Happy New Year! It’s 2019 and this year more than quite a few in the past, I feel ready to start with something new. Among many other subjects, I am excited to dig back into reading as well – starting with this first book of 2019.
Thank you to everyone who participated this year. It does my heart good to see the many book lovers share their reads from all over the world. From people in my home town, all around Minnesota, the US – and even beyond. I know for sure we have Africa, Australia, and New England. Thank you so much and happy reading.
See if you can find me and my book choice in the collages. ;P
Did you find any to add to your own reading list? I think I have several to mention to Book Club!
One book shows up SIX times! Do you know which book it is?
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Anonymous
A Short Film About Disappointment by Joshua Mattson
Batter Off Dead by Maymee Bell
Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti Callahan
Bellewether by Susanna Kearsley
Birds Of A Feather by Lorin Lindner
Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton
Confessions Of An Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
Covers of Snow by Jenny Milchman
Daring To Hope: Finding God’s Goodness In The Broken and Beautiful by Katie Davis Majors
Don’t Let Me Down by Erin Hosier
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Biography by Marion Meade
Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer
I, Eliza Hamilton by Susan Holloway Scott
I’d Rather Be Reading by Ann Bogel
Island of Glass by Nora Roberts
I’ll Be Gone With The Dark by Michelle McNamara
I’m Too Young To Be 70 by Judith Viorst
In The Middle Of The Mess by Sheila Walsh
It’s Not Supposed To Be This Way by Lysa Terkeurst
Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames
Learning To See by Elise Hooper
Logan and Luna Find The Magic Tree by Cristina Hanif
Marilla of Green Gables by Sarah McCoy
Mary Queen Of Scots by John Guy
Monday Mornings by Sanjay Gupta
My Mortal Enemy by Willa Cather
Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Once Upon A River by Diane Setterfield
Paris By The Book by Liam Callanan
Pieces of Happiness by Ann Ostby
Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Jane Sherron De Hart
Shadow Of The Moon by M M Kaye
Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King
Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel
Small Great Things by Jodi Piccoult
Sold On A Monday by Kristina McMorris
Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney
Stay Sexy and Don’t Get Murdered by Karen Killgariff
Thanks A Thousand by A J Jacobs
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
The Crooked Path by Irma Joubert
The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware
The Dire King by William Ritter
The Eighteenth Century WYANDOT: A Clan Based Study by John Steckley
The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib
The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
The Great British Bake Off by Linda Collister
The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
The Hunting Accident by David Carlson
The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey
The Letters of Sylvia Plath by Sylvia Plath
The Library Book by Susan Orlean
The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman
The Light Between Worlds by Laura E Weymouth
The Lines We Cross by Randa Abdel-Fattah
The Name Of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Prayer of Jesus by Kevin Jackson
The Shimmering Road by Hester Young
The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis
The Wife Between Us by Green Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
These Is My Words by Nancy E Turner
Tuna Melts My Heart by Courtney Dasher
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
Useless Magic by Florence Welch
Voices In The Air: Poems for Listeners by Naomi Shihab Nye
What You Did Not Tell by Mark Mazower
Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
You Don’t Own Me by Alafair Burke and Mary Higgins Clark
Did you find me and my First Book? ;P
Thank you all again for participating. I enjoy this so much. If you missed out and wish to participate you can still send me your book choice today (sdechantal@gmail.com) I can add you to any that come in tomorrow. If you submitted a pic and you do not see it, please let me know and send it again. With all the pics that come in by Email, Facebook, Messenger, Text… It would be easy for me to miss something. 😉
Happy New Year and may your 2019 reading take you on new adventures beyond your dreams!
Sheila ♥
Book Journey 
Sheila, I love, love, love this tradition and look forward to it every year! Thank you for organizing this! All the love and health and luck and books in 2019!
Aw, thank you Kate. I wish the same for you. I love doing this and it helps me get through the days leading up to a new year 🙂
LOVE the tradition, and this post is FAB as always!!
Thank so much for doing this…it has to be a ton of work.
I will try to find you and the book mentioned FIVE times. 🙂
Happy New Year!!
It is a lot of work but I love it. I sit at night with my laptop and the tv on (lately it has been Downton Abbey and I work on this. I love seeing the books I have not heard of and adding them to my own list 🙂
Happy New Year!
