February & March 2013 Book List
So, I meant to write a book list for each month, but I haven't had tons of time to read lately so unfortunately my book list hasn't been super extensive. Also, I've felt disappointed by a lot of the books I've been reading (as illustrated by my mini reviews below), so that definitely contributes to dragging out the reading of books.
That being said, here are the books I read in February and March:
- Oryx and Crake. I like this book, but every time I read it I also feel somehow dissatisfied. There's definitely something lacking in it, although I really like the concepts that Atwood explores.
- 50 Shades of Grey. This was my second or third attempt at reading this book, and every time it just boggles the mind as to why everyone loves it. The characters, storyline, and writing are all awful. And seriously, who gasps and says "oh my" every twenty seconds? This book is positively ridiculous. I give up on it.
- The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty. This book just makes me feel kind of sorry for Anne Rice, because really, it's rather disturbing. Also my second or third reading of it, and another book that I give up on trying to "get."
And here are the books that I am partway through reading:
- Conscientious Objections. Postman remains one of my favourite authors and rhetoricians. I love this book. He's brilliant. Go find this book and read it.
- The Psychology Book. This is a neat book - it's basically a psychology-for-dummies type of book with lots of pretty pictures and interesting notations. I'm really enjoying it.
- The Fionavar Tapestry. Mediocre. That's all I can really say about this novel. If I have to keep flipping forward to the character index to keep track of all the overlapping storylines without getting much back in the way of reading a really awesome story, I'm not going to be overly impressed.
What have you read lately? Hopefully you've had better luck with choosing novels than I have in the past couple months! Share your recent awesome or not-so-awesome finds in the comments section below.
January 2013 Book List
I didn't do a Books I Read article for every month of this past year, but I really liked doing it in 2011, so I'm doing it again this year!
Books I read in January 2013:
- Games of Thrones (books 3 and 4 - I read the first two in December). I feel like this series may be learning dangerous close in the same direction as the Wheel of Time series. Just getting a little bit too out of hand and there doesn't seem to be much in the way of moving forward. Why introduce new story lines if the character and that line of the plot are just going to die off?
- Digestive Wellness, 4th Edition. Loved this book! Easy to read and interesting information. Valuable for nutritional professionals and people with no nutrition background alike.
- Joining the Thin Club. This is a simple, light read. It's pretty enjoyable.
What books did you read in January? Share in the comments section below!
Books I read in February 2012
- The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis. Yay!
- Prince Caspian by C. S. Lewis.
- The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis.
- The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis.
- The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis. I love his writing style - he was a really brilliant man. I need to read some of his other works.
- The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien. After I read The Hobbit last month and mentioned that I wanted to read The Lord of the Rings, Mr Science went out and got me the whole set! Such a lovely gift. And I'm impressed by how readable this book was! The last time I read it - the only time I read it - I was about 13 years old, and I seem to remember that there were some boring bits and parts of it were tough going. Such a delight to find that wasn't the case after all! I've no doubt I'll finish the next two books in March.
- One Year to an Organized Work Life by Regina Leeds. I borrowed this from the office and I love it. It's super awesome! Great tips and ideas in here. Now I really want to find and read her original book, One Year to an Organized Life. Since I'm all about organizing, I think her books are kinda perfect for me. I'm nowhere close to having finished it, but I'll be continuing to read it over the next couple months.
What books did you read this month?
Books I read in January 2012
- The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Such a classic!
- Green for Life by Victoria Boutenko. I really love this book. There is so much great information here about the value of leafy greens and of drinking green smoothies. It's also good inspiration for keeping going with drinking green smoothies daily 
- Nutrition for Health, Fitness, & Sport by Melvin H. Williams. I'm not finished this one yet, but it's my final textbook to read for my nutrition course. Interesting information but it's a TOUGH read!
- The Magician's Nephew by C. S. Lewis. Another wonderful classic. I forgot how short the books in the Narnia series are, though - I read this one in about an hour.
- The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. Yes, I'm reading the whole series. Whee!
- Lose Weight Without Dieting or Working Out! by J J Smith. Some pretty good basic information here, focusing on whole foods and relieving the body of toxins and such. But it's kind of just like any other book of this genre.
What books have you read recently?
Books I Read in December 2011
How are we in 2012 already? How have I not written a blog post in over a month? Time flies by!
I added up all the books that I read in the 2011. They amounted to 61 books that I read all the way through, plus another 11 books that I started reading but never finished. Awesome! I have absolutely no idea how I managed to read all those books when I had such a crazy busy year.
Here are the books that I read in December 2011 (the ones I can remember, anyway ):
- His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman (the trilogy). I've loved this trilogy for years. So much adventure! These are can't-put-them-down type of books. It's also a really good series to read no matter what your age is.
