Friday, January 6, 2012

December Books...

My friend Bridgett especially looks forward to these posts each month so I read as many books as I could just for her. HA! Not! Feel free to skip, Bird!

I read a TON in the month of December. Apparently I, too, was on Christmas break. It is insane how much reading I did. I think it was a combination of resting while James was napping, being in the car a few times, and taking a lot of baths at night. Needless to say, I'm betting this will be the last month for a while that I get a lot of good reading in! (I also started a lot of these in previous months and just got around to actually finishing them.)

The Soloist by Steve Lopez
I LOVED this one. Maybe you've heard of it or seen the movie, but I totally missed it when it first came out. It's a true story about a homeless man who is battling schizophrenia. His illness became very apparent in his twenties and caused him to fall off the map with family and friends. He's discovered by a journalist in L.A. who is intrigued because he (Nathaniel) plays a violin on the corner every day. The journalist (Steve) begins writing columns about him and develops a friendship with him. He realizes there must be a story behind a homeless musician and finds out that he was once a student at Juliard. Awesome, awesome story about this man. Can't wait to rent the movie!

Bringing Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson
I am certain this is one of those books that I'll refer back to 1,000 times. I have talked and talked about this book with people around me. He gives such great wisdom on raising boys. It was fantastic! And helpful!

One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
I'll be honest here. I didn't love this book. I love the idea behind it - finding things to give thanks for in all circumstances - but her writing grated on my nerves just a bit. I think that she's a blogger and she wrote in a less formal way and that, for me, was difficult to get through. I WILL be applying it to my life, and I DO recommend it, and I have friends that have LOVED it...I was just a bit put off by the writing style, I think.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Whew! I'm done! :) I needed to mark a classic off my list and I've been working on this one for.e.ver. I liked it, but it was lonnnnng and slow. I know, I know...my English teacher friends are shaking their heads at me. Can't wait to rent the movie now! (It really was a great story!)

The Official Guide to Christmas in the South: Or, If You Can't Fry it, Spray Paint it Gold by David C. Barnette
This was a stocking stuffer from Mom at Christmas this year and I read through it pretty quickly. It was cute and if you're from the south it will make you laugh. If you're not from the south it will leave you going, "Huh?"

100 Days to Christmas 2011 by Jennifer Tankersley
This book started way back in October and gave a daily task to get prepared for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I really liked this book because it was such a quick read and had cute ideas, but I didn't do nearly everything it recommended. I didn't do much entertaining, I did no cooking, and I did no baking. It is one that I'll probably use in years to come, though!

I'm working on a few more for the month of January. I have a Book Club pick to finish, a book for some spiritual guidance, and a few parenting (having a baby who SLEEPS) books in the next few weeks. Then I'm sure I'll slack off for a while. I did read a lot when James was born...but I'm not sure I'll be able to do that with a newborn AND a toddler this time around. I'll probably be doing great just to get a shower in a month!

4 comments:

Anna Catherine said...

Blah! I hated Jane Eyre and people probably thingk I'm supposed to like it too! I love Wuthering Heights though and a new version of the movie just came out a few years ago and it is awesome!

Have you read Hunger Games? I'm going to start those after I finish the Dragon Tattoo series.

I'm totally jealous of people who got the Fire this year for Christmas!

The Morrows said...

I'm glad you posted about Bringing up Boys. I am pregnant with my first boy and know nothing about them!
I must get this soon.

Lauren said...

Its 2 AM and I am currently up trying to finish our book club read! Its a good one and I am anxious to finish it!

Bridgett said...

So funny! I got on here this morning and saw the books and skipped straight to the next post. :) I came back (I am procrastinating) in hopes to find a new post, so I decided to read about the books and saw what you wrote. :)