A Year In Books: 2024

 

This year I didn't add as many books to my list as I usually try to, but in my defense I was busy getting married and joining lives and all that, so I'm giving myself a break lol. These are all the books I read this year and if you want to know my ratings and whatnot, Click Here t see my bookshelf on Goodreads :)

1. The Last Town by Blake Crouch

2. Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati

3. Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

4. The Cancelling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Rikki Schlott

5. The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

6. Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker

7. The Frugal Wizard's Guide to Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson

8. The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller

9. Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

10. Weyward by Emilia Hart

11. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

12. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt

13. The Dutch House by Anne Patchett

14. Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier

15. Women's Work by Elizabeth Wayland Barber

16. The Seamstress of Sardinia by Bianca Pitzorno

17. Barrel Fever by David Sedaris 

18. Simple Dreams by Linda Ronstadt

19. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

20. The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

21. The Prestige by Christopher Priest

22. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (unfinished)

23. The Fragile Threads of Power by V.E. Schwab (unfinished)

The final 2 books I only managed to get about half way. I decided to start listening to Anne of Green Gables with my kids and they can only go so long so it is taking quite a while, and my check out on The Fragile Threads of Power ran out before I could finish.

I think my favorite book of the year was The Unmaking of June Farrow or Remarkably Bright Creatures. I really enjoyed a loot of these and then some were just duds. Such is the life of a reader. 

What were your favorite books this year? Maybe I can add them to my list :)

A Year In Books: 2023

 

I'm always delving into stories to escape my own life. I love to listen to audiobooks when I'm doing things around my house or tedious things at work, etc. I love being able to have the best of both worlds with reading great stories and still getting other things done. I was just shy of my yearly goal of reading 30 books, but 28 books is still pretty darn close. Here are the books I read this year:

1. Crossroads of Twilight by Robert Jordan
2. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
3. Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman
4. Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan
5. New Spring by Robert Jordan

6. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
7. The Gathering Storm by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
8. Dying of Politeness by Geena Davis
9. Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
10. The Cloisters by Katy Hays

11. The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith
12. A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
13. All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley
14. Hooked by Sutton Foster
15. The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell

16. Ruth by Elizabeth Gaskell
17. The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith
18. Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
19. Piranesi by Susanna Clark
20. Pines by Blake Crouch

21. The Signalman by Charles Dickens
22. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
23. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
24. Someone Else's Shoes by Jojo Moyes
25. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

26. Wayward by Blake Crouch
27. The Woman in Me by Brittney Spears
28. Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

I finished the entire Wheel of Time series in 2 years, which I'm pretty surprised by honestly, and it left a hole after I finished because I could always fall back on reading the next book in the series. I've never been a series gal, but I did like that I didn't have to think about what I wanted to read next because there was more to the story. I also read the first 2 books of Wayward Pines and I'm waiting my turn with the final book there. The only series I'm reading that is still actively going is the Cormoran Strike books and I anxiously await the next installment all the time. I just love Rowling's writing style and will read everything she does. Some of the books I read were duds, but overall I enjoyed most everything I read in 2023. Here's hoping that 2024 brings more insights and great stories to enrich us all :)

A Year In Books - 2019

So, like my making output, my book reading also had a slump. I was cooking right along, but with the beginnings of divorce proceedings I found myself just not in the mood for books at all in any form. So I took a break for several months, trying not to be too hard on myself. So this is the first time in 5 years I did not meet my reading goal for the year :/ But that's ok! I set out to read 50 and I managed 31, which is still not a number to sneeze at. I enjoyed what I did read, and while there weren't any enormous classic books like I am prone to choose, there were quite a few books that have been on my "to read" list for years. I can be happy with that. And while I did not write a single book review (bad Megan!), I would be happy to let you know about any of these books if you're interested. Just leave a comment below. So here are the 31 books I read this year:

1. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
2. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
3. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
4. The Coddling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt
5. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

6. On Liberty by John Stuart Mill
7. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
8. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
9. Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

10. The Library Book by Susan Orlean
11. Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield
12. An American Princess by Annejet van der Zijl
13. Tangerine by Christine Mangan
14. Jaws by Peter Benchley

15. The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting
16. About a Boy by Nick Hornby
17. Florida by Lauren Groff
18. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
19. Normal People by Sally Rooney
20. Noir by Christopher Moore
21. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan
22. How to Raise an Adult by Julie Lythcott-Haims

23. A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum
24. The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo
25. The Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt
26. The State of Affairs by Esther Perel
27. Everything is F*cked by Mark Manson

28. Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb
29. The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis
30. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
31. Going To Pieces Without Falling Apart by Mark Epstein, M.D.

