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There are one million new books published each year. With so many books and so little time, where do you begin to find your next must-read? There’s the New York Times Bestseller list, the Goodreads app, the Cape Library’s Staff picks shelf and now Martin’s Must-Reads.Every Wednesday at 6:42 and 8:42 a.m., and Sunday at 8:18 a.m., Betty Martin recommends a must read based on her own personal biases for historical fiction, quirky characters and overall well-turned phrases. Her list includes WWII novels, biographies of trailblazers, novels with truly unique individuals and lots more. Reading close to 100 titles a year, Betty has plenty of titles to share.Local support for "Martin's Must Reads" comes from the Cape Girardeau Public Library and the Poplar Bluff Municipal Library.

Martin's Must-Reads: 'Atomic Habits'

“It is so easy to overestimate the importance of one defining moment and underestimate the value of making small improvements on a daily basis. Too often, we convince ourselves that massive success requires massive action. Meanwhile, improving by 1 percent isn’t particularly notable - sometimes it isn’t even noticeable - but it can be far more meaningful, especially in the long run.”

That’s a passage from James Clear’s book Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones. He wrote it after several years of publishing articles based on his personal experiments with habits. This is a gem of a book. Who among us has never had a bad habit we’ve wanted to break or struggled to ingrain a new habit?

In a very systematic way, Clear lays out his research findings beginning with when wanting to address a habit, either good or bad, we should forget about goals and focus on the system we’re using. He then details a way to build better habits, or destroy bad ones, in four simple steps based on the laws of habits. For instance, the first law of habits is the Cue. To form a good habit, we must make the cue obvious. To break a bad habit, we must make the cue invisible.

He highlights major points at the end of each chapter and offers links to forms whenever relevant. There is so much great practical information in this short 260-page book, you will want to own your own copy. Because really, we humans will never stop forming bad habits, right?

If you’re looking for a lifelong habit changing book, then you must read Atomic Habits by James Clear.

Betty Martin was born in Boston, Massachusetts to a Lutheran pastor and his organist wife. Betty’s love of books was inspired by her father who read to all four children each night.