52 books for 52 weeks
1. Memoir
2. More than 500 pages
3. Classic Romance - Wuthering Heights?...maybe
4. Became a movie
5. Published this year - (Feb.16) Grace and Style: The Art of Pretending You Have It Grace Helbig - It was a quick and funny read. Typical Grace, self aware and funny. I love that she's someone my age who doesn't take herself too seriously.
6. Number in the title - (Jan.16) 13 Reasons Why Jay Asher - I found this book on a "must read" Pinterest list. It was surprisingly good. It's about a girl who commits suicide and leaves tapes explaining to 13 people how they affected (effected? whothefuckknows) her decision to end her life. I may have found myself relating to the girl more if I had been younger when reading this, but I didn't hate her as much as I had anticipated. If you enjoy YA and quick reads, it's something I'd recommend.
7. Author under 30 - (Feb.16) Grace's Guide: The Art of Pretending You're a Grown-Up Grace Helbig - She was under 30 when she wrote this so I'm counting it. This was funnier than her other book. It felt a bit more personal. It was another quick read and very relatable.
8. Non-human characters
9. Funny book - (Feb.16) You Deserve a Drink: Boozy Misadventures and Tales of Debauchery Mamrie Hart - I've wanted to read this basically since it came out. I really enjoy Mamrie's stuff on YouTube. The stories were funny and made me want to have her as a friend.
10. Female author - (Jan.16) Reconstructing Amelia Kimberly McCreight - The mother of a teenage girl is searching for a reason her daughter committed suicide. The mom doesn't believe it would happen and gets a text from someone assuring her Amelia didn't kill herself. The mystery behind Amelia's death was interesting and the ending actually caught me by surprise. There were a few subplot mysteries that caught me off guard as well.
11. Mystery/Thriller -
12. One word title - (Feb.16) ROOM Emma Donoghue - The story is told by the five year old boy living with his mother in a one room shack. The shack is in the back yard of the man who kidnapped "Ma" seven years before the book begins. I was worried the child's narrative would be hard to follow or distracting. I think Lucy being close to five made it easier to follow. It wasn't as heart-wrenching as I expected, but it was an enjoyable story. I'd recommend it to friends.
13. Short Stories
14. Set in a different country - (Feb.16) Daughter Jane Shemilt - A young girl disappears. It's a back and forth from time of her disappearance and a year later in the mother's perspective. They mystery of if Naomi left on her own or was abducted was well told and kept my interest. I was satisfied with the answer when we found out her fate. The ending was a let down compared to the book. It just, ended. I think I'd recommend it, but not as much as others.
15. Non-fiction book
16. Popular author's first book
17. An author you love - (Feb.16) See Me Nicholas Sparks - I expected this to be a typical sappy romance book. It definitely was not. While it was a love story, there was a mystery to be solved as well. I was pleasantly surprised. You go the whole book knowing this woman has a stalker and spend the whole book trying to figure out who it is before the characters. You could tell mystery isn't what Nicky Sparks usually does, because the answer was pretty obvious. Despite the predictability it was still really enjoyable.
18. Friend recommendation - The Husband's Secret c/o Courtney
19. Pulitzer Prize winner - (Jan.16) The Color Purple Alice Walker - I went in to this with no expectations. I've never seen the movie and genuinely didn't know what it was going to be about. I was pleasantly surprised. It was serious and deep subject matter, but the characters just treated it as life, because that's what it was for them. I actually liked the way they discussed such intense things in passing. I'm actually afraid of finding the movie to watch because I have a feeling, like most movies, the things I loved most won't be there. Update: Watched the movie...LOVED it too
20. Based on a true story
21. Your mom loves
22. That scares you - (March 16) Still Alice Lisa Genova - Alice is a Harvard professor who learns that, at the age of 50, she has early onset Alzheimer's. The book is told from her point of view. Readers get to experience her frustration as her mind begins to fail her. It's not what you would expect to see on the list as a book that "scares me," but it does. My grandmother has EOA and there is a chance I will as well. This knowledge is terrifying. Taking a peek into the mind of a woman living with a disease I may well have to live with was interesting and heart wrenching. I would recommend it to any one and every one.
23. Bottom of your to read list
24. Over 100 years old
25. Based on the cover alone - (March 16) The Good Girl Mary Kubica - I was pleasantly surprised with this one. I had no expectations and enjoyed it. Mia is kidnapped from the bar and taken to a cabin in the woods by the man who took her. He has a change of heart and instead of turning her over to the crime boss he saves her. The ending was a twist that I didn't see coming. Maybe if I had read about it and knew a twist was coming I could have predicted it, but sometimes the more you know the better!
26. Supposed to read in school but didn't - Great Expectations ( I just searched the text for answers)
27. Author with your initials - (Feb.16) The Solomon Sisters Wise Up Melissa Senate - It was a
pretty typical chick lit book. Three sisters as different places in life. All returning home to get their shit together. None of them wanting to admit their troubles. I laughed; I didn't cry. I wouldn't read it again, but if someone asked for a quick beach or pool read, I may suggest it.
28. Finish in 1 day - (Feb.16) Luckiest Girl Alive Jessica Knoll - I really wanted to like this one. It had lots of reviews comparing it to Gillian Flynn. I kept waiting for it to get there. It was on the cusp of being really great. It ended up somewhere around okay. I didn't hate it. I don't feel like I wasted my time. I'm just not sure I'd recommend it to someone looking for something to read.
29. Antonyms in the title
30-32. A trilogy - The 50 Shades books......only for Lindsey
33. Set in a place you want to visit
34. Started before but never finished - Finders Keepers Stephen King
35. Made into TV show - The book that inspired Bones
36. Published the year you were born
37. Translated from another language - The Little Prince Antoine de Saint-Exupery
38. Banned book - (Jan.16) The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger - I struggled through this one. I'm hoping if I finish the challenge early, I can give it another try. I really wanted to like it. In the end, I just don't get the hype.
39. Received bad reviews
40. A play
41. From your childhood
42. With a love triangle - (Feb.16) The Stuff that Never Happened Maddie Dawson - A woman is telling the story of her marriage at the beginning and at present time. She tells the story of falling in love with someone who wasn't her husband and wondering now if she still loves him. It felt like a very real story. It wasn't a storybook romance, it felt very real to life. Those stories aren't for everyone, but I like those the best.
43. Set in the future
44. Set in a high school - (Jan.16) The List Siobhan Vivian - Typical high school stuff. Some unknown senior picks a hottest and ugliest girl from each grade. The book takes a different approach. It's set up to follow each of the 8 girls the week the list comes out. There was more depth to it than I had anticipated, but it was still a little shallow. I'd definitely give another book by this author a chance.
45. Color in the title
46. Makes you cry
47. With magic
48. Graphic novel
49. New to you author - (Feb.16) Big Little Lies - Liane Moriarty - This one had pretty mixed reviews. Stephen King tweeted about it, so I figured I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did. It was a big book, but an easy read. I stayed up way later than a mother of two should because I couldn't put it down. It's about gossipy moms with kids in the same class. A charity even leads to a death. You spend the whole book wondering who died and how. I'm looking forward to reading her other book on my list.
50. You own but haven't read - Go Set a Watchman
51. Based in your town
52. Takes place during Christmas - Skipping Christmas
I am just going to update this entry as I finish the books. Every time I update, I'm going to highlight the new additions to the post. If I find a book I want to complete a number, I'll probably just put in the title so I don't forget. It averages out to a book a week, which I know is ambitious, but some books are quick reads and when Ben is home I can get a lot of reading done. If you have any recommendations, please, let me know!
