Since I’m not doing much updating on Need to Read anymore, I thought I’d use this Monday post to give you a heads up on a few books you might want to check out.

fat catFat Cat by Robin Brande is a fascinating read. It’s got all the topics close to my heart like simplifying your life, science, food, and vegetarianism, plus it’s got a bit of romance, chapters that make you laugh out loud, and an overall great hook that carries you all the way through the book.

once was lostOnce Was Lost by Sara Zarr. I know I’m late to this party as it came out a while ago, but I actually put it off because I was scared of it. I won’t tell you if my fear was warranted or not because I don’t want to spoil the book in any way, but I will say that what finally swayed me toward reading it was Sara as an author. I know from reading her other books that even when she tells us gritty things, she handles it with truth and grace. What more can you ask from an author?

siesta laneSiesta Lane by Amy Minato came recommended to me via Janet Reid’s blog. It’s a beautiful nonfiction blend of memoir, poetry, and revelation. I’m actually reading it very slowly, just a bit at a time. Partly because it’s so wonderful, but also because it stirs me into action and I can only take so much stirring at a time. It’s about a city girl who moves into a tiny cabin in rural Oregon. The tagline is: A Year Unplugged, or The Good Intentions of Ten People, Two Cats, One Old Dog, Eight Acres, One Telephone, Three Cars, and Twenty Miles to the Nearest Town. I actually bought it for my husband, but was hooked from the very beginning. He blew through it a while ago.