Friday, December 14, 2012

What I've Read So Far -- And a January challenge

Drum roll, please! Here is a list of all the books I've read in 2012 (divided up by months and not counting picture books. And please note that most of these were arcs, unless otherwise noted):


January
1. Cinder - Marissa Meyer
2. The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
3. A Diamond in the Dust - Kathryn Fitzmaurice
4. Chomp - Carl Hiaasen
5. Because of Winn Dixie - Kate DiCamillo
6. Looking for Alaska - John Green
7. Gil Marsh - A.C.E. Bauer
8. Never Fall Down - Patricia McCormick
9. Jake & Lily - Jerry Spinelli




February
10. What the Dog Said - Randi Reisfield
11. So Close to You - Rachel Carter
12. Breathing Lessons - Anne Tyler (paperback purchased from indie bookstore)
13. Wonder - R.J. Palacio
14. Curveball: How I Lost My Grip - Jordan Sonnenblick






March
15. Breath of Eyre - Eve Marie Mont
16. critique partner's MG novel
17. Guy Langman, Crime Scene Procrastinator - Josh Berk
18. Embrace - Jessica Shirvington
19. Insurgent - Veronica Roth
20. Kaspar the Titanic Cat - Michael Morpurgo
21. Small Damages - Beth Kephart
22. The Year of the Book - Andrea Chang
23. Remarkable - Lizzie K. Foley



April
24. The Wicked and the Just - J. Anderson Coats
25. Summer of the Gypsy Moths - Sara Pennypacker
26. Drowned Cities - Paolo Bacigalupi
27. Starters - Lissa Price
28. The False Prince - Jennifer Nielson
29. Chains - Laurie Halse Anderson
30. My Life Next Door - Huntley Fitzpatrick


May
31. Devine Intervention - Martha Brockenbrough
32. The Patron Saint of Beans (now called If You Find Me) - Emily Murdoch
33. Keeping the Castle - Patrice Kindl
34. Don't Turn Around - Michelle Gagnon
35. Gilt - Katherine Longshore
36. Lucid - Adrienne Stolz and Ron Bass
37. The Mapmaker & the Ghost - Sarvenaz Tash
38. A World Away - Nancy Grossman
39. Keeping Safe the Stars - Sheila O'Connor
40. Gold Medal Summer - Donna Freitas
41. The Sinister Sweetness of Splendid Academy - Nikki Loftin
42. This is Not a Drill - Beck McDowell
43. Tiger Lily - Jodi Lynn Anderson


June
44. Jump Into the Sky - Shelley Pearsall
45. Noah's Compass - Anne Tyler (paperback purchased from indie bookstore)
46. What Came From the Stars - Gary D. Schmidt
47. Forge - Laurie Halse Anderson
48. Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers
49. Son - Lois Lowry
50. Ungifted - Gordon Korman
51. Code Name Verity - Elizabeth Wein
52. Capture the Flag - Kate Messner
53. Edge of Nowhere - Elizabeth George



July
54. Nerve - Jeanne Ryan
55. Burning Blue - Paul Griffin
56. The Great Unexpected - Sharon Creech
57. Malcolm at Midnight - W. H. Beck
58. Ten - Gretchen McNeil
59. Lindsey Lost - Suzanne Phillips
60. The Diviners - Libba Bray
61. Age of Miracles - Karen Thompson Walker



August
62. What's Left of Me - Kat Zhang
63. critique partner's YA novel
64. Third Grade Angels - Jerry Spinelli
65. Beholding Bee - Kimberly Newton Fusco
66. Space Station Seventh Grade - Jerry Spinelli
67. The Spindlers - Lauren Oliver
68. Every Day - David Levithan


September
69. Empty - K.M. Walton
70. If I Lie - Corrine Jackson
71. True Colors - Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
72. Popular - Alissa Grosso (paperback I purchased at PAYA)
73. Pretty Crooked -- Elisa Ludwig (hardcover I purchased at PAYA)
74. Dying to Know You - Aidan Chambers
75. Seven Tales of Trinket -- Shelley Moore Thomas (hardcover purchased from indie bookstore)
76. Glass Heart -- Amy Garvey
77. Unspoken -- Sarah Rees Brennan
78. Liar & Spy -- Rebecca Stead



October
79. The Voyage of Lucy P. Simmons - Barbara Mariconda
80. Lovely, Dark and Deep -- Amy McNamara (hardcover from S&S)
81. Breathe - Sarah Crossan
82. A Dog Called Homeless -- Sarah Lean
83. Geeks, Girls and Secret Identities -- Mike Jung (hardcover purchased from indie bookstore)
84. Touching the Surface - Kim Sabatini (hardcover from S&S)
85. Ask the Passengers - A.S. King
86. The Secret Underground - Natalie Bahm (paperback purchased to help Baby Jayden)
87. The Brides of Rollrock Island


November
88. Double Vision - F.T. Bradley
89. The Tide-Changers -- Sandy Green (paperback purchased from Amazon)
90. Through to You - Emily Hainsworth
91. The Flight - C.F. Runyan (old paperback I've read before)
92. Circle of Secrets - Kimberley Griffiths Little (hardcover won from Deb Marshall)
93. A Tale of Time City - Diana Wynne Jones (paperback purchased from indie bookstore)
94. A Thunderous Whisper - Christina Diaz Gonzalez (hardcover won from Medeia Sharif)
95. Recipe for Trouble - Sheryl Berk & Carrie Berk (paperback won from Jennifer Rumberger)
96. Hokey Pokey - Jerry Spinelli

