February and March Reading List – Another 15 for 2020!

Here’s our February and March Reading List! Somehow I kept up my reading and added another 10 books to the list for the month of February, and 8 for March! We hope you enjoyed January’s list and picked up a few new reads. For new readers, our books are usually from a range of genres including business, finance, wellness and anything in between.

At the end of 2019, I set myself a goal to read 50 books in 2020 – an average of 4-5 books a month. I’m now up to 28 and we’re only three months into the year!

This list has some great reads, we’ll definitely have to update our main Frugal Reading List with some new titles, as there have been some fantastic new books we’ve discovered so far this year.

 

Our February and March Reading List

The following books are in my original reading order, and not in order of preference.
As usual, all opinions are my own, and are based on my particular circumstances and previous knowledge and experiences.

1. How to Fail by Elizabeth Day

Elizabeth Day is an interesting lady! Her book was sparked after her successful podcast interviewing people on where and when they had failed in their life. The stories in her book explore everything from work, friendships and dating and just a generally good read really. For anyone who also enjoys reading about failures and nodding along when you’ve been in the same situation!

 

2. Stillness Is the Key by Ryan Holiday

Great book. Thoroughly enjoyed this read. It takes a look at bringing more stillness into your life, through Stoic and Buddhist philosophies, and how it has been used by leaders in history. Some great stories, and fine points on the importance of a little more quiet in our lives.

 

3. Tiny House: Live Small, Dream Big by Clarkson Potter

Okay, this was a bit of a cheat read. There’s probably around 50-100 words total in this book which just describe each tiny home. But! We did spend quite a bit of time on the couch flicking through this book for ideas on tiny homes and gathering minimalist and smart design in general. Some great ideas for those who also have a love for the tiny and aesthetically pleasing homes!

 

4. Cashflow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki

Following on from the classic Rich Dad, Poor Dad back in January – I had to get Robert’s next book. I think overall, I liked RDPD better for the storytelling, but I found this to still be an interesting read. Cashflow Quandrant talks about different types of people and how their cashflow is setup. We’re in the S & I quadrants – we’re Self-employed and Investors. You can be in multiple or single categories – he recommends B (Business Owners – of more than 500 people) and I – Investors, which makes sense. The lowest category being an E or Employed. I agreed with some, but not all of the points he raised. Still worth picking it up for sure.

 

5. The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor

Love, love, loved this book! This is exactly how we live our life, focusing on being happy now, and not putting it off for when we achieve ‘success’. I’ll leave you with my favourite quote from the book :

When we reconnect ourselves with the pleasure of the “means,” as opposed to only focsing on the “ends,” we adopt a mindset more conducive not only to enjoyment, but to better results.

Just read it already, haha!

 

6. Smashed Avocado by Nicole Haddow

I really wanted to grab a copy of this book, as I was curious to see a fellow young Australian’s view of property. It was great reading the work she put into saving up for her first place and investment property, and the challenges you can face when your friends are still partying and you’re a frugal weirdo now. Love the punny title too.

 

7. 2040: A Handbook for the Regeneration by Damon Gameau

We’ve been hanging out to watch the documentary, but ended up getting the handbook first instead. Damon has such a positive outlook with his ideas for a greener future, and the facts and ideas presented in the book are greate for anyone wanting to do better or learn more about how we can help the environment.

 

8. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by John C. Bogle

A quick read, and great for those just learning about the share market and stocks. It’s written by Mr. Bogle himself – so it may be a little biased towards index funds, as he is the founder of Vanguard. We don’t blame him though, as we love index funds ourselves!

 

9. Chillpreneur by Denise Duffield-Thomas

I’ve loved reading Denise’s books. She does a lot of abundant mindset work, and I was interested to read how she used some of those methods with business. I love her take on business is to work as minimally as possible and earn as much as you can. Sounds good to me! My favourite takeaway, was reading her love for podcasts and how much easier they are than writing a guest post when it comes to marketing her business – it was a huge aha moment and we both did a podcast this week that was so much fun and took up less than an hour of our time. Win!

 

10. Spenditude by Paul Gordon & Janine Robertson

This was probably my least favourite book out of all my reads. The terminology was cute, but maybe some of the advice quite broad. I also think it was aimed at more of a beginner saver market, and not so much for the ‘defenders’ of the world (those who are good at saving their money). I’d recommend it to those who are just starting on their own frugal journeys and need to change their spenditude.

 

11. The Next Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J Stanley & Sarah Stanley Fallaw

I had been on the wait list for this book for MONTHS. I was so excited when it finally came in at the library and I chowed it down. It was great to read an updated look at millionaires in the US from both Thomas Stanley and the work of his daughter, Sarah. While there weren’t a whole lot of differences from the previous Millionaire Next Door series, I still enjoyed the read. I love facts and numbers and reading how others have accumulated their money over time. If you’re another curious individual, I think you’ll enjoy it.

 

12. Zero Waste Home by Bea Johnson

This is a great read for those wanting some good tips for reducing or eliminating waste around the home. What I loved in particular, was that Bea had tested some things out to the Nth degree, and settled for suggestions or ideas that are easy to implement around the home without breaking the bank. Since reading it, we’ve made our own liquid soap, orange cleaner, deodorant and lip balm. Highly recommend!

 

There were also a few fiction books thrown in, so for those who’re interested, I also read:

13. The Glittering Court – thanks to Tread Lightly Retire Early for the recommendation.

14. Dead Witch Walking (The Hollows Book 1) – thanks to le wife, Laura, for getting me hooked on this one!

15. The Good, the Bad, and the Undead (The Hollows, Book 2)

16. Every Which Way But Dead (The Hollows, Book 3)

17.A Fistful of Charms (The Hollows, Book 4)

18. For a Few Demons More (The Hollows, Book 5)

As you can see, I’m a sucker for a good fantasy series!

 

So! After all that – which one was my favourite from this stack you ask? 

The Happiness Advantage! This was such a surprise read, I found it scrolling business books on my library app and almost returned it without reading it based on the cover. That, and the fact I had so many books coming out my ears these last couple of months! Can I just say, I’m SO happy I read this. It’s one of my favourite books at the moment, I want to read it again already. Am I crazy? Haha.

Also, this has nothing to do with books per se, but these last couple of months I’ve been loving being subscribed to 1. Cal Newport’s (author of Deep Work and Digital Minimalism) emails and 2. James Clear’s (author of atomic habits) emails. Boy do both of their emails pack a punch of insightful info along the lines of their studies. They are short, easy to digest, and just a really good read between books or when you have 5 minutes in your day.

Have you read any of the above books? I’d love to know what you thought in the comments below.

 

Want some more reading recommendations? Head over to your Our Frugal Reading List page or to January’s Reading List.