My 10 Most Influential Books

There was a meme floating around facebook amoung my book loving friends...name your 10 most influential books/series. So of course I had to chime in. : )

1. The BabySitters Club Series
I read these started in second grade. They were my first chapter books and I was hooked. I outgrew them long before I reached middle school and eventually donated my entire collection to the local library to share the love.

2. Dragon Song/Dragon Singer/Dragon Drums
I poached a lot of books of my parent's bookshelves as a kid so I was fairly well versed in Sci-Fi (a favorite of my dad's), but finding Ann McCaffery's books introduced me to fantasy and dragons.

3. Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul
My cousin gave this to me for Christmas. At the time I pretty much read fantasy and only fantasy, so I was sure I would hate it. I started flipping through it because I was bored and inhaled it. My paperback copy is well worn. I haven't read it through in years, I don't know how it would strike me now, but I loved it then.

4. The Dragon Prince by Melanie Rawn
My mom bought me this one based solely on the fact that it had "Dragon" in the title. A six book series of high fantasy it was politics! and intrigue! A strong female main character! I loved them in high school. I haven't dared re-read them as an adult though, because if they don't hold up, I'm going to be crushed.

5. Pride and Prejudice
I almost didn't think of this one, because it was the A&E movie that I was first introduced to. My mom and I would co-opt the TV and watch the mini-series each time it was aired. I was in my senior year of high school before I bought a copy of the book. I can reread this endlessly. I branched out to more of Austen's writing due to the brilliant adaptation of Pride and Prejudice that aired last year, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.

6. Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office
I ended up with a copy of this sometime in college. I don't remember exactly when, how, or why, but that book was very helpful in getting me launched in the workforce. I've re-read it countless times. On my last re-read it struck me as rather tired and overly strict, which is a good sign that I've outgrown it and no longer need the advice, but I would still recommend it for anyone looking to get the lay of the land in a professional job.

7. Think
A friend recommended this a couple of years ago and her arguments got me back to the local library and reading again. Absolutely pivotal for me.

8. Alfie Kohn's Punished by Rewards and Unconditional Parenting
Both books discuss how toxic our reward obsessed culture is to fostering initiative and creativity. I found Unconditional Parenting first, but Punished by Rewards is broader, also covering schools and workplaces. These are books that I feel like I need to read over and over, and that I will pull something different out of each time.

9. The Story of Jane
A story of the "underground railroad" connecting women to abortion providers in Chicago pre- Roe vs Wade. A fascinating study on the sexism inherent in the medical establishment, the lengths women will go to to protect/help each other, and the varied and complex events that lead women to seek abortions.

10. Baby Catcher
The story of a midwife operating in San Francisco tells about the varied births she attended. Gave me an amazing confidence in the capabilities of the human body and a better appreciation for the breadth of personal experiences.

SJ Tucker--Pirate, Pixie, Awesome

Sometime last year a friend turned me onto The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. Which is pretty much amazing compressed and condensed and packaged into a novel. Think Phantom Tollbooth meets Wizard of Oz meets fairytales. It's lyrical, thoughtful, gentle, and insightful. Full of the pain of growing up and the wisdom of being grown up.

So naturally I read the sequel. And when Book 3 came out last month, I jumped on it.

But with the announcement of Book 3's release came something even more bewitching. An artist named SJ Tucker was releasing an entire album inspired by Fairyland.

Wonders was so splendidly captivating that I began exploring the rest of her catalogue and quickly found a new favorite album. Witchy Ways, a mixtape put together by the artist herself. And oh how wonderful it is. From the history rich Tam Lim, to the boisterously silly Salad of Doom. The driving Hymn to Herne to the haunting City of Marrow. The catchy Firebird's Child and calming Come to the Labyrinth. Love. This. Album.

I believe the album comes down tonight, it was a month long release with portions of all funds raised being donated to Wolf Haven. I've already got my copy, if you'd like to give it a listen I suggest you hurry!

31 Day Blog Challenge--Day 11

Today's topic: The last book you read.

I'm catching up on posting these (whoops!) so the last book I finished was The Hard Truth About Soft Skills. It wasn't very good. The book before that though, was The Night Circus. Let's talk about that instead. The book was sensual--fragrance played a heavy role--and the visual descriptions were made for the big screen. Really beautiful, sumptuous stuff. I was a bit irritated about the ending but overall, I would recommend it.

(If you are curious about what I'm reading, you can always find out here.

Best Books of 2012

As I mentioned, I read quite a few books last year. I reviewed them all on Goodreads, but a few of them have really stuck with me. These are my top 5 books I read last year.

1. First Break All the Rules
Based on a Gallup Poll, this is a data driven look at what distinguishes excellent employees from the mediocre ones. How do you management people in order to increase satisfaction and enagement? How do you push people to do their best? How do you help people excel? Lots of food for thought and all supremely practical.

2. The Time Traveler's Wife
This book made me bawl.

3. Punished by Rewards
Rewards, punishment, two sides of the same coin. The author lays out a compelling argument for why neither is effective. He agrees that moving beyond gold stars, stickers, and trophies is not easy, but he inspires me to try.

4. Among Others
Upon finishing this book, the first thing I wanted to do was pick it up and read it again. That is high praise as usually I hate rereading books. A wonderful coming of age story with a deep love of science fiction.

5. Ratio
I've been looking for a book to free me from the tyranny of cookbooks for years. Something to help me understand the fundamental mechanisms in cooking. Ratio is that book. It can't cover everything, but it covers a large swath of your standards and covers them well.

What was your favorite book last year?

2012 in Books

Last year, I set out to read 52 books. In May, I hit my goal, so I kept going. I finished out the year with a very respectable 98 books. In my initial post I said I had 24 books on my to-read list. Today that number stands at 310! : )

I've really enjoyed falling back into my reading habit and I'm excited to see how well it's melded back into my life. I did stay up later than I should have a handful of times (oops), but mostly I have been able to stay productive with other things AND have the benefit of mind expanding facts, new points of view, and fantastical worlds.

For 2013, I've set my goal as 75 books. I'm not sure that I will have quite the momentum that I had early last year, but 75 should still be doable! You'll see I have my new goal tracker installed on the left sidebar, all shiny and ready to go!

On a related bookish note, the hubby surprised me with a Kindle Fire HD for Christmas and I'm in nerdy, booky nirvana! As soon as I get a routine worked out for getting e-books I will be well on my way. Any tips and traps?

Books!

I read them sometimes. : )


Pretend that there are two books in that picture, as I did check out and read two of them. Blankets, however, got caught up in the return cycle before I photographed it.

Books!

Despite my absence of book-y posts, I have indeed been treking into the library regularly and making some good progress. : ) I've even been taking pictures. Apparently, it's that last 10% that kills me. >_< Regardless, books! I read them!

Books!

Between the library books I had to finish, a short dip into my own bookcase, and the sewing I've been trying to get done, I let a few weeks go by without picking up more library books. This week though I came back with a vengeance.

I hadn't quite realized that both The Time Traveler's Wife and American Gods were such tomes but The Time Traveler's Wife was so absorbing that I finished it in just over 2 days. (And yes, there was crying). The BFG is a favorite book from my childhood and it was a quick re-read on Friday. I'm looking forward to American Gods as it's been strongly recommended by one of my friends.

In addition to checking out some books, this weekend was the Friends of the Library book sale. All books for $0.25! : ) I was good and only bought things that (a) I had read and knew I wanted to own or (b) I knew the library did not have available to check out.

This Week's Books

As I mentioned in last week's post I had a book on hold at the library. I picked it up last weekend and...have not touched it yet! Yikes. I've been sewing more than reading, but I have been inching along. I'm nearly 3/4 of the way through America's Women which is mostly fascinating with a few cringe worthy spots. (It's not okay to blame women for their rape, not even if unintentional or meant facetiously.)

Next up is finishing Ratio and then I will get to Snow Child. Promise.

