November Reads

Sorry this is late! All fiction this month:

- Summer of the War - Whelen; 3.75
- The Trophy Wives Club - Billerbeck; 4.0
- The Patron Saint of Liars - Patchett; 4.0
- The Good Wife - O'Nan; 4.0
- The Dogs of Babel - Parkhurst; 3.75
- Me and Emma** - Flock; 4.0

(Totally unexpected ending in that last book! Even though I was prepared to expect the unexpected, it still surprised me!)

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

October Reads

All I can manage to post lately is my monthly reads. Sorry about that, and sorry I haven't been commenting much in your book blogs either. I am in a very busy season of my life - homeschooling the senior year of my son and deciding on college for next year and preparing myself for him leaving me (sob!); chasing around a very smart, active 4 year old daughter and a busy, "gets into EVERYTHING" 2 year old daughter; taking care of house and home and trying to fit in some time for myself - reading, knitting, crocheting, computer, friends, etc. I thought about ditching my family and book blogs altogether, but I will hang on to them, post when I can, and hope that some day I can devote more time to them again. With that said, here's my list of October reads:

FICTION

Calm, Cool, and Adjusted by Kristin Billerbeck - 4.0
Winter Birds by Jamie Langston Turner - 4.5**

NON-FICTION

For the Love of Knitting, A Celebration of the Knitter's Art - Kari Cornell, editor - 4.0
Stitch N B---- Nation by Debbie Stoller - 3.75
Not Tonight, Darling, I'm Knitting by Hosegood - 3.5
Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat Hair (The True Life Misadventures of a 30-Something Who Learned to Knit After he Split) by Laurie Perry - 3.25 (I love a good glass of wine but she drinks a ton! Also I can't believe people share with the whole world about their s*x lives outside of marriage.)


It was a weird reading month. I read like normal the first half then not much the second. We went to visit friends in NC for just over a week and I didn't read at all while we were gone. I feel like I haven't read anything outstanding lately. Been reading a ton about knitting the last few months as you can see but am running out of those types of books. I'm so in the mood for a good, uplifting, doesn't have to be Christian fiction necessarily, redeeming read. Usually Jamie Langston Turner's books fit that bill perfectly for me, and while Winter Birds was very good, it wasn't the same as the last 4 I read by her.

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

September Reads

FICTION

Death Comes As Epiphany by Sharan Newman - 4.25
The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood - 4.0

NON-FICTION

Confessions of a Slacker Wife by Muffy Mead-Ferro - 3.5
The Joy of Knitting by Lisa Myers - 3.75
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls - 4.0
Nordies at Noon by 4 women - 4.0
Mason-Dixon Knitting by Gardner/Shayne - 4.5
Dear Exile by Liftin/Montgomery - 2.0 YUCK
Stitch "N B---- by Debbie Stoller - 4.0
At Knit's End by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee - 5.0**


**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

August Reads

FICTION

-Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier, 3
-Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling, 3
-The Yada Yada Prayer Group Gets Rolling by Neta Jackson, 4
-The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, 3


NON-FICTION

-Confessions of a Slacker Mom by Muffy Mead-Ferro, 4.0
-To Love, Honor, and Vacuum by Sheila Wray Gregoire, 3.5
-Knitting Rules by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, 5 **

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

JULY READS

My slowest reading month all year....

FICTION

-A Girl's Best Friend by Kristin Billerbeck, 4 **
-Renovating Becky Miller by Sharon Hinck, 3.5

NON-FICTION

-Candyfreak by Steve Almond, 3.5
-How to Help a Grieving Friend by Stephanie Grace Whitson, 4

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

June Reads

JUNE READS

FICTION

-Breathing Lessons by Anne Tyler, 4
-This Heavy Silence by Nicole Mazzarella, 4
-The Other Side of the Bridge by Mary Lawson, 4 **

NON-FICTION

-The Color of Water by James McBride, 3.75
-Bryson City Secrets by Walt Larimore, 3

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

May Reads

FICTION

-Inkheart by Cornelia Funke, 3.5
-Perfecting Kate by Tamara Leigh, 3.75
-The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart, 4.0
-The Amateur Marriage by Anne Tyler, 4.25
-Winter Wheat by Mildred Walker, 4.25
-Black Ice by Linda Hall, 4.5 **
-Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard, 4.25

NON-FICTION

-A World of Love by Maggie Conroy, 3.0
-Winterdance by Gary Paulsen, 3.0

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

April Reads

Fiction

-Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier -4-
-Quaker Summer by Lisa Samson** -4.5-
-Sisterchicks in Gondolas! by Robin Jones Gunn -3.75-
-An Irish Country Doctor by Patrick Taylor -3.5-
-The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger -3.75-
-Head Game by Tim Downs -3.25-

Non-Fiction

-An Innocent, A Broad by Ann Leary -4-
-Homeschooling for Excellence by David and Micki Colfax -2.5-
-Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes in you and your kids! by Turansky/Miller -3-
-One Small Boat by Kathy Harrison -4-

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

Books Read - March

I'm doing this a few days early since I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to type it up, and I won't finish any other books this month. Here's what I read in March:

Fiction

-Showdown by Ted Dekker -3.5-
-Abide with Me by Elizabeth Strout -3-
-Saint by Ted Dekker -2.5-
-The Remedy for Regret by Susan Meissner -4.5-
-The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time -3-
-The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle ** -4.5-
-Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm -4-
-The Book Thief by Markus Zusak -4-

Non-Fiction

-Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life by Amy Krause Rosenthal -4- Very funny!
-Arctic Homestead by Norma Cobb -3.5-
-The Nazi Officer's Wife by Edith Hahn Beer -4-

**Favorite book of the month

(Ratings on a scale of 1-5)

Books read in January-February

I plan to do this at the end of every month but I'm behind. I don't have time to comment on every book I read but I can at least list them all,. (They're also all on my sidebar but I want to put them in a post each month, with ratings.) I'm mostly a fiction reader but two of the best books I read this year are non-fiction. One I read in February, Rick Warren's Bible Study Methods and one in March which I am actually re-reading now and highlighting, and taking action on the things she talks about. It's called A Mother's Rule of Life by Holly Pierot. I will post about these 2 books at a later time.

So here are my lists:

JANUARY

Fiction
-Bel Canto by Ann Patchett 4
-The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield 4.5
-Crow Lake by Mary Lawson ** 4.5
-The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis 3.5
-Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery 4
-Dear Enemy by Jack Cavanaugh 3.75
-Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult 2.5

Non-Fiction
-Night by Elie Wiesel 3

-Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller 2
-The Innocent Man by John Grisham 4

FEBRUARY

Fiction
-The Secret Life of Becky Miller by Sharon Hinck 4
-With Love, Libby by Roxanne Henke ** 4
-The Art of Mending by Elizabeth Berg 3
-The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards 4
-The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne 4
-Clay's Quilt by Silas House 3.5
-Scoop by Rene Gutteridge 4
-I Love Claire by Tracey Bateman 4

Non-Fiction
-Rick Warren's Bible Study Methods by Rick Warren 4.5

**Best book read that month