Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013

Each year, I participate in the Good Reads Reading Challenge. I love being able to keep track of the books I read and share them with others. The nerd in me likes to compare how many pages I've read from year to year. This year, I have decided to read 50 books, and I have already read 22 books. You can see all of  the titles I have read here.

Here are the best 10 I have read this year- in no particular order! Unfortunately, I have read some real stinkers this year- but I think I can squeak out my top 10.

#1, 2, 3& 4. I have read (for the first time) 4 of the Harry Potter books this year. I will use all four of them as 1 entry.

I may be 39, but I am a huge Potter Head. I am obsessed- and no matter what the topic of conversation, I can make a Harry Potter reference. My husband and 9 year old are sick of me going on and on... "It's just a book" they say. "You are done reading them." they say. They don't know that these books have become part of my soul. I still can't talk about Snape or Sirius without getting tears in my eyes. I adore these books and the stories and the characters and the fact that they made me think and that I read them to my 2 daughters and we will always have that in common. I wish I could go back and read them for the first time again.

5. Flesh & Bone (Benny Imura #3) by Jonathan Maberry: God, I wanted to love this book. I 5 stared the other 2 titles in the series and erected a monument to Tom Imura in my basement and became so obsessed with zombies that my family called an intervention. I wanted to love this book, but I didn't. So it is on the list because I loved the IDEA of this book.

 Why didn't I love it? This book was a stepping stone- an ends to a means- to get from book 2 to the final book in the series. I didn't feel like anything in this book helped me to further my understanding of the series or characters. In this book- all of the characters got deep and philosophical on me- ain't nobody got time for that int he middle of a zombie apocalypse!

6. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer: Oh.... how I waited and longed for this sequel! I was not disappointed! I loved how the 2 stories (Cinder & Scarlet) ended up being tied together.

7.  Dodger by Terry Pratchett: This book started my obsession with Victorian England. The setting and the characters screamed of Oliver Twist and I found myself wishing I had a cockney accent (I would never shut up if I did!) I loved that this book was historical yet found a way to blend the facts with the story seamlessly. The insertion of Sweeney Todd and Charles Dickens was so fun and I found myself doing research to keep up. Boys will love this book as well!

8.  The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray by Chris Wooding: Again, my need for jolly old England brought me to this book. This book is full on wytch hunter, spooky creature, supernatural goodness! There were so many made up creatures that I totally bought into in this book. More or less- a wytch hunter finds a girl in need and discovers that she is possessed by the demon that will bring the end of the world. It is his mission to save her soul and take down the bastards that want to free the demon.  So good!

9. The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson:After reading Dodger, I was on the look out for anything that might feed my Victorian England obsession. Now, this story doesn't take place when Jack the Ripper was alive, but it takes place on the very spot where his murders were committed and I learned so much about the history of his dark deeds. (Again, I researched as I read!) This book takes a paranormal twist that had me guessing until the end! Again, I wanted a cockney accent after reading this book! I also wanted to devour more books about Ripper! Good books make you want to read more books!

10.  Dark Life by Kat Falls: I loved the futuristic UNDERWATER world. I had never read anything that takes place under the sea before- and it was wonderful!  This book had good guys, bad guys, bad guys that were good guys, the future of society riding in the hands of the main character... plus the beauty and mystery of the deep sea. Boys would LOVE this book!

Top Ten Tuesday

This week at The Broke and Bookish, the theme for Top 10 Tuesday is "Top 10 Book Covers". 

I am sharing my top 10 favorite Judy Blume covers. 

 

Over the years, these covers have been remade to fit the current generation. Each reprint, I feel so much older and less hip. (Was I ever hip?) It is so cool to me that all Judy's books need are a cool new cover and a whole new generation of girls will devour them. That doesn't happen to every book. Judy has the Midas touch when it comes to books for middle grade girls! So, these are the exact book covers that I read- checked out from The Penn Elementary Library back in the day... circa 1984. 

Do you recognize these covers? Which are your favorites?

 Are You There God? It's Me Margaret was published 3 years before I was born. 

I read this paperback copy in 1984. I remember it like it was yesterday

Fifth Grade: 1983

Fourth Grade: 1982

Jr. High 1987

Fourth Grade: 1982

Fourth Grade: 1982

Freshman year: 1988 

This book was a little close to home for a chubby fifth grader: 1983

 Fourth Grade: 1982

I read this book in high school- 1989.

I fell in love with this book, and to this day it is my favorite Judy Blume book.

Ha ha! bonus from Scott Niven!

Top Ten Tuesday

It has been a while since I have participated in Top Ten Tuesday at The Broke & The Bookish. But, this is a topic I HAD to make time for. (It is 1 AM, I have been working on this for TWO hours!) This week, we are asked to give a theme song to 10 books. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! My brain is full to bursting now! Enjoy- and stop by Broke & Bookish and find some other crazy bloggers who have taken on this week's challenge! You might find some new blogs, new books AND new music!!

