61 books in one year!

Here are the books I read from August through December, 2009:

45. Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon
46. West of Kabul, East of New York – An Afghan American Story by Tamim Ansary
47. The Freedom Writers Diary – Erin Gruwell and the Freedom Writers
48. Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks
49. Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
50. Animal Farm by George Orwell
51. Old Yeller by Fred Gipson
52. Room With a View by EM Forster
53. Common Sense by Glenn Beck
54. 13 is the New 18 by Beth Harpaz
55. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
56. Bringing the Boy Home by NA Nelson
57. Gluten-free Girl by Shauna James Ahern
58. The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke
59. Agatha Christie Writer of Mystery by Carol Dommermuth-Costa
60. The Trojan War by Olivia Coolidge
61. Say You’re One of Them by Uwen Akpan


So, which ones stand out? For sure "Room With a View". I loved that book. I could picture Florence while listening to the book in the car. RMD listened with me, and loved it. And also "The Gluten-Free Girl". What an amazing journey the author tells about how she thought she was dying. All because of gluten. And I can totally relate. While seeing gastro docs, being put on Nexium, enduring an upper GI, and feeling awful in general, I too felt like I was dying. How lucky I am to be off the modern medical track and on to natural health!

"Animal Farm" was a lot of fun to listen to with the kids. Creepy too - you have to read it to get it.

"Silent Spring" was a difficult one. This was a book club selection, but nobody read it except for me. Well, I also actually listened to this one as well. With the kids, while driving mostly through Pennsylvania and New York, visiting relatives and seeing sites. It was a dry, somewhat boring book, but I liked it. Especially since Rachel Carson lived on the East Coast and described the countryside through which we were traveling.

"Thief Lord" was fun. A kids' book set in Venice. Since I read it just after visiting Venice it was great to have a really good picture of sites described in the book. Of course, it made me want to return.

All in all, some good reading. Although you can tell I slowed down at the end. I guess a 3-week trip out East and a 2 1/2 week trip to Italy will do that to a person...

Can I beat 61 in 2010? Time will tell.