Reading List 2014 (and beyond?)

[krickets]

Read in 2014
The Word-Loss Diet, Rayne Hall
The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Brian Selznick
Divergent, Veronica Roth
Insurgent, Veronica Roth
Allegiant, Veronica Roth
A Matter of Days, Amber Kizer
Shadow and Bone, Leigh Bardugo
The Raven Boys, Maggie Stiefvater
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green
The Dream Thieves, Maggie Stiefvater
Siege and Storm, Leigh Bardugo
The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, Sheila Turnage
The Rosie Project, Graeme Simsion
Code Name Verity, Elizabeth Wein
Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared, Jonas Jonasson
Tiny Beautiful Things, Cheryl Strayed
When You Reach Me, Rebecca Stead
The Black Unicorn, Audre Lorde
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, Tom Franklin
The Solitude of Prime Numbers, Paolo Giordano
We The Animals, Justin Torres
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, Chris Grabenstein
The Neon Rain, James Lee Burke
The Scent of Rain and Lightning, Nancy Pickard
A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle
Portrait of a Dead Guy, Larissa Reinhart
Still Life in Brunswick Stew, Larissa Reinhart
Last Words of the Executed, Robert K. Elder
Something Borrowed, Someone Dead, M.C. Beaton
Eleanor and Park, Rainbow Rowell
The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line (Veronica Mars #1), Rob Thomas
Five Days at Memorial, Sheri Fink
The Shining, Stephen King
Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures, Kate DiCamillo
Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline
The Giver, Lois Lowry
Moon Over Manifest, Clare Vanderpool
A Confederacy of Dunces, John Kennedy Toole
Where the Heart Is, Billie Letts
Austenland, Shannon Hale
The Intern's Handbook, Shane Kuhn
The Stranger, Albert Camus
We Were Liars, E. Lockhart
Dead End in Norvelt, Jack Gantos
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, Claire North
The Total Money Makeover, Dave Ramsey
Money Rules, Jean Chatzky
The Ask and the Answer, Patrick Ness
Buzz Kill, Beth Fantaskey
Flash Boys, Michael Lewis
My Friend Dahmer, Derf Backderf
The Wednesday Wars, Gary D. Schmidt
The Tent, Margaret Atwood



Currently Reading
In Cold Blood, Truman Capote



To-Read "Short"-List
Let's Get Lost, Adi Alsaid
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
You Are One of Them, Elliott Holt
Rooftoppers, Katherine Rundell
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood
The Blind Assassin, Margaret Atwood
Oryx and Crake/The Year of the Flood/MaddAddam, Margaret Atwood
The Undomestic Goddess, Sophie Kinsella
Elizabeth is Missing, Emma Healey
Misery, Stephen King
How to be Idle, Tom Hodgkinson
The Hundred-Year House, Rebecca Makkai
The Borrower, Rebecca Makkai
Landline, Rainbow Rowell
The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair, Joel Dicker
An Untamed State, Roxane Gay
Bittersweet, Miranda Beverly-Whittemore
Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident, Donnie Eichar
The Group, Mary McCarthy
Seating Arrangements, Maggie Shipstead
The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt (LOL JK TOO LONG)
Rooms, Lauren Oliver (to be released Sept 23rd 2014)
The Silkworm, Robert Galbraith
Blue Lily, Lily Blue, Maggie Stiefvater (to be released Oct 28th 2014)
Monsters of Men, Patrick Ness

Comments

[lennongirl.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, "In Cold Blood", that's on my, uh, "shortlist" to read as well ;)

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I've read more non-fiction and literary non-fiction this year than I have, well... ever. Not just in sheer numbers but in percent. This one is by far the most rich stylistically. Which I expected. Although I have to say that Five Days at Memorial is a close second just based on sheer WTFery, solid reporting and breadth of detail. I've had In Cold Blood checked out for several weeks but recently saw that Veena Sud used it as inspiration for the case in the final season of The Killing so I finally started reading it a few days ago. It's sort of crazy to think about the fact that this case drove Capote a little mad in his final years.

[lennongirl.livejournal.com]

Same, same. I've always liked my non fiction in between, but lately I LOVE it. And have so much more on my pile. I'm currently reading "The Sleepwalkers" by Christopher Clark, which is about 700+ pages on how WW1 came about, lol. Talking about some light summer reading... but yeah, "In Cold Blood" is on my list, too, and what you say about Capote going a little mad after writing it - I think I read more "behind the scenes" stuff on this book (and the murder) than ever before, haha. I really need to read that very soon, thanks so much for reminding me :))

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Oh I don't know if I could do that, haha. So how did WWI come about? In one sentence or less? LOL. War history is not my forte.

[lennongirl.livejournal.com]

I'm only about 50 pages in and am currently deeply into Serbian history ca. 1900. It's interesting though, not dry. I might give you an answer in a few weeks maybe ;)

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I'll hold you to maybe.