The Hunger Games + Dog Days Are Over by Florence & The Machine

Wonder + Eye of The Tiger by Survivor 

Cinder + Dream On by Aerosmith

Peter Nimble & His Fantastic Eyes + I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for by U2

Thirteen Reasons Why + In The End by Linkin Park

Unwind + Hurt performed by Johnny Cash

The Knife of Never Letting Go + Sounds of Silence by Simon & Garfunkel

Between Shades of Gray + Miss Sarejevo by U2

Divergent + My Boyfriend's Back by The Angels

Warp Speed + Jeremy by Pearl Jam

Top 10 Posts of 2011

I must confess that I am a little obsessed with Blogger Stats. I love to see how people get to this blog. I am curious (and surprised) by the Google searches that bring people to my blog. I know 1 thing- if not for The Hunger Games, my blog would have a lot less traffic. Here are the posts that got the most hits over the last 365 days. Thanks for stopping by- and I hope to see you all next year!

#10 With 299 views, this May 2011 edition of Book Talk Tuesday is the 10th most viewed post of 2011.  This was my record BTT with 26 book talks posted.  It was also the last BTT before my husband broke his leg- and then my dedication went down hill. Hopefully 2012 will bring new excitement and vigor to BTT! This post features some great books- Guyku, Throne of Fire, Squish and The Wednesday Wars.

#9 With 308 posts, Addy Smith is the 9th most viewed post of 2011. Thank you to everyone who stopped by and gave Addy Blog love! She now writes her own blog! Stop by and see what she has to say!  Addy graciously agreed to write a guest post for my 1 year blogiversary back in October. In this post NEVER TOO BUSY TO READ, Addy talks about her passion for reading and how she always finds time to enjoy a great book.

#8 With 354 views, Bizzaro ALA Winners takes 8th place. This is the post that really put the fire in my blogging belly. This post introduced me to the world- and I realized that people really read what I wrote and had opinions about it. I have a tendency to speak before I think, and I tell it like it is. Sometimes that gets me in trouble, but sometimes it results in blogging magic. I was lucky enough to get in touch with Tom Angleberger and Sharon Draper after this post. Betsy Bird wrote about it over at Fuse 8. I started on Twitter after this post- and I met so many amazing people who have impacted my learning, teaching, reading and blogging.

#7 Probably the easiest post of 2011 was 7th place Keep Calk and Rock On. This post brought 368 views... I am guessing most of them came from a Google Image Search.  In my quest to be a rock star librarian, I am always looking for rock star inspiration. This inspires me... although, there is nothing calm about rocking on!

#6 The 6th most viewed post of 2011 with 441 views is Thursday Thirteen. Back when I started blogging, I was on the look out for places to share my posts and increase my audience. Thursday 13 was a perfect fit for me. Once a week you create a list of 13 things- anything! And then share them on this website. You then visit all of the other blogs and leave comments. This routine taught me how to write for an audience (other than myself) and also got me in the habit of leaving comments for other bloggers. I know that 1 comment is worth more than $100 to a blogger. I think in 2012 I will get back to my roots and do some more Thursday 13 posts. This post was my 13 favorite Xmas gifts for the bookish kid on your list. Great stuff- from Legos to Hunger Games!

#5 My buddy Read Aloud Dad wrote and very funny post for my 1 year blogiversary- 10 Ways to Stick it to Your Librarian... and he brought me 551 views! My students laughed out loud at this post when I shared it with them! I don't know why anyone would have a score to settle with a librarian. May be Read Aloud Dad had some librarian issues as a child and he was using my blog as an opportunity to settle a score. Whatever the case may be, his post was funny and sweet and helped me celebrate my year as a blogger. I hope you have spent some time at his blog. It is so thoughtfully and meticulously written that it makes me feel like a real sham!  Thanks, Dad!

#4 Probably the most intellectual post of the year was written by Johnathan Auxier (of Peter Nimble) and Tom Angleberger (of Origami Yoda). how amazing that these 1 blokes wrote for ME?!? Their post about dealing with bad classics brought 641 views to the blog. As part of my 1 year blogiversary, these 2 authors agreed to share their wisdom and wit with my viewers. I still can't thank them enough for their generosity.  What to do When You Hate a Classic is the #4 most viewed post of 2011.

#3 Another prime example of my mouth working faster than my brain is this post- I'm a Mac, I'm a PC, I'm a basketcase!  The ICCSD decided to phase out Macs and only purchase PCs, except for a small few that may be requested.  It is only natural for me to air my thoughts and complaints on my blog- so that is what I did. I now have a lab of 30 Dells. I don't like it- and I'm not happy that they are there. Imagine 26 kindergarten students trying to "ctrl+alt+delete". Not pretty. Not pretty at all. I don't think this post is popular for my wise words- I have a feeling it is the image that brings the boys to the yard. Ironically, Mr. Steve Jobs passed away this year- the year that I gave up my Macs. Hmmm.... Anyway, this post brought 650 viewers to the blog. I wonder how many were Macs and how many were PCs?

