Books Read in 2010

For the third consecutive year, I've kept a list of books read. I count listening to a book as reading, and such titles are included on my list with a (CD) designation.

My least favorite for 2010 is The Last Time I Saw Paris by Elizabeth Adler, for what reason I no longer remember. I know it is my least favorite because my list includes a minus sign after the title.

My favorite is George Washington's Great Gamble: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution by James Nelson. Nelson's research and writing make history come alive. I learned details I never before knew.

My complete list follows. What was your favorite read in 2010?

Books Read in 2010
A Desirable Residence by Madeleine Wickham
A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck
At Risk (CD) by Patricia Cornwell
Bunnicula by Deborah and James Howe
Can You Keep a Secret? (CD) by Sophie Kinsella
Detour Berlin by Ruth Baja Williams
Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
Emma by Jane Austen
Every Day in Tuscany by Frances Mayes
Four to Score (CD) by Janet Evanovich
George Washington's Great Gamble: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution by James Nelson
High Five (CD) by Janet Evanovich
Hornet's Nest (CD) by Patricia Cornwell
Hot Six (CD) by Janet Evanovich
I'll Never Be French by Mark Greenside
Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
One for the Money (CD) by Janet Evanovich
Plain Truth (CD) by Jodi Picoult
The Birth of Virginia's Aristocracy by James C. Thompson II
The Body in the Library (CD) by Agatha Christie
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
The Last Time I Saw Paris (-) by Elizabeth Adler
The Leap by Rick Smith
The Lightning Thief (CD) by Rick Riordan
The Phantom Tollbooth (CD) by Norton Juster
The Scarpetta Factor (CD) by Patricia Cornwell
Three to Get Deadly (CD) by Janet Evanovich
Two for the Dough (CD) by Janet Evanovich
Wandering Souls by S. Scott Rohrer
When You Reach Me (CD) by Rebecca Stead

It's Pouring Books!

You know the saying, "When it rains, it pours." That has happened in my book life. I've passed through a dry spell of not finding anything that looked interesting to read. And now, all of a sudden, I have a stack by my bed and a growing pile on my desk that I'll never get through even renewing them the full extent allowed by the library.  So I thought it would be good to begin a 2010 list of Books to Read for when I'm needing that next one.  Here is the start of that list.

• Every Day in Tuscany: Seasons of an Italian Life by Frances Mayes
• Your Brain: The Missing Manual by Matthew MacDonald.  (I think a better title for me would be -- Your Missing Brain: The Manual for Finding It)
• Life is Friends by Jeanne Martinet
• The Art of Mingling by Jeanne Martinet (I saw this book mentioned on the cover of Life is Friends.)
• So Stressed: The Ultimate Stress-Relief Plan for Woman by Stephanie McClellan and Beth Hamilton, both M.D.s
• Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson

What are some of the books on your To Read list?

Picture Books for National Library Week

National Library Week is an annual celebration that highlights the value of libraries and librarians. Join the 2010 celebration April 11 - 17 with a visit to your local library.  Here are ten picture books with a library theme to read with your kids, grandkids, nieces and nephews, or students.

Lola at the Library by Anna McQuinn
The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians by Carla Morris
Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen
The Shelf Elf by Jackie Hopkins
Beverly Billingsly Borrows a Book by Alexander Stadler
Our Library by Eve Bunting
Library Mouse by Daniel Kirk
Bats at the Library by Brian Lies
Winston the Book Wolf  by Marni McGee

Books Read in 2009

The complete list of the 31 books I read in 2009 is in the right column.  Six of the titles I listened to on CD while driving, but I do count these in my "reading" list.  My Sunday, May 3, 2009, post names the six books I started but stopped before completion this year.  No need to waste valuable time on books I don't like when there are more books to read than I'll be able to get to in my lifetime.  The book that will transition from 2009 into 2010, because I won't finish it before the stroke of midnight on December 31, is Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.  I read it once before, long ago.  Recently I read somewhere that we never really read the same book twice because when we re-read a book we bring to it the experiences we've had since last reading it.  How about  you?  At this time of year when lists and reviews are popular, which books have you read?  Which have you put aside?  Which do you plan to re-read?  Share with me in the comments section.