I know what book was chosen five times…but I won’t reveal it here…it’s fun to look for yourself. I will say that having that book chosen five times gives me hope for the future.
Happy New Year!
LOl it was interesting to see that! I love seeing the duplicates and always kind of surprised in the diversity of the choices – that there is no “Must Read”, but so many wonderful choices.
Happy New Year!
I was happy to see that too, Deb! I listened to it on audio and loved every minute of it.
I know which title, also. I have it on my Kindle for future reading. And I see you there and have that book also on my kindle for a couple of years already– what a chunkster! It’s so fun to see all the other bloggers with their choices. I didn’t send a pic in this year but I will again next. Best wishes for this New Year, all year long!
Yes my book is a chunkster lol – I have been listening to it on audio as I work on house projects. It has been on my lost for several years at the recommendation from a friend who calls it her favorite book. I can see why.. it has a little Harry Potter element to it 🙂
Happy New Year!
I almost missed you and had to look twice to find you. I recognize a few bloggers here. Thank you so much for all your hard work in putting this together! I hope you accomplish your goals this new year.
Don’t you LOVE seeing bloggers you recognize? 🙂 I saw you, Laura. 🙂
LOL I thought about that – without me blogging as much as I used to (I hope 2019 changes that) I was wondering if I could be picked out of the line up of books and faces ;P
Happy New Year!
Great post, Sheila! I love seeing all the books and their readers. Lots of good suggestions to add to the ever-growing list. Happy 2019 and happy reading!
Yes! I found a couple when I looked them up on Goodreads to link them that I had to add to my own reading list.
Happy New Year!
Happy Nw Year! Thanks Sheila for posting this collage each year!
I love doing it Pat!
Happy New Year!
I see which book was mentioned FIVE times…I won’t give it away!! 🙂
And I “think” I see YOU and your book. 🙂
Such fun!!
I have my posts linked to the wrong blog…this is the correct one. 🙂
LOL Yeah… its a big book. New Author for me and I am enjoying the story 🙂
Here’s my First Book post:
https://collettaskitchensink.blogspot.com/2018/12/first-book-of-year-2019.html
Colletta
Awesome! Thank you Colletta!
Happy New Year!
I was so interested in all the book titles I totally missed you the first time and had to go back and look again! It’s so fun to look at all the books people are reading, and I’m not at all surprised at the title that showed up 5 times. It was my biggest seller this Christmas!
LOL… I am hiding 😉 There are a few that I think would make great book club suggestions.
Happy New Year Angie!
What a wonderful tradition! I loved being part of it this year. Thank you for all the work that goes into this happy event!
So glad you participated. I love seeing the pics come in!
Happy New Year!
Thank you so much for doing this Sheila! I can’t wait to visit everyone 🙂 Especially those reading Michelle Obama 🙂
Thanks and Happy New Year!
Shelia, you do such a fantastic job putting this together. I love seeing familiar faces and so many new faces! Happy New Year.
Happy New Year Nise!
I’m so glad you are still doing this and I love seeing the variety of books that everyone shared. Some are on my to-read list, others were favorites, and many others I’ve never even heard of. Happy New Year to all the readers out there!
Thanks Stacy! Happy New Year!
How about
The Long Road to Mercy by
David Baldacci
Thanks Dee! Happy New Year!
Thank you for inviting me! I posted my linkup:
https://novelmeals.wordpress.com/2019/01/01/first-book-of-the-year-hosted-at-book-journey/
Thanks Tina! Happy Anniversary!
We’ve done this many times with you my friend. Here’s to another great year!
Yes! Happy New Year!
I feel like I’ve waited all month for this day, and it has been wonderful! I did see you…although it took a couple of scans…the baseball hat tricked me at first. LOL.
I saw Becoming five times…I have that one on my coffee table, waiting.
Thanks for bringing this event out again! Happy New Year!
Here’s my link: FIRST BOOK OF 2019
LOL forgot I wore the cap! Happy New Year!
So may good books! I love that there’s a young reader included in the mix. Happy New Year!
I loved the little girl added as well 🙂 Happy New Year Kathy!
