2008 Book List
Since 2005, the only New Year's resolution I've made is to read 50 new (to me) books. To make any other resolutions is an exercise on futility because I am a weak-willed individual. :P Besides that, the average American adult only reads five books a year, and I figure that I should do my part to up the score. ;)
2005 was the first year I kept track of what I read and when I read it, and I was surprised to see when December 31st rolled around that I had only read 19 new books! It actually wasn't until last year that I reached the goal, with book #50 (Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry) being finished on New Year's Eve. (Starred items denote non-fiction works)
January
The Hundred Dresses - Eleanor Estes
The Penderwicks - Jeanne Birdsall
Emma-Jean Lazarus Feel Out of a Tree - Lauren Tarshis
*Mosaic - Amy Grant
*America (The Book) - Jon Stewart
*The General Book of Ignorance - John Lloyd and John Mitchinson
Rebekah - Orson Scott Card
Charlie All Night - Jennifer Crusie
Shotgun Wedding - Maggie Osborne
*Life Artist - Ali Edwards
Pollyanna - Eleanor H. Porter
Princess on the Brink (#8) - Meg Cabot
February
*Imagined London - Anna Quindlen
Because of Winn-Dixie - Kate DiCamillo
The Man of My Dreams - Curtis Sittenfield
*Team Moon - Catherine Thimmesh
*A Walk Through the Woods - Bill Bryson
Size 14 Is Not Fat Either - Meg Cabot
Big Boned - Meg Cabot
Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
*Made From Scratch - Sandra Lee
March
Avalon High: Coronation #1: The Merlin Prophecy - Meg Cabot
Princess Mia - Meg Cabot
*Anchored in Love - John Carter Cash
Queen of Babble in the Big City - Meg Cabot
*Baseball As America - National Geographic
The Truth About Forever - Sarah Dessen
*Feasting on Asphalt - Alton Brown
Just Listen - Sarah Dessen
Beware a Scot’s Revenge - Sabrina Jeffries
*The Sound of Music Companion - Laurence Maslon
April
Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat - Bill Watterson
Pardon My French - Cathy Hapka
That Summer - Sarah Dessen
To Wed a Wicked Prince - Jane Feather
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street - Jeanne Birdsall
Bride of Lochbarr - Margaret Moore
*Looking Back - Lois Lowry
*Secret Lives of Great Authors - Robert Schnakenberg
May
*Lives of Extraordinary Women - Kathleen Krull
*For Laci - Sharon Rocha
*Wonderful Tonight - Pattie Boyd
*Why We Read What We Read - Lisa Adams and John Heath
*101 Things You didn’t Know About Jane Austen - Patrice Hannon
*Where To Go When - DK Publishing
June
Lock and Key - Sarah Dessen
The Pleasure King’s Bride - Emma Darcy
Gabriel’s Gift - Cait London
Molly McGinty Has a Really Good Day - Gary Paulsen
Tall, Dark & Western - Anne Marie Winston
This Is Just to Say - Joyce Sidman
*House of a Million Pets - Ann Hodgman
*Good Dog. Stay. - Anna Quindlen
The Willoughbys - Lois Lowry
The Cattle King’s Mistress - Emma Darcy
The Bridal Bargain - Emma Darcy
*Condensed Knowledge - mental_floss
July
Practically Perfect - Katie Fforde
*A la Cart - Hillary Carlip
United Tates of America - Paula Danziger
*Born Standing Up - Steve Martin
Dairy Queen - Catherine Gilbert Murdock
The Off Season - Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Girls In Trucks - Katie Crouch
*A Pocketful of History - Jim Noles
*Summer at Tiffany - Marjorie Hart
Queen of Babble Gets Hitched - Meg Cabot
The Pleasure of Her Kiss - Linda Needham
Only a Duke Will Do - Sabrina Jeffries
August
Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer
*Artist to Artist: 23 Major Illustrators Talk to Children About Their Art - Eric Carle
Morning Glory - LaVyrle Spencer
Be My Valentine - Debbie Macomber
*The Four Seasons of Marriage - Gary Chapman
Gossip Girl - Cecily von Ziegesar
To Be a Princess - Hugh Brewster
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! - Laura Amy Schlink
*What To Do About Alice? - Barbara Kerley
*Lucy Maud Montgomery - Alexandra Wallner
*United Tweets of America - Hudson Talbott
*King George: What Was His Problem? - Steven Sheinkin
Forever Rose - Hilary McKay
September
Keeping the Moon - Sarah Dessen
Love Walked In - Marisa de los Santos
Avalon High: Coronation #2 Homecoming - Meg Cabot
*Two Miserable Presidents - Steve Sheinkin
*Unforgettable Fire - Eamon Dunphy
