I made it to 46! Of course, I had more time to listen to some audio books on my way to work, so the word "read" is somewhat loosely used. Reading them on my Kindle and Nook apps on my phone made it easier as well.
If I was at TJMaxx waiting for Meg to be done, I could turn on my phone and read a few pages. I now got me a Nook and a Kindle 2, so I'm thrilled! I'll be able to read even more now. Well, that's not for sure, but at least I'll be able to read my ebooks without burning my eyes.
I read a lot of books that I loved. My most pleasant discovery this year was the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency, which I picked at the library because I thought the description was interesting, and I got totally hooked. I'm finishing the series this next year for sure. I read a bunch of YA books, which I'll do til the day I die, because they can be so awesome, and this year I started reading graphic novels again, which I hadn't done in years. I also started a bunch of books that I never finished (I've never able to finish a Michael Chabon book. I also really tried to read Moby Dick, but a third into it, I had to give up), so they don't count.
Unfortunately, I also read a lot of books that I hated, but by the time I realized they were crap, I was at the point of no return, so I finished them.
At the beginning of the year I wrote the names of the books without writing anything about them, because I didn't want this to be a list of book descriptions. You can read that at Amazon or at any online bookstore. I then decided that I would write my reaction to the book, and I started doing that with book 9. Some were simple descriptions, such as "nice book," and some were longer, such as the last two books I finished this year, which provoked such a strong reaction that I wrote long diatribes on them. Also, at about book 20, I decided to link the titles to Amazon, so you could read the book description there if you want to.
Anyway, here's the list as it was posted on my blog's right column:
1. The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck (Historical Fiction). 368 pp.
2. Game Change, by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (Non Fiction). 436 pp.
3. An Abundance of Katherines, by John Green (Young Adult). 227 pp.
4. Animal Farm, by George Orwell. 140 pp.
5. Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. 309 pp.
6. When You're Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris. 336 pp.
7. Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton. 128 pp.
8. The Tattooed Girl, by Joyce Carol Oats. 336 pp.
9. The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan (YA). 400 pp. Worst book of the year so far. American Gods did it first, better, and without the melodrama. Of course it's not for kids, but why not...
10. Jumping the Scratch, by Sarah Weeks (YA). 192 pp. Best YA book I've read this year so far.
11. Black Girl/White Girl, by Joyce Carol Oats (Novel). 304 pp. I guess I just don't get Joyce Carol Oats...
12. 12th Night, by Shakespeare. 72 pp.
13. The Prince and the Pauper, by Mark Twain (Novel). 210 pp. I watched the movie of this book when I was a kid, and I thought it was the most boring thing. Ever since then I wasn't too excited to read the book, but I finally read it with my 6th grade class, and I absolutely loved it. It's full of subtle humor, which I had to painstakingly explain to my students, who didn't get any of it.
14. Shutter Island, by Dennis Lehane (Novel). 400 pp. It was a fun book, but 3/4 through it I figured out what was going to happen at the end, so it got kind of boring after that. I mean, the writing is not so beautiful that it supports the book by itself.
15. Portnoy's Complaint, by Philip Roth (Novel). 289 pp. This is an extremely irrelevant book, and funny, and silly, and yet it has so many levels of complexity that it's a pleasure to read. What I like the best is that Roth is not pretentious at all in this book, which I kind of expected, never having read anything by him except The Ghost Writer. I guess that's my biggest problem with Joyce Carol Oats. Her stories are kind of interesting, but she can't go more than a page without lecturing about history, literature, philosophy, etc. in a quite petulant manner. Anyway, fun book. It almost felt that it could've been written by Woody Allen; it's just that neurotic, whiny, and hilarious.
16. The Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown (Novel). 528 pp. I guess my biggest problem with Dan Brown is that he throws a lot of pretty interesting trivia at you, but the way he brings it up is so unnatural that it's hardly realistic. Some of the really interesting facts in the book are repeated verbatim in different parts of the book by different characters, and that's just lazy. Besides, most of the twists are so predictable that it gets really boring after a while.
17. Donald Duk, by Frank Chin (Novel). 173 pp. This is the third book I read by a Chinese American author, and they are all amazing! Magical realism in the form of Chinese mythology mixed with everyday America. It's not as good, I think, as Tripmaster Monkey, but it is a pretty great read anyway (I think Tripmaster Monkey might have ruined my reading of any American minority writer forever. It's just that awesome!).
18. Wigfield: The Can-Do Town That Just May Not, by Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, and Paul Dinello (Novel). 224 pp. These guys are soooo weird!!
19. The Teacher's Funeral, by Richard Peck (YA). 208 pp. Richard Peck is one of my favorite people in the world, and this book is awesome, just like everything he does.
20. Ransom, by David Malouf (Novel). 219 pp. The author added tons of detail in order to humanize and make us empathize with the characters of the story, but I felt that he added a little too much. The book, although short, felt long and boring. I felt I was being fed irrelevant and uninteresting information. Strangely, the most important part of the book, the meeting between Priam and Achilles, is only a couple of pages and feels way too short. It had so much potential, and I really wanted to like this book. Oh well.
21. Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America, by John Avalon (Non-fiction). 304 pp. I really liked this one. It's full of stories that illustrate the craziness of extremists on both sides. Recommended for everyone!
22,23 Percy Jackson, the Sea of Monsters, by Rick Riordan. A bunch of hours long; and Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer. 416 pp. Read review here
24. I Am the Messenger, by Markus Zusak (YA). 368 pp. I actually liked this better than The Book Thief. The premise is kind of cheesy and not very original, but it's a beautifully written book. Probably the best YA book I've read so far this year.
