Reading 2013

Well, if you're interested in the past, here are lists from 2011 and 2012.

The List:

1	Return of the King - JRR Tolkien*
2	The Fault in Our Stars - John Green
3	Great House - Nicole Krauss
4	Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni  (nf)
5	The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
6	Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn
7	Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald*
8	Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins*
9	Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins*
10	Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
11	Ender's Shadow - Orson Scott Card
12	London War Notes - Mollie Panter-Downes  (nf)
13	Speaker for the Dead -Orson Scott Card
14	Shadow of the Hegemon - Orson Scott Card
15	Shadow Puppets -Orson Scott Card
16	Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss
17	The Wise Man's Fear - Patrick Rothfuss
18	A body in the Library - Agatha Christie
19	Stardust - Neil Gaiman
20	Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - JK Rowling
21	Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - JK Rowling
22	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - JK Rowling
23	Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire -JK Rowling
24	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - JK Rowling
25	Lady in Waiting - Jackie Kendall  (nf)
26	The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
27	Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince - JK Rowling
28	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - JK Rowling

   29 The Crowd, the Critic, and the Muse - Michael Gungor  (nf)

* indicates a re-read
(nf) indicates non-fiction

General trends:


// I read longer, though fewer books.  I set a goal of 40 books in 2013.  Don't think I'd conjectured the average length of each books would be 435 pages.  You can see below for one of my spiffy graphs.  This shows trends in average number of pages per book and per month over the last 3 years:

// I loooove sci-fi and fantasy [obvi].  I started 2013 by finishing off my re-visit to Middle Earth and another quick trip to District 12, but this only set the stage for journeys into the Enderverse, the Four Corners, Gaiman's Fairyland, and the wizarding world of Harry Potter.  I fully recognize I'm a late (very late) comer to Harry Potter, so I won't even bother "recommending" it, Neil Gaiman speaks for himself, but, a few words on the other two series.

I wrote a formal review of Ender's Game as part of my 31 days project, but here and here are thoughts I shared while reading the 1st book.  I can't recommend Ender's Game highly enough, but I'd also suggest it's parallel novel Ender's Shadow and direct sequel Speaker for the Dead (an anecdote of which I shared here).  I've forayed further into Shadow series, which is a fascinating political and psychological saga.  I'm hoping to finish the Ender Quartet, which I hear is highly philosophical.  Card's fiction is a thought-provoking delight.

As for the Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss, I did my best to give it a proper review here.  Name of the Wind, Rothfuss's incredible novel debut gripped me from it's earliest pages and once he sets up the frame narrative - there's no going back.  Both it and its sequel, Wise Man's Fear, are innovative fantasy while maintaining some of the familiar qualities I love most about series like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter (though intended for a more mature audience than either of those series).  I finished these two in August and yet still find myself wondering about the characters as if they were lost friends.  I eagerly await the 3rd and final installment!

All that said, I have enjoyed indulging more in my love for sci-fi, fantasy, and the wonderful spots where they blend.  It's saddening that these are so often relegated to niche literature in academia... but that's a thought for another post.  I have loved these literary journeys and I'm looking forward to a few more in 2014.

// I only just realized looking back at this list that I didn't read a single pre-1900's book this year.  Gatsby, published in 1925, is the earliest novel on the list.

My teenage self would be appalled.  My 23 year old self is rather thrilled.

// Another theme that emerged in my reading habits was learning more about WWII.  Not facts.  Stories.  It was the focus of London War Notes and The Book Thief, but it crept up in plenty of other books too.  London War Notes (passage here) was a heart-breaking and beautiful bi-weekly column written for the New Yorker by an American living in London throughout the war.  Interestingly, The Book Thief, though fictional, was a harrowing tale of "the other side" - how many Germans experienced the war.  As a side note, I think it would be very interesting to read The Book Thief in conjunction with The History of Love.  But these contrasting perspectives make it obvious how unnecessary and tragic the war was - not for one side or the other, but for humanity. 


As for 2014, I'm excited to announce that I'll be taking part of Jon Acuff's "Empty Shelf Project."  I've already cleared the decks and have some books in the wings - so look forward to filling it up! 

I thoroughly enjoyed my literary wanderings in 2013.  More than finding new friends, I found new parts of myself.  These stories lent me courage where I was running low, joy in some dark moments, and love - so much love - for other people.  I couldn't really ask for much more.

Have you read any of these?  What were some of the trends or highlights for your reading in 2013?

On despair

Lately I've been thinking on despair. Delightful, I know. But it keeps coming up.

Call it seasonal vitamin-D deficiency. Blame it on other circumstances in my life. Settle it as the result of too much melancholy viewing or reading. But, whatever the case, despair has been knocking on my door. 

I'm becoming convinced that despair is the greatest evil. Not the greatest sin - but the end-result & effect of sin. 

Despair is so much more than sadness. I've been thinking on the pinpoint moments in some of my favorite stories when despair enters the picture. 

It's when Peeta doesn't love Katniss. 
It's when Ron leaves Harry. 
Or John fails to find Sherlock's pulse. 
Rose gets separated from the Doctor. 
Frodo Baggins forgets the taste of strawberries. 

Failure. Rejection. Goodbyes. These are always the stories' worst moments. 

But the road to resurrection runs through the grave. 

The greatest stories - both in life & in fiction - force the protagonist to walk a mile or more with despair. I've run up against it a few times. We all have in different ways. 

But there are two conclusions I've come to regarding Despair. 

The first is my prayer in the midst of my despair or any loved one's is that I'd be faithful. A faithful friend. A faithful person. "Frodo wouldn't have got very far without Sam." In fact, according to Tolkien, Sam was the hero of Lord of the Rings… and I can see why. The greatest courage isn't in brandishing glittering swords, but in traversing pain our souls were never designed for. "For the only courage worth calling courage must necessarily mean that the soul passes a breaking point--and does not break."  - GK Chesterton.

The other conclusion is one I came to after talking with my dentist, truly great fellow. The thing is, if despair is the greatest evil, joy must be the greatest good. And I'm not speaking of anything akin to humanist happiness. Many classic philosophers got close to this truth, that joy was the aim, but they all lacked something. Until Christ, "for the joy set before Him, endured the cross," they had no response to despair, and no true reason for joy. But we have. 

My friend, Esther, shared with me today, "Hope is the ability to look the past & present squarely in the face and say, 'I know that my future will make beautiful and light these harsh and dark moments.'" That's what I'm holding onto. 

I look to the stories again and again, not for happy endings, but for hopeful ones. They serve to remind that the truest stories don't end in despair. "When the sun shines, it'll shine out the clearer." Until then, "never cruel or cowardly; never give up, never give in." No, now is the time to take another step through the valley, trusting the mountain is still there. All we can do in the meantime is to hold onto the promises, to wait and to hope. 

Happy Monday!

Hello!  Happy New Year, again.  I feel like I've been away for a while.  Between Christmas festivities and having my dear friend Kristina visiting [post forthcoming],  I've only had time for the brief word / picture, but nothing very substantial.  Hoping that changes now that things return to their quieter routine :)

I wanted to share the results from books read last year.  After a personal best at 53 books in 2011, I thought I'd challenge myself with 60 for 2012 - ha!  Well, 2011 was very much an "on" year for reading.  My schedule was rather conducive to it, I took some great courses, breezed through 2 fantasy/sci-fi series (The Auralia Thread and The Hunger Games), was introduced to what good contemporary fiction looks like (thank you History of Love), and came across a host of other good books... mostly shorter books. 