- Lyra's Oxford by Philip Pullman. I had only read this book once before, so I didn't remember it at all. Great book though.
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. This book is such a delight to read. I read it about half a dozen times as a kid, but hadn't read it in about 10 years. Love it. Such amazing writing and the story is very compelling. Now I need to track down a copy of the film and watch it.
What books did you read this month? What was your favourite book that you read in 2011?
Books I read in November 2011
- The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. I've read this book countless times and every time I read it, it's still as wonderful as the first time. I love this book. It's one of my favourites. Kostova is my hero. She writes all about Dracula and incorporates really interesting tidbits of history... it can be a creepy book, but it's just so thrilling! Do read it.
- The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Wow! I was impressed by this book. It was another one that I wasn't super interested in reading, but others urged me to, and I am so glad they did. On the front cover, there's a quote saying that "This could be one of the most important pieces of fiction since To Kill a Mockingbird." I couldn't put it much better myself. Which reminds me, I need to read To Kill a Mockingbird again. I read it when I was a little kid and loved it, but it's been years since I last flipped through those pages.
- Ella Enchanted by Gail Garson Levine. This used to be one of my favourite books, and it's another one I've read a million times. My copy is tattered to bits. Since it's for 10-year-olds, I haven't read it in years. But I still loved it reading it this time around. It's not complex writing, but the story is very sweet, and the author is an excellent writer. A very good choice for little girls to read, and I think adults can enjoy it too
- The Twilight saga (all four books) by Stephanie Meyer. I've already openly admitted that I read the Shopaholic books, so I guess this is prime time to admit my love for the Twilight series, too. Teenage girl at heart, right here. One day I spent five hours straight reading one of the Twilight books. They're kind of addictive.
What books did you read this month??
Books I read in October 2011
Huh. I'm rather behind on this blog post! I blame it on Internet problems
I did a very bad job of tracking the books I read in October and I'm afraid I can only remember two of the books that I read, besides my nutrition books. I know I read more books than these two, but can't for the life of me think what they were! Ah well.
The nutrition books, for my correspondence course, were The Dietitian's Guide to Vegetarian Diets: Issues and Applications, Second Edition by Virginia Messina, Reed Mangels, and Mark Messina, as well as Becoming Vegetarian: the complete guide to adopting a healthy vegetarian diet by Vesanto Melina, M. Sc., R.D., and Brenda Davis, R.D. I quite enjoyed these two, even though at times they could be a little dry. Very informative though!
The two novels that I read were absolutely excellent. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger was one I hadn't been planning on reading, but I was told that it was amazing so I decided I'd give it a shot. It turns out that this book really is incredible. It made me cry three times! I can't remember the last time a book elicited such a strong reaction from me. It is a very moving story and Niffenegger is a genius.
An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin was the other book I read, on recommendation from the father dear. I was blown away by Martin's talent. I don't usually like him in his films, usually because they're comedies and I just don't like him in that role. But he wrote this book with such a lovely style. I don't think I liked the characters, and I'm not sure I liked the story (I can't really decide, to be honest), but even so, I can tell a good writer when I read them. And Martin is very talented. It makes me want to watch the film Shopgirl again, which he wrote and starred in... at the time I first saw it, several years ago, I didn't much like it, but I think I'd like to watch it just to appreciate the talent, even if I'm not a fan of the story.
Have you ever read a book or watched a film where you could appreciate the quality of the skill and style, but just weren't into the story so much?
Books I read in September 2011
I'm not doing a very good job at posting regularly on this blog, am I ? Ah well. At least I did a lot of fun, light reading this month!
Books I read (and finished reading) in September:
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling. Classic. Love love love.
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling. Please see above.
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling. Please see above again 
I adore J. K. Rowling. She has a fantastic writing style, she is very engaging and she tells a great story!
- Nutrition Now by Judith E. Brown. As I mentioned last month, this was required reading for my second nutrition course - which I successfully completed and took the exam for last week! I received 92% on my exam, hurray! And partially that's because Brown's book was so interesting. I really liked it and it was a great learning aid.
- Le Divorce by Diane Johnson. I picked this up at a secondhand bookstore because the title was familiar and it sounded like a chick flick I would like... I was about a third of the way through it before I suddenly realized that I already knew the story. I'd seen the film years ago when it first came out and then had forgotten all about it! So that was funny. It was a decent book, although the characters were a little wishy washy.
- French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. I must be on a French kick or something. Anyway, this book has been a bestseller and people rave about it but for some reason I never got around to reading it. I'm so glad I finally picked it up! It's an excellent read - not only does it have very good advice (and tasty-looking recipes!), but Guiliano is also funny and sweet.