As far as my top books, I added 3 more to my 5 star list:

• The State of Affairs
• Maybe You Should Talk To Someone
• The Problem of Pain

I also find it interesting the books that I didn't give 5 stars to but they stuck in my mind and I talk about a lot. There were several this year:

• The Coddling of the American Mind
• The Feminine Mystique
• The Happiness Hypothesis
• The Starless Sea
• Going To Pieces Without Falling Apart

So, while I didn't hit my goal, I did get a lot out of the books that I read. I will say, I also had the problem of starting a few books and not finishing them. I have a goal to finish them all this coming year. 

Anyone else out there find they want to read less at a certain time? I'm very curious if I'm a weirdo. Every other time I've had craziness in my life over the past 6 years or so, I've turned to reading as an escape and read voraciously. It was very indicative of the total upheaval and change I went through though, I guess. I still love to read and look forward to learning more in the coming year :)

Book Reviews: 6 - 10 of 2018

My Brilliant Friend is the story of the young life of 2 friends growing up in Naples, Italy in the 1950s. The two girls become friends early on, but circumstances cause a slight separation - though they never fully lose touch. As the girls grow and mature, the narrator is able to stay in school and excel while her friend, Lila, stays at home in spite of how naturally intelligent she is. This book is part of a series and this part ends with Lila's marriage. The story was fine enough, but not really my thing. It was interesting to hear about life in the lower class areas of the time in Italy, but overall the story seemed to be missing something for me - I guess I don't really care for "series" style books. I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Postcards From the Edge is probably where a lot of our stereotypes about drug rehab come from. The book is semi-autobiographical and goes over the time Carrie spent in a rehab center and the time immediately surrounding it in her life. The book touches slightly on what put her to this point, but it is also not lacking in punny quips. The standard rehab and __ anonymous meetings have not changed much since the 80s, so it is easy to relate if you've had any similar experiences. Overall the book was entertaining to read, if a little contrived at times. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

The Graveyard Book tells the story of Bod - full name Nobody Owens - a baby who is left in a graveyard and is raised by the residents ghosts there. The entire community of various aged ghosts bring Bod up and teach him what they know all while giving him protection from the man who killed his parents and who is looking to finish the job. Bod goes on many interesting adventures, culminating in learning how he came to be where he was and why. The book is extremely inventive - as one can always count on from Gaiman - and I very much enjoyed reading. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Gone With the Wind is the now classic tale of Scarlet O'Hara and her life during the American Civil War. The story hardly needs a recap from me, so I will just say that after being a life long fan of the film I am now just as much a fan of the book itself. The book gives so much more depth to Scarlet, helping you make sense of her shrewdness and willingness to do what is necessary to ensure her survival. The dialogue in the book truly is just like the movie, which made me appreciate the film even more. This was a wonderful read that I couldn't put down, and I highly recommend giving it a read. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is pretty amusing to say the least. A man from the late 1800s is transported into the time of King Arthur and uses his knowledge "modern technology" to make himself a "wizard" in the eyes of Arthur's court. He stays there for quite some time, establishing democracy, banks, production lines, and much more, essentially running the country for Arthur and helping through whatever calamity arises. The biggest focus of the book is showing Arthur the plight of the common peasant and doing away with slave labor in the kingdom. While I am a devout classics reader, I will admit that the language of this book took some time for me to get used to and really enjoy it. After you muscle through the first section, it becomes much easier to follow. Overall the story is funny and a great commentary on how Twain believed the world should be run. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

A Year In Books - 2014

In the same strain as last year's round-up, I wanted to report on the things I've read this year. I did pretty good as far as my reading schedule goes - I made a goal to read 24 books (2 books per month), and I ended up reading 31! It's nice to sign into Goodreads and see this off to the side:

129% suckahs!  Heck yes :) I not only read more, but I feel the quality of what I read was very good overall. I did succumb to a few YA and pop novels, but a few of the classics I read definitely make up for those (Les Mis, I'm lookin at you). Some of these I have yet to write reviews about, but I will update this list as I post about them. So, here is what I read in 2014:

1. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
2. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
3. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
4. The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick
5. My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business by Dick Van Dyke
6. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
7. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (ugh)
8. Let's Explore Diabetes With Owls by David Sedaris
9. Wild by Cheryl Strayed
10. Sanditon by Jane Austen
11. Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman
12. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
13. Watership Down by Richard Adams
14. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
15. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
16. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Book Store by Robin Sloan
17. When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris
18. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
19. The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert
20. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
21. After The Funeral by Agatha Christie
22. The Mermaid: A Love Tale by Lily Dougall
23. Wuthering Heights by Charlotte Bronte
24. The Book of Mormon
25. Animal Farm by George Orwell
26. The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor
27. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
28. Mindfulness for Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn
29. Who Switched Off My Brain? by Caroline Leaf
30. An Education by Lynn Barber
31. Yes Please by Amy Poehler

This year seems to have brought out some new trends in what I like to read. According to my ratings, I am less and less satisfied with modern novels and I favor classics and non-fiction. I've grown to really detest YA fiction, lol, to the extent that if something is even in that category it will make me not want to read it. I crave the depth of characters provided in classic fiction. It's funny to think I'm a classic book lover now when I think of what a drudgery I found reading them back in high school. I guess it shows I've grown or something :) I also have discovered I love autobiographies of people I admire, and I do love books that have interesting or strange perspectives (ahem, Neil Gaiman). Toward the end of the year, I started looking into non-fiction, particularly about general attitude improvement and brain function. I'm becoming pretty involved in the search for why we think and feel the way we do and what we can do about it (hopefully that makes sense) - I know it will be a subject that I can learn about throughout my life as there's no way to every know or understand the human mind. I'm happy with what I have learned in my reading thus far though.

I've read so many great books this year that it is impossible to pick a definitive favorite. I will just let you know which books I gave 5 out of 5 stars:

• The Silver Linings Playbook
• Anna Karenina
• Les Misérables
• Fahrenheit 451
• Watership Down

See what I mean? There is only one modern book on that list. I have turned into a literary snob, but there is no denying the superior quality of these stories that have stood the test of time, some of them for hundreds of years. The characters are so much more developed and real in these older books, and none of them are afraid to give you enough back story to understand them on a deeper level. I honestly look forward to the many books I have yet to read in my life. I'm up to 239 thus far that I can count - only 761 left to go to reach my life goal!

A Year In Books - 2013

This last year I made the decision and effort to get back into reading for pleasure. I joined The Thousander Club and have used that as a motivator to read, read, read! I made a goal to read 25 books this year back in April. I didn't quite make it to my goal, but I came close and considering 3 months had already passed by the time I made the goal, I feel pretty good about what I did manage to read. So, here is a list of the 21 books I did read (with links to their reviews if I wrote one:

1. Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
2. Bossypants by Tina Fey
3. The Devil and Miss Prym by Paulo Coelho
4. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
5. Little Bee by Chris Cleave
6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
7. World War Z by Max Brooks
8. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
9. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
10. Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
11. The Watsons by Jane Austen
12. Lady Susan by Jane Austen
13. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
14. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
15. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
16. Emma by Jane Austen
17. Persuasion by Jane Austen
18. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
19. My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud Homme
20. The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells
21. Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers

So, I say 21 out of 25 isn't bad :) I'm going to sick with my goal of 25 per year in my effort to read at least 1000 books in my lifetime. I'm up to 206 books that I can recall so far. I'm sure there are more that I just don't remember from high school and whatnot, but I'm only counting the ones I know of.

I was doing really well with the Jane Austen books this summer. I had planned on reading all of them, then writing one large review on the lot together. All went well all summer as I listened to each audio book in the order that they were written ... and then my house got struck by lightning, zapping my computer that held all my music and whatnot that I synched my phone on. So I have still read all of her books except the last one, Sanditon. It's a short one too, so I'm really bummed I couldn't finish them all before the year ended. It will be one of the first books I read in 2014 just so I can cross it off my list. I seriously recommend audio books for classic novels - I was able to knit, sew, clean, drive to work, etc and have the stories read to me. It was lovely and I am now a total addict. I planned on doing the same with Charles Dickens' collection, but alas those files were on the same computer. Hopefully I can salvage them soon!

I am so glad I have added regular reading back into my life this year :) I have to say that out of all the books I read, My Life In France or Eat Pray Love were my decided favorites. I enjoyed most all of the books, but those are the two that have stuck with me long term. I also really love that I've been able to keep track of all my reading on Goodreads - such a great site!

