The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking

    I first came across the word hygge in an article about how some words just don't translate clearly.  Later, I discovered this little book, subtitled Danish Secrets to Happy Living and since then hygge seems to have exploded across the internet and the world.
     Like Winnie-the-Pooh's comment about love, "You don't spell it, you feel it", Wiking spends 200 plus pages exploring the Danish idea of hygge.  The important role of light and candles, friends and family, cozy throws and pillows are all discussed.  I started shopping for organic candles on Amazon after the chapter that highlighted the importance of candles to hygge.
    Ultimately, Wiking, CEO of the Happiness Research Institute finds that this concept, atmosphere, bonding and coziness rolled together in hygge bring an element of happiness to the everyday.  He concludes with, "Let's face it, this is where (the everyday) most of our lives will play out....hygge is about making the most of what we have in abundance: the everyday."
    I'm still processing hygge.  I think it will show up in the conglomerate that I am: in my home, my relationships and my goals.  I hope I can capture the feeling of happiness and contentment that Wiking unfolds in his little book.  And so, I liked this book, mostly because it gave me pause to reflect on my life, but also because it gives me an excellent excuse to shop for candles and throw pillows.

The Girl I Used to Be by April Henry

  She is Olivia Reinhart. Her adoptive mother, the one who later gave her up, gave her the name and the courts legalized it.  But, her real name is Ariel Benson, the three year old girl left in a Walmart by the man who rescued her from the woods where her parents were shot.  That day determined the shape of her life. 
     Now, fourteen years later as an emancipated minor, Olivia decides to alter her course and attends the funeral of her father.  His bones have been recently discovered, and suddenly, the "fact' that he was the murderer is not so factual.  Olivia/Ariel moves back to her hometown, and begins poking around searching for the real killer, and finding him may prove fatal.
     Well-paced, The Girl I Used to Be draws the reader in piece by pieced, enticing them to tug at the string of the tightly woven thriller.  Bruised and battered by the foster care system and by well meaning adults, it is logical that Olivia would tackle her task independently.  She moves through the suspects smoothly, but not without mistakes making the ending confrontation more believable. 
     As a mystery-thriller fan and a young adult librarian, I would recommend this well written novel to readers who are growing weary of the tried and tired plots in the adult thriller novels out there.The