Summer Reading

This year I decided to set up a summer reading plan which includes books that I've owned for a while by have yet to read. Each month gets three books: one deeper one (often a Puritan Paperback); one for learning; and one biography of sorts. It was an attempt to finish some books and spend time on deeper reading while I have the free time. As long as there's nothing else going on, Monday-Friday (and sometimes Saturdays) starting around 3:30 will find me on the couch with my books for some focused reading time. It's been a nice bit of routine and I've been getting though some books.

In June I read: 

Dear Titus, a series of letters written by various pastors offering advice to an imaginary church planter named Titus. My own Pastor James wrote a chapter (which I edited in exchange for a copy of the book). 

Humble Roots Hannah Anderson. I've read it before, so maybe it shouldn't have made it into my reading plan, but it's been a while and I had been planning to reread it in January and never did! 

A Man Called Intrepid by William Stevenson, a book about spies and espionage, mostly during WWII.

In July I read:

An Ark for All God's Noahs by Thomas Brooks. This was a more challenging read (the Puritans tend to be), but very good.

Unmet Expectations by Lisa Hughes. We're going to read it eventually in my discipleship class and I wanted to read through it early on; I'll read it again even more carefully when we get to it in class.

Spy Dust by Antonio and Jonna Mendez: more spies, this time during the cold war.

My August Plan (I did a bit in the first book last week, but I am really starting it today):

Personal Declension and Revival of Religion in the Soul by Octavius Winslow, another one of the Puritans and one that needs to be read rather slowly.

The Conversation by Leigh Bortins, the third in her classical education series and one that I started so very long ago and then got distracted.

From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya by Ruth Tucker: Christian missions told through biographies.

I've also been reading other books as well, of course: some memoirs, some novels, whatever caught my fancy. These were the most important and planned ones, though. 

I'm enjoying my reading times and finding it a nice bit of routine in the more relaxed days of summer. I may keep the "summer reading" plan through September, although possibly with only 2 "must reads" as things will be getting busier.

By October my reading habits will change as I'll be traveling more. Then I switch to bus reading (lighter books, more novels and such). I'll try to pick it up in December again, on the modified schedule, and then for January/February as a "winter reading" plan when I'm not travelling. It seems like a good way to ensure that I'm reading good books regularly.