December Reads

1. Slammerkin By E. Donoghue
2. The Christmas Theif By M. Higgins clark
3. The Age of Innocence By: Edith Wharton
4. The Nanny Diaries by: E. Laughlin
5. Christmas Wishes By D. Macomber
6. Ghost Chronicles By: Maureen Wood
7. Eclipse By: S. Meyer
8. Breaking Dawn By: S. Meyer


Not a bad month in lieu of all the Holiday hooplah!

Challenges met: 75 books read for the Year

Non fiction: 1
Classics: 1
Pulitzer Prize winner: 1

Next year I would like to, again, finish 75 books, and try to post to this blog ALOT more often! It's sad that I only posted 37 times this year, and I read 75 books, which means not a whole lot of reviews happened....so next year I am definitely going to work on that!

Also, thank you to all my new followers! I am hoping maybe you will motivate me to keep on top of this blog!

Yearly for 2009:
Books read: 75
Pages read: 26,462

November Reads

1. The Quilters Kitchen J. Chiaverini
2. Joy Luck Club A. Tan
3. Babylon Sisters P. Cleage
4. Heart and Soul M. Binchy
5. Wuthering Heights E. Bronte
6. New Moon S. Meyer

Libray:4
Classics: 1

October Reads

1. Baby Proof E. Griffin
2. The Fountainhead A. Rand
3. The Bestseller O. Goldsmith
4. Thursdays at Eight D. Macomber
5. Househusband A. Hudler

Challenge met: 60 Book Challenge for 2009

Read-a-thon! G-o-o-o Readers!!!

Today is the day!! And while I did not sign up as an official cheerleader or reader, I am still trying to hit up blogs I see on my sidebar coming up with read-a-thon updates! So, if you are doing the read-a thon and you happen across one of my comments left on your blog and came to this one....I'm waving my pom poms for you all!!! You can do it!!!!

Frustration!!!

For some reason I am not able to access "Goodreads". This has been going on for almost a week now. It's annoying. I think it's a server thing, because I am on a armed forces network, things get blocked for security reasons. Grrrr...

So, I have started cataloguing my books at "Visual bookshelf" on facebook. I am really liking that app. I also joined up with librarything. I don't know why, but I just love cataloguing my books and seeing what others are reading as well. You'd think that the blogosphere would do it for me, but nooooo, I have to have a special Book site to work off of! lol.

Oh well. It's crazy I actually find myself online playing around with these dumb sites more than just sitting my behind down and reading. Putting all those books into the profiles can be very time consuming....:/

Well, I finished "The Fountainhead". It was really good I thought. I will write more about that later when I'm not so tired and can think straight, I have had a really bad headache all day so I'm ready for bed. =) Good night!

Book Review: "Baby Proof" by Emily Griffin

Title: Baby Proof
Author: Emily Griffin
Pages: 340
Personal Rating: B or 4/5
Number read this year: 57
Pages read for the Year:18,572


From the Book Jacket:
First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes...a baby carriage? Isn't that what all women want?

Not so for Claudia Parr. And just as she gives up on finding a man who feels the same way, she meets warm, wonderful Ben. Things seem too good to be true when they fall in love and agree to buck tradition with a satisfying, child free marriage. Then the unexpected occurs: one of them has a change of heart. One of them wants children afterall.

This is a witty, heartfelt story about what happens to the perfect couple when they suddenly want different things. It's about feeling that your life is set and then realizing that nothing is as you thought it was- and that there is no possible compromise. It's about deciding what is most important in life,and taking chances to get it. But most of all it's about the things we will do- and won't do- for love.

I have read two other books by this author and they were both pretty good. This was definitely a "brain candy" sort of book. It was an easy, fast read.

I gave this one a 4 out of 5 rating because I found it (along with her other two) very predictable, even though they are fun, they are your run-of-the-mill chick lit book.

And here it is again!!

The 24 hour read-a-thon!! I have not participated in it yet, though it is tempting!!! I do love to read blogs about it though. I don't really feel like I have broken into the whole "Book blogging community" yet, though I badly want to.
I'm a lurker for the most part, because my blog here...well, it's not great...not like some of the other blogs I see out there.

