The Ultimate Summer Reading List

100 books spanning 13 genres

Hey there, and happy summer to you!

If you’re new around here, allow me to introduce myself.¹

I’m Sandy, and I’ve struggled with balance since forever.

Through most of my 20s and 30s, I was harried and overly busy, disorganized, and unfocused. After decades of desperately seeking balance, I’ve discovered what works. Now my mission is to help you find balance, too.

10 Things About Me

1. I love Jesus, radically and unapologetically. Actually, if that’s all you knew about me, that would be enough. Everything I write and speak about begins and ends with Jesus. Apart from Him I can do nothing–and I mean that literally. If you are looking for life hacks, quick tips, and self-help without Jesus, this is not the right place for you. In fact, I don’t believe real balance exists apart from Jesus.

2. I have been married to Jon for over 31 years. That is a long time by anyone’s standards and I couldn’t be more proud of us for making it this far. We have been through some hard stuff (see item #3 for starters). We’ve worked hard to get here. Our marriage has survived a multitude of tests, and so far we’ve passed them all. Yay us!

3. My oldest son, Noah, died suddenly and unexpectedly when he was 9 months old. No event in my life has shaped me more than the death of my son. Most of what I write and speak is a direct result of me wrestling with God over issues of His goodness and faithfulness in the aftermath of this tragedy.

4. I have a biological daughter born exactly nine months after the death of my son. Rebekah is the reason I got out of bed, fed myself, and breathed outdoor air after Noah died. What a gift. I’m so thankful for her. Also, she is basically my clone. Which is so fun for me, but not so much for her.

5. I have two adopted children: Elijah (domestic) and Elliana (international). I don’t know what I’d do without these two. They are proof to me that parental love has nothing to do with biology. I love adoption and love talking about adoption and would love for ALL OF YOU TO ADOPT!

6. I battled clinical depression most of my life, except I didn’t know it was depression until I nearly had a nervous breakdown—I just thought I was really crabby. I have been mostly depression-free since 2008—though, still sometimes crabby. I’m super intentional about managing my depression with a combo of natural supplements and lifestyle choices. I write and speak about that quite a bit around here, because I want you to be depression-free, too.

7. I am a recovering People Pleaser, a recovering Perfectionist, a Reformed Late Person, and the world’s worst Multi-Tasker. It’s so fun being me.

8. I love to cook. Eating healthy food has been one of my most successful strategies for fighting depression and anxiety. I hold an accredited culinary certification called, “Plant-Based Professional.” It’s very fancy. Stick around for recipes from time to time.

9. I love being home. And I also love the beach. And as of the summer of 2020, those two things are actually in the same general vicinity. It’s almost too good to be true.

10. I love lists. (And parenthetical phrases.)

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Speaking of lists…

When I’m not writing here, you can find me at Writing Off Social, where my friend,

Mary Kathryn Tiller

, and I help female Christian writers grow and nurture their audience without social media.

As Mary K. and I got to work compiling our personal summer reading lists, we had a thought: Wouldn’t it be fun to create a reading list that celebrates our amazing community of authors? The answer, of course, was a resounding YES.

We received exactly 100 book submissions from our WOS community spanning 13 genres!

And now, we’re thrilled to share The Ultimate Summer Fiction Reading List and The Ultimate Summer Nonfiction Reading List.

Click the images to take you there.

Take a look, discover something new, treat yourself to a book (or a few!), and don’t forget to pass the lists along to your fellow book lovers.

Happy Summer Reading!

Love,

Sandy

1. Thank you,

Caroline Moody

for your recommendation to Behind the Balance. So many new faces because of you!