Jan 2, 2007
Goal #1 Read 50 Books in 2006, Check!
Current mood: sick
That’s right kiddos I reached my goal of reading 50 books this year. This year the goal is 52 books (or an average of one a week.)
I’m going to attempt to write out my list of 2006 books, rate them and review them here in my blog.
The Rating System:
Lo
ved It
Liked It A lot
Liked It
It Was Okay
Kinda Bad
Bad
It Stunk
1. The Best from Fantasy & Science Fiction- 9th Series(1959) 1/6/06 A collection of short stories. Was a good book, but short stories aren’t really my thing. (FYI the Big D and I are fans of pre-moon-landing sci-fi).
2. Fahrenheit 451 1/9/06 This book is my choice for book of the year. It’s an amazing premise for a sci-fi story. And it’s spooky to see signs of it in our society. A must read for anyone who reads.
3. Urshurak 1/16/06 This book was written so the Hildebrant Brothers would have something to justify their artwork. It cliched, and a little confusing. Not destined to be a Fantasy Classic.
4. The Secret of the Indian 1/17/06 Part of my Young Adult collection. This story is a classic, and I think you’re never too old to relive a classic. Besides as an adult your able to read it more quickly.
5. Till We Have Faces 1/22/06 It was a good book, and I’d highly recommend it, but… (Angela don’t think bad of me for saying this.) It’s kind of redundant in parts and overlong. That not to say that the lessons about love that C.S. Lewis is trying to get across aren’t done well.
6. Back Rx 3/1/06 It took me forever to read this book, but it did help me in my recovery after the tumble down the stairs in Dec. It teaches a cross between yoga/pilatles/ and Chiropractic care.
7. Myst: The Book of D’ni 2/3/06 Not the best book in the Myst series, but good none the less. It had some ideas I thought were unique, and of course I like the Myst premise of science fantasy.
8. The Firebrand 3/10/06 Marion Zimmer Bradley or MZB is a fantasy genius. I pick up her books (other than the Darkover series) whenever I can. This time I was rewarded with a fantastic retelling of the Iliad, with sprinkles of other Greek mythos all redone with a twist.
9. China Boy 3/21/06 Was a runner-up for Book of the year. It’s a coming to America/ coming of age story, about a Chinese boy. This book found several heart strings of mine to tug on.
10. The Partridge Family #2 3/22/06 This is part of a very strange habit that I don’t even know why I have. For some reason every time I see a Partridge Family book I have to buy it. I was never a big fan of the TV show, but for some reason I feel compelled to read the books.
11. The Babysitters Club #1 3/25/06 I am trying to collect all the #1’s of popular YA series. And I feel that I should read my YA books, so when I have kids and they read them mom will know what they are reading. But this one just wasn’t much of a book. If my kids don’t get into this series I won’t blame them.
12. The Gross: The Hits, The Flops: The Summer That Ate Hollywood 5/13/06 Fascinating look at how movies really get made. Tells the story of the wheeling and dealing that made the summer 1998. If you are into movies I’ll lend you this book.
13. Josefina Books 5/17/06 Josefina is my favorite American Girls Club doll. It’s probably because she’s from New Mexico. So when I saw the books at a garage sale I knew I had to have them. And they lived up to their promise.
14. Sphere 5/26/06 One of those rare occasions where watching the movie helped me enjoy the book more. This was the first Micheal Crichton book I read and I was blown away by it.
15. The Andromeda Strain 5/29/06 Coming down off the Micheal Crichton high of Sphere I hit rock-bottom quickly. This book (also by MC) kept claiming it was an edge of your seat thriller. So I read it very fast thinking with every page that something was going to happen. It turned out to be a kind of boring book, with no edge-of-your-seat-ness.
16. The Cross and the Switchblade 6/7/06 More heart strings time. We picked up several books by David Wilkerson at a junk store, and now I’m hooked. There is just something about reading about the Spirit moving in big ways that gives you goosebumps (and a little encouragement too.) And I keep coming back to that.
17. A Wrinkle in Time 6/8/06 Another runner up for book if the year. I couldn’t believe that I had never read this book before. If you run across a copy of this book read it! It is a great fantasy book in every way. It’s classified as YA but it has some concepts that it takes an adult mind to fully grasp.