But, I love reading about all the challenges going on, and of course the great 24 hour read a thon! Maybe in the spring, I will be able to participate. Right now I'm just going to continue to watch everyone else's progress and see if I can pick up some more great reads to throw on my ever growing TBR list!!!

Not blogging much, but still reading obsessively

As my title says I don't know why, but I tend to ignore this blog. I don't mean to, I am very active at goodreads.com, and love keeping track of my books and what I am reading, and I LOVE to follow other books blogs (as you'll see my blogroll on my sidebar) but when it comes to writing about the books I am reading, I stink!!!

I must work on that.

Well, my yearly goal was to read 60 books, I am almost there! On # 56 now, so I think I should reach my goal there.

I have finished a few personal challenges as well. My Sci-Fi/fantasy challenge has been met. I read the His Dark Material's trilogy by P. Pullman. I really enjoyed them. I also met my "Read 40 books off my TBR list for this year" challenge as well.

I also did the Spring Reading thing challenge and finished it.

However a few of my personal challenges, thus far have gone un finished, but! I still have 2 and a little more than a half of a month to finish those.

Off to crack open the books, I would like to see a finish on "The Fountainhead" this week. We shall see how that goes!

September Reads

1. Don't Look Down J. Crusie
2. My Sisters Keeper J. Piccoult
3. Home Song L. Spencer
4. The Amber Spyglass P. Pullman
5. The Summer I Dared B. Delinsky
6. The House of the Seven Gables N. Hawthorne


Audio:1
Classics: 1
challenges met: 18,000 pages for the year 2009

The Summer I Dared by Barbara Delinsky

Title: The Summer I Dared
Author: Barbara Delinsky
Pages: 491
Personal Rating: A or 5/5
Number read this year: 56
Pages Read this Year: 18,232

From the Back of the Book:

"On Big Sawyer island, life is as steady as the routine of the lobstermen who leave with the tide each morning and return with their haul each night. But for forty-year-old New Yorker Julia Bechtel, life and what's important in it, are about to be forever altered when she survives a terrible boat accident en route to the island. Now in the company of her aunt and daughter, Julia finds herself feeling strangley connected to the tragedy's other survivors- Noah, a divorced lobsterman, and Kim, a young woman rendered mute since her rescue- and newly outraged at the state of her marriage to a domineering man. Seeing the world with new eyes, Julia vows to embrace life with all it's joys and uncertanties. And the journey begins on Big Sawyer..."

I am a big Barbara Delinsky fan. I have read some good ones, some great ones, and some bad ones from this author. This one was a good one, not up to par with her "Looking for Peyton's Place" but well written just the same.

I do, however commend her desire to go out of her comfort zone to speak and write about something completely foriegn to her. At the back of the book there is an interview with Barbara and they asked what inspired this book. She was thinking of several tragedies that had occured around the time of the writing of this book, one being the 9-11 attacks on the world trade center and she wanted to feel what survivors of a tragic accident felt, and try to portray that. I believe she did a great job of just this in "The Summer I Dared".

August Reads

1. Twilight S. Meyer
2. Mrs. Dalloway V. Woolfe
3. The Jane Austen Book Club K.J Fowler
4. B is for Burglar S. Grafton
5. The Guardian N. Sparks
6. The Other Boleyn Girl P. Greggory
7. Angels All Over Town L. Rice
8. Catching Heaven S. Hall
9. The Subtle Knife P. Pullman

Classics: 1
Audio: 2

July Reads

1. Daring to Dream N. Roberts
2. Holding the Dream N. Roberts
3. Land of A Hundred Wonders L. Kagen
4. Finding the Dream N. Roberts
5. Moby Dick H. Melville
6. Miranda Blue Calling
7. Full House J. Evanovich
8. Atonement I. McEwan

Classics: 1
Pulitzer: 1

Not working sure helped me get more reading in this month.

