Hello everyone!
Do you ever set a goal for the year, start off strong, and then lose speed? That’s me right now with my reading goal for the year. For the past few years, I have tried to read at least one more book than I had the previous year. In 2020, I read 27 books. And in 2021, I read 16 books. But in my defense, for half of last year, I was studying for the LSAT so I didn’t do much leisure reading. This year…I have only read 7 books. This might be a lot for some people, but I hope to read at least 12 before the end of the year.
Why am I telling you about my reading goal struggles? To help keep me accountable. I plan on sharing my current read with you all and giving you my honest opinion when I’ve finished the book. And to help me stay somewhat on my goal, I will be listening to books with Audible. If you haven’t heard of Audible, it is a monthly subscription plan that allows you to choose one title to listen to each month. Audible has its own original titles, podcasts, as well as thousands of mainstream titles (like the book I just finished), and more. Since the app is on your phone, you can listen to it anywhere. I have been using Audible for years now and I enjoy listening to books while walking with my puppy, washing dishes, commuting, and winding down for the night. You can try Audible for FREE for 30 days using my link. Now, let’s jump into my June 2022 book pick.
“30 Things I Love About Myself,” by Radhika Sanghani
Story
Narration
Overall
Here is an abbreviated description of the book:
Nina didn’t plan to spend her thirtieth birthday in jail, yet here she is in her pajamas, locked in a holding cell. There’s no Wi-Fi, no wine, no carbs—and no one to celebrate with.
Just as Nina falls into despair, a book lands in her cell: How to Fix Your Shitty Life by Loving Yourself. It must be destiny. With literally nothing left to lose, Nina makes a life-changing decision to embark on a self-love journey. By her next birthday, she’s going to find thirty things she loves about herself.
Ratings:
Story –
I was searching through the Audible app for my next read and I stumbled across this book. The first thing that caught my eye was the title. I was in a Freedom small group a few years ago at my old church and they challenged us to write a list of things we loved about ourselves. And let me tell you, it was not easy for me. Then when I read the description of the book, I knew I had to read it. Being 30 myself, I thought it would be interesting to see how Nina’s (albeit a fictional character) self-love journey unfolded. Not only was the story relatable to my life (in a general sense) but kept me captivated the whole time. I looked forward to little pockets of time where I could listen to the book. Thanks to my 3-one hour infusion appointments, I was able to listen through this 10+ hour book in a little over a week.
Part of Nina’s journey involved her new appreciation of astrology. Aptly, each chapter was titled after a zodiac sign and had a brief description of each sign. Additionally, in almost every chapter as Nina was experiencing the ups and downs of life, she was able to put a new quality she loved about herself on her list. However, there were some parts in the book that were not my speed but those parts did not negatively impact my opinion of the story.
Narration –
The worse thing that can happen to a good book is for the publisher to not pick the best narrator. The narrator can impact the impression the reader has about a book. It can be the best book in the world but if it’s not the best narrator for the book, then there will be mediocre (at best) reviews about it. For instance, I listened to another book (which I’ll leave unnamed) a few years ago. It was a popular read at the time and I decided to give it a try. The story line was fine but I found myself struggling to finish the book because of the boring and monotone voice of the narrator.
The author (Radhika Sanghami) of “30 Things I Love About Myself,” read her own book. I love when the authors read their own books because they have a better understanding of the characters and how they want the book to flow. The way she read the book made me feel every moment of joy, embarrassment, hurt, and every emotion in between them. I think it was also important for her to read her own book because it genuinely portrayed the main character’s culture (Indian) and nationality (British).
Overall –
The last self-love book that I read was “Eat, Love, Pray,” many moons ago (see what I did there? lol). So, it was nice to read a different genre than what I have been reading more of over the past few years (ex: suspense, bios, Christian, etc.). In addition to her self-love journey, the book also talked about mental health issues, the stigmas of being a single woman over 30, limitations that cultures place on individuals, and navigating friendships as an adult. If any of those topics seem interesting to you (or you just want a laugh), then I would definitely recommend the book to you. But note that the book is not promising to be a self-help book. Overall, I loved the book and would give it 4 out of 5 stars.
Well, that’s it, my June 2022 book pick. I hope that you enjoyed this book review! Interested in listening to the book yourself? You can try Audible for FREE for 30 days using my link. It costs you nothing but I will earn a small commission if you sign up. When you listen to this book (or if you have already read/listened to it), let me know your thoughts about it in the comment section. Follow me on IG (@my_attempt_at_adulting) to see my July 2022 book pick. I will also post my monthly book picks on my Pinterest (just save the below pin and you’ll see all of them). As always, thanks for reading!
Love,
Britt ♥
My Attempt At Adulting 