Bookworm 2022

After only getting to read a handful of books in 2021, I made sure that 2022 was going to give me enough for a blog post!

I read a pretty good variety this year, including a professional book cover to cover, which I hadn't done in years. I rediscovered Reese Witherspoon's Book Club. And I also went back to graduate school, so I read three large textbooks on top of all of this 😅. This may be my last Bookworm, as it was difficult for me to remember details about some of these books after reading them so long ago. 2023 may be the year I finally join GoodReads!

Entertainment

The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey (w/Michaela Angela Davis)

Sick in the Head: Conversations about Life and Comedy by Judd Apatow

    I used to LOVE Mariah Carey when I was younger. She was a huge musical influence for me. I was excited to read her memoir because she has been notoriously private about her personal life. I now see why. She has had a lot of sadness in her life, and parts of this were difficult to read. What struck me the most about this book was how well-written it is! I knew she was a talented songwriter, but the writing in this book was truly memorable. Hearing the stories behind some of the songs made me appreciate them so much more. 

    I have been trying to read Apatow's book for several years, and unfortunately, I was disappointed. I think I was expecting more of an oral history of some of his work, and that's not what I got. 

Hello Sunshine Book Club

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen

The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

    These are four very different books and I enjoyed them all! My favorite of the four was Mina Lee. It was surprising, but not in the typical "twisty" way we have become accustomed to in so many thrillers these days. I think it also resonated with me as someone who has lost a parent. 

    Counterfeit was frothy and fun. Quick read too! I loved The Last Thing He Told Me, which had been recommended to me by several people. Crawdads started off really slowly for me and I couldn't understand the big deal for a while, but it definitely picked up about halfway through. I am conflicted about the ending though and would really love to chat about it-- don't want to spoil it for anyone here! 

    I also watched the movie about a month after finishing the book and thought they did a good job, but would have liked it better had I not read the book first. I feel like they made Kiya too "normal." Did anyone else feel like that? I pictured her a little more feral HAHA.

Twisty Fiction 

Such a Quiet Place by Megan Miranda

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

    If you're looking for some good suspense, these both fit the bill! Both of these came from friends' recommendations and kept me guessing until the end. The Wife Upstairs is also a modern update of Jane Eyre, and I much prefer the update 😄

Other Fiction

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

    Both of these books sat with me for a while after I finished reading them. They are not light reads, but are beautifully written. Doerr's novel is against the backdrop of World War II, which I gravitate toward frequently. I have never read anything like The Vanishing Half. I recommend giving yourself some extra time with these two-- I don't think you'll be disappointed. 

Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin

The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Down

    These are a couple of novels I read for one of my classes. They'd be best for 9-12 year olds probably, but I thought they were pretty entertaining, so I included them. Both feature an autistic narrator and even though I thought I had the "mystery" figured out from the jump, I was very wrong 🙈

Other

Shifting the Balance by Jan Burkins and Kari Yates

    This is the professional book I referenced earlier. I'm glad I read it and it helped me make sense of some of the literacy chatter going on. If you didn't like it, please carry on-- not looking for debate please. 

Growing Up in Fancy Gap by Delmon Quesinberry

    This was written by my great-uncle about some of his childhood experiences. My grandfather is no longer with us, so it was nice to be able to feel some connection to him. 

Have you read any of these? What did you think? 

Bookworm- The YA Challenge!

If you are a "faithful" reader of this blog (it's probably not that hard!), then you know how much I love to read. 

I have parlayed that love into a NEW blog venture. My friend Ashley and I have challenged each other (and ourselves) to read all of Time.com's 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time. 

Head on over to https://yabookchallenge.wordpress.com/  and check out the fun! Go ahead and subscribe by email or follow the blog, and you'll never miss a new post. 

Please share with anyone you think would be interested... we would love to have lots of you reading along with us and sharing your thoughts!

Can't wait to see you over there!

Bookworm 2014

So apparently the only post that is guaranteed around here is a book review post.

Although, I was worried when June rolled around and I had yet to pick up a book for pleasure. Thankfully, summertime is for reading and most of these were read during a four month time period. Without further ado...


Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, Four by Veronica Roth

I finally got to read the entire Divergent series and the best part is that I didn't have to wait for anything new to come out. I loved the trilogy (ending aside) and especially the relationship between Tris and Four. I thought it was really authentic and heartwrenching. The added short story collection of Four was excellent as well. Getting more backstory on a character seems to be somewhat of a trend in YA these days, and I love it! I highly recommend these books, especially if you like The Hunger Games trilogy (although those were better.)


Reached by Ally Condie

This is the third book of the Matched trilogy, which I have previously reviewed HERE. Unlike the first two, I was not very enthralled with this particular book. By the end, I was just waiting for it to be over. Part of my disdain I think was that I didn't like who the main character ended up with. That is always a dealbreaker for me! Try them for yourself and see what you think.


Austenland by Shannon Hale

After the intensity of Divergent, this was a great story to just sit back and relax with. It's about a woman who is obsessed with Mr. Darcy and goes to an amusement park/dinner theater dedicated to Jane Austen to get over her obsession. It's a super fun read-- good for the beach! Apparently there is also a movie, which I must watch.


Pitch Perfect by Mickey Rapkin

This is what the movie was based on, but it's actually non-fiction. It follows three groups on their journey to the ICCA, which is essentially the a cappella equivalent of the NCAA tournament. The most fascinating thing about this book to me, is the fact that I have met some of the people in the book and didn't realize they were in it! I don't know if everyone would like this book without having all of the background that I do. It's a really simple read though, so it wouldn't hurt to try!


I Want my MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution by Rob Tannenbaum
If you haven't figured it out by now, I LOVE reading about pop culture! This book was completely awesome and exactly what I expected. I kind of wish they would do a part two on the more recent history of MTV, but I digress. It's an oral history of sorts, and as such, there are tons of contributors within each chapter. Sometimes that made it a little hard to follow, but it was so entertaining. It reminded me of Top of the Rock, which I enjoyed as well.


Did I Do That? The Best (and Worst) of the 90's by Amber Humphrey

Complete coffee table book, so easily consumable. Exactly what you would expect from the title. There were 2-4 pages per item, dedicated to everything from Captain Planet to Beanie Babies to boy bands. If you grew up in the 90's, you can't go wrong with this book!


And there you have it. Not quite as lengthy as some years, but I packed a lot into a short amount of time! I'm currently reading The Giver quartet and have already finished the titular book, but will wait and review those next year.

Hope you found something new to try... what did YOU read this year?

Bookworm- 2012 Part 2

We're going to pretend that I'm not writing this two months after I intended to :-)


For the second half of 2012, I found myself reading several sequels, most of which I had read the previous titles within the past couple of years.

Pandemonium and Hana by Lauren Oliver 
     Pandemonium is the first sequel to Delirium, which I previously wrote about a few months ago. I couldn't wait to dive in to this book, after the ending of the previous one. Unfortunately, it was a bit slow, which I think was partly due to the format of the story, which switched from chapter to chapter between "Then" and "Now." It did pick up more near the end, and, as with the first one, the last page of the book was gripping and I can't wait to read the final book!
     I'm not sure how to classify Hana. It takes place at the same time as Delirium and is told from the point of view of the main character's best friend. It was very short, which is mostly why I read it, and gave some more insight into the actions of this character. However, I don't really think it added much to my experience with the story, so I don't recommend reading it.

The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson
      I also wrote about 13 Little Blue Envelopes previously. I actually had no idea there was a sequel, but was messing around on the Richland County Library's e-reader app and found this book. I can't really say too much about this one without revealing what happened in the previous book. With that said, I didn't really like the conclusion of the story and think maybe it was better that we just not know what happened!

Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares
     This is the long awaited follow up to the popular Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. I loved those books, so of course had high hopes for this one. Well, just like the other sequels I read this year, I was disappointed. To talk about my reasons would be a huge spoiler, so I will just warn those of you still planning to read this book that the tone is very different from the previous ones. I still recommend that you read it to help you conclude the girls' story.