June Reads

1. The Reading group E. Noble
2. The Grief club M. Beattie
3. Middlesex J. Euginides
4. While They're at War K. Henderson
5. Miss Julia Meets Her Match A. Ross
6. Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons L. Landvick
7. The Mirror L. Freed

I got a few more books read this month, as I didn't have the internet to distract me as we just arrived Japan and were trying to get settled.

Non-Fiction-2
Pulitzer-1

A completed challenge.

I actually completed all 12 books on my Spring Reading Thing challenge list. Plus 9 others as well. I have been reading like crazy. We were int he middle of a move overseas, and so had no internet for awhile, and so had lots of extra time to get some reading done!I want to see if there is a Summer reading challenge out there somewhere. If anyone knows of any, please let me know! I have really been ploughin through the stacks lately! i am glad I joined the challenge, and am proud of myself for finishing it.

May Reads

1. All This Belongs to Me A. Hudler
2. Ghosts of the Range D. Munn
3. I do (But I don't) C. Lockwood
4. Just Beyond the Clouds K. Kingsbury
5. A little Help from Above S. Rosenberg
6. The New codependency M. Beattie


This was a busy month trying to move to Japan, so didn't have a whole lot of time to read, but I did get a few in.

Non-Fiction: 2
Challenges met: Spring Reading Thing for 2009

April Reads

1. The Sandcastle RM Brown
2. Texas Haunted Forts E. Coleman
3. Colony A.R. Siddons
4. The Blind Assassin M. Atwood
5. City Ghosts B. Sammons
6. Emma J. Austen
7. The Lucky One N. Sparks
8. The Clan of the Cave Bear J.M. Auel

Re-reads:2
Library: 2
Classics: 1
Audio:1

Spring Reading Thing update

I am doing really well on my goals so far for this challenge. I had set out to read 12 books, and I am already finished with 7 out of the 12, so that means I am more than half way finished with my list. Not to mention that in between all that I also read two other books that were (are) not on my list: "The Blind Assassin" and "The Sand Castle". I think staying off the computer for the most part has really helped me acheive this. I do still have days where I spend massive amounts of time online, but I have really tried to cut back on my computer time. I am getting alot more things done. Both in reading and Cross stitch. I am definitely gonna reach my Spring Reading Thing goal. =)

Books via Mail...

On Friday a wonderful package arrived for me from my friend, Pamela. She and I are friends at paperbackswap.com. I ordered from her three books and she was so wonderfully kind and sent me a 4th for free! I got:

~Middlesex (Been wanting to read this one for a while)
~Miranda Blue Calling
~Quite a Year For Plums
~ Dang it, I forgot the title! The other Bolyn Girl I think it is...I gotta double check.

I am so excited! I know, I do not need anymore books! But Oh well. I didn't need the chicken McNuggets I ate tonight for dinner either, but they were sure good!

Now I am just wondering, should I start reading them now,or do I wait and dive into them when hubby and I move? I do have a 16 hour plane ride to live through. I am sure I would love to have some good reading to get me through that time! I think I will hold off and wait until later to dive into these Gems, as I already have my "Spring Reading Thing" list mapped out and am working towards that goal, even though I got a bit sidetracked and read "The Sand Castle" and "The Blind Assassin" Those two were not on my list, but I couldn't help myself!

Tonight I got back to my list, and finished "City Ghosts" I'm almost half way finished with my 12 book list. This week I am going to really concentrate on "The Clan of the Cave Bear" and "Emma" and see if I can't make a good dent in both those, possibly a finish.

So, that is what is happening here. New books, a few finishes and pushing forward with the Spring Reading Thing list!

Book Review: "Blind Assassin By Margaret Atwood

What to say about this one? The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood? There is truly sooo much to say! I thoroughly enjoyed this one more than I thought I would. I had seen various reviews at goodreads.com and Amazon about this one, and decided to give it a try. It took me a bit to get into the writing style of this one. At first it seems as though she is all over the place, but then you realize that is the genius of this work. It's sort of a story within a story within a story. It's amazing really.

This was my first Atwood piece and I will be picking up more of her works, just as soon as my "TBR" pile goes down a bit more.

