January Reading List

A new year, and a new chance to meet my reading goals!  I'm once again aiming for 48 books. (Third times the charm?)  So here's what on my list for the first month of the year.

• The Gift of Imperfection by Brené Brown was originally on my reading list last September, but I never even started it.  For 2017, I really want to clear some room on my shelves and I really want to get some the books that have been on my reading list read.  I've heard Brené on a couple podcasts and a TED Talk so I'm thinking I'll enjoy this book all about overcoming the need to feel like an overachiever.
• Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton was originally written in the 1940s and is set in South Africa, involving race relations and injustice.  I know it's a pretty well known classic, but I never read it, so time to change that.
• First Among Sequels by Jasper Fforde has been on my shelf for years, but I had to track down the prior book in the Thursday Next series before I could read it.  I believe there's a time hop of several years in this one and I'm looking forward to having all the characters fresh in my head, because last time, there had been a couple years between me reading the books.
• The Man from Beijing by Hennning Mankell, who is the author of the Wallander books, has been on my shelf for only a couple months, but I'm ready for a good Scandinavian mystery.  I love Wallander, but this one is a stand alone without him, so I thought it'd be a good starting point for my first foray into Mankell.

So, there it is.  What are you reading this month?  Or have you read any of these, and if so, what did you think?  Drop me a comment with your thoughts.