[lennongirl.livejournal.com]

Hahahaha, yes, especially the one sentence thing - BUT WAIT, I just saw the most perfect thing the other day: Would you please look at that :))) This is better than anything I could tell you, no matter how many books I read :D

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Holy crap that's awesome. It would probably be even more awesome if I knew anything at all about WWI

[lennongirl.livejournal.com]

Well, you kind of do now ;)

[rosie1234.livejournal.com]

I really enjoyed The Raven Boys, I listened to it and now I'm listening to The Dream Thieves, can't wait to finish that and get the third when it comes out.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Yes oh man! It's definitely one of my favorites this year. I legitimately can't wait for the third. Which I can never remember its title off the top of my head, haha. I love all of the characters and Will Patton's narration is freaking FABULOUS.

[waltzmatildah.livejournal.com]

Jeeez, Louise. I was kinda pleased with my own 'have read this year' list, until I saw yours!! SO MANY BOOKS! We have a couple in common.

HAPPY READING...!

Also, GUESS WHAT... it's August 1st here in Australia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[crickets.livejournal.com]

One hour until The Killing! In my neck of the woods!


Don't be fooled. I have a long commute now so I listen to a LOT of audiobooks. But I'm reading a lot more print books than usual too. The two combined is like a booksplosion! Oh! Which ones do we have in common?

[waltzmatildah.livejournal.com]

The Rosie Project (HAAAAAATED)
The Fault in our Stars (did not like)
The Hundred Year Old Man... (LOVED!!!)

OMG, it's almost back! I am so freaking looking forward to it (even though three of my four faves over the seasons are dead..!). Sarah, I'm still in it for you, girl!

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I was only so-so on The Rosie Project. The whole premise kind of made me crazy even if it was entertaining in parts.

I actually liked The Fault in our Stars. Didn't hate it, didn't love it, wouldn't put it on a list, but I was expecting zilch so I was pleasantly surprised by it. I guess it depends on what your expectations are going in. I mainly just read it so I could watch the movie. Just the facts ma'am.

The Hundred Year Old Man.. you should read the first fifteen lives of Harry August. I didn't LOVE either of those but they have a very similar quality about them. I personally found its quirkiness and history-factoid-ness grating after a while unfortunately.

[waltzmatildah.livejournal.com]

I had to rage!read TRP in order to finish it! I thought TFIOS was mediocre at best (writing-wise), with subject matter that's been done and done better (imo), I don't get the whole Second Coming reaction to John Green ~at ~all.

As for THYOM, yeah, I can imagine that sort of thing isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it's definitely mine! I found myself cheering on the factoids, and quirky seems to be my current jam. I'm definitely taking you up on that rec. thank you!

[blighted-star.livejournal.com]

My goodness! That is a lot of book. Puts my list to shame. What has been your favorite so far?

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Oh my favorite so far. That's tough. I loved (and hated) so many of those.

I'm loving the Raven Boys/The Raven Cycle series so much. For sheer enjoyment.

Tiny Beautiful Things was freaking amazing in a punch-to-the-stomach, real life kind of way. But it's a book of non-fiction essays so it's in a class all its own. Cheryl Strayed's pre-Wild work. Now her memoir is gonna be a movie with Reese Witherspoon.

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead and The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt are probably the two books I've recommended the most this year. Both are YA and both are INCREDIBLE in similar but also vastly differing ways. I'd love to see both adapted for the screen but they're not really franchise type stuff.

I also found both Five Days At Memorial (non-fiction account of a post-Katrina hospital) and My Friend Dahmer (a non-fiction graphic novel about Jeffrey Dahmer in high school, written and illustrated by a former classmate) to be well worth the read in different ways. Five Days at Memorial will kind of blow you away with how much research it must have taken to recreate those moments in a narrative, literary way. And My Friend Dahmer is thought-provoking (a little preachy at times) and weird.

Oh ETA: My long commute and access to audiobooks has a lot to do with the length of my list. Do not feel ashamed!

[blighted-star.livejournal.com]

I'm going to make a note of all these books.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Hope you like them!

[eponine119.livejournal.com]

You read a lot! That is awesome.

So many good books on your to-read list, too.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I really should say that a bunch of those are listened to on audiobook because I have such a crazy commute to work these days. But I also am reading more print books too so it's like a "booksplosion." Haha.

I really can't wait to read some of the books on my to-read list. I get so easily distracted by shiny things!

[daybreak777.livejournal.com]

The Giver! To Kill a Mockingbird!

What is Atwood's The Tent about?

[crickets.livejournal.com]

It's a collection of "short stories" (half a page to a few pages long) and a handful of poems, told in three parts. I liked the first and the third best. The second contained a lot of animal/allegory type tales which are not my favorite. But it's the first thing I've ever read by her and I kept having these moments where I wished the book was not a loaner from the library so I could highlight and circle stuff. She's bloody amazing!