December
97. Hattie Ever After - Kirby Larson
98. When We Wake - Karen Healy
99. Dead End in Norvelt - Jack Gantos
100. A String in the Harp - Nancy Bond (paperback lent by a friend)
101. Storm in the Barn - Matt Phelan

So I've read more than 100 books and December isn't over yet. If you have questions about any of these books, feel free to ask!  Which one's my favorite?  Oh gosh, I couldn't possibly pick ONE favorite. For YA, I'd have to say The Fault in Our Stars, but Small Damages and Devine Intervention both hold a special place in my heart. For MG, I love Wonder, but also What Came From the Stars, and Malcolm at Midnight. Of course, I also loved The One and Only Ivan (but I read it last year!). One of those books had better win a Newbery.

For the next few weeks I'll be taking a blogging break to spend time with my family and to work on my third novel. In January,  I hope to be querying my second novel, but I'm also joining Katia Raina's 31-Minute a Day Challenge.  If you've never checked out Katia's blog, you should hop right over there. She's a lovely young writer I met at the New Jersey SCBWI conference last year, and her first novel is coming from namelos in 2013! Join the challenge! All it takes is a commitment to work on your project (whatever it is) for 31 minutes a day, every day, throughout the month of January. And there's a prize for a random winner at the end! Sign up on Katia's blog.
 
See you in a few weeks. Enjoy your holidays!

24 comments:

  1. Can I just be a little jealous of all those ARCs? :) I am DYING to read Hattie Ever After--did you like it?
    I've read 75 books so far this year...I THINK my favorite was Code Name Verity.

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    1. That's still a lot of books, Faith. And I loved Code Name Verity. There's a book that makes you think. Yes, I loved Hattie Ever After! I'm part of the official blog tour, probably early February.

      I won't be collecting as many arcs as I used to, now that I'm no longer at the bookstore. But I still have a few sources.

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  2. Loved reading your list. There's a few we both read but many are different. I've read about 70 books this year. Have a Happy Holiday!

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    1. Seventy books is a lot when you work full time and take your daughter to swim meets! Good for you, Natalie.

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  3. I should probably copy that reading list down for myself too -- too much to catch up on. Thanks for sharing about my challenge. So glad you're doing it!
    hugs,
    Katia

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  4. What an impressive list! I read some of those based on your MMGMs! You know what a Gary D. Schmidt fan I am. I finished What Came From the Stars a few weeks ago. It's different than his other stuff but so, so wonderful.

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    1. It certainly is different, Barbara! But I found it so moving. Glad you liked it. I do worry, sometimes, when I recommend a book, that someone else might not like it at all.

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  5. I love your list! I am setting a goal NOW to be so organized about writing down what I read.
    Wow!

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    1. Good for you, Kristen. I'm so glad I do this, or I'd have no idea what I read. I started a notebook in 2002 and I'm now on my second notebook. But you could easily use a Word document.

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  6. Wow, what an impressive list! So many are on my to-read list. I wish I had more time to read. I'm going to have to check out the challenge you signed up for. Writing this month has been so hard, I could use a kick in the pants to get moving again.

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    1. Do try to check it out, Jennifer. I think it's a great idea.

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  7. Wonderful list! I have read many of these, but so many more to read. My favorite YA this year was The Fault in Our Stars and my favorite middle grade was, well, I can't pick one! I'd have to say at the top of my list are A Diamond in the Desert, One for the Murphys, and It Came from the Stars. Thanks for the list. I have work to do!

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    1. Another fan of John Green! Cool. And I have yet to read One For the Murphys but it's certainly on my list. Thanks, Rosi.

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  8. 101 books! i'm super impressed. i think i'm hovering around 60 right now.

    loved many from your list -- was a great year for reading!!

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    1. There were a great many excellent books to choose from this year. Thanks for stopping by, Gina.

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  9. WOW- always impressive, Joanne. I just read Flying the Dragon with my middle-grade book club. SO SO good. I need to review it on the blog. I cried! I hope you have access to lots of books in the future, because I love your recs.
    Happy holidays with the fam! Kat

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    1. Happy holidays to you too, Kat! Flying the Dragon is on my TBR list. Thanks for the recommendation.

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  10. Wow! You read a tremendous amount of books this year! I think I only read about 60.

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    1. "Only 60" is still a great many books, Sharon! Good for you.

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  11. I continually hear wonderful things about The Fault in Our Stars - I need to pick up a copy. I loved, loved, loved Wonder.

    Kudos to you for setting goals on your own writing. I love the 31 minutes a day idea. Maybe I will have to think of something similar for myself, sadly I can't do 31 minutes a day with 12 hour shifts at work.

    - Jessica @ Book Sake

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    1. Twelve-hour shifts are tough! Could you write during your breaks at work, Jessica? That might be manageable. But even 15 minutes a day would help.

      Be prepared if you read The Fault In Our Stars -- keep the tissues handy.

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