My Reading List for 2012

When I was a kid, when we put more on our plate than we could eat, my dad would say, "Guess your eyes are bigger than your stomach." That's the way I feel when I survey my bookshelf and plan what books to move to the top of my reading list. I want to read them ALL! And I want to re-read my favorites. So making a list is an exercise in delusions of grandeur. Although I desperately want to devour them all, I have to narrow it down to a few dozen choices, knowing that there will be new releases and "hot" books hitting the bookstore shelves again this year. And that one-click button on Amazon is sooooo easy.

So this list is a loose outline of what I hope to read in the next twelve months, words that will nourish my spirit, give me a laugh or two, and prod me to be a better writer myself.

• When Sparrows Fall by Meg Moseley (I've already started this one and am loving it)

• The Bungalow by Sarah Jio

• Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls (on last year's list - didn't get to it)

• There You'll Find Me by Jenny B. Jones

• From This Day Forward by Margaret Daley

• Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (also one I didn't get to last year)

• The Girl Who Chased The Moon and Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen (recommended by a friend whose literary taste I trust)

• Mother of Pearl by Kellie Gilbert (will have to wait as this is a September release)

• Lilacs in Bloom and The Daughter's Walk by Jane Kirkpatrick

These are the books I have or know about. Charles Martin has a new one coming out and will likely move to the top of the pile the minute I get my hands on it. I also have three of Elizabeth Berg's books that I want to sink into - I love her voice and lovely stories.

I also want to revisit my Anne Tyler collection - I'm thinking The Accidental Tourist and Back When We Were Grownups. It's been too long since I've enjoyed one of her books.

Now for a fun surprise:

What books were on the NYT Bestsellers List on this week in January, 1952?

No. 1 - The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk
No. 8 - From Here to Eternity by James Jones
No. 12 - The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger

Sixty years and these are still beloved. Classics, I suppose, by now. I'll think I'll add The Catcher in the Rye to my 2012 list.

How do you choose what books you want to read? Friend recommendations? Best-seller lists? Classics? Do you ever read books more than once?

2012 is off to a great start! What's the first book you want to read?

The Best Reads of 2011

What a great year for books! Unfortunately, it wasn't a great year for time to read all the books I wanted. The year started off with my going to the Pulpwood Queens Girlfriend Weekend in Jefferson, TX. There I was introduced to many new (to me) authors which added to my already leaning pile of books-I-want-to-read-before-I-die.

Writing, editing, and marketing took a big chunk of my reading time in the middle part of the year, but I've finished strong and read some darned good books the last few month. Before I get to that, I have to tell you about a new and interesting twist to my author life - I was asked to read a number of books for endorsement - that pithy little blurb that appears sometimes on the cover or in the flyleaf at the front of a book. What an honor . . . and a responsibility. You can either gush and sound really silly or try out some sixty-four dollar words and sound stuffy or you can give a brief but lively blurb that pulls out the strengths of the book. Luckily, for me, this was easy as all the books I was asked to read only added to my literary enjoyment this year.

So to start things off, these are the authors and their books that I've endorsed this year:

When All My Dreams Come True by Janelle Mowery
Reinventing Leona by Lynne Gentry
Reclaiming Lily by Patti Lacy
Savanna's Gift by Camille Eide
Wish You Were Here by Beth K. Vogt (2012 release)
A Sweethaven Summer by Courtney Walsh (2012 release)
The Mother Road by Jennifer AlLee (2012 release)

Such a privilege to read these heart-warming stories. The one thing they all had in common was the unique voice that each author brought to the book.

Now, on to the Best of List. I sometimes do a top five in two or three categories, but this year my reading took me far and wide so I'm going to do like they do on the televised awards shows and invent categories to suit my needs.

Best Memoir:

In the Sanctuary of Outcasts by Neil White

Best Novel Set in England:

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

Best Novel Set in the South:

Georgia Bottoms by Mark Childress - Absurd and Hilarious!

Best Literary Novel:

The Violets of March by Sarah Jio

Best Novel from CBA (Christian Booksellers Association):

The Sweetest Thing by Elizabeth Musser

Two-Way Tie for Second Place:
Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin
A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner

Best Christan Debut:

Wings of a Dream by Anne Mateer

OVERALL BEST BOOK: Remember what I said about that huge pile of books. The best book I read this year is one that's been gathering dust for a couple of years, the one I'd heard great things about but never seemed to pull out and read. Although it has a 2007 pub date, 2011 was the year I discovered it, and everything I've ever heard about this book was true. Gritty. Mesmerizing. Heart-wrenching. The writing is unlike anything you've ever read. The characters and the story will wind around your heart and squeeze until you think you can't breathe. The impression will not go easily away. A teaser: I will never see or hear an accordion again without thinking of my choice for Best Book of 2011 - The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

It will most likely be read again in 2012.

How about you? Are you familiar with these authors or these books? See anything interesting? It was an eclectic year for me, and that's just the way I like it!

Happy New Year! I'll be back next week to tell you about the books I'm looking forward to in 2012.