Books I read part of in September but haven't finished yet:
- Breaking Free From Emotional Eating by Geneen Roth. I read this book just a few months ago but felt the need to pick it up again. I'm reading it slowly to savour it. Roth is wonderful.
- Sex, Art, and American Culture by Camille Paglia. I read some of Paglia in one of my rhetoric classes and was immediately intrigued, so I was excited to read more of her (rather than just the couple of essays I'd read in class). She is incredibly well-read and has interesting perspectives. I don't always agree 100% with everything she says, but I find there's a lot of value in reading her work. I'm a big fan.
What books did you read in September?
Lifestyle Editing: Books I read in August 2011
Here are the books I read in August:
- The Continuity Girl by Leah McLaren. I read this book before and I really enjoyed it. But when I read it this time, I was very disappointed. It wasn't nearly as good as I remembered it.
- Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding. Such a classic. I don't know how many times I've read and re-read Bridget Jones, but I don't think I could ever tire of her.
- Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding. Ditto goes for the sequel.
- From a View to Kill by Ian Fleming (short story). I have a whole collection of James Bond short stories, and I just read this one. It wasn't anything special. Maybe it's a little dated for my tastes? I'll have to read another couple of the short stories and see if I like them any better.
- Driven by Robert Herjavec. The mother dear recommended that I read this one. I like it in the sense that it's a unique perspective on starting up a business and the personality it takes to do it on your own - but I find Herjavec to be rather full of himself. I can't help but get the impression from this book that he feels somewhat disdainful towards anyone who isn't the entrepreneur-type. On the other hand, I've never seen the TV show Dragon's Den before, and he constantly references it since he's one of the regulars on the show - so maybe I would take more from the book if I had seen the TV show.
- Nutrition Now by Judith E. Brown. This is my nutrition textbook for my Nutrition: Studies and Applications course. Love this textbook! So much great information in it, plus lots of nice photos and tables and such for quick information. It's laid out very well and it contains a wealth of information.
- The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar. Fascinating book. It's especially interesting to read it and to keep in mind your own personal situation. For example, Iyengar discusses how the way things are framed can dramatically alter our response to them. It's all about the rhetoric used! Countless studies are referenced in this book. I'm hoping to read more books similar to this one.
That's my book list for last month! Some of them weren't worth reading, but others were excellent. What did you read in August?
Lifestyle Editing: Books I read in July 2011
Books that I both began and finished reading in July 2011:
- Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. Ah Shopaholic! I've read these books dozens of times but hadn't read them in a while. Still haven't seen the movie, but it looks like crap, so I'm not planning on that (and that's saying a lot, coming from me... I like really awful movies). Anyway, I now want to go shopping at high-end expensive shops.
- Shopaholic Takes Manhattan by Sophie Kinsella. Okay, so I have to admit something here. I have a really big thing for chick flicks and chick lit. The plots are always terrible, the scripts/writing style are always awful, but it's my guilty pleasure. It was fun to indulge!
- Shopaholic Ties the Knot by Sophie Kinsella. Once I get on a chick lit kick, I find it difficult to snap out of it. I think I powered through all three of these books within about four days. If you like chick lit, if you enjoy fashion, and if you need some super light summer reading, this series is awesome for it. I haven't read anything else by Kinsella but I've always enjoyed these three books. I believe there's at least two more in the series that I've never read... must go on the hunt to find them.
- Shopaholic & Sister by Sophie Kinsella. Surprise! I found the fourth one at a favourite secondhand bookstore!
- Everyone Worth Knowing by Lauren Weisberger. Okay, this is starting to get embarrassing. So much for reading great literary works of art by Jack London and Ernest Hemingway and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. I need to stamp "I read trashy novels" across my forehead or something. On another note, I quite enjoyed this novel. It's only the second time I've read it.
- The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger. Oh, shut up. And yes I had fun reading this book.
Books I started reading but have yet to finish:
- Nutrition Now by Judith E. Brown. This is my nutrition text book for my diploma program. I love it. It has great information and it's really interesting! I'm almost halfway through it.
I also read the first few chapters of a few other books too, like Candace Bushnall's Sex and the City and Four Blondes (they're both boring. Wasn't crazy about her writing style, either. Rather disappointed, considering the TV show is so awesome), Leslie Goldman's Locker Room Diaries (love this book and Leslie but just wasn't in the mood for it) and The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice (I've read it once before, but also wasn't in the mood to read it... it's a little too intense for my liking, ha). Didn't feel much like completing any of them at this time, though.
What did you read last month? Do you have a secret favourite genre? Now you know that I read obscene amounts of chick lit and actually like them, so it's only fair you spill too
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