Last Week's Book

I have been doing a lot of sewing, and I still have plenty of books to chew through, so last week's library pick up was intentionally light. I got notice today that another of my books came in. So much for going light. ; )

This Week's Books

These titles probably look familiar. That's because I had them out about a month ago and couldn't finish them before they were due back! I dutifully returned them so that the next people in line could enjoy them and promptly put them both on hold again. In a funny twist of serendipity, they came in on the same day. It's like they are bookish bffs.

This Week's Books

As my sewing has picked up, my reading has slowed down (I should look into audio books). Just the same, I'd finished the books I had checked out so I swapped them in for new ones. The Handmaid's Tale is a classic in feminist literature, but it also just sounds really interesting and I'm excited to start it. America's Women is one I found through Good Reads which I think will start to give me an idea of the history of women's rights in America.

This Week's Books

I picked up my next stack of books yesterday. Matilda because someone referenced it on Twitter and I couldn't get it out of my head. (I loved that book as a kid). Fried Green tomatoes because I've seen the movie (and loved it) but not read the book. And First, Break All the Rules because I was in the mood for some business-y books. I've started First, Break All the Rules and the only word for it is "transformative". Perhaps it's just where I am but I'm learning a lot, both about myself and how to deal with others. Definitely a keeper. I'm also still reading The Homemade Pantry, so once I finish those I'll dip into the fiction.

This Week's Books

With this being a long weekend, I was really looking forward to having time to read. I had saved Glamour in Glass to devour in blissful, uninterrupted weekend reading, and I was fascinated by the revelations of Ratio and looking forward to the next 80% of the book. So I was disappointed indeed to find that not only were they due back to the library on Friday, but other readers had placed holds for them.

Wanting to be a good library citizen, I dutifully returned them and promptly came home and put holds on them. : ) Hopefully the other readers will be as conscientious as I was.

Consequently, this week's reads are a bit of a hodge podge of random things I had on my to-read list that were also available from the Main Library. I've already finished both Project Everlasting and If You Ask Me which will leave me lots of time this week to finish the last 70 pages of the Feminine Mystique and soak up the ideas in The Homemade Pantry.

Challenge Completed!

At the beginning of the year, I signed up for a reading challenge through Goodreads. My goal was to read 52 books in 2012. As of today, not yet halfway through the year, I've met that goal. Woot!

So, naturally, the next thing to do is...set an even higher goal! Since I quite handily read 52 books in 20 weeks, I should be able to read another 80 books before year's end. Here's to another 7 months full of fantasy and history, science and psychology, new authors and old favorites.

This Week's Books

So...I may have gotten a little carried away. I am in the middle of "The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairy Land in a Ship of Her Own Making" and "The Feminist Mystique" and I took four new books home from the library. Time to read like crazy? I actually only had 3 books on hold, but I saw Glamour in Glass (the sequel to Shades of Milk and Honey) sitting on the "what's new" display and I couldn't not grab it. So...four books. Should keep me busy. : )

This Week's Books

I am still reading through both the "Feminine Mystic" and "The Last Unicorn", but I am a glutton for punishment and picked up several more. "The Girl Who Circumnavigated..." came highly recommended by a friend and I've been trying to get my hands on it since January. It was finally available so I pounced! "The Gift of Fear" I've been meaning to read for the last four years or so. I figure it will lend a nice counterweight to the fluff.

Last Week's Books

This past week has been insane in a good way, a whirlwind of fun and productivity that left me feeling utterly relaxed. Just before the craziness hit, I managed to make it to the library to pick up several books that I had placed holds on. (And which all came available just as I was going to have less time to read. Isn't that always the way?).

This Week's Books

As expected, I skipped the library last week, but made it this week. I used the time to finish up all the books I had out so I was able to return them all and start on a clean slate. I had a few days between when I finished the last book and when I made it to the library so I picked up the Anne of Green Gables series I've owned since I was a kid. I've made it through to the fourth book now and it's interesting to see what parts I remember, which I don't, and how adulthood has changed my perspective (only a little).

Book Love

These are actually last week's books. There has been much doing going on around the dragon household, which has sharply cut into my reading time. I've finished The Reading Promise, but am still in the middle of both Mistakes Were Made and Woman. This may be the first week I skip the library entirely (nothing is due back until next week), but I may also go in this weekend. We'll see. : )