52 Books for 52 Weeks - My Year in Review

Happy New Year!  One of my discoveries in 2012 was the website goodreads.com.  It speaks to my love of books, my love of recommending books, my love of getting recommendations from people I trust, and my love of organizing and tracking books!  At the beginning of the year the website encouraged me to set myself a reading challenge goal, so I did.  I figured one book a week wouldn't be too hard. Well, my consistency went up and down, but I finished my 52nd book with 5 days to spare! 

For my own benefit (and perhaps yours if you are interested), I'd like to do a quick review of the year in book terms.

I started the year off by reading The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury.  And just so you know, I do not know that because I remembered, only because goodreads tracks it for me.  Anyway, I was excited to find that I started the year off with an excellent classic, a book of sci-fi short stories that were both mesmerizing and haunting. Some were funny, others were disturbing.  All were mind-opening.

Some of the books I enjoyed the most included:

Caleb's Crossing, by Geraldine Brooks
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, by Mary Roach
The Chosen, by Chaim Potok
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, by William Kamkwamba
The Penderwicks, by Jeanne Birdsall

Brandon Sanderson, author

My favorite of the year was not a single book, but multiple books by Brandon Sanderson.  I can't believe it took me this long to discover such a fabulous author!  Thanks once again goes to my friend Emily for the recommendation.  First I started with the Mistborn trilogy, then read a couple of his other books like Elantris and Warbreaker (good but not as good as Mistborn), and finally finished with the first book in his "Stormlight Archive" called The Way of Kings.  Sanderson has an amazing ability to write realistic systems of magic that aren't just conjured out of thin air.  Only problem now is that I've run of of books by this author.  He is projecting that The Way of Kings will be followed by NINE other books in the series, so now I have to WAIT!  I'm already waiting for the final installment of the Kingkiller Chronicles to come out, and now I've got another set to anticipate.  My only comfort is that I have introduced these books to a number of family members who are enjoying them as much as I am.  Success!

I also wanted to note a few of my favorite picture books that the kids and I came across this year.  Most of them are our favorites because of great artwork combined with fun and interesting words.

Happy by Mies van Hout
Jump! by Scott M. Fischer 
Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble by Judy Schachner
The Wide-Mouthed Frog by Keith Faulkner
A Hat for Minerva Louise by Janet Morgan Stoeke

I finished the year off with a children's book called Goblin Secrets by William Alexander, all about goblins and witches, secrets, and the wearing of masks.  Not to mention a National Book Award Winner.  A nice laid-back way to end the year, especially after the busy holidays.

I haven't decided what my reading goals will be this year, so what do you think?  What are your reading plans for 2013?

It's been a good year all around and I'm looking forward to many more adventures next year, both in my world, and in the many worlds between many pages.  Hopefully I will see you there!

Christmas Books Worth Reading

I've was hoping to have this post out before Christmas, but alas, things got busy.  Better late than never, now you can prep for next year!  Anyway, I've seen a number of facebook posts recently, asking about favorite books for Christmas.  I have a number of friends who do a countdown to Christmas with children's books, and I like to give a book to my kids for their Christmas Eve gift to open before bed.  That being said, there are a lot out there that are downright lame.  So, here are some of my choices that I think are worthy of your time:

 

1. The Polar Express, by Chris Van Allsburg

Read this instead of watching the movie.  Please.  A lovely tale about children who know and recognize the true meaning of Christmas.  Beautiful, haunting illustrations.

2. A Child's Christmas in Wales, by Dylan Thomas

This story is about a little boy's experience with the sights, sounds, smells, and adventures of Christmas in his small Welsh town.  The characters in the story are wonderfully rich and quirky, and the warmth and laughter it brings truly will make you smile.  I believe this would technically be considered a prose poem, but it is very accessible and easier to read than some of Thomas' other poetry.  And if you can find an audio recording by the author, or even go see a play of this work, its almost better to listen to than to read.  You can really let yourself disappear into the richness of the language and the story.  I have a soft spot in my heart for Wales since I had the pleasure of studying abroad there for a few months during college.  One of the best experiences of my life. And one of the best days while there was when I was able to see a performance of this work at  the college a few days before my own Christmas in Wales.  It was truly a marvelous experience.