I can't wait to read more in 2014!

Book Review: The Devil and Miss Prym

I read The Alchemist many years ago and I enjoyed it so much I wanted to read more of Paulo Coelho's work. The Devil and Miss Prym seemed like a good second venture into his world.

This book can best be described as a good, old fashioned fable. Miss Prym lives in a small town of less than 300 people in the mountains. The town of Viscos is always the same, until a stranger comes to stay and causes everyone to question their moral fiber. The stranger finds Miss Prym and uses her as his spokesperson to the rest of the town and has her tell them his proposition: If they kill 1 inhabitant of their town within the week of his stay, he will give them 10 solid gold bars. If Miss Prym tells them, she will get an additional bar for herself; if she does not tell them, he will tell them all anyway and expose her for keeping the secret from them, which would very likely make her the victim they all decide on. She turmoils over her role in the whole business for several days before she finally figures out how and what to say. She believes that the townspeople are inherently good and also cowardly, so she believes that telling them will only cause them to throw the stranger out. Much to her dismay, the townspeople think the proposition through a little more than Miss Prym bargained for. In the end, she must stand up for her beliefs and call all of the others to stop trying to justify evil actions in order to get financial gain for their dying town.

I had no idea what to expect when I got into this book. Just going off of my experience with The Alchemist, I knew it would be a life lesson-type story. To be perfectly honest, the book was slow going at first. It is well written, but there are quite a few details the author takes for granted and the climax was a little too wordy for me to really say I loved it. I enjoyed the book, the lesson it teaches was great, it's just not one I would read again. I recommend The Devil and Miss Prym for anyone who wants a classic tale of good versus evil told in an unconventional and modern way.

(This review was posted on The Thousander Club here)

Introducing Show and Tell Book Reviews!

Since I have officially announced that I am a member of The Thousander Club, I wanted to add a new facet to my blog: book reviews. I've been reading a lot lately and in writing my short reviews for the club, I have discovered that I really enjoy the challenge of eloquently summarizing the plots to share with others (lol I guess "eloquently" is a bit of a lofty claim, but I can hope).

I have already had 2 of my reviews posted on The Thousander Club blog, so I will start with those.

Critics and readers alike out there have already sung the praises of Eat, Pray, Love for many years; now that I have read it myself I can affirm that all of the accolades are extremely well deserved. I became interested in Elizabeth Gilbert a few months ago when I came across her contribution to Ted Talks. I could see that she was an amazing person in just that short speech and I wanted to get to know her better. What better way than to read her “freakish success” (as she calls it) of a book, Eat, Pray, Love.

The book begins with Liz (the author) in serious trouble. She knows she is unhappy and decides to pray for help. She says her first ever prayer on her bathroom floor in the middle of the night and it starts her incredible journey to better know God. She comes up with a plan to get out of her own element and really explore the world and its cultures to figure out what the best path is to find God in her own life. This starts with a messy and unfortunate divorce from which it takes a lot of time to recover. She decides she will live out the next year as follows: 4 months in Italy (eating), 4 months in an ashram in India (praying), and will round off her journey with 4 months in Bali (unplanned at the time, but this becomes the loving). Originally her plan was a little different, but she learns how sometimes you must be flexible and intuitive to go where your own personal journey will lead you.

What I have described so far could easily be mistaken for a review of the film based off this book, but let me assure you (as is usually the case) the book is so much better than the movie. The movie covers the high points of the plot and, to be fair, does a very good job of telling the main story – the road to self-understanding and God. The book just has so much more to offer. I learned what an insider’s take is on the cultures Liz visited, not just a travel guidebook snippet. I learned fascinating things like the true reasons and thinking behind the practice of yoga, that ashrams are non-denominational and facilitate all seekers of God, and that pizza margherita tastes best when eaten in Naples, Italy.

Eat, Pray,Love taught me that a balanced life is something that takes discipline and devotion to achieve; and balance can only be found when you let God in show him your gratitude each and every day. How fantastic is it to find a (technically) secular book that promotes a personal relationship with God?! It may sound cliché, but I feel like I am a better person for reading this book, and I only hope that I can employ just a few of the lessons in my own life because I know it would only increase my own happiness.