25. Behind the Curtain, by Peter Abrahams (YA). Not the most amazing book, but it's a fun, light read. Besides, Stephen King is a fan, so it must be good...
26. Three Men on a Boat, by Jerome K. Jerome (Novel). I read this book was originally meant to be a travel guide, but the author got carried away by the story. There wasn't much of a story, though, and the funny parts are really hilarious, but they're few and in between. Interesting book, though.
27 How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, by Julia Alvarez (Novel). I liked the parts that relate the experience of the girls trying to adapt to American society, and then trying to adapt back once they go back to their country. The rest is just silly and not very good.
28. Omerta, by Mario Puzo. 336 pp. It's an interesting study on mafioso characters. The story is kind of weak and a little far fetched.
29. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins (YA). 384 pp. I finally jumped on the bandwagon, and man, am I glad I did! This is what I talk about when I say that books are well written, and some are just not. This book's story is OK, incredibly depressing, and yet the writing is a-m-a-z-i-n-g. I won't start Catching Fire right away because last time I read a series at once, I didn't end up liking the experience so much...
30. The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark, by Carl Sagan (Non fiction). 480 pp. It starts kind of like a laundry list of things you shouldn't believe in unless you're ignorant: UFO's, Nostradamus, etc. But it eventually becomes more substantial and interesting. I didn't remember much of it right after reading it, so I guess it's just not that memorable and wonderful.
31. Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told, (Graphic Novel). 304 pp. Yup. After a couple of decades of not reading comic books, I'm back. Anyway, for being the greatest stories about the Joker, they weren't that great, but it was interesting to read stories from as far back as the 40's. It definitely gets better as time passes: the Joker in the early days was a complete idiot. Anyway...
32. Down the Rabbit Hole, by Peter Abrahams (YA). 448 pp. (of really big text!). Fun read. Nothing out of this world, though.
33. The Plot Against America, by Philip Roth (Novel). 391 pp. (of really small text!). Second Roth this year. Pretty amazing essay on what would happen if the extremist fringe would go out of control, supported by institutional racism and hatred. A scary read in these insane days; like when I watched the Titanic scene where the ship sinks right (coundn't stand more) before taking a three day boat ride.
34. Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, by Frank Miller (Graphic Novel). Eoin Colfer recommended it, so I had to check it out. Pretty awesome story: what would happen if an old Batman, with rheumatism and everything, came out of retirement to restore sanity in Gotham. The Superman beating is classic.
35. Over the Cliff: How Obama's Election Drove the American Right Insane, by Amato and Neiwert (Non-Fiction). 280 pp. Is it necessary to explain why this hateful extremism we're seeing is bad for the country? In depth analysis of where this insanity came from. Spoiler alert: It has to do with Beck and Palin.
36. Death in Venice, by Thomas Mann (Novella). 160 pp. A pretty interesting little book about an old guy in Venice who falls in love with a little boy. It's all in the guy's head, and it's all very innocent, but that doesn't make it less disturbing...
37. The Beef Princess of Practical County, by Michelle Houts (YA). 240 pp. I read this to get a break from YA series, and it was pretty decent. First book by this author, and it's not that bad. A little cheesy, but it's pretty funny and it gives a not very common perspective (raising and showing cattle), although the animal-caring story is quite common (think Black Beauty).
38. Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins. YA (391 pp.). I get it! I guess I'm kind of slow, but I finally figured it out: The capital is a futuristic Roman Empire: It has arenas and gladiators, food orgies, mutilated servants, most characters have Roman names... About the book, I guess it was OK. The novelty's gone, but it's a fun read.
39. AF: The Arctic Incident, by Eoin Colfer. YA (277 pp.). I don't know. It wasn't as good as the first one. I guess the idea gets old after a while...
40. Al Capone Does My Shirts, by Gennifer Choldenko. YA (240 pp.). I thought it was going to be a funny book, but it ended up being a drama, with a somewhat romantic twist. Cute, but I won't be recommending it to any boys in my class.
41. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, by Alexander McCall Smith. Novel (235 pp.). This is the most adorable book I've read in a long time. The beginning is a little slow, since it tells the story of the country (the novel is set in Botswana, Africa), but it soon picks up. The cases the detective lady, Mma Ramotswe, are somewhat predictable, but the writing is so simple and innocent, that I fell in love with the characters and I was really sorry to finish reading.
42. Tears of the Giraffe, by Alexander McCall Smith. Novel (256 pp.). Just as cute as the first one, without all the historical background, so it reads faster. I'm reading the whole series, but I'm pacing myself this time. I don't want to end up hating it, like I end up doing with every other series.
43. History of Joseph Smith by His Mother. Biography (280 pp.). This is a pretty amazing book. It's sad to read all the horrible things these people went through just because they wanted to practice their religion, and the fact that it's told by a mother makes it so much more emotional. I wouldn't consider it an actual "history" book, it's more like reading somebody's diary, so I guess it's still a historic document, but not very polished. Pretty interesting.
44. Life of Pi , by Yann Martel. Fiction (326 pp.). Read review here.
45. Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance. Non Fiction (288 pp.). Read review here.
46. Don Quixote, by Cervantes. A bunch of pages. Yay! I finally finished it! Such a cool book. The first half is actually the adventures of the crazy knight, while the second half is dedicated to other people's stories that somehow manage to get included in the book. First half, hilarious. Second half, interesting; kind of a study on the culture of the Spain of the day.
No comments:
Post a Comment