Reading Books of 2012

The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera
Kundera is quite the pessimist and it comes through in almost every word.  In a series of stories/vignettes he toys with the concept of how laughter manifests itself in different ways and how forgetting is a detriment to civilization, (especially in terms of political and cultural upheaval).  While an interesting read full of sophisticated writing, Kundera relies a bit too much on sensuality as a metaphor for human truth.

Shattered (Book 1 Dream Realms Trilogy) by Sophia Sharp
This is the first time I’ve read a self-published e-book from an author I did not know and after this experience I’m less likely to do it again.  While under $1, the text is riddled with so many spelling and grammar errors, I felt like I was reading a first draft.  It’s a shame, seeing as the story of a vampire who can travel in human dreams has so much potential.  The idea is intriguing, but poorly edited writing kills the story.

Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick
The third book in the Hush, Hush Saga is a big improvement over the sequel (I’m not big on the whole “together, then not, and together again”).  The story of a girl in love with a fallen angel kicks into high gear when she finds herself in the middle of a brewing conflict between Nephils, fallen angels, and archangels.  A war is about to start, just as she discovers her true bloodline.  It’s tough being in love with someone who is supposed to be your enemy!  Overall a good read and I’m looking forward to the final installment later this year.

Fallen In Love by Lauren Kate
The Fallen Series is one where the first book was great, the second was not, and the third rekindled my interest. Fallen in Love is a collection of short stories that follow characters, both main and minor on Valentine’s Day during the Medieval Era (where they found themselves in the third book, Passion). While I’m not a huge fan of the supporting characters, I do love the main couple of Luce and Daniel. These two lovers deserve a little romance and Lauren Kate gives them a perfect Valentine’s gift.  As I wait for the fourth book in the series to hit bookstores, this little teaser will hold me over until their next adventure.

Becoming Jane Eyre by Sheila Kohler
While a work of fiction, Kohler uses biographical fact to tell the story of how Charlotte Brontë may have been inspired to write Jane Eyre.  This tale appealed to me as a devoted fan Brontë and an aspiring writer trying to find her way.  Despite the use of heavy artistic license, it was a delightful journey into 19th century England and the plight of a woman to find her voice and have it heard.

History (A Brief Insight) by John H. Arnold
The study of history has never been an easy field to define as there are so many variables. The past isn’t as simple as one might imagine when bias, cultural perspective, and interpretation are thrown into the mix.  Arnold explores all of these elements with real examples (that aren’t always found in basic textbooks), giving the average person a sense of the challenges historians face while piecing together the past.  As a history teacher, his book was a nice refresher on why I decided to go into historical studies – real people and real events always tell the best stories!

The Bride’s Farewell by Meg Rosoff 
On the eve of her wedding day, Pell runs away from home along with her younger brother and embarks on a journey through rural England.  While it was interesting to explore mid 19th century villages and meet the people the reside in them, the story never really takes off.  At times Pell’s “adventure” gets rather boring and repetitive, which might have been the author’s intent.  The writing flows nicely enough, but there is a passive quality to it that leaves a large disconnect between the reader and Pell.

Fever (Chemical Garden Trilogy, Book 2) by Lauren DeStefano
The second book in the Chemical Garden Trilogy, is just as engaging as the first, Wither.  DeStefano picks up the story right where it left off with Rhine and Gabriel escaping the house that kept both of them prisoner.  In a world where girls only live to 21 and boys 25, she finds herself in a forced marriage and he is bound in servitude.  While grateful to ditch the shackles, Rhine’s journey home ends with the disappointment that all she loves is gone.  However, she still holds out hope of finding her twin brother.  Much of the novel is a road trip through a dystopian world where lives are cut painfully short and corruption runs rampant.  Rhine is a strong character and its through her that hope stays alive in a place where it hardly seems plausible. She is why I keep turning the pages.  The last line is a golden cliffhanger and I’m already waiting for Book 3 to hit the shelves.

Balthazar (Evernight Series) by Claudia Gray
A spin-off from Gray’s Evernight series, Balthazar, turns a supporting character in the original novels into a strong main character.  Balthazar is a 500-year-old vampire who walks through life with a lot of guilt from his past, particularly in regards to his sister and his first love, (he feels responsible for his sister’s change into a vampire and his first love’s death).  This guilt translates to a strict “no human” rule when it comes to relationships. However, everything changes when Balthazar is charged with protecting Skye, a newly minted psychic with special blood that every vampire is dying to drink.  It doesn’t take long for sparks to fly in the midst of danger.  Overall, a fun read with a lot of action and romance, despite the fact that it doesn’t have many surprises. A very charming Balthazar is what kept me turning the pages.