Book Review: Texas Haunted Forts By E. Coleman

This one took me a bit to get through. I have a pension for haunted places, and books about them as well. This book tended to focus more on the history of forts and the battles that took place in/around them. And while I know the history of a haunted place is essential when it comes to writing about it, in order to get a full background of why the place is haunted and how and by who, I found that the author focused way too much time and effort on the historical background, then threw in a short blurb about the entities that haunt the fort.

I was sadly disappointed in this book, it didn't measure up to what I thought it would be.

Book Review: The Sandcastle By Rita Mae Brown

This one was extrememly short, only 103 pages. I read it awhile ago, so had to go look at Amazon reviews to refresh myself.

This one did not get terribly great reviews at Amazon. Most were in the 1 star category. I thought they were a bit harsh, as I enjoyed this one. It was indeed a quick and easy read, funny at times.

Basically it was the narration of a day trip to the beach with two kids and their mom and her sister. This one reminded me of day trips I've had to the beach as a child.

I give it 3/5 grade, for it's shortness.

Library...

I don't know why I don't use my library more often, but I don't, and I should. Today I decided to do just that, and this is my library haul:

The list includes:

Hilltowns by Anne Rivers Siddons

Downtown By Anne Rivers Siddons

Enchantment (a Biography of Audrey Hepburn)

The Blind Assassin By Margaret Atwood

The Sand Castle By Rita Mae Brown

I am a lover of Anne Rivers Siddon books, and I own all of hers, but right now I'm in the midst of a move so they are packed away in a box somewhere, and I have been reading Colony for the Spring Reading Thing, and all of a sudden got a hankering for Downtown and Hill towns, two of my favorites of hers.

It is weird, most people get cravings for certain types of foods, well just as people get those cravings, I sometimes get a craving for a certain book. It is sorta odd, but sometimes you just connect with the character in such a way that makes them feel truly like friends,and it is nice to go back and revisit sometimes!

March Reads

1. Being Committed A. Maxted
2. Dreamland S. Dessen
3. Ghost stories of Georgia C. Wangler
4. Getting Over it A. Maxted
5. Ghost Stories of California B. Smith

Non Fiction: 2

Book Review: Ghost Stories of California

Title: Ghost Stories of California

Author: Barbara J. Smith

Pages: 224

Personal Rating: A or 5/5

Book count for the year: 12

Page count for the year :4190

I loved this book!! It was well written, and held various accounts of different supposedly haunted places in California. As I am really in to the paranormal, and true ghost tales, this one was right up my alley! And the added bonus being I was born and raised in California, living the first 27 years of my life there, I knew of some of the places they spoke of.

Book Review: "Getting Over It"

Title: Getting Over It

Author: Anna Maxted

Pages: 403

Personal Rating: A or 5/5

Number read this year: 11

Pages read for the year:3,966

This was the second book of Anna Maxted's that I read, and I remember really enjoying it. It was a fast read, very funny, somewhat along the lines of Bridget Jones, and the Shopaholic books. Very light.

I shouldn't have...but I did!

Yesterday hubby and I went to Hastings to see what they had, and although I swore to myself, that I wouldn't get anything I couldn't help myself!!! I got these 4 new books! How could I pass up the price of 2.99? I couldn't! I have not read anything by these two authors. Then I got The House of Seven Gables, as I have sworn myself to more classics, and I got (used, mind you, so alot less expensive!) Nicholas Sparks The Lucky One in audio!

I normally am not a big audio book fan, but last summer realized I could sort of combine my two loves of reading and cross stitching, by listening to books as I stitched! So I went and invested in a few audio books on Paperbackswap.com, and now I think they are boxed up and ready for the move, so decided what the heck? I'll just buy another one!!!

Ok, no more book buying for awhile now...yeah right!

Spring Reading Thing 2009

My list for this challenge will be short and sweet, but I think it will be achievable. Don't want to be too ambitious.

1. Emma by Jane Austen

2. Texas Haunted Forts By Elaine Coleman

3. Getting Over It By: Anna Maxted

4. Just Beyond the Clouds By: Karen Kingsbury

5. I do (But I Don't) By Cara Lockwood

6. All This Belongs to Me By Ad Hudler

7. Colony By Anne Rivers Siddons

I'm Currently in the middle of three of these, and my seventh selection is a re-read.

Good luck to me! LOL

edited 3/22/09

***************

Ok, I have been thinking about this spring reading thing, and have decided to really challenge myself. In the 2 1/2 months since the first of the year I have finished 10 books, so if I can read that much in 2 1/2 months I should easily be able to add about 5 more books to my list, to make it more challenging!

So here it goes:

8. The Clan of the Cave Bear By JeanM. Auel (This is a re-read, but it's been several years since I last read it, I'm actually in the middle of it and want to finish it!)

9. City Ghosts True Tales of Hauntings in America's Cities By: Mary Beth Sammons and Robert Edwards

10. Ghost Stories of California by: Barbara Smith

11. Ghost ships, Gales and Forgotten tales True adventures on the Great Lakes By: Wes Oleszewski

12.Ghosts on the Range Eerie True Tales of Wyoming By: Debra D. Munn

Ok, so THAT would be much more challenging!!! I hope I can do it!

Book ten

Yes, today I finished reading book #10 for the year...I'm falling sadly behind in my goal of reading 60 books this year. I'm not sure its truly gonna happen, but it is still early in the year so I still have time to catch up.

I have not been playing on the computer so much anymore, and spending a lot more time with my books so maybe I will catch up.

On my side bar I have the books I am currently reading and I've noticed Moby Dick and Clan of the Cave Bear have not moved at all. Which is about to change, I think. I keep reaching for new unread books everytime I finish one, and I need to put that old pile that is currently sitting on the floor next to my bed, on my nightstand so I SEE them glaring at me when I decide to read, instead of continuing to crack open new books.

It has also been rough because we are in the middle of a move, so things are all over the place, I have no clue where most of my brand new books are that piled up when I went on a stockpile binge this past summer. They are currently in a box in storage somewhere. I know I was able to save a few and stash them in my lower night stand drawer, but I keep thinking about other books that I KNOW I own and just don't have access to right now, and it tends to drive me crazy!

I am currently working on a few book reviews right now, and will be posting them here soon. I am trying to think of a good format that will be constant everytime I post a review, as I keep writing about books, but it's not very uniform here, just kinda a blurb "Hey! I read this book, it's # (insert number) in the year! I liked it!" and thats about it, but I want to start writing better reviews, ones that really dig a bit deeper into the book or the material within. So, we shall see how I do with that. If anyone has any ideas on how to do that and want to offer any help, I'd be grateful. Is there a format or something that makes it easier?

Well, off to work on a few reviews and maybe pick up a book before heading off to work for the evening.

Being Committed

I finished this the other day. Great book! I would have had it finished much sooner, except that I had gotten into my Ghost tales book and kinda forgot about this one.

This is book 8 for the year! I feel like I should be much further along, however I am also busy with moving and doing alot of needlework as well, so with these other things fighting for my free time I had to spread my reading time out.

My new read is "Dreamland" By Sara Dessen. she is a YA writer, I have read her before last summer, and was captivated by her so much that I went and bought three or four more of her books and am just now getting into the next one of hers.

I also splurged and bought 5 new ghost books, one arrived in the mail yesterday. "Ghosts of Georgia" I couldn't help myself, I started right in on it last night.

Yearly page count: 3071

Yearly book count:#8

A finish!

I finished The Best Tales of Texas Ghosts yesterday making 7 books read for the year. I got really caught up in other hobbies this week and so it tooka bit longer than I expected to finish this book, but it's donenow.

I loved this book, though I found the first half of the book a lot better than the last half, I don't know why.

Pages read for the year: 2219

Still...

Just getting through the Texas Ghost tales...it is a really quick read though, so I imagine I will have it finished very soon!

I sat down last night, actually early this morning, after work to settle into Being Committed By Anna Maxted, but didn't get very far, as my eyes started to drift closed, so I just said "I'll read when I get up", and disappointedly set my book back down and went to sleep!