(Eat, Pray, Love review posted on The Thousander Club here)

I was fortunate enough to be selected as a "giver" for World Book Night 2013. I found out about the organization last year and was a giver then as well (I gave out Little Bee by Chris Cleave). This year, I was thrilled to be responsible for handing out Bossypants by Tina Fey. Having never read the book before (but always wanting to), my giving out 20 copies of it gave me the excuse I needed to finally open it up.

Bossypants is an autobiography that chronicles Tina Fey's life. She touches on some interesting experiences from when she was 5 (did you know she had a large scar on her face?! I never noticed it before reading this book). She tells several funny anecdotes from her teenage and college years, talks a bit about her family and friends and job history. All of this was funny, but the book really took off for me when she gets into her time at Saturday Night Live. Before reading this book, I never knew that she was actually a writer on the show for years before anyone ever saw her. She only hit the camera when she was chosen to read the Weekly News Update apart from Jimmy Fallon. After a while, she decided to branch out and started 30 Rock on her own. She had already quit SNL and solely worked on 30 Rock for 2 years when Sarah Palin was chosen as the running mate for the 2008 election and Lorne Michaels asked Tina back to do her impersonation. I found that all very interesting. 

Tina Fey goes into great detail about her successes with the Sarah Palin impersonations (that only lasted 6 weeks), her (somewhat un-sought-after) critical acclaim for 30 Rock, and even her battling personal anxieties with raising her daughter. The book's main theme is how women can be just as funny as men, despite belief to the contrary in the professional side of things.

Bossypants was just as funny as I would expect from Tina Fey. It's hilarious and a little dorky and embarrassing - the perfect combination! 

(Bossypants review posted on The Thousander Club here)

I will be catching up with a few of the other books I've read over the last month this week, so just know you'll be seeing them more frequently in the next week than you will later on. I'm not that speedy of a reader :)

Keep Track of Your Reading with Goodreads

One of the hardest parts of joining The Thousander Club has been trying to remember all of the books that I have already read! I've been reading above 8th grade level for longer than I can remember (fyi - 8th grade level or higher is part of the club guidelines for the book to count), and I used to get books from the library all the time as a kid.

As I was counting my books and discovering "my number", I knew there had to be a better way to keep track other than my not-so-great memory. So, I asked The Thousanders - how do they keep track? Cortney (one of the group leaders) recommended Goodreads.

Goodreads is a website/app designed to keep track of your reading and share with your friends. You can list books you've read, give them a star rating and review, what you are currently reading, what you want to read, see what your friends are reading, have books recommended based on your likes and much more. I'm still learning all the different features of this site and it's lots of fun. I like to use the app on my iPhone and I love the "scan" feature. You can scan the barcode of a book and see the reviews, ratings, etc as well as add it to your own library.

As I've racked my brain to remember books I've read, I am up to 184 books I've read. I know that I'm missing some, so I'm guessing it's closer to 200, but until I remember what they are I'm just going to go with the ones in my Goodreads library. You can even join The Thousander Club Goodreads Group and be connected with me and all the other group members to see what we are reading :)

So, check out this app if you're getting more into reading like me :)

Crochet Update: My Snazzy Bookmark

Whilst reading Eat, Pray, Love a few days ago (I know, I'm a little late on that band wagon, but it's really a good read), I needed a bookmark. Instead of going to my office to dig one out, I decided to use the pattern I got the heart from for my Valentine Owl to make and actual bookmark.

I used the Heart Tales Bookmark pattern by Stephanie Osborne on Ravelry (it's a free pattern!). This seriously took me all of 10 minutes and I've never even made it before. It was incredibly quick and easy and it's the perfect size for my book :) The little swirly part is just outside the bottom. 

Here is a better look at it. As it is, the pattern is perfect for a large novel. If you wanted it for a shorter paperback, you can just do fewer chains between the heart and the spiral.

I highly recommend this pattern, and I've got these in mind for some nice gifts for friends :)

How To Bake Free eBook Download

Go here and enter your email address to receive The Prepared Pantry's How to Bake: The Art and Science of Baking ebook for free! They will email you a download of it :)

Free eBook Downloads

There are a few cute books you can download for free right now so I figured I would let you all in on them :)

Go here to download the kindle version of the Gooseberry Patch Pumpkin Cookbook :) Yum!

Go here to download the kindle version of the Gooseberry Patch Burger Recipe Book.

Go here to get 11 Easy Halloween Craft Ideas :)