18. A Wind in the Door 6/9/06 Sequel to A Winkle in Time. Not as good as the first, but equally enjoyable. This book focused more on science (which is probably why I think it wasn’t as good as the first.) The first book looks outward, this book looks inward. Worthy of a single afternoon read.
19. Pippi Longstocking 6/12/06 A children’s classic, but I found it hard to read and slow. It’s really just a collection of short stories about Pippi Longstocking.
20. Hey, Preach You’re Comin’ Through 6/12/06 Another good book by David Wilkerson, who is basically the grandfather of Christian outreach to gangs and drug addicts.
21. Trapped 6/14/06 I think I read this book in the 5th grade, and then found it again for 10 cent at a junk store. It’s a short, simple story about a guy who gets trapped in his car.
22. Crunchy Cons 6/29/06 Even though the guy who wrote the book is full of himself and it’s very redundant it’s still a good book. It sums up a lot of the things I believe are wrong with the conservative party today, and it really pushes for some of the things the Big D and I believe in. One quick example is eating healthier by shopping at CO-OP’s. I love our co-op, but I’m not the typical liberal (and/or hippie) member. I highly recommend this book.
23. The Curse of Slagfid 7/4/06 A unique fantasy novel, that about halfway through sucked me in so far that I read almost non stop. I even snarled once at the Big D for trying to get me to put it down. That’s a sure sign that it was a good book.
24. Seaward 7/6/06 Another unique fantasy novel. Picked in up as a YA book, but once again it deals with adult type ideas. At first it seems to be the typical “on a journey” fantasy novel, but it throws several twist in that make it anything but typical.
25. Outland 7/7/06 For some reason I am really drawn to Sci-fi that features man vs. man conflict (perhaps why I like Firefly so much). I thought Outland was unique and exciting. I really like the setting of Io (a moon of Jupiter). The Big D is reading it right now, and I don’t think he’s as impressed as I was.
26. The Witch of Blackbird Pond 7/10/06 Another YA book I can’t believe I had never read. And it’s not about Witches at all. It’s about coming of age in a new environment, of feeling out of place and misunderstood. Great book all around.
27. Tales from the “White Hart” 8/4/06 I really wanted to read something by Arthur C Clarke. Too bad I choose this to be my first example. For one thing it was a collection of short stories, and for another it’s a little discombobulated. But he has some unique story ideas, and I’m all about the unique.
28. Night 8/8/06 It’s hard to say you like a book about something so gruesome as the holocaust, but Night is a very good book. I think it should be listed on high school reading lists.
29. Ringworld 8/25/06 Tanj! This is bound to be a classic Sci-fi book. And rumors are that the idea for the ringworld on Halo came from this book. In fact I think a lot of Sci-fi writer (esp for TV) have probably read this book and it influenced their writing.
30. Island of the Blue Dolphins 9/1/06 A must have for any YA collection. It deserves every award it’s ever won. I was skeptical about reading it again as an adult, but the book won me over because it is very well written.
31. Prometheus Bound 9/6/06 Every year I have to read at least one Greek play, and Prometheus Bound is one of my favorites. It a story about the funny way fate works. Where one day your on top of the world, and the next your chained to a wall, and eventually the person who locked you up will need your help. It’s one of the original riches to rags to riches stories.
32. Black Trillium 9/15/06 I made a mistake and read the last book in this trilogy first. This first book is written by 3 authors one of which is MZB. It’s a pretty run of the mill fantasy novel, (crossing over coming of age with “the journey”) but it’s well done. Which is probably why I went out looking for the second one right after I finished it.
33. Pirates of Venus 9/25/06 I <3 just sci-fi that was written before the moon landing. It just so much more creative. This book is by Edgar Rice Burroughs, and is about a man with telepathic abilities who travels to Venus and reports his adventures back to earth telepathically. It’s really a hoot!
34. Eragon 10/2/06 Kinda wish I had waited until after I had seen the movie to read this book. I know that’s backwards, but the movie was a real let down. And I think if I had watched the movie, and then read the book I would have gone, “Wow this book is great.” Instead I thought the book was alright, simple but good. I got sucked in even though it was pretty much a formula fantasy novel. I am very interested in seeing what Eldest has to offer.
