2011 Reading List

I started my booklist for 2011 here.  This is the rest of my reading list for the year. I read a lot more this year than I did last year.

I think that is due to my Kindle. (It could also be that I am really tired and like to get in bed early just to "chill" and end up reading a lot.) I also think it is because I've found some good stuff to read this year. Last year I was kind of on a bad roll of reading several long, slow, boring books and kind of lost interest.

Maximum Faith by George Barna: We read this book in our class at church.  While the book itself is not an exciting read, the premise, the ten steps along our lifelong faith journey, is a very interesting one (and accurate I believe).

Deep Dish by Mary Kay Andrews:  This book is still in progress.  I lost interest about half-way through.  I'm usually a big fan of Andrews and quickly read her funny books, but this one just didn't do it for me.  I like it enough to try and finish it but I'll certainly put it down to read something else.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand:  It literally took me all year to read this book, but it was totally worth it.  I started it in January upon the recommendation of my sunday school teacher and many others.  It is a long book and after prison camp, after prison camp, after prison camp, I kind of got bogged down.  When I picked it back up to finish in November, it did not disappoint!  An excellent read for sure.

The Hunger Games, Girl on Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins:  This trilogy was a fun easy read.  And I'm not sure how I am going to make it until March to see the first movie.  The trailer looks excellent.  We read the first book for bookclub and then I very quickly read the next two books.  My hubby read them too.  The third book was a little slow for me and the ending of the series was a little disappointing and unbelievable, but overall, I give the series a big thumbs-up.

Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell:  I picked this book up on a whim and read it quickly.  It is an interesting tale ... realistic but somewhat gory.  Maybe you saw the movie last year?  I did not.  (On a side note, this is the first Kindle library book I checked out.)

Heaven is For Real by Todd Burpo: Another bookclub pick.  I read this book in about 2 hours on the way to an Alabama football game.  Very good.  If you ever doubt that heaven is a real, physical place, you should read this book.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett: I have several of Patchett's books on my "to read" shelf thanks to Paperbackswap.com.  This is her newest release so I had to purchase it on my Kindle.  Totally worth it though.  Think big pharmaceutical company, crazy researcher/doctor among natives in Amazon rainforest, and secret drugs.  Interested?  I look forward to reading more of books.

The Paris Wife: A Novel by Paula McLain: I have about 50 pages left of this book.  I checked it out from the library and couldn't get it finished before I had to return it.  (I haven't figured out how to renew Kindle books from the library.  I am back on the waitlist to get it again.)  I love this book.  The period in which it is set (the roaring twenties) and the characters Hemingway and his wife encounter are very interesting.  Although this book is fiction, the lifestyle portrayel is accurate I think for writers and artists in Europe during that time period.  I have picked up other Hemingway books to read, including A Farewell to Arms and The Sun Also Rises.

Vision in White (Book 1 of The Bride Quartet) by Nora Roberts: This book was a easy read.  I've never read Roberts before but she writes a lot.  This book is about 4 BFFs who run a wedding business, each one doing a different part of the business (photography, flowers, etc.).  Each book in the quartet is about how each girl finds their own wedded bliss.  I liked it enough that I want to read the rest of the series, but not enough to run out and buy them, so I am waiting for my turn at the library.