#2 I know I have Pinterst to thank for the popularity of this post: Children's Book Week: Kindergarten Style. Some very kind librarian pinned the image of my kids playing musical chairs with books and WAMO! 704 viewers.  I do love Pinterest and I have gotten so many great ideas- some I have actually used! I blame Pinterest for not meeting my Goodreads goal of 100 books read in 2011. Shame on you, Pinterest!

The number 1 post of 2011 is.... The Hunger Games Cast. About 20 minutes on Picnik and I get 4, 982 views. 

What? Yes, almost 5,000 views! That is a lot of Hunger Games fans out there! Wowza! I wish they were regular readers who stop by and read, comment, hang out... but I know they came from Google image search. And did they just look at the image and leave? Did they see something they liked and decided to stay? Did they take my image and pass it off as their own? Did they share it and give credit (not that I need credit... I don't!) As a blogger, I always want to impact my readers- and 5,000 viewers coming to see an image is disheartening.... but, that means there are 5,000 people who have read a book- an actual book! And they came to my blog after reading that book to see the cast of the movie. Hm, that's ok, I guess. Right? 

Happy 2011! Whether you are here to look at a picture of Peeta, to get a great book suggestion, or you are a regular reader- I wish you all the best in the new year.  Please come back and visit again!

Top (10) Tuesday for March 22, 2011

Over at Broke and Bookish, the topic of this week's top 10 is:

Top Ten Bookish Pet Peeves 

(all those things that annoy you in a story, with book covers, bookstores, etc.)

Librarians love books... some of us love books too much.  I am a borderline obsessive compulsive librarian, not so bad that I annoy my patrons and coworkers, but I have my quirks.  If I didn't, I wouldn't be doing my job.  I have way more than 10 bookish pet peeves, so I have listed the top 10 of my 100 bookish pet peeves! : ) 

1.  I hate it when people (kids and grown ups alike) dog ear the pages in a book.  You never get those creases out- never!  All you need is a bookmark- an old envelope, a post it, a gum wrapper... anything!  

 




2.  I hate food crumbs in books! We all have to eat- even librarians.  But, we don't have to eat WHILE we read and if we don, we can lean over so we don't get cookie crumbs (or other crumbs) in the book!  

3.  This will give me the shakes, dry heaves and diarrhea (my students have been told).  Messy bookshelves.  Messy bookshelves are my biggest enemy.  But, messy shelves are a sign that kids have been looking at books... right?  Right?

4.  Spelling errors in final copies of a book drive me nuts (grammatical errors too!) In an ARC, I can totally understand, but a final copy?  No way!

5.  Date due slips are so 1990.  Really- we don't need them!  But, no matter how many times I ask Follett to stop putting these slips on the beautifully illustrated end papers, they keep appearing.  You can't rip them off either, because they destroy the book.  

 6.  I am reading a book- and enjoying it.  Great plot, great characters, great dialog.  I am getting near the end of the book and I realize that the author is no where near ready to wrap this baby up!  Then, I get to the last chapter  and the ending is shoved into the final 12 pages of the book.  Too fast!  I like my books to be nicely paced, with plenty of time to soak up the ending! 

7.  May be it is my over-stressed, full to bursting brain, but I don't like books with too many characters.  I applaud an author who tries to jam 15 awesome people into 1 book.  However, I would rather get to know 3 or 4 characters really well instead of having to flip back through the book just trying to remember who is who.  Less is more!

8.  People get sick of me saying this, but I will say it again.  I hate it when Hollywood takes an AMAZING book and turns it into a movie.  We have enough movies, we don't need more!  Come up with your own ideas for a change, guys- don't steal my patrons from me!  I have never seen and never will see: Bridge to Terabithia, Because of Winn Dixie, Holes... the list goes on and on.  A little part of me dies each time I offer a sweet, young child a copy of The Tale of Despereaux and they say "I've seen the movie".  Stop the insanity!

 9.  I may make a few enemies here- and I hope we can make it through this post together- but, I really don't like sequels.  Ok, 2 books fine- but 5 or 6?  Really?  I loved Among The Hidden, but by book 4, I was over it.  Dan Gutman hit it out of the park with Million Dollar Shot, but come on!  Do we really need all of those other million dollar books (or Ms. Roopy is Loopy for that matter!) I know it is all about The Benjamins, but think of the children.  

10.  I always tell kids (even my own) that if someone copies you, it is a compliment.  I guess I really don't feel that way, because I get very irritated when this happens in the book world.  Just because Pinkalicious is a super cute book and little girls love it, doesn't mean that we need 50 other books about a girl who likes pink and eats cupcakes. Edward & Bella took vampire books to an all new level- I think Barnes and Nobel now has a "Paranormal Romance" section.  Really?  Original much?  I shouldn't complain as long as kids are reading, it shouldn't matter what they are reading... right?

You can also find this post linked up at OhAmanda's Tuesday Top Ten!