3. Merry Christmas, Festus and Mercury, by Sven Nordqvist

I came across this treasure in some used book sale, and one look at the cat on the front had me hooked.  When I read it and looked at the other illustrations, I loved it even more.  Its got a quirky feel to it because of its focus on a different tradition/culture, so its refreshing, and the relationship of this old man and his cat is hysterical and heartwarming all at the same time.  Not sure how easy it would be to find a copy, but keep an eye out.  I believe there are others in the series.

4. Duck and Goose, It's Time for Christmas!, by Tad Hills

A fun little board book for the younger crowd.  Duck and Goose and two funny characters who are getting ready for Christmas.

5.  The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, by Barbara Robinson

This is a chapter book instead of a picture book, but is a pretty quick read nevertheless.  Its about a town putting on their Christmas pageant and all the funny moments that entails, as well as how one family of misfits teach everyone the true meaning of Christmas.

6.  A Little House Christmas: Holiday Stories from the Little House Books, by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I have re-read the Little House books so often I have lost count, and they only get better and better.  Many of my favorite excerpts (except for my all-time favorite parts about her falling in love with Almanzo - but that's for another post) are the Ingalls' Christmas celebrations.  They are so happy with so little, and I love the old-time traditions and family gatherings.  I'm so excited to find this collection because it gathers all these stories together to be enjoyed during the holidays.  And I plan to definitely get the collection that has the original Garth Williams illustrations.

7. A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens

A true classic, the story of Scrooge and his journeys with three spirits who teach him about the true Christmas spirit of love and kindness.  My favorite quote is when Scrooge is confronted with Jacob Marley's ghost, who is weighed down with the chains of greed he forged in life:
“But you were always a good man of business, Jacob," faltered Scrooge.

"Business!" cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. "Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!"

8. The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey, by Susan Wojciechowski

A talented old woodcarver never smiles, having lost his family to illness.  But when a widow and her son ask him to make a new crèche, he discovers his own Christmas miracle.  Lovely illustrations and a touching story. 

9. A Christmas Parable, by Boyd K. Packer

This is a deceptively simple story about a man who has a dream that teaches him about the greatest Christmas gift of all - the Atonement of the Savior.  I especially love his poem at the end about being washed clean, in relation to the miracles of Christ both in the Bible and in our hearts today.  My mother started a tradition many years ago of reading this book to us on Christmas Eve and then writing down Christmas memories in the back.  We would then review our favorite memories from the year before, and then each take a turn picking one of the Nativity pieces to display.  Finished off with reading the Christmas Story from Luke.  So many joyous memories, surrounded by an eternal family.

10. Christmas Bells, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Most of us know this poem better as the words to the carol "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day", however it is interesting to read the original version, which has a total of seven stanzas.  Two omitted from the song make reference to the Civil War.  Either way, the words of this poem/song are some of the most joyous, hopeful, and true words you will hear.  No matter what each Christmas brings, whether in hard times or good times, Longfellow's verse will give you renewed hope that "God is not dead; nor doth he sleep! / The Wrong shall fail, / The Right prevail, / With peace on earth, good-will to men!"

So, there are some of my favorite books.  However, I can't end without sharing a few of my other favorite entertainments for Christmas:

Movies

It's a Wonderful Life

Mr. Kreuger's Christmas

White Christmas

Miracle on 34th Street

While You Were Sleeping

Music

"O Holy Night" and "O Come O Come Emmanuel" by Manheim Steamroller

"Halleluja Chorus" from The Messiah

"Jingle Bells?" by Barbara Streisand 

"Silent Night" by Boyz II Men

"Ode to Joy" by Beethoven

"A Soalin" by Peter, Paul & Mary

"What Sweeter Music" written by John Rutter

Jump! (and Halloween books)

by Scott M. Fischer

This is a fun children's book that my son actually discovered at the library.  Each page is about an animal that gets scared by a bigger animal, which makes it JUMP!  The book has great rhymes, good rhythm, and kids love to "help" read the story when its time to turn the page and JUMP!  And the artwork is fun, nothing fabulously amazing but not cheesy either.  My son picked this book to share with his Kindergarten class on his Superstar Day, and it was very popular.  The teacher commented that it was a very good choice for that age.  I love finding new books for the kids, and I enjoy them myself.