35. Zork: The Cavern of Doom 10/3/06 A short choose your own adventure type book based on a old computer game. The Big D and I both read it, but it wasn’t anything to write home about.
36. The Tower Treasure 10/11/06 Did you know that the Hardy Boy books went through a re-write in the 60’s? Neither did I until I picked up this original print, and wondered why the phrases seemed so different. It was really kind of cool. If you happen to stumble into any Hardy Boys books with a 1920’s copyright (for less then $4) I’ll buy them from you.
37. Blood Trillium 10/31/06 The second Trillium book. Didn’t care too much for the story in and of itself, but it sets up a doozy of a sequel in the 3rd book. The problem with this book is that it centers too much around the royal children, and the character flaws of the 3 main characters. I just didn’t enjoy them harping on the characters bad traits all through out the book.
38. Star Trek 9 11/5/06 Short story adaptations of the Original series. Short, quick, fun reads, but not real intellectual.
39. The Childhood of Daniel Boone 11/6/06 The Big D’s grandmother is related to Daniel Boones sister, so when we found this book at Goodwill I decided to read it. It was alright, but not good. At least we’ll have it around for our kids to know about their ancestors.
40. Imbalance (TNG #22) 11/12/06 A run of the mill Star Trek novel, but I love the TNG cast. And this book has a very interesting setting and alien race.
41. Ralph S Mouse 11/13/06 A classic YA book. The sequel to the Mouse and the Motorcycle, and another great book about Ralph. Life lessons are just so cute when they come through the adventures of a mouse who can talk.
42. Spock Must Die 11/20/06 The first Star trek novel that was separate than the script adaptations. It was an exciting story, but had a big flaw with the ending not fitting into the “big picture” of the Star Trek universe.
43. Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing 11/21/06 Ah Fudge! Another classic YA novel. Peter’s little brother Fudge is a handful, and his misadventures (while not funny to Peter) are laugh out loud funny to the reader. And you won’t believe what Fudge eats at the end. Worth reading just for that part.
44. Wolf Tower 11/29/06 At first may seem like a formula “journey” fantasy book, but it’s written in a very unique way. Wolf Tower also changed up the reasons for the journey, and has a different-the-formula end of the journey. I guess it suppose to be a YA novel, but well you know that doesn’t stop me.
45. Enders Game 12/5/06 Almost good enough to be a runner up for book of the year. What would happen if we breed children for war strategy? Enders Wiggin is the answer. You really feel for him, when his trainers do everything they can to make him feel isolated, and push him to the edge. It brings up some interesting moral questions, about what should be done to save the planet. Are their lines that shouldn’t be crossed? I highly recommend it.
46. Mrs. Piggle- Wiggles Magic 12/8/06 I love Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle. Her cures are cute and funny, and they teach kids good manners. I plan on reading Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle to my kids as a bedtime story.
47. Eaters of the Dead 12/10/06 The story behind The 13th Warrior. Its much more explicit and gruesome than the movie, but it has more depth. The story doesn’t end at the last chapter. You have to read all the way through the authors notes at the end to get a complete picture of the story. It was good enough I’d recommend it to anyone who liked the movie.
48. Star Trek #10 12/16/06 More adaptations of the Original series. The more you know the more you realize that the triad of Jim, Spock, and Bones is the backbone of the series. You probably don’t need me to tell you that their example is one of the kind of friendship the Bible talks about. “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13
49. A Series of Unfortunate Events #1, A Bad Beginning 12/17/06 We found the book for cheap and I wanted to know what all the buzz is about. It seems weird that a book about so many bad things happening to kids would be a popular YA franchise. It was interesting in the way it was written, and the moves along quickly. But I don’t know if I’d want my kids reading it.
50. Flash Gordon #1 12/21/06 A fun quick sci-fi read. Flash Gordon is just short of Superman. He is macho, athletic, caring, loyal, he’d be the perfect man if he wasn’t still hung up on his dead wife. The story has unique characteristics, and is was fun to read, but not real in depth.