Bookworm!

One perk of not having a job to prepare for this summer has been that I've actually gotten to read! I seriously haven't read this much (for fun) since I was in college. I averaged about a book a week. Here is a list, along with a few thoughts of what I've read in the past three months.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Best book of the summer! To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorite books, and once I heard people comparing the two, I knew I must read it. The themes of this story are so universal and the 1960's are one of the most interesting time periods in history to me. I can't really say enough to do this story justice, so if you haven't read it yet, go do yourself a favor!


The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
These books were by far the most exciting. There was hardly ever a dull moment (except maybe in the third one). Perfect summer reads in my opinion. I flew through these books, hardly able to put each down once I started it. Definitely recommended!

Girls in Pants and Forever in Blue by Ann Brashares 
These are the third and fourth books in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. I read the previous two a few years ago and had never finished the series, until now. As I was reading them, especially the fourth one, I felt a profound sense of deja vu and couldn't figure out why, but later found out the second movie was based on these two books. (Whew!) These are also fun summer reads, and make me feel like a teenager again :-)

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Okay, I think this may be one of those love it or hate it books, and I can't say that I loved it. I found the main character to be very unlikable (and don't you want to like the protagonist?) and annoying. I also disagreed many of her views on religion and spirituality. She seemed to come from the point of there being a universal God and one can get there however they please. Can't say that I was pleased about that. That said, I enjoyed maybe the last fifty or so pages of the book, when she actually did something for somebody else. Still, I wouldn't really recommend this book. I actually liked the movie better (weird!).


Others I read:
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Alborn- Reminded me of my dad. Read it in a day.
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock- Young adult novel with some Romeo and Juliet-ish subtext. Would like to read the sequel.
Monkey Town by Ronald Kidd- Historical fiction about the Scopes Monkey Trial from a teenage point of view. First book I read this summer, which set a nice tone.
The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd- Only one word for this book: strange. Go read The Secret Life of Bees instead!

That's it for now. Leave your own recommendations or tell us what you read this summer in the comments below!