2012 turned out entirely different.  I began the year with Clarissa.  That alone should count for something.  But I also spent time with modernist poetry.  Reading and attempting to understand the Wasteland doesn't feel like reading a whole book - but it sure takes effort, more effort for me in a lot of ways. 
But then I graduated.  And it wasn't like "Whew! I've graduated, I want a break from the books" - far from it.  Rather it was, "I've finally graduated and can get around to all of the coffee dates I've been putting off."  Throw graduation parties, catching up on sleep, and job applications on top of that and it didn't exactly translate into reading as much as I'd like.  But then in July I re-entered Middle Earth... now I'm just 30 pages from sailing away from it  [too cheesy? meh].  Could I have read the "Concerning Hobbits Tetralogy" faster?  Sure... but spending the last 6 months roaming from the Misty Mountains to Mordor has washed me.  It's clarified the way I see life.  It's made me laugh and cry countless times.  It's provided a great connection with my boss :)  It's made me feel the total nerd that I am--complete with hobbit ears. 
It's made me realize that I am a hobbit and that this life is an unexpected adventure.  As of 3 weeks ago I had finished "Mount Doom" and, yes, I've been busy, but part of me wasn't ready for it to end.  I know that tears await me at the Grey Havens.

But I feel ready now to bid the Shire goodbye, and tonight I will.  Though statistically it means I've read only 8 novels since graduating (32 total for 2012), it's been a gift.

Now I have the books of 2013 calling my name.  There's a whole stack already by my bed that I can't wait to dig into.  It's a "farewell" to Tolkien, but it's a "hello" to Green, Kraus, Niffenneger, and countless others.

2013 - I can't wait to crack your cover!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Updated so you can see the full list:

1	The Rainbow
2	Othello
3	Macbeth
4	Katherine Mansfield's Short Stories
5	Clarissa
6	King Lear
7	To the Lighthouse
8	Measure for Measure
9	Waterland
10	The Winter's Tale
11	History of Tom Jones
12	Atonement
13	The Tempest
14	Man Who was Thursday
15	A Severe Mercy
16	Sign of Four
17	Poems of TS Eliot
18	Metamorphosis
19	Trials of Socrates
20	Six Characters in Search of an Author
21	Protagoras
22	Gorgias
23	Mrs. Dalloway
24	Bald Soprano
25	Endgame
26	Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
27	The Archivist
28	Woman in White
29	The Hobbit*
30	JRR Tokien - Biography
31	Fellowship of the Ring*
32	Two Towers*

Key: 
*re-read
___ read for school

I recently found out that The Hunger Games trilogy is finally available in paper back. I wish that had been an option back in December when we bought our set [I vastly prefer paperbacks] =/
But you wouldn't believe my initial reaction to the news. I seriously thought, "Paperback? Do people realize what this means, people? THG can now be taught!!" Yep. A very helpful lit professor informed us last quarter that for a professor to assign a book in a university course it has to be 1) in print and 2) be available in paperback. I sometime have "professor fantasies" - I can totally envision a "dystopian futures" course. Oh goodness... too much fun!

I'll officially be there.

25 days!

[source: Ash]

{favorite moment of the first book}

"If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are."

- "Date a girl who reads" by Rosemarie Urquico 

These by-now familiar words are an all-too perfect description of my present state. So it may come as no surprise that I find my tired self tearing up at work while in the middle of this book:

I apologize... but for now, these characters are real. All too real.

Cannot wait for Christmas Break!!

My book list is piling up and I am so anxious to read them:

I just ordered Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber. I've had 3 different people recommend this book--totally unconnected. Its the true story of an American girl who went to Oxford to study English Lit for grad school, falls in love with Oxford and falls in love with the Lord. I'm stoked! I'm going to have to resist reading this when it arrives.

Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Just saw the trailer for this and knew that I needed to read these books. I showed my older brother yesterday and today, he ordered the whole trilogy. So it looks like we'll be sharing these and I cannot wait. The series was partially inspired by the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur and there are several other Greco-Roman influences, not to mention a compelling story.

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

This has been on my list for months... finally time to get to it.



Clarissa by Samuel Richardson

Trying to get ahead on next quarter.

This is only after I finish Hard Times, The Gangster We're All Looking For, A Gesture Life, Bacchae, and The Frogs... plus 3 papers. No big. Haha... I just can't wait to read these others =)