A couple of years ago I wrote about having problems falling asleep, and some of the things I was trying in order to combat this problem. I didn’t want to have to take something, even melatonin, long term. I started learning about the circadian cycles associated with sleep and how important it is to have a good routine.

One of the things I started doing was reading for about 15-30 minutes before I went to sleep. I am not an avid reader, I enjoy reading, but I usually didn’t read a large number of books prior to this point. I am also a slow reader, so I haven’t read a huge number since either! But, consistently reading every night, I make it through quite a few more books every year than I did previously.

About 5 or 6 months ago I had finished up a book and was wandering around looking at our bookshelves just before I went to bed, looking for something that might catch my interest. I wasn’t having much luck. One of my daughter’s happened to walk by and said she had several suggestions if I wanted to read one of her books. I agreed.

She has been telling me for a couple years she wanted me to read Pride and Prejudice, and I have resisted because I usually read nonfiction books that teach me something, like more about gardening or what not. But I couldn’t find anything else, and I was waiting on more books in the mail about gardening and food preservation. So I agreed.

I read Pride and Prejudice and loved it. Such a great story. The book my daughter lent me had 4 Jane Austen novels, so I moved on to Sense and Sensibility. I also enjoyed that book, not quite as much as the first, but still a great read. Then my daughter and I watched the movies. Very entertaining, although the books are better (aren’t they always).

I moved on to Emma. I did not like that one at first and found it tedious to get through the first 2/3 of the book, but I wanted to finish it, so I persevered. Finally about 2/3 of the way through, everything started to fall into place and I could see where the story was headed. Then it became interesting, and I enjoyed the rest of the book.

I am now just about to complete the last in the series, Persuasion. This one has been more interesting from the start as well, and I have enjoyed reading it. I have a few more nights of reading. Then my daughter and I will watch Emma and Persuasion just to celebrate my completion of the books.

Up next – I did get more books in the mail, and I am excited to learn about some of the ways people preserved food without canning or freezing, as well as different types of water storage. Back to the nonfiction. But, these Jane Austen stories have been fun to read in the middle, a nice mental break at night. My only complaint would be that nonfiction makes me tired faster. I tend to get engrossed in the fictional stories and want to read “just one more chapter” before I put the book down!