Fall Reading

Of all my many, many years of New Years Resolutions, I have to say that this year's have been the BEST!

Among other things, one of my resolutions was to "read more." I originally set a goal to read 24 books in 2012, but then upped it to 36. (I'm at 26 - amazing for me!) The point was to get myself in the habit of reading. And it totally worked.

Instead of staying up too late and falling asleep in front of the TV on the couch, I'll usually go up to bed around 10 and read a few chapters. SUCH a better way to go. And now that my 8yo does gymnastics, I'm finding myself with several more hours of reading time per week, when I'd otherwise be sitting there playing on my cell phone. (Words with Friends. I can only take so much of that game. Right now, I've got one game where I don't have a single vowel. And I've got another where I have all vowels and one consonant. How aggravating!)

But I've had a run of "blah" books lately. Not bad, most of them still worth reading, but just not great. Water for Elephants really ruined it for me. I'm now dissatisfied with anything that doesn't measure up!

Anyway, here are the books I've read lately...  

Gentlemen & Players - Joanne Harris
I mean...it was OK. I guessed the ending long before I think I was supposed to. Not that memorable. It was fine.

The Last Town on Earth - Thomas Mullen
Again, just OK. The first 2/3 of the book was totally unnecessary.

48 Days to the Work you Love - Dan Miller
OK, this one was actually really good. I think it's going to become our standard "college graduate" gift from now on. I wish I'd read this when I was younger, and I know DH wishes he had, too.

The Parting - Beverly Lewis
My first venture into Amish fiction. It was a nice story, and kept me just interested enough to keep reading, but not so interested that I want to read the rest of the series. Just OK, overall. I thought I would enjoy it more! Maybe I should have started with one of her more popular books; I'm not writing her off altogether, but I feel no urge to read more Beverly Lewis right now.

90 Minutes in Heaven - Don Piper
Hmm. What did I think? It was fascinating. The true story of a guy who died in an accident, went to heaven, and then came back to life. Honestly, I thought there'd be more about Heaven in it...most of it was about his recovery afteward. Still really good though.

So, there's nothing really earth-shattering here. But THEN I went to a yard sale and picked up a set of books by Francine Rivers, called "The Mark of the Lion" trilogy.  The first one is called A Voice in the Wind and I love it so far.  Almost from the very first page, I started feeling connected to the characters.  That is unheard of.  Francine Rivers is a genius.  I forgot how much I love her books! This one is set in ancient Rome.  It makes me want to rent "Gladiator" again, actually. 

What are you reading these days?