The two non-sequel books I read the second half of this year could not have been more different:

A Time to Kill by John Grisham
     I don't think it's a secret that I love John Grisham. And this book did not end my love affair. It was a very sensitive topic, and had some language I could have done without, but what a powerful story. I love that all of his characters are so developed and relatable. It is easy to imagine what they might do or say and understand the actions that they take. This is also the first Grisham novel I've read that I actually enjoyed the movie as well. Book recommended!

Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
     This is a book by a comedienne along the same lines as Tina Fey's Bossypants. While I didn't think this one was quite as funny, it still definitely had some laugh out loud moments for me. It gave me insight into her as a person, so that I didn't think of her as "Kelly" from The Office anymore. I think the book is great and it made me want to watch her TV show The Mindy Project. If you like her show, you should definitely read the book because it will make you appreciate the show even more (I promise!). Even if you don't watch the show, this is worth a read, just for a good laugh.



So, I think what I learned from this year is that maybe I should read less sequels... because they'll probably never live up to the original :-)

Bookworm! Winter/Spring 2012

Whew,  it's been a few months since I've done one of these. I'm reviewing them in the order I read them. Hopefully I have enough books (and variety) that you may be able to find something for your summer reading!


One Day David Nicholls
     For the record, I wanted to read this book long before it became a movie (which I still haven't seen). I really liked the concept: you read about two people on the same exact day over a span of twenty years. For some reason though, it didn't completely work for me. The characters seemed authentic, but maybe too much so. At times, their flaws were exasperating. The book ended up being really depressing, so I don't know if you'd want this one for a fun summer read!

Bossypants Tina Fey
      After that downer, I needed something to bring back happiness, and this book was just that. I was lucky enough to get this for Christmas and couldn't wait to get started. Tina Fey is one of the funniest people on the planet, in my opinion. Her voice completely comes through in her writing, and her humor translates really well to the page. Now, just as a warning, there is definitely some language in this book at times, but it is hilarious. I would definitely recommend this one!

Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte
     This is the other book I got for Christmas. It is my mom's all time favorite book and I'd always promised her I'd read it, so this was my chance to make good on it. It took me SO LONG to get through this book, which you know if you follow my 'Friday Four' blogs. Almost the entire first half of the book could have been condensed into half of that length. I will tell you what I liked in a minute, but first let me rant for a moment. A good part of this book takes place in Jane's head, with many of her thoughts on the page. As she goes from place to place, she repeats her story to each new group, and it's repeated in the text. Guess what Charlotte Bronte? We already know what happened to her; we read it 100 pages ago! That was incredibly frustrating, as was the fact that literally nothing "happened" for the whole first half of the book. Once something did happen, it was actually fairly good, suspenseful even. It just took so long to get there.
     I won't completely say that I wouldn't recommend this book, I just don't think it resonates with "today's woman" as it may have resonated with those in the past. To get the gist of the story, I would say just watch the movie (haven't seen it though), because the narrative is probably much more condensed, and therefore flows better.    

13 Little Blue Envelopes Maureen Johnson
     I think I could have read anything following Jane Eyre and would have enjoyed it. However, this was definitely a fun read. A teenage girl receives a package from her aunt, that has passed away, with 13 envelopes. She can only open one at a time and has to do what each one says before she opens the next one. The journey takes her all over Europe and she meets interesting people and does cool things along the way. Anyway, this was a super easy read, and perfect for the summer!

The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold
     I'm still not sure how I feel about this book. I'm glad I read it, and it was interesting. It's a very difficult subject, so I respect the author for even tackling it. Two things bothered me though. First, the portrayal of heaven was quite ridiculous. There was no mention of God whatsoever. Second, the ending was anti-climatic and there was not enough resolution for me. I have seen this movie, and I liked it okay. I think you'll just have to make up your own mind about this one!

Delirium Lauren Oliver
     I'm not going to write much about this one because I want everyone to go read it RIGHT. NOW. This is my favorite book of the past few months. It's a young adult dystopian novel and the first of a trilogy. When the book ended, I wanted to immediately know what happened next! 


What have you read  lately?