25 Books in 2013-- Update

Well, I didn't quite make it to reading 25 books this year, but I did finish the 20th book this morning. Pretty good considering I forgot about this challenge when my mom got sick this spring and things got very hectic. Thankfully things have settled down this fall and I was able to read 7 books in the last 2 months. I wish I had written a little blurb about each book after I finished it, like I did when I did the 50 book challenge a few years ago. Now it's been so long since I read them that I don't remember my initial feelings on some of them. I did enjoy all the books though, especially Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and Unbroken & Seabiscuit. I guess I had a thing for memoirs this year. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked The Cuckoo's Calling, which proves that I enjoy JK Rowling's writing in any style and under any name. I'm thrilled that Hubby has started reading Harry Potter aloud to C & O this month. They will soon to finish Book One and there are definitely 2 new fans of the series in this house.

Hopefully I'll have more success in both reading and writing in 2014!

25 Books in 2013 

(well...20 isn't so bad!)

1. Nemesis by Jo Nesbo

2. The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbo

3. The Snowman by Jo Nesbo

4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

5. The Dark Monk: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch

6. The Beggar King: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch

7. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

8. Carry On Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton

9. Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robinson

10. The Woods by Harlan Coben

11. Hannibal by Thomas Harris

12. The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan

13.  The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

14. The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

15. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

16. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

17. Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand

18. Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberley McCreight

19. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

20. Inferno by Dan Brown

 

Categories

Fiction--Mystery

Nemesis by Jo Nesbo

The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbo

The Snowman by Jo Nesbo

Hannibal by Thomas Harris

The Woods by Harlan Coben

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberley McCreight

The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

Inferno by Dan Brown

Fiction--Historical

The Dark Monk: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch       

The Beggar King: A Hangman's Daughter Tale by Oliver Potzsch

Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult

The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan

Memoir/Personal Essays

Carry On Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton

Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robinson

The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand

Fiction-- Children's

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Embarrassment

Today I volunteered at the boys' school for O's library time. It's really fun to help the kids find and check out books. The hottest titles in the first grade class are definitely Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Captain Underpants for boys and girls alike!

C's 3rd grade classroom happens to be right outside the library, so we spotted him at his locker on the way out to the car. I wouldn't have talked to him, but a couple of the boys in his class said "Hey C, there's your mom!" C  then proudly pointed out Baby A (my ever popular sidekick for library time) to his friends, "That's my littlest brother!"

When I walked by C, I patted his head quickly and said softly, "See you later!"

"Stop that!" he hissed as I walked away.

Later, on the ride home, I asked if I had annoyed him by patting his head. He said yes, because "Moooooommmmm, all my friends were there!!!!"

Welcome to the age of embarrassment...