This Lullaby - Sarah Dessen
The Princess and the Hound - Mette Ivie Harrison
*Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Biography - William Anderson
Getting Rid of Bradley - Jennifer Crusie
October
*U2 at the End of the World - Bill Flanagan
Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Moving Day - Meg Cabot
The Rich Man’s Virgin - Lindsay Armstrong
Rapunzel’s Revenge - Shannon and Dean Hale
*Harry, A History - Melissa Anelli
*Bloody Confused - Chuck Culpepper
November
The Complete James Bond Encyclopedia
*I Saw Mommy Kicking Santa Claus - Ann Hodgman
*Milk Eggs Vodka - Bill Keaggy
Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: The New Girl - Meg Cabot
Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris
Living Dead in Dallas - Charlaine Harris
*Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer - Warren St. John
Club Dead - Charlaine Harris
Dead to the World - Charlaine Harris
December
Dead as a Doornail - Charlaine Harris
Definitely Dead - Charlaine Harris
All Together Dead - Charlaine Harris
From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris
The Tales of Beedle the Bard - J.K. Rowling
*French Milk - Lucy Knisley
*No Limits: The Will to Succeed - Michael Phelps
*Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson - Amber Frey
*Home: A Memoir of My Early Years - Julie Andrews
*What’s the Difference? - Editors at mental_floss
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pleased with my accomplishment this year- 120 books. How I managed to blow by fifty this year when the past three years I've struggled to just get close is beyond me. I certainly didn't have anymore "free" time!!
On the whole I enjoyed most of the books I read. Although, there were a few clunkers:
Girls in Trucks: This book was terrible. It was so bad I couldn't believe how bad it was!! Do not be seduced by the charming book cover and clever title!!!
Made From Scratch- This was Sandra Lee's "autobiography". I admit I read it purely for the snark value, so in that respect it wasn't disappointing! ;) But even with the aid of a ghost writer, this book is a lot like her show on TV- disjointed, confusing and filled with booze.
For 2009, I'll make the same resolution- to read 50 new books. Why mess with something that works???
2005 was the first year I kept track of what I read and when I read it, and I was surprised to see when December 31st rolled around that I had only read 19 new books! It actually wasn't until last year that I reached the goal, with book #50 (Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry) being finished on New Year's Eve. (Starred items denote non-fiction works)
January
The Hundred Dresses - Eleanor Estes
The Penderwicks - Jeanne Birdsall
Emma-Jean Lazarus Feel Out of a Tree - Lauren Tarshis
*Mosaic - Amy Grant
*America (The Book) - Jon Stewart
*The General Book of Ignorance - John Lloyd and John Mitchinson
Rebekah - Orson Scott Card
Charlie All Night - Jennifer Crusie
Shotgun Wedding - Maggie Osborne
*Life Artist - Ali Edwards
Pollyanna - Eleanor H. Porter
Princess on the Brink (#8) - Meg Cabot
February
*Imagined London - Anna Quindlen
Because of Winn-Dixie - Kate DiCamillo
The Man of My Dreams - Curtis Sittenfield
*Team Moon - Catherine Thimmesh
*A Walk Through the Woods - Bill Bryson
Size 14 Is Not Fat Either - Meg Cabot
Big Boned - Meg Cabot
Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
*Made From Scratch - Sandra Lee
March
Avalon High: Coronation #1: The Merlin Prophecy - Meg Cabot
Princess Mia - Meg Cabot
*Anchored in Love - John Carter Cash
Queen of Babble in the Big City - Meg Cabot
*Baseball As America - National Geographic
The Truth About Forever - Sarah Dessen
*Feasting on Asphalt - Alton Brown
Just Listen - Sarah Dessen
Beware a Scot’s Revenge - Sabrina Jeffries
*The Sound of Music Companion - Laurence Maslon
April
Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat - Bill Watterson
Pardon My French - Cathy Hapka
That Summer - Sarah Dessen
To Wed a Wicked Prince - Jane Feather
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street - Jeanne Birdsall
Bride of Lochbarr - Margaret Moore
*Looking Back - Lois Lowry
*Secret Lives of Great Authors - Robert Schnakenberg
May