The Forest for the Trees by Betsy Lerner
Finally! There’s a book that gives honest advice to writers about the publishing industry.  Lerner’s experience as an editor and agent offers priceless information about an industry that often seems shrouded in mystery.  She’s tough and doesn’t sugar coat anything, but remains sympathetic to players on both sides of the fence.  There’s nothing easy about trying to get published and that goes for writers, agents, editors, and publishing houses.  Lerner tries to dispel the “us” vs. “them” mentality that exists between the industry and writers, while emphasizing the importance of persistence above all else.  I highly recommend this for any writer who is looking to get published.  Just be prepared for Lerner’s blunt style and wicked sense of humor.

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
I read this book to see what all the fuss is about and I can see how lovers of romance novels would enjoy something like this. As a Twilight fan, I can definitely see the fan fiction parallels that serve as the origin for the story, but it couldn’t be further from the chaste relationship of Bella and Edward, (which I prefer). On the positive side, the main characters Ana and Christian are interesting and I like how they interact. I would have liked to see more of that, instead of what seemed like non-stop sex scenes. Seriously, I think rabbits would look at these two in awe. It detracts from the deeper story, which I found to be much more compelling. I plan on reading the second installment in the series, but will likely be skipping over the expected scenes of repetitive sexual exploits.

Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James
The “cliffhanger” ending of Fifty Shades of Grey really left no question that Ana and Christian would find their way back to on another.  The sequel is a bit of an improvement over the original in that there is more emphasis on how these two need one another in ways other than sexual chemistry.  Elements of Christian’s dark past are slowly revealed, while Ana’s strength and confidence continue to grow.  Both are much more realistic when stripped of hormonal cliche.  Christian in particular continues to be an interesting character who is learning to accept his own self-worth.  As I predicted, I ended up skimming through most of the numerous sexual encounters, as once again I found the storyline outside the bedroom to be much more compelling.  Both Ana and Christian are threatened by an individual bent on revenge, but the danger seems to give both of them a reason beyond attraction to hold onto to one another.

Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James
The third book in the Fifty Shades series offers a satisfying conclusion. Ana and Christian tie the knot and embark on a honeymoon in Europe before heading home to the real world.  While Christian still struggles with his controlling tendencies and Ana continues to grow as an assertive woman, a lunatic looking to get revenge continues to be on the loose.  Once again, I skimmed through most of the couple’s sexual encounters, but there were far fewer than in the previous books.  The focus was thankfully more on the adjustments both Ana and Christian have to make for their new marriage.  Witty and emotional interactions give me every reason to care about what happens to them.  As in previous volumes, Christian’s evolution towards self-acceptance is heartbreaking and rewarding to follow.  The end of the series offers a perfect enough scenario in that life is good, even though some wounds can never fully heal.

Currently Reading:  Imagine: How Creativity Works by Jonah Lehrer

Sporadically Reading: The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson (Barnes & Noble Classics)

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Reading Books of 2011

Never Let Me Go by Kasuo Ishiguro
Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick
The Woman Who Wouldn’t by Gene Wilder
I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore
Timeless by Alexandra Monir
Cosmopolis by Don DeLillo
Red Riding Hood adapted by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Warped by Maurissa Guibord
Lady Chatterly’s Lover by D.H.Lawrence
The Sherlockian by Graham Moore
Afterlife by Claudia Gray
A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again by David Foster Wallace
The Rising by Temple Mathews
Across the Universe by Beth Revis
City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson
Out of Our Minds by Ken Robinson
Nocturne by Syrie James
Esther’s Inheritance by Sandor Marai
After Dark by Haruki Murakami
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Passion (Fallen Series) by Lauren Kate
Forever by Maggie Stiefvater
The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop by Lewis Buzbee
Of Love and Hunger by Julian MacLaren-Ross
 The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore
Villette by Charlotte Brontë
The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
Wither by Lauren Destefano

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Reading Books of 2010

Everything Matters by Ron Currie, Jr.
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
A Life by Guy de Maupassant
The End of the Alphabet by C.S. Richardson
The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
The Soul Thief by Charles Baxter
Death With Interruptions by Jose Saramago
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
The Coma by Alex Garland
Embers by Sandor Marai
Hourglass by Claudia Gray
Fallen by Lauren Kate
Shadowland by Alyson Noel
Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Wings by Aprilynne Pike
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
The Obituary Writer by Porter Shreve
This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Ballad of the Sad Cafe & Other Stories by Carson McCullers
Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner – Stephanie Meyer
Light Boxes by Shane Jones
Thirteen Days to Midnight by Patrick Carman
Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself  by David Lipsky
Casanova in Bolzano by Sandor Marai
The Element by Ken Robinson
Three Bedrooms in Manhattan by Georges Simenon
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Linger by Maggie Stiefvater
Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Pierre Et Jean by Guy de Maupassant
The Ultimate Intimacy by Ivan Klima
Torment by Lauren Kate
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen