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Reading Challenge — Exciting News!

Hello readers!

Guess who has some exciting news?

As many of you know, I host an annual reading challenge. This challenge, 52 Books in 52 Weeks, is a yearly list compiled of (you guessed it) fifty-two unique prompts. Find a book that matches each prompt, read it, and check it off the list. The result is a fun way to mix up your reading, all the while trying new authors and genres.

I created this challenge back in 2018 and invited all of you to join along. This year was now my third year creating and running the challenge — and I’ve been blown away by the response. Each year, our little group of participants has grown and grown. This year, we have over 13,000 challenge members on our Facebook group. It’s an active and incredible community of readers. Not only is it a place to find new reads, it’s also a great way to connect with fellow bookworms.

Because of all this amazing growth, I am excited to announce that the challenge is now getting its own space!

Welcome to The 52 Book Club! (www.the52book.club)

Moving forward, all future challenges will be released and found via our new website, The 52 Book Club. This new branding will hopefully make it easier for future participants to find, as well as help clarify what we’re all about. (You can head over there now to see a full list of past and current challenges, as well as a collection of frequently asked questions and “how to’s.”)

This rebrand has also given us a bit of opportunity to expand. You can now find and join in with the challenge on Instagram! (www.instagram.com/the52bookclub)

We are so excited for this new “chapter” and invite you all to join in!

Happy reading!

– Liz

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November 2019: Reading Challenge Reviews

We’re in the home stretch. There is now officially one month left in our 2019 Reading Challenge! And, I don’t know about you, but there is something very satisfying about getting these last few categories checked off.

With the release of the 2020 Challenge earlier this month, many of us are already eagerly planning out potential reads for the new year. (If you want to participate, be sure to join our Facebook group! It’s the perfect place for book suggestions, encouragement, and all-round “bookiness.”)

Until then, I have a few more categories left for 2019. Here are my November reads:

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12 Ways to Read More!

“You have two kids! How do you manage to read so many books every year?”

If I had a book for every time someone asked me this, I’d need a new bookshelf. (I mean… I do need a new bookshelf, but that’s beside the point…) I often share my love of books. I host a popular, annual reading challenge and regularly post book reviews. On average, I read 130 – 150 books per year.

And that often leads to the question: “How do you do it?”

Truthfully, I’d like to be reading more too. But as we all know, life is busy. This season is full of diapers and laundry, packed lunches and school runs, errands and grocery stores and crying babies that stretch bedtime out far beyond what’s necessary. So I get it. We all want to read more. But finding time for it? Well, that’s a different story…

BUT, despite the pressures of daily life, there are a few tricks and tips we can use to maximize the time we spend reading.

So today, I’m excited to share with you twelve of my favorite ways to read more: Read more

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October Book Reviews: 52 Books in 52 Weeks

October has been a CRAZY, busy month for me.

If you’re following along here or on social media, you’ve likely seen numerous posts about my new book, Embrace (available now, where ever books are sold!) So many of you have already purchased books and I am incredibly grateful for your support. Writing has been a dream since I was a little girl in pigtails and it’s surreal to see a book of mine nestled in the living room shelf. In fact, I’m still pinching myself — I’m an author? Really?

So to celebrate, I may have included my own book in this month’s reads. (It makes this whole book thing feel even MORE official.) 😉

And, EXTRA exciting news, the new 2020 Reading Challenge will be released NEXT month. Check back here mid-November to plan ahead for 52 brand new categories!

But for now, here’s my October reads:

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June 2019: Reading Challenge Reviews

Happy summer everyone!

I can smell someone grilling BBQ outside of my window, and I am so ready for nice weather and sunny days spent by the lake (with a good book of course!) We’re off on a few getaways this summer so I am excitedly loading up my Kobo with new books. I’m not sure why I didn’t get onto the e-reader train earlier, because my suitcase has never been lighter!

And as always, here are a few book reviews from this past month. This is part of my 2019 Reading Challenge and while we’re now HALFWAY through (where did the time go?) you’re more than welcome to jump in! If you’re not part of the Facebook group, be sure to join us there too.
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May 2019: Reading Challenge Reviews

Over the past two years, I’ve heard from many people who want to participate in the Reading Challenge but are scared that they won’t be able to finish a book a week. And I always give the same reply — “More important than 52 books, is setting a goal for yourself and just having fun.”

But this month, if I’m being 100% honest, the challenge has been a bit of a struggle. Less fun and more draining. Life has been busy and has thrown a few curveballs, and some days, there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day. If it wasn’t for the “buffer” I built up at the beginning of the year, there may not have been five books on this month’s review.

As much as goals motivate me, sometimes we just fall short no matter how hard we try. And that’s okay. This month I had to remind myself that it’s just about having fun — no pressure. And next month? Well, we’ll just have to see. Right now, we’re taking this one book at a time.

No matter how many books you’ve read so far this year, remember that next month is a new start! Read more

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Book Review: Outbreak by Davis Bunn

“The danger hasn’t passed — it’s just changed locations.”

This new novel from Davis Bunn, “Outbreak” promises page-turning adventure as characters seek to find answers to a deadly viral outbreak. As someone who enjoys a good action book every once in a while, I was immediately hooked by the plot and eager to dive in.

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February 2019: Reading Challenge Reviews

So, BIG news this month.

**Drumroll….**

I have now learned that you can rent library books directly onto your e-reader!

(Haha, you should see the look of disappointment on your face right now. Like, Liz, come on! That is definitely NOT big news. Quite the opposite. We’ve been renting books for years!)

Fine. Not big news for you but it is HUGE for me. This discovery resulted in me finally tip-toeing out of the “paper books only” camp and casually crossing over into the “e-readers are okay too.” As a die-hard, “readers are for overseas travel only,” sort of person, this was a big deal.

And since it’s February and I didn’t feel like tramping through the snow to the library, I therefore promptly stole my husband’s Kobo and irritated the heck out of him by messing up his reader stats. (Honestly, he should just be grateful I improved his reading speed.)

Long story short, guess who ended up with a new Kobo reader for Valentine’s Day?

This girl.

So while I figure out my new device (and spend way too much money on “bargain books,”) here are four of my February reads. As always, this is part of my 2019 Reading Challenge: 52 Books in 52 Weeks. It’s not too late to join us, so check out the Facebook Group and get reading!

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Book Review: Once We Were Strangers by Shawn Smucker

“Once We Were Strangers” is a story about the blossoming friendship between two men: Shawn and Mohammad, a writer and a Syrian refugee. This book is a tangible response to the age-old question, “Who is my neighbour?” and “How do I love them?”

We live in a world where fear presides: where reports about shootings and bombings and murder and hurt dominate the news cycle. With such uncertainty and fear, it can be difficult to know how to respond to global issues like refugees and immigration. Instead of reacting with compassion, our gut response is often to turn away in fear or to simply ignore the problem, thinking that it’s too big for any one person to solve. That’s why stories and conversations like this are so important to share.

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January 2019: Reading Challenge Reviews

The first month of 2019 is drawing to a close and I can’t help but wonder where it’s disappeared to in such a hurry. So far, January has been full of cozy blankets and the remnants of my Christmas candy — a month of sugary fingers and good books.

This year’s 2019 Reading Challenge has started off to great success (the Facebook group has more than doubled in size) and my to-be-read pile grows longer daily. It’s a happy problem to have more books on your wish-list than you could ever hope to read. This year, I’ve decided to log my 52 books here on MommyMannegren. In addition to my reviews, I hope to jot down a few other suggestions for each of the categories if you’re looking for ideas for yourself.

Here are my January choices:
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My Favourite Reads of 2018

As we welcome the new year, it’s the perfect time to take a few moments to look back at our accomplishments over the past twelve months. What did we do? What did we see? And most importantly for us book-addicts, what did we read?

I, for one, set two goals for myself at the beginning of this year:

1. Have a baby. (CHECK.) 

and

2. Complete the 2018 Reading Challenge. (CHECK.) 

Over the past twelve months, I read my way through over 150 books and can happily say that I enjoyed a vast majority of them. The genres and authors were broader than usual, particularly since I participated in and completed my first reading challenge: 52 books in 52 weeks. (For a full list of said books, click here.)

And now, with January right around the corner, our 2019 Reading Challenge is set to begin in just a few days. For those planning on joining in, I am excited to share with you a few book recommendations to get you started!

In no particular order, here are FIFTEEN of my favourite reads from this past year:

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The Cost of Betrayal — Book Review

With the arrival of a new little one, my reading has dramatically decreased over the past few months. It’s also been increasingly difficult to read anything that requires a lot of brain power. That’s why this trio of “romantic suspense novellas” was a perfect read for this sleep-deprived mama. Short and light, this book was an easy, entertaining read by three different Christian authors.

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