This looks great, Sheila. You always do a wonderful job. So happy I’m able to participate again this year. I might have to add some like The Crooked Path to my wish list for 2019.
Wishing everyone a new year filled with blessings.
http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2019/01/first-book-of-year-2019.html
Yes a ton of great reads here. Happy New Year!
Happy New Year and thanks for doing this again, enjoy the Patrick Rothfuss book. I see I am right next to Kristin from Always With a Book, I learned so much about blogging from her blog in the early days so happy to see us side by side!
LOL that is awesome Kathryn! Happy New Year!
Happy New Year everyone! And thanks for hosting this again.
I’m late, but I got the post up before the end of the day!
Awesome, Happy New Year Leslie!
This is so cool! I put a note in my calendar so that I can get in on this next year!
Oh good! Happy New Year!
Thanks for doing this. My title has the wrong author and link. The Prayer of Jesus I am reading is by Kevin Jackson. Here is the correct Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22441328-the-prayer-of-jesus
Thank you Martha – I tried to guess by the page you had showing 😉 I will fix it.
Oh – I found you and, surprise! I have started that one as my first sci fi of the year. I hope we enjoy it!
YAY! 🙂
Hi Sheila! You chose Name of the Wind! I got that for Christmas. I’d like to know what you thought of it. Happy New Year!
Nice! I am enjoying it – I am listening to it while I work on home projects;)
What fun to see all the faces and all the books! Thank you so much for hosting this event again, Sheila!!
I enjoy it 😉
I love seeing everyone’s books.
Me too 😉
Happy New Year, Sheila! Thank you for continuing on with this heartwarming tradition. So fun to see everyone’s books and happy faces.
I enjoy it too! Happy New Year!
Hi Sheila, loved seeing the collage again I have been following you for a while and this will be my 3rd Year and I really enjoy it! I did have a WordPress blog a while back when I worked at the library but life moved on and I’m mostly on Facebook. I found you in the collage and was happy to see your reading one of the books I randomly bought a few months back. Will look at it again, after reading Becoming of course 🙂 Happy New Year and thanks for doing this!
I am enjoying my choice picking it up every chance I get a few minutes 🙂
So in love with this tradition! I made a post (with my One Word too): https://www.truebookaddict.com/2019/01/firstbook-and-oneword-for-2019and-2018.html
Thank you, Sheila! Happy New Year!
Thanks Michelle. I am too. I love seeing the involvement even when I have been minimal these last couple of years.
Thanks and Happy New Year, Sheila. I love seeing what everyone is reading.
I do too Mary – it really energizes me to see a great reading selection by my fellow book lovers 🙂
Sheila,
It took me a while to find you and your book, because there are so many participants! This is such a great post/idea! It is interesting to see what people have chosen. I’ve read some of these, and am interested in many others as well, including the popular book, Becoming by Michelle Obama.
As I reported on Mary’s blog, Bookfan, I’m reading a few books right now, so I could not choose a single, first book this year.
Happy New Year, Sheila! 🙂
I am kind of that way too – have trouble choosing one as I usually have an audio and at least one book going…. I try to choose one I have been wanting to read/listen too… that’s how I came up with Name Of The Wind.
A lot of people are reading Becoming. It will be on my list as well 🙂
Thanks for your great post! Last year’s word was joy but I’m not sure it is possible to apply that in stressful situations so this year I also chose two words: gratitude and love.
Blessings to you and your family, may your journey bring love and a renewed spark.
Good words. You never know where they will take you and I am hopeful they both serve you well 🙂
Happy New Year to you as well and thank you for the kind words.
Hi Sheila, I am a bit behind here. I’ve had a horrible case of bronchitis. The first book of the year for me is The Weekenders by Mary Kay Andrews (chosen by my book club).
No photo! Right now I look pretty bad. LOL
Sorry to hear you have not been feeling well. UGH. Hoep that is better. You chose a great read – MKA has such fun delightful reads. I enjoy her!
It’s a “can’t put down” type of book!
Love seeing what everyone is kicking the year off with. I was stuck reading a book that I had to post a review for on 1/2. While I enjoyed the book, it wasn’t my choice of what to kick off the year with which was a disappointment.