Leah's Year in Books

I've never been good about keeping track of the books I read. I did have my moments each summer when I was kid, but in that case, I was keeping track so that I could win pet rocks and ice cream for the library's summer reading program. Last year, I decided just for the heck of it, I'd keep a tally going. In 2009 I clocked in with 79 books. Hopefully that doesn't make me sound like all I do is read. I promise I do other things too. But books are my friends. And I pretty much go everywhere with one...because you never know when you'll be stuck in line at the Post Office or waiting for a hair appointment and wish you had a book with you.

Feeling all scientific, I looked at the list and tried to see what it says about me. No surprises really.I still usually find myself in the Young Adult section rather than the grown-up section.

And I am a fiction kind of girl.

I read books that made me laugh, cry, groan, and want to tear my hair out. Most I read by choice. Some I read for work or for review. Eight books were re-reads. (Yes, I can read a book again and again if I love it). For any who care, here are my recommendations.

Books I Loved:

• Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore
• Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
• The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
• Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
• Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin

Books I Hated and Wish I Could Have Those Hours of My Life Back:

• The Magicians by Lev Grossman

Books Like Nothing Else I've Read Before (in a good way):

• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
• Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork
• When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Books that Made Me Want to Cook More:

• Too Many Cooks by Emily Franklin

Books that Made Me Laugh Out Loud:

• A Little Bit Wicked by Kristin Chenowith
• Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

Books that Made Me Cry:

• The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
• The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale (this one could be in the Laugh category too!)
  

Books with Achingly Beautiful Writing:

• So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger
• Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner

Books that Inspire Me to Change the World:

• New World Kids by Susan Marcus and Susie Monday

And there you have it. Sorry I'm too lazy to link to every single one of these, but I have faith that you can find them if you really want to. Time to get back to a cozy afternoon on the sofa with a book! (The Help by Kathryn Stockett).