I love the nonfiction that comes out of Graywolf Press, a nonprofit publisher here in Minnesota. Riverine is a beautiful memoir of growing up and coming to terms with the place we are from and the people we sometimes leave behind. For Angela Palm, the place was the floodplain of the Kankakee River in rural Indiana, and the person was her neighbor, Corey, now serving a life sentence for murder. The book is another look a rural poverty, but it avoids the traps of that topic by focusing so closely to this specific story and place. I’ll end this with just one stellar sentence, the end of the opening chapter: “The girl, our girl, makes it out of the riverbed, but she carries traces of brown water in her lungs and sediment in her pockets so she knows the river is still there, despite all her moving on.”

15. The Distraction Addiction by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

The Distraction Addiction starts with a good question: “Can we stay connected without diminishing our intelligence, attention spans, and ability to really live?” I like this approach because it addresses both the positive (more connections) and the negative (more distractions) ways that technology impacts our lives. Unlike many books about technology and the mind, Alex Soojung-Kim Pang doesn’t suggest we should get rid of our phones or go off the grid. Instead, he advocates for a more mindful approach where we make deliberate choices about how to engage with our devices and the world. This is one of my favorite books on the subject that I’m due to re-read soon.

16. Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

Every summer, the Kelleher clan leaves the city and heads to their family’s beach house in Maine. Told in alternating perspectives across three generations, Maine is the story of one summer and the entire history of a family centered around a place that means something different to each of them. Although I thought the pacing of this one was a little slow, I loved getting in the heads of such different women. J. Courtney Sullivan has a witty sense of humor that comes out sparingly but effectively through the novel. I think this one would be a great summer read, especially when you just need to get away from your own family.

17. Dark Money by Jane Mayer

I haven’t been in the headspace for serious nonfiction for awhile, so I’m glad I had the peer pressure of a new book club to help me finish Dark Money. Subtitled “The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right,” the book is an exhaustively reported look at a small number of big money libertarians and their political influence through a vast number of institutions. Although Mayer focuses specifically on big money Republican donors, it’s clear that their interests are well outside those of average GOP voters – readers of any political persuasion concerned about the overwhelming influence of money in politics will find this book of interest. It has certainly given me a lot to think about.

18. Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann

Killers of the Flower Moon is the kind of narrative nonfiction that I love but haven’t been reading enough of lately. David Grann recounts a series of suspicious deaths of members of the Osage Indian nation in the early 1920s. As the murders in the ‘Reign of Terror’ grew to more than 20 people, the FBI (still a young agency) was called in to try and solve the case. The book follows this real life mystery, full of conspiracies and secrets and betrayals, while also exploring how the country’s disregard for American Indians made it possible for the murderers to operate for so long. This book is impeccably researched, and written in a way that kept me turning the pages very late into the evening. Highly recommended.

19. The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee

In honor of friends across the country who are spending the day marching for science, I decided to reach for one of my favorite example of science writing. Siddhartha Mukherjee, a physician and scientist, brings a sense of warmth and personality to what could be a difficult subject, a history of the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. He makes complex science understandable, and shows the human side of scientific research. The Emperor of All Maladies is beautifully written, emotionally rich, and full of facts you’ll be itching to share with someone else.

20. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Yesterday, HBO premiered a film version of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, a truly excellent piece of narrative science writing. This book is one of my go-to recommendations for people who say they just aren’t interested in nonfiction because it is just so good. In 1951, Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman from Baltimore, was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Without her consent, cells from her cancerous tumor were biopsied and cultured, creating the HeLa cell line. HeLa cells, which have continued to reproduce continually, are known as an “immortalized cell line,” and have been part of many of the most significant scientific breakthroughs of the last 60 years. Based on extensive research and interviews with the Lacks family, this 2010 book is a masterful exploration of the intersections of medicine, class and race in the United States.

Briefly | As of today, Sophisticated Dorkiness has been around for nine years. Every year that this space still exists I feel surprised and grateful, but this year those feelings are especially strong. After everything that’s happened since last year at this time — turning 30, accepting a new job, the boyfriend’s death, moving, starting the new job, moving again, surviving the election and the holidays, navigating young widowhood, losing the new job, loving unemployment — it seems amazing that I am still writing and, even more, that any of you are still reading. But we’re here, we’re surviving, and I can say honestly that this year has taught me more than I could have ever imagined.

Reading | Since I started blogging in 2008, I’ve read about 840 books. That is a lot! I was working on getting all of my book lists into one giant spreadsheet so I could dig up some more detailed stats, but that project hasn’t gotten legs yet. Maybe by my 10th anniversary!

Listening | Since 2008, around 64 of those books have been on audio. My audio book listening seems to go in fits and spurts, depending on how much driving I have to do and how many podcasts I have queued up, but I know for sure that audio has enhanced my reading life in some big ways.