On a side note, I was invited to read at my nieces' school for their Halloween party.  My mother often reads there and she is quite popular but she was going to be out of town and recommended they ask me.  I was happy to fill in.  It was to be arranged thus: 15 kids at a time from ages K-7th grade, for 15 minutes each, and I would do this 5 times in a row.  I bit daunting but it was also exciting.  I love sharing my love of books with anyone and everyone.  I tried to think outside the box and pick some different books that the kids may not have read before.  And it was difficult to think of how to appeal to all the different age groups.  Luckily, the kids seems to enjoy it and were very respectful and well-behaved.

I had four different things to read, though I found I had to shorten my time and finally had to cut one out.  However, I'll include them all because they went well together.

1) I started out with reading/singing a poem called "Three Little Witches" by Marjorie Barrows.  My mom used to sing this to me when I was a kid, and it has a good rhythm and is fun.  A good way to get them interested and paying attention.

2) For the younger children, I chose a book called "Little Goblins Ten" which is kind of a Halloween version of the poem/song "Over in the Meadow".  Its a counting book, but its also got a good rhythm, and with this one I had the kids participate.  When I would say a word they had to respond back.  So it would go, "Haunt! said the daddy" and the kids would have to say back, "Haunt! said the two" and they would have to do it the way I did, so I tried to really ham it up and make scary Halloween noises

3) "The Witches" by Roald Dahl is a favorite of mine and so I used them for the older children, some of whom had read it.  I started by summarizing what Dahl says are the characteristics of a "real" witch, things like that they are bald, have no toes, etc.  The kids got a kick out of this part.  I then read an excerpt, the chant that the Grand High Witch says about their evil plan to turn all the children into mice.  This is the one I finally had to cut out of the last couple because I didn't really have enough time and I had to summarize the book a lot, but it was a good choice and a high recommendation from me.

4) I finished with Chris Van Allsburg's "The Witch's Broom".  It has the most wonderful haunting illustrations, as all his works do (Polar Express, Jumanji, Harris Burdick) and though its about a witch's broom, really its not too scary at all, just clever and quite a funny turn at the end.  It has a lot of deeper meaning which I thought maybe some of the older kids might pick up on as well, but most of the kids really were quite mesmerized with it.

So, all in all, it was a lot of fun and I hope the kids enjoyed the reading.  I certainly did, and I loved being able to visit the school and teachers, since I actually attended there way back in 4th grade.  Oh, and I forgot to mention that since a few of my books were about witches, I decided to dress the part, complete with a homemade broom, black teeth (braces are handy for this), and a big ugly wart on my nose.  It was fun!

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

I came across this fabulous movie on one of my favorite book blogs just yesterday, and had to share.  It was a 2012 Oscar-Nominated Animated Short so you know its going to be good.  If you love books, this lovely movie will make you smile today:


The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

Auntie's Bookstore and My "Little" Brother

I wish I had a new book recommendation for you.  I have been reading a lot of things lately, but none worthy of a full post.  I read The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton which was interesting but a little anticlimactic at the end.  I tried reading a couple of other highly recommended books but found there was just too much junk in them, which for me usually means sex on a too weird or too graphic level.  I find that I just don't feel like wasting my time on those books, no matter how good they are, because its the bad images that seem to stick in my mind.  Not worth it for me.

I will say that I did read an excellent book called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.  The reason I didn't do a full post on it was that it was rife with language that I did not appreciate and did not find necessary at all to the story, which really annoys me and makes it hard for me to recommend to just anyone, unless I know that language doesn't bother them.  However, the book was good enough to keep me turning pages despite the language.  Its fascinating because the narrator of the story is autistic so its a bit bizarre, but also fascinating and quite funny at times.  And I found that it gave me a small bit of insight into the thought patterns of a few autistic people I know, and I hope it might help me a little bit both understand and empathize with how they interact with the world and with me.

