Books

It's no secret I love to read.

I have been a huge bookworm since I was a child, reading books like American Girl, Sweet Valley Twins and Boxcar Children. My dad is a big bookworm and although we don't read the same things, I can credit him with introducing me to Harry Potter and always pushing my literary boundaries.

Talking about books is probably one of my favorite subjects, and I don't really care how nerdy that sounds. Escaping to another world through a book is my ultimate therapy and I will never be ashamed of that. Actually, I feel sorry people that aren't readers and don't "get it"! I'm on Goodreads daily and I even started a book club here in Des Moines called Books 'n Bars where each month we read a new book and check out a local bar.

I haven't really gotten as "book-ish" as I have wanted to on here. Yes, I'm serious. As I was going through my posts from 2011 looking for my reviews, I notice TONS of books that I haven't posted reviews for (no wonder I don't get very many ARC's, lol). I plan to change that in 2012.

On this page is where I hope to link all of my book reviews, Books 'n Bars recaps and other book-ish posts. That way all you other bookworms can find all you need in one handy dandy post. :)

Books 'n Bars recaps: 
June 2011 - Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
July 2011 - The Help by Kathryn Stockett
August 2011 - The Guernsey Potato Peel Pie Society
September 2011 - Secret Daughter
October 2011 - The Murderer's Daughters
November 2011 - Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
December 2011 - The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
January 2012 - Packing for Mars

Book reviews: 

My favorite grade to teach is 6th grade and I hope to someday have my own classroom in the middle grades so I read a lot of young adult and middle grades books. I know this isn't everyone's cup of tea, so I have separated the books into these three categories.

Young Adult:
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins 
Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins 


Middle Grades: 
The Giver by Lois Lowery
Hitler Youth
Shutting out the Sky
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Adult Contemporary:
The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
The Help by Kathryn Stockett You can also find a second review of The Help here. 
The Opposite of Me by Sarah Pekkanen 
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult 
There's Cake in my Future by Kim Gruenenfelder
When You Were Mine by Elizabeth Noble
Sweet Valley Confidential by Francine Pascal
With a Little Luck by Caprice Crane
Silver Girl by Elin Hilderbrand 
The Guernsey Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Burrows
Historic Conversations with Jacqueline Kennedy (audio)
The Murderer's Daughters by Randy Susan Meyers
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan 
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides 
Stay by Allie Larkin
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett