22 books in 2011. That is close to 2 books per month - though it never works out that way! I actually have decided to be a bit more careful about the counting... It has been stopping me from starting some of the huge novels I have on my shelf waiting. I should stop counting.
I do love keeping track of what I have read. One of my favorite websites -
www.goodreads.com - is helping me to do that! If you haven't joined I recommend that you do.
On my 2011 list there were some gems, and really only one book that I did not like
. Bloodroot by Amy Greene was a disappointment. I came across reviews for this book and it sounded so wonderful that I actually couldn't wait for it and bought it right away. While the author did wonders with the setting, Bloodroot Mountain was so well described I visited it in my dreams at night, the rest of the story was dark and depressing. I was glad to be done with this one.
Here are a few of the gems:
A book I am so glad to have read! I read this classic out loud to my second grade class. I found a copy in our school library and was happy to see that is was not abridged. The original is so much better than the Disney movie. Getting to know the real Tinkerbell, sharing Peter's love of adventure, sympathizing with Wendy once she had grown up and saw the yearning in her own daughter's eyes to escape to the Neverland while knowing she could no longer go with her. This book moved me in many ways. It was written over one hundred years ago and at times was a read-aloud challenge for me, language has changed so much through the years and I never know how much to stop and explain, or if I should just continue. I usually continue. I feel that it was an excellent novel to expose my students to even with the vocabulary and language piece, or maybe even because of it. Some days it was harder for the kids to stick with me than others, but when we got to the last chapter all of us were riveted. It is a timeless story, fair to the dilemma of growing up vs. remaining a child. Genius. Magical.
“You know that place between sleep and awake, the place where you can still remember dreaming? That’s where I’ll always love you. That’s where I’ll be waiting.”
Tana French's gift of description drew me in to this novel and made me feel a part of it. The second book in a trilogy, this is the story of detective Cassie Maddox working undercover as a girl who turned up murdered. Maddox slipped into the murdered girl's place in a house with four close roommates to determine if one of them was the killer, or if it was a mysterious person from her sordid past.
And I was right there with her. Wondering if she would give the game away, wondering about every person she encountered, wondering how she would flush out the killer in the end? (And THANK YOU Tana French for leaving out the loathsome violent details, unlike in other books such as Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.) This was a wonderful novel of suspense, and I took away a quote from this book that I continue to appreciate:
“There's a Spanish proverb," he said, "that's always fascinated me. "Take what you want and pay for it, says God.'" "I don't believe in God," Daniel said, "but that principle seems, to me, to have a divinity of its own; a kind of blazing purity. What could be simpler, or more crucial? You can have anything you want, as long as you accept that there is a price and that you will have to pay it.”
Her Fearful Symmetry, for me, was a quirky ghost story and unlike anything I have ever read or even imagined. I found the characters very interesting and well-developed. The setting was critical to the plot and there were many surprises. I enjoyed this book! I love this author, and look forward to what Niffenegger will think up next.
I have started 2012 with reading Commited: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert. This book was mailed to me from halfway around the world by my dear Australian friend, Lisa. (A birthday tradition we have started, sending a favorite paperback novel!) Please comment and tell me what you have enjoyed reading lately - I would love to know!
Erin's Book List, 2011
22. The Secret Magdalene by Ki Longfellow
read December 27, 2011
21. Guinea Dog by Patrick Jennings
read December 10, 2011
20. 5 Cheesy Stories: About Friendship, Bravery, Bullying and More by Patsy Clairmont
read November 17, 2011
19.
Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne
read November 10, 2011
18.
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
read October 16, 2011
17.
The Likeness (Dublin Murder Squad #2) by Tana French
read September 22, 2011
16.
Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
read August 22, 2011
15.
The Lady's Slipper by Deborah Swift
read June 26, 2011
14.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Alexie Sherman
read June 5, 2011
13.
The Essential 55: An Award-Winning Educator's Rules for Discovering the Successful Student in Every Child by Ron Clark
read May 28, 2011
12.
Fudge-a-mania by Judy Blume
read May 28, 2011
11.
In the Woods (Dublin Murder Squad #1) by Tana French
read May 26, 2011
10.
I Fooled You by Johanna Hurwitz
read May 15, 2011
9.
Night of the Twisters by Ivy Ruckman
read April 27, 2011
8.
Lift by Kelly Corrigan
read April 23, 2011
7.
Arcadia Falls by Carol Goodman
read April 18, 2011
6.
The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom, A Toltec Wisdom Book by Miguel Ruiz
read April 14, 2011
5.
Bloodroot by Amy Greene
read March 27, 2011
4.
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
read March 17, 2011
3.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Annie Barrows
read February 28, 2011
2.
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
read February 28, 2011
1.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
read January 16, 2011.
all books can be searched easily on
www.goodreads.com