My "little" brother and me - 2004

Anyway, I digress.  My post is about Auntie's Bookstore.  Actually its really about my brother.  He's the youngest of the family, but now the tallest.  We've always had fun hanging out together.  He recently went to basic training and then to jump school for Airborn (where they jump out of military airplanes at very short distances with full gear on - crazy!)  and is now being stationed in Alaska.  He's pretty excited, and we are all happy he has found something that he loves to do.  So we were able to get a few hours together yesterday for a lunch date.  And then he said the magic words: "Could we run down to Auntie's and get me a couple of books for the flight?"  Is there really any other answer to a statement like that?!

Auntie's Bookstore is a mecca for book lovers in Spokane.  Its locally owned, right downtown in a beautiful old building with a big grand staircase right in the middle.  I especially love the little alcove for young readers.  Its got character, unlike the chain stores.

We wandered blissfully through the shelves and parked the kids in a big chair to look at picture books.  I gave my brother a couple recommendations, mostly focused on his current interest which is sci-fi and some fantasy.  We got him a copy of The Hunger Games, and then found a copy of a one of my latest favorite fantasies, The Name of the Wind.  He should be well-entertained on the long flight to Alaska.  The kids each got a "Max & Ruby" book.

And I left without a single book for me.  But it was worth it because I got to spend a couple hours with a great brother - love you Toady!

Christmas Gifts

As this is a blog about books, I felt it was appropriate to break quickly from book reviews and tell the story of my Christmas gifts.  First, a little background.  My husband is an accountant.  I have come to learn that many accountants actually have a sense of humor.  My husband loves joking around, and is best at quick off-the-cuff quips.  Sometimes his more "planned" jokes don't always come out as funny as he expects, but at least he tries.  He rarely gives me a gift without a joke involved.  In the past this usually involves a lot of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups which I don't care for, but which he loves.  Once he even emptied a big package of them, and put a KitKat inside instead, thus camoflaging it, and I almost gave it away!  So, I expected much of the same this Christmas.  Little did I know that he had switched things up...

My first present I go to open does not look like the shape of a book, but he has disguised it and I pull out a book titled, "Housekeeping".  Everyone laughs hysterically because this is obviously a comment about how he loves a clean house and I don't care quite as much.  What's funny about this is that I tell him later that 1) the book has really nothing whatsoever to do about housekeeping, and 2) I already own the book and have read it.  He was rather disappointed by this revelation but I told him it was still funny the way it came across.

I get my 2nd present from him, which is obviously a book.  I'm thinking that this is my real present.  But no, it definitely is not.  It is a hardbound library book that looks like it was written in the 70s, and titled "Women Chosen for Public Office (Profiles)".  I wish I had taken a picture of it, but a description will have to suffice.  There are black and white photos of women who must have lived in the 1900s, formidable looking women like most of those early "feminists" must have been.  All of them with high neck collars, big black hats, and corsets.  Not that I wouldn't want to learn about these tough women, but this book was scary looking!   Apparently he got this one at Goodwill for a dollar.

So now I am wondering in my head how many of these joke books I'm going to have to open before I get a book I want!  Apparently my husband said I looked mad (I was not) so he finally got my last present out and had me open it.  It was most definitely not a book, but it was a lovely purple necklace with the receipt for an Amazon order attached.  My REAL present arrived 2 days later. 

I'm glad my husband knows what I really want, and can still have fun himself at the same time.  Here's hoping all you received some good books for the holidays.  I'm always looking for recommendations.

Obsessed with Bookshelves

I love books, but my dilemma lately is where to put them.  I've got three bookshelves that have seen better days, mostly during college, and they are stuffed full of books.  They are the standard boring faux-wood shelves you can get at any Supercenter.  What I want is a bookshelf that I love as much as my books.  My dad created a built-in bookshelf for my mother a few years ago as a birthday present, and now I want one of my own. 

Unfortunately, this will not work for me as I have no stairs, no long narrow hallway, no stained glass window, and I doubt my husband would ever approve of Nanny McPhee blue walls.  But I was recently introduced to a fabulous blog that is all about bookshelves and unique ways to store and read books.  I mean, who wouldn't want a pac-man bookshelf?! 

There are tons of other amazing and beautiful ways to use your books not only as literature, but also as art.  If you have lots of books, check it out for some brillant (and bizarre) inspiration.

http://theblogonthebookshelf.blogspot.com/

Now the only problem is deciding what I like best.