So, I am excited to pick up that one here pretty soon, when I get done with my chores for the day. It is cold out, so what better to do than curl up in bed, (my favorite place to read) with coffee, and a bowl of Frito's (A favorite reading snack) and disappear into the world of Hannah, the main character of this book. This book is set in England, which I love, because I enjoy reading a different lingo than what we have here in the states...it's cute, and fascinating.

...hmmm...you know? Chores be damned...I'm gonna curl up with it now!

February Reads

1. Welcome to Temptation J. Cruise
2. Best tales of Texas Ghosts D.S. Williams

Not a great start to the year...I'll get better!

Got a bit sidetracked!

Well I said my next read would be one by Anna Maxted, which yes I started it today too, but I also picked up and started "Best Tales Of Texas Ghosts". By Docia Williams. OMG!! GOOOOOD book. If you are into real ghost tales, this is one for you. I have recently in the past two or three years really been into the supernatural, and I love reading about places that are really haunted, and so I am really enjoyingthis one, I started it this afternoon and couldn't put it down for over two hours!!! I just read and read and read! It's been a while since a book has caught my attention like that.

So, while I am still on track with the Maxted book I also couldn't help myself by starting the ghost tales too. Yay! I incorporated some non fiction into my reading diet! This hardly ever happens, but I think maybe I will add that to my list of personal challenges for this year...to read three or four non fiction books. Yes, I think I will...

Welcome to Temptation

Right now I am reading Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie. It has actually been a fast read...I only have 10 or so pages left of this book. I would give it a C. It is a run of the mill romance, which I used to be a big fan of, but have not been much into since I started getting into book blogs. There seems to be so many more great books with real plots out there.

Up next is "Being Committed" by Anna Maxted. This will be my first novel by this author. It seems interesting, from what I can see. Like some good light reading.

I am also in the midddle of "Emma" by Jane Austen. This is the first book for my Jane Austen Personal Challenge. Although I must admit, I have not picked that one up for a bit. I got wrapped up in Welcome to Temptation and need to get back to it.

So far this year I have read 1746 pages.

Still reading.

I am now reading my 6th book for the year, and we are only barely coming up on the end of the second month of the year. i am seriously trying to stay off the computer, for the most part, although my pension for beigna couch potato isn't helping.

My problem with the computer, is I get stuck on all those dumb social sites, like myspace, or facebook,and then I start chatting with people, and there go several hours of my days! I think I have decided that this year I am going to try to focus more on my blogs, (reading and writing) rather than mess around on those sites. Yes, they are fun, but they are interfereing with some of my favorite other things I love to do. Such as Cross stitch, and involving myself in that blogging community as well as reading and sort of being a part of this community, though I have yet to break into the community as much as I just sorta lurk around the edges and check out what everyone is doing. There are a lot of great books out there!

And I own a lot of them, seeing as how when I read about a great book on here, I often times will go and order it, so I have piles of TBR books, and yet hardly make a dent in the pile, because I am soooo busy messing around talking to people. Or playing around on other sites. this year I am going to try to blog my books alot better. That said, when I get home from work today I plan to to just that, let you in on what I've been reading and tell you a bit about them for now, I must be going.

January Reads

1. Bend in the Road N. Sparks
2. Patty Jane's House Of Curl L. Landvick
3. Slowman JM Coetzee
4. Return to Summerhouse J. Devereaux
5. Alphabet Weekends E. Noble

BOOK REVIEW: 8 Sandpiper Way

Title: 8 Sandpiper Way
Author: Debbie Macomber
Pages: 371
Personal Rating: B or 4/5
Number read this year: 44



This was the last book I read for 2008. I finished it on the very last day of the year infact.
it is number 8 in the Cedar Cove series written by this author. I have read the entire series thus far. I really enjoy this author lot.

I only gave this one a B by way of grade because I found that there was some conflict in some of the characters arguments. They sometimes seemed to be arguing with themselves, in a way that doesn't seem consistant with other things they say. This made it seem less convincing, and almost silly.

I did enjoy the book itself other than that, the story line seemed to flow nicely and it was a fast and easy read.

I can't wait for #9 to come out in September!