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A Lit Life

Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness

Reading & Writing to a New You

December 26, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
The week after Christmas is a special one for me. It’s a week that feels as if it is suspended in time as we emerge from the holiday but are not yet ready for the new year. Each year, I always spend time...
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A 100th Episode Celebration!

December 19, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Today is a BIG day on the Get Lit(erate). podcast… We are celebrating 100 episodes! It seems like yesterday I got up the nerve to press publish on my first podcast episode and I’m so grateful for all of the bookish and notebookish connections I’ve made over 100 episodes.  Come listen...
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This Time Could be Different with Khristin Wierman

December 12, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Have you ever read a book that truly felt life-changing? A book that made you rethink who you were and what you could be? I have. Today, I am talking to the author of that book: Khristin Wierman. She wrote This Time Could be Different and it’s a book that I...
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Books & Notebooks for Holiday Cheer

December 5, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
I love talking about my reading rules and I have one particular reading rule that you might not expect: I cannot read holiday books until December 1st. Not at all. While I love anything and everything to do with the holiday season, I like to restrict my holiday reading to only...
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Literate Love for November 2023

November 30, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
On the last day of every month, I share a little bit of literate love with the world: what I’ve been reading, writing, learning and loving.  Come listen as I share three books I loved, a writing prompt you would NOT expect from me (I think!), the hack that saved my...
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Journal to a Life You Love with Anna K. Morris

November 28, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Sometimes, we need a little help in learning how to use our journals and notebooks to create a life we love and you’ll find it on today’s podcast. Today, I’m talking with Anna K. Morris. She’s a mindset coach who harnesses the power of journaling to reflect, reject old stories and...
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Books with Pie

November 21, 2023 in Books & Reading, Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
Pie is the most-loved Thanksgiving holiday dessert and that means that many of us are either buying or making a pie this Thanksgiving week. So today, I’m sharing three books (make that four!) that have pie as a central theme: one classic must-read, one book that changed my life, a middle...
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Holiday Notebook Tradition: 2023

November 14, 2023 in Creativity & Inspiration, Life & Living, Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
It’s that time of year….time to break out my annual holiday notebook tradition! Years ago, I created my first holiday notebook out of sheer desperation to better manage the holidays. Now, it’s a tool that I cannot live without. Come listen as I re-air last year’s episode describing what a holiday...
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Time to Write with Emily Winslow

November 7, 2023 in Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
I started my Get Lit(erate). Podcast to share my love of books with others and offer sets of books to help readers manage life’s challenges and have some fun along the way.  But I also started talking about my love of writing and notebooking…and it turns out those are some of...
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Literate Love for October 2023

October 31, 2023 in Literate Love, Restorative Reading & Writing for Wellness
On the last day of every month, I share a little bit of literate love with the world: what I’ve been reading, writing, learning and loving.  Come listen as I share four books I loved, two important writing prompts, a crazy amount of learning to support my new projects and some...
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ABOUT

Stephanie

A book-loving, notebook-hoarding bookologist on a mission to change lives one book and one notebook at a time.

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Stephanie's books

Paperweight
Paperweight
by Meg Haston
I read this hauntingly beautiful book on the recommendation of my teenage daughter. She told me it was powerful, told me I wouldn't want to stop reading it...and she was right. Meg Haston invites readers into the mind of Stevie, causing ...
The Gifts of Imperfection
it was amazing
The Gifts of Imperfection
by Brené Brown
I haven't stumbled across anything written by Brene Brown that I did not love and this book is no exception. Written so conversationally as if Brene was literally speaking directly, and only, to me, I could'n help bu be personally moved ...
I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life
it was amazing
I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life
by Anne Bogel
True to its title, this book was simply delightful. I felt like I was talking with a long-lost friend, a fellow book-lover whose life was just as entangled with the plots, settings and characters of fictional books as they were those in ...
Some Places More Than Others
it was amazing
Some Places More Than Others
by Renée Watson
It was almost like I was reading a book that was written just for me, even though the daily lives and locations of the characters were vastly different. The theme of love, self-worth and family connection was prevalent on each and every ...
Touching Spirit Bear
it was amazing
Touching Spirit Bear
by Ben Mikaelsen
This book shook me to my motherly core. I read this with my 13-year old twins as part of a school assignment and was swept into Cole's story of literally fighting for survival and for love. My children were drawn to Cole's story of survi...

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Middle grade novels hold a unique kind of magic an Middle grade novels hold a unique kind of magic and Ann Braden unlocks that magic with every novel she writes.

Her newest book is no exception.

HIJACKED BY GOATS is a heartfelt middle grade novel that delicately captures Josie’s inner world and the sheer number of compulsive and overwhelming thoughts that battle for her attention. Officially diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Josie progresses through residential treatment and outpatient therapy as she navigates recovery and a kinder way of treating herself.

Ann delicately captures the challenges Josie faces, the overwhelming thoughts and feelings that won’t let her rest and the brave choices she makes to move through them with the support of new friends, family and knowledgeable professionals.

While every middle grade reader might not be able to relate to Josie directly, they WILL be able to relate to going through something hard, wishing away particular thoughts or feelings or knowing someone who is struggling with their mental health. So will every adult reading this book, too.

This book so beautifully captures the entirety of the human condition and invites every emotion to the table, holding out a hand to those that need it and providing a window of empathy to those that need that, too.

It’s an incredible book and I’m forever grateful for having read it.

@annbradenbooks
#KidLitLove
#ALitLife
#MiddleGrade
#OCD
#Bibliotherapy
This. I know this face. I’ve made this face. I now This. I know this face. I’ve made this face. I now have better words to explain the significance of it and the love it holds. Thank you, Ann. ❤️

HIJACKED BY GOATS by Ann Braden

Coming September 2026
Full review coming soon.
@annbradenbooks
A restorative reading and writing practice doesn't A restorative reading and writing practice doesn't just feel good.....it sends a signal of safety to our nervous systems and THAT is what starts well-being at a cellular level.

Come listen as I talk about the one thing standing in the way of a reading and writing life that makes your actual life better and helps you feel better, too. 

We'll take a sensory audit of our reading and writing and brainstorm key ways to speak the language of our bodies and truly enhance our practice. 

Click the podcast link in my bio or visit me on Substack to listen!
On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m ta On this episode of the KidLit Love podcast, I’m talking with Melanie Dale about her newest upper middle grade novel: A GIRL OF LORE.

In this atmospheric paranormal novel, inner demons and town secrets collide in the haunting Southern town of London, Georgia. It had me guessing on every page, closing my eyes on some of them and truly inviting me into Mina’s world throughout.

Come listen as we talk about the unexpected way Melanie decided to write her first middle grade novel, the varied themes and entry points for all readers and why you should read it and hug it, too. Don’t be mistaken: even if you do not typically read novels like this, this book is for you. It’s enchanting. 

@melanierdale
#KidLitLove Podcast Link in Bio
#ALitLife
Books make Mondays better! This month, my one wor Books make Mondays better!

This month, my one word theme is RELEASE: of the past, of the things that no longer serve me....and the clothes that no longer fit. =)

This memoir is part of my book apothecary for the month to help me do just that:

THEY LEFT US EVERYTHING by Plum Johnson

It's been hailed as "a funny, touching memoir about the importance of preserving family history to make sense of the past and nurturing family bonds to safeguard the future."

I'm only two chapters in and I cannot get enough quickly enough. I have a feeling I'll hug this one after I'm done.

What books are making your Monday better?

#BooksMakeMondaysBetter
#IMWAYR
#ALitLife
#Memoirs
A Note from my Nudge Notebook... A Nudge Notebook A Note from my Nudge Notebook...

A Nudge Notebook is a special notebook where I track all of the whispers, nudges and ideas I get for making my life better from the books I read.

This week’s nudge came from The New Menopause: Navigating Your Path Through Hormonal Change with Purpose, Power, and Facts by Mary Claire Haver.

In it, she recommends tracking your daily nutritional intake through an app called Cronometer. I am NOT a person to track my food for a few reasons, but for some reason, it stuck with me and I’ve tried it for a couple of weeks with surprising results. 

My favorite takeaway is what I’ve learned about micronutrients: 

I’m not getting NEARLY what I thought I was, but after a couple weeks of tracking and making small changes, I am MUCH more balanced than I was and I can feel the difference. 

What nudges did you get from your reading this week?

@drmaryclaire
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