*Lives of Extraordinary Women - Kathleen Krull
*For Laci - Sharon Rocha
*Wonderful Tonight - Pattie Boyd
*Why We Read What We Read - Lisa Adams and John Heath
*101 Things You didn’t Know About Jane Austen - Patrice Hannon
*Where To Go When - DK Publishing
June
Lock and Key - Sarah Dessen
The Pleasure King’s Bride - Emma Darcy
Gabriel’s Gift - Cait London
Molly McGinty Has a Really Good Day - Gary Paulsen
Tall, Dark & Western - Anne Marie Winston
This Is Just to Say - Joyce Sidman
*House of a Million Pets - Ann Hodgman
*Good Dog. Stay. - Anna Quindlen
The Willoughbys - Lois Lowry
The Cattle King’s Mistress - Emma Darcy
The Bridal Bargain - Emma Darcy
*Condensed Knowledge - mental_floss
July
Practically Perfect - Katie Fforde
*A la Cart - Hillary Carlip
United Tates of America - Paula Danziger
*Born Standing Up - Steve Martin
Dairy Queen - Catherine Gilbert Murdock
The Off Season - Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Girls In Trucks - Katie Crouch
*A Pocketful of History - Jim Noles
*Summer at Tiffany - Marjorie Hart
Queen of Babble Gets Hitched - Meg Cabot
The Pleasure of Her Kiss - Linda Needham
Only a Duke Will Do - Sabrina Jeffries
August
Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer
*Artist to Artist: 23 Major Illustrators Talk to Children About Their Art - Eric Carle
Morning Glory - LaVyrle Spencer
Be My Valentine - Debbie Macomber
*The Four Seasons of Marriage - Gary Chapman
Gossip Girl - Cecily von Ziegesar
To Be a Princess - Hugh Brewster
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! - Laura Amy Schlink
*What To Do About Alice? - Barbara Kerley
*Lucy Maud Montgomery - Alexandra Wallner
*United Tweets of America - Hudson Talbott
*King George: What Was His Problem? - Steven Sheinkin
Forever Rose - Hilary McKay
September
Keeping the Moon - Sarah Dessen
Love Walked In - Marisa de los Santos
Avalon High: Coronation #2 Homecoming - Meg Cabot
*Two Miserable Presidents - Steve Sheinkin
*Unforgettable Fire - Eamon Dunphy
This Lullaby - Sarah Dessen
The Princess and the Hound - Mette Ivie Harrison
*Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Biography - William Anderson
Getting Rid of Bradley - Jennifer Crusie
October
*U2 at the End of the World - Bill Flanagan
Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Moving Day - Meg Cabot
The Rich Man’s Virgin - Lindsay Armstrong
Rapunzel’s Revenge - Shannon and Dean Hale
*Harry, A History - Melissa Anelli
*Bloody Confused - Chuck Culpepper
November
The Complete James Bond Encyclopedia
*I Saw Mommy Kicking Santa Claus - Ann Hodgman
*Milk Eggs Vodka - Bill Keaggy
Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: The New Girl - Meg Cabot
Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris
Living Dead in Dallas - Charlaine Harris
*Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer - Warren St. John
Club Dead - Charlaine Harris
Dead to the World - Charlaine Harris
December
Dead as a Doornail - Charlaine Harris
Definitely Dead - Charlaine Harris
All Together Dead - Charlaine Harris
From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris
The Tales of Beedle the Bard - J.K. Rowling
*French Milk - Lucy Knisley
*No Limits: The Will to Succeed - Michael Phelps
*Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson - Amber Frey
*Home: A Memoir of My Early Years - Julie Andrews
*What’s the Difference? - Editors at mental_floss
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pleased with my accomplishment this year- 120 books. How I managed to blow by fifty this year when the past three years I've struggled to just get close is beyond me. I certainly didn't have anymore "free" time!!
On the whole I enjoyed most of the books I read. Although, there were a few clunkers:
Girls in Trucks: This book was terrible. It was so bad I couldn't believe how bad it was!! Do not be seduced by the charming book cover and clever title!!!
Made From Scratch- This was Sandra Lee's "autobiography". I admit I read it purely for the snark value, so in that respect it wasn't disappointing! ;) But even with the aid of a ghost writer, this book is a lot like her show on TV- disjointed, confusing and filled with booze.
For 2009, I'll make the same resolution- to read 50 new books. Why mess with something that works???