Okay, so for Christmas my mom got me this book So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading, in which the author Sara Nelson chronicles her life and
choice of books for one year, with notable intersections. I’ve been wanting to
keep track of the all the books I read for awhile now, and, as I also got a
notebook, 2016 seemed the perfect opportunity. The original plan was to do a
monthly update of my books, with highs and lows and recommendations, but then I
looked up one day and it was February 10 so: oops.
Anyway, since January 1st, I have read 24
books: 9 in January, 15 in February.*
Some books I loved.
Most I thought were fine; I only really hated one. They crossed genres from
memoir to historical fiction to poetry to graphic novel and a few things in
between. Please, read on if you care to know what happened to strike my fancy.
And if they sound interesting, head over to your nearby bookstore or local
library and read them for yourself!
Top Picks, January: Room by Emma Donoghue and Yes,Please by Amy Poehler. I got Room
after seeing the movie and WOW. Both were quite mind-blowing. Having Jack, the
5 year old son, narrate is quite striking. And, well, Amy is hilarious and as
such so is her book. Jojo got it for me for Christmas and it has the highest star count in my notebook so far. I actually had to put the book down so that I could stop
laughing and catch my breath before continuing. I cried actual tears of
laughter. But it also poignant and true and heartfelt and I stayed up until 4
am reading it because I couldn’t put it down.
Top Picks, February: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson and Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. Speak is a lovely YA novel (and that is a major compliment, coming
from me) about a freshman named Melinda who has something very important to say
but can’t say it. I read it in a day and would recommend it to anyone,
especially women, especially in middle and high school. I listened to Brown Girl Dreaming on audio and having
Jacqueline Woodson read her own verse, her own story to me was just one of the
most moving experiences. It made me hungry for cornbread, for love, for justice
and for dreams come true.
Biggest Surprise? Annie on my Mind. I had to read it for class and I think it’s only the second or
third book I’ve read with an LGBTQ character (or in this case, characters) as
the protagonist(s). It’s a lovely portrayal of character and the transition and
confusion of Senior year.
I also feel obliged to mention titles like Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari, which I
enjoyed quite and bit and promptly followed by watching his Netflix original
series Master of None. Or Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl, which I
never read as a child, but read at work with the kids. I read my first-ever
graphic novels and did not hate them, so that is something, I suppose. Also if
any of you have thoughts on Fun Home,
please send them my way.
That’s all this opinionated reader has to say for now!
If you’d like a complete list of books thus far, or more detailed thoughts on a
particular title, please let me know! Talking about books is actually my
favorite thing to do. :)
*Please note: I am not a reading machine. I have a
half-hour commute each way and listened to many on audio. I’m in a Young Adult
Lit class this semester which requires a lot of reading, and many titles could
be completed in a day, especially if I read some at work. And graphic novels
are super-duper quick.
