Birth of a Blog

I realized yesterday that I read a lot of books last year. I mean a lot. Getting my Master's degree in Library Media Science = a lot of time spent reading. Time to read for pleasure is something that I lost when I first started college in 2004, and it's something that I have been rediscovering my love for since starting my Master's this year. As I sat here, trying to list all of the books that I read in the last year, I realized that I couldn't remember them all. I felt I needed a way to document the books that I read this year and a way to remind myself of them. So, this blog was born! This will be a way for me to look back at my favorite books and share them with all of you!

I can't promise that I will always read something new to post about because I am notorious for re-reading my favorites over and over and over. (Just thinking about how many times I have read the Harry Potter books makes me smile). But I like to reflect upon what I read, even if it's something that I've read before, because you can always discover something new about it. Also, I'll warn you now that most of the books I read are children's/young adult literature. Once in awhile there will be an adult title thrown in the mix, but since I'm an elementary teacher I'm always looking for what students will like and ways to use them in the classroom. Not to mention, I'm what I like to call a series book whore. I can never seem to get enough from one book, and with a series I don't have to give it up as quickly.

With all of that said, I feel that it is important for me to list some of the books that I read in 2010 because I discovered some really great titles. Enjoy!

My Top Picks from 2010:

The Hunger Games series, by Suzanne Collins. This series includes 3 books: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay. This was definitely my favorite find this year. I read all 3 books in about 2 weeks, and it only took me that long because I had to wait until I could get to a bookstore to buy the 2nd and 3rd books! Think post-apocalyptic America run by a government that doesn't care for it's people, and a teenage girl determined not to be used as a pawn. Throw in gladiator style games, and you have the formula for a book you can't put down! Highly recommended!

Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, by Rick Riordan. I've only read the first 2 books (The Lightening Thief and The Sea of Monsters, but I'm hooked! It's very similar to the Harry Potter series, but with Greek god's and mythological beasts instead of witches and wizards. I'm looking forward to finishing the series this year and checking out other books by Riordan. Too bad the movie was a disappointment. Not completely terrible I guess, but a disappointment none the less.

Bud, Not Buddy, by Christopher Paul Curtis. Such a heartwarming and funny book! Bud is an abandoned boy searching for his father during the Great Depression, and the only possessions he had are kept in a ratty old suitcase that he takes everywhere with him. He has his own set of rules to live by ("Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself"), and they get him into all kinds of mischief. Highly recommended!

The Giver, by Lois Lowry. This wasn't a new read for 2010, but it's an old favorite. I can't even begin put this book into words, but here it goes: Jonas is a young boy who's world is perfect. No pain, no sickness, no poverty, and no choices to make. Jonas is selected to become the next Receiver of Memory, and it is only then that he discovers the true joys that life can hold. If you haven't read it, do it. Right now. I'm serious, you won't regret it.

The Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg. Another book that wasn't a new read but an old favorite. The artwork in it is beautiful and it just begs to be used as a writing prompt. In fact, I'm pretty sure my 7th grade teacher used this as a writing prompt for us, and that's where I first discovered this book. There is very little text, only short captions for each picture. The pictures are of very strange things or dreamlike things. The captions are just enough to get your imagination started, and you can just let your mind run wild with this book. Check it out!

Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco. Although I've read quite a few of Polacco's books, this is one that I've missed over the years. It's set during the Civil War. Two young soldiers, Pink - black soldier and Say - a white soldier strike up a friendship when Pink rescues Say and takes him home to his mother, who nurses him back to health. Eventually they are ripped apart when they are captured and sent to Andersonville prison, but Say survives and is able to pass on the story of their unlikely friendship.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum. Of course, I already knew the story from the movie and reading the book as a child, but it had been so long since I had read the original version that it was fun to read it again.

The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling. It wouldn't be right for me not to include my all time favorites. I don't even remember which ones I read this year, but I know I read several of them. The all read as one big story to me, so I just figured I should include them all. How was the 7th movie you ask? AMAZING!

The Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. I told you I am a series book whore. The writing maybe isn't the greatest, but the story is entertaining. If you like these books, check out The Host, also by Stephanie Meyer.

Jumanji, by Chris Van Allsburg. I just love the illustrations in Van Allsburg's books. They are so imaginative and fun to read!

A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens. I didn't actually read this one, I downloaded it in audiobook format and my husband and I listed to it on our 5 1/2 hour drive to my parent's house for Christmas. I thought I would have a hard time staying alert for this, but Dickens is actually really funny, not to mention it was a nice way to pass the time on a very long and boring drive.

Okay, I think this post has gotten long enough. I know there are more books that I read last year that I could include, but I need to move on to other things today. Like dishes. And laundry. Blah. The next books on my reading list include the next book the the Percy Jackson series, The Titan's Curse, and I would also really like to read the entire Chronicals of Narnia series instead of the few random books I have read from it. Stay tuned folks!