Blogging | In nine years, I’ve posted 1,497 times and gotten 26,925 comments. Of those, about 500 have been book reviews of some kind or another. Whew!

Promoting | One of the fun things that has emerged from blogging is the chance to write for Book Riot, which was started by a small group of bloggers back in 2011. At the beginning of this year I was promoted to a contributing editor and now write a twice monthly newsletter focused on nonfiction, True Story. You can read the archives of True Story here, and sign up for all of Book Riot’s newsletters here.

Loving | As always, the biggest thank you needs to go out to all of you. Finding a community of readers and friends through this blog has been one of the biggest joys of life, and something I don’t take for granted. Thank you for being here through the rough stuff and as this space continues to evolve with me.

Loving II | The townhouse I share with my sister has an awesome back deck. I anticipate many afternoons looking up at the trees with a book in hand.

Anticipating | One of the (many, many) things the past year has taught me is the importance of staying in the present and trying not to worry about what might be coming next. Plans can be comforting, but they can also be smashed to pieces in a matter of moments. What really matters is cultivating relationships and building resilience, so you have the people and the tools you need to survive the really hard moments. I’ve been working on both of those things, but I know there’s so much more to do.

Wanting | I haven’t written about it here, but my guiding word for 2017 is JOY. I want to explore what it means to be joyful, and how to cultivate a spirit of gratitude and joyfulness despite challenges and frustration. I want to understand what makes me happy, and what I can do to bring happiness to others, both online and in real life. So, I think that guiding principle will start to make it way to the blog more as this year continues.

As of today, I’m about 31 days into my 100 Days of Books project. Posting a photo and short review of a book every day is definitely a challenge, but it’s been really fun so far. I feel like I’m getting to think more creatively about my photos, and spend some time revisiting books I read awhile ago in a new way. It’s hard to believe 30 days are over… and that there are 70 days to go!

I wasn’t quite sure how I wanted to document this on the blog, but for this one ended up going with the simplest possible answer — copying the reviews and photos posted to Instagram and just sharing them here. I hope this helps people who aren’t on Instagram to enjoy the project too.

1. It’s Ok to Laugh (Crying Is Ok Too) by Nora McInerny Purmort

In 2014, Nora McInerny Purmort lost both her father and her husband to cancer shortly after she miscarried her second baby. It’s Ok to Laugh, more a series of essays than a memoir, is the first book I read after Nate died that made profound grief make any sense to me. It captures the way you want to keep your person close through stories, while you also want to push everything that reminds you of them as far away as possible. She shows that grief can be darkly funny, that you need to find people who can see both the laughter and the loss, and who can be there as you try to put back together your wild and precious life. Nora also hosts an amazing podcast, Terrible Thanks for Asking, which I also can’t recommend highly enough.

2. A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

As my reading shifted towards nonfiction, I forgot how much I loved epic fantasy stories. I bought A Darker Shade of Magic as a treat to read over New Year’s weekend, and was immediately drawn into the rich, layered (haha!) world that Schwab created. The first book introduces Kell, a rare magician who can travel between worlds. In his role serving the royal family of Red London, Kell is an ambassador to the Londons of other worlds, some with magic, some that have been destroyed by magic.The trilogy only gets better as it continues, expanding to include a diverse, complicated array of characters with secrets and relationships that I loved getting to know. If you love fantasy, you will love this series.

3. Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly

Hidden Figures is squarely in the realm of nonfiction I love – little-known histories featuring women doing jobs that I can only dream of tackling. The book is much broader than the movie, looking at contributions throughout NASA’s history, from the aerodynamic work that improved planes in World War II all the way through sending a man into space. I loved that the book acknowledged the deep racism at work in America at the time, but also explored how individuals, teams and families pushed against it in their own ways (without being sappy or simplistic). It’s a great read, especially if you’re a reader nervous about jumping into nonfiction.

4. American Housewife by Curtis Sittenfeld

When Alice Lindgren falls for the charismatic, charming son of a wealthy Republican family, she has no idea how dramatically this marriage will change her life. American Wife, loosely based on the life of Laura Bush, was an intelligent comfort read with many resonant themes… balancing private beliefs with public persona, reckoning with the cost of ambition, and accepting the compromises we make in service of those we love. I enjoyed this one a lot.

5. The Stranger in the Woods by Michael Finkel

For 27 years, Christopher Knight lived alone in the remote woods of Maine. He stole clothes, books, and other supplies from nearby cabins, avoiding all human contact until he was arrested for stealing food from a local camp. Journalist Michael Finkel connected with Knight while he was in prison, then conducted numerous interviews to piece together Knight’s life as a hermit for The Stranger in the Woods. The reporting ethics of this one raised some questions for me, but overall I thought it was an engaging, complicated look at the quest for solitude in a constantly connected world.

6. Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

For me, essay collections narrated by the author hit a nice sweet spot between podcasts and full-length audio books. They’re episodic, so you can jump in and out easily, but also build some narrative momentum as you go because you’re developing a relationship with the writer. Listening to Scrappy Little Nobody was like getting to sit down with Anna Kendrick over coffee (or maybe a cocktail) for a casual friend date. There wasn’t anything earth-shattering in this collection – why would there be in a conversation like that? – but it was a fun distraction on a long car ride, which is exactly what I wanted.

7. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

I’m struggling to find words that can describe just how much I love Station Eleven. Set 15 years after a terrible flu wipes out civilization, the book follows a troupe of actors who perform Shakespeare for scattered settlements of survivors. Their motto comes from Star Trek – “Because survival is insufficient.” The story is full and beautiful and scary, and the writing just left me spellbound. I adore this book so much.

8. All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg

In All Grown Up, Jami Attenberg takes a familiar literary character – single, childless, unapologetic, borderline alcoholic white female – and gives her a unique sense of humor and melancholy. Andrea Bern, nearly 40, lives a life disconnected from other people and the ‘benchmarks’ of a traditionally successful life. Andrea seems mostly ok with both of these things, which is sometimes to her advantage and sometimes to her detriment. Told as a series of short vignettes, the book flies by with a sense of story and sense of purpose that I really admired.

9. Wires and Nerve by Marissa Meyer

Just a quick one today, since I’m spending the day cleaning and moving boxes for my parents. I loved Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles quartet on audio, so was excited when she announced she’d be continuing with a graphic novel. Wires and Nerve follows the events of the quartet with an engaging story, cameos by all the main characters, and stylish illustrations – recommended for fans of the Lunar Chronicles world.

10. Big Girls Don’t Cry by Rebecca Traister

I’m digging back a little bit for today’s recommendation, Rebecca Traister’s first book about women in politics. Published in 2010, Big Girls Don’t Cry looks back to a positively gentile period in American politics, the 2008 presidential election, and what it meant for Hillary Clinton to nearly earn the Democratic nomination. I’m not sure if this book will feel dated now – perhaps suggesting the more recent All the Single Ladies would be better – but I thought it was excellent when I read it around 2011. Traister is a smart, engaging writer able to effectively balance her reporting, her analysis, and her own story as a woman covering this historic race. Skimming through the book today, it’s both funny and sad to see how our political discourse has changed… as well as how it’s stayed the same.

Briefly | Is there anything better than springtime in Minnesota? I honestly don’t think so. Even though we’ve had some extended periods of rain over the last couple of weeks, being able to spend sunny afternoons out walking in the parks near my house or sitting out on the patio with a book has been so rejuvenating. I can almost feel the Vitamin D flooding back into my body (that’s not really how that works, is it?).

Reading | I finally finished some books! My favorite was Rest by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, a look at the importance of productive rest in a healthy life. I bought the book when it first came out in December, but at the time I was in such a frenzied place I couldn’t really think about resting. Now, I can.  

I also had a lot of thoughts on Dark Money by Jane Mayer, a look at the a growing network of billionaire Libertarians and their efforts to influence the American political process. Reading about the money behind recent political movements was illuminating, and important for people of all political persuasions to understand better.

I’m also nearly finished with Perfect Little World by Kevin Wilson, the story of a teenage mother invited to raise her son in a communal family as part of an experiment on child rearing. I’m about halfway finished, and I really have no idea where it is going.

Listening | I randomly slipped back into audio books this month, finishing up Hit Makers by Derek Thompson (social science on what it takes to make something popular) and starting Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (narrated by Lin Manuel Miranda!).

Watching | I’m so excited that Brooklyn 99 is back! That show makes me smile every week. I’m also enjoying the view out out the windows at the library, where I’ve been trying to go and write a few times a week. 

Loving | My 100 Day Project, #100DaysofBooksByKim on Instagram, has been so much fun! I love trying to find creative ways to photograph books, and the short review format seems to be working well for me. I’m hoping to get a round up from the first couple of weeks here on the blog later this week.

Loving II | Last week I went to Adult Night at the Minnesota Zoo, which was a total delight. I got to see some little piggies, zookeepers feeding a moose, and some Moon Jellyfish. It was so fun!

Anticipating | Vacation! I guess every day of unemployment is vacation, so maybe it’d be better to say “travel!” This weekend I’m heading to Wyoming to visit a friend. We’re doing a color run (walk) on Saturday, but otherwise I think we’re just going to bum around and drink wine and cuddle with her cats. #winning

So, that’s what’s going on the last couple of weeks. Happy reading, everyone!