Reading Update - 2010 Goal Met!!!

I made a resolution at the beginning of this year to read at least 24 books this year. I have officially met my goal, and after this post, I will have blogged about all of them.

In July:

Prophecy by Elizabeth Haydon

This is a sequel to the fantasy novel Rhapsody. It was just all right. I was on the fence about the first book so I'm not sure why I decided to read the second. Three stars.

The Accidental Bestseller by Wendy Wax

This is a fun, easy read about a down-and-out authoress who has writer's block and possible depression. She and her friends hatch a scheme to write a book to get her publisher off her back. Kind of silly but it is interesting in that it makes you wonder how the book came about. Three and a half stars.

Cataloochee by Wayne Caldwell

I chose Cataloochee because it shows a segment of the history of the state I live in. Back in the day, before all the State and National Parks and Forests were created, there were often people living and working that land. Cataloochee is about townships and farmers living in what is now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at the time before and during the creation of that park. Four and a half stars.

How to Stuff a Wild Zucchini by Heather Horrocks
This was a fun little chick book from Deseret Book. The protagonist ends up writing a gardening column for a Brigham City newspaper even though she knows nothing about gardening or plants. With the help of a persistent local fireman, she gets a good taste of Utah Mormon culture and the gospel. Three stars.

The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

This is the first book in an epic fantasy series that is well loved by many people. I myself thought it was entertaining and kind of interesting, but unlike others, I didn't love the characters. I suspect that perhaps if I read through the entire series and knew what becomes of each of the main characters, I would like them each more, but that is harder to do if you don't like them to start with. It was not a bad book and I would probably recommend it to readers who like long fantasy series, but for some reason I didn't connect with it. Four stars.

The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan
Since the Wheel of Time series was recommended to me by many people whose reading opinions I trust, I decided to give it the old college try and read book 2 even though I didn't love book 1. It was about the same. Stuff happened, I didn't connect with the characters, and I wasn't intrigued by what was going to happen. I started reading book 3 after this and got about 50 pages in before losing steam on the series completely. Again, I suspect that it is an awesome series that I either went into with the wrong idea, or read at the wrong time to really enjoy it. Three and a half stars.

Alice in Wonderland or Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Lewis Carroll was a weird dude. Alice in Wonderland, while famous and still entertaining, is like a crazy dream in which the unpredictable, unlikely, and probably impossible just keeps happening. That said, it is interesting to actually read the book (I think this is an abridged version) after seeing the movies. Three stars.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

I love a novel that you come away from wanting to know more about history and having learned some about places, people, and events that you never knew about. Guernsey is an British island situated closer to Normandy, France than it is England and it was occupied by German troops during World War II. This book tells the story of a number of the island residents during that time. It is well written and very interesting. Five stars.

In August:

None (I think). Shocking, I know!

In September:

It's Good to Be Alive by Jack Rushton

This is an inspirational collection of thoughts and anecdotes from a man who became a quadriplegic after a random accident. In his book, he tells how he recovered and how he maintains his positive attitude in spite of the challenges of his new life. Some parts were so funny that I had to read them aloud to my husband. This book is inspiring, insightful and humorous. Four and a half stars.

In October:

Dewey by Vicki Myron

I have found that many books labeled heart-warming don't actually warm my heart that much, but rather make me roll my eyes or imagine myself drowning in liquid cheese. Dewey, on the other hand, is a heartwarming story that often left me sitting there reading with a huge smile on my face and wanting to hug someone (poor Toby probably got smothered while I was reading this book). Dewey is a cat who, through a minor miracle, came to live at a small-town library. His distinctive personality makes this book entertaining and nice to read, but there is enough non-cat information and story-line that even non-cat lovers will enjoy it.

Watership Down by Richard Adams

I had heard so little about this book, while seeing often it's title hanging out with some of the cliquish classic titles, so I was curious about it. I really liked this book. Adams starts in the preface by saying that while many have made it into a political allegory, it was intended to just be an entertaining story that he told to his little girls. That said, Watership Down is the story of some rabbits who leave their home in search of somewhere better to live. All the rabbits are very well developed characters and the book is very well-written and entertaining. I recommend it to anyone. Five stars.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

I recalled when I started reading this that we had seen the 1974 movie version of this book, but fortunately, I have a rather bad memory for movie plots and I didn't remember much more detail than that I had seen it. Christie creates an interesting situation as a train sleeping car full of passengers is stranded in the snow in the middle of nowhere and they discover a man has been murdered. Luckily, the famous detective Hercules Poirot is on board and he begins an investigation. This book is interesting, creative, and well done. Four and a half stars.

Well, so far that is it. I may have forgotten one because my record keeping has been lax the last few months. I think Watership Down was my favorite of my most recent reads.