Books I read in 2012

I always say that one of the things I love to do is read.  But in reality, I don't do it as much as I wish I did.  My fabulous friend Heidikins is always posting about the scores of very fancy, literary books she's reading.  In fact she just posted her 4th quarter reads.  In an attempt to be as cool as she, I decided I would simply keep track of the books I read this year.  Here they are in the order I wrote them down (and I think the order I read them).  Perhaps I should make a goal to read a certain number this coming year.  Since I'm riding the bus now, I have more time to.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
My friend, M, loaned me this series.  I found the plot compelling and couldn't put it down.  It's about some men who do some really terrible things to women as an unsolved mystery untangles.. It was about halfway through the novel when I found out the original title in Swedish actually means "Men who hate Women."  Upon finishing it, I promptly decided to never, ever read the next two.  It was too disturbing.  Well written, but too dark for me.

Anthem by Ayn Rand
I assigned this book to my students and thus read it myself. Afterwards, I was briefly obsessed with Ayn Rand and her philosophies.  This book is very short and a tiny glimpse into what she believed.

Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
I finally read the Hunger Games trilogy, but not all at the same time.  I read the first one at the beginning of the year and the last two in December. In fact, I finished Mockingjay this morning. I'll try to sum up my feelings quickly.  They're fast reads, and I cared enough to finish them.  I thought there was some interesting social/societal commentary in the series that I'm still wrapping my brain around.  I was always team Peeta partly because we simply spend more time with Peeta and partly because Peeta reminds me of The Mister.  Like, a lot.  And Wow.  Holy freaking depressing.  I really hate when a TV show or book makes you care about characters and then just kills them off.  Hate it.

The Place of Knowing by Emma Lou Thayne Warner
She calls this a spiritual autobiography.  Emma Lou Thayne is a poet and a member of my church. She wrote the words to at least one of our hymns.  I once heard her speak and remember feeling something very deep when hearing her.  This book did the same.  I didn't love everything in the book and even found some things confusing.  But her attempts to describe her spiritual path honestly helped mine.  I'd like to eventually buy this book and re read it. I think it would reveal new things to me over time.

Night by Elie Wiesel
This is a short, haunting autobiography about the author's experiences during the holocaust.  It's painful to read. And unlike The Hunger Games, you can't simply set it aside because it's fiction.  Humans really experienced this.  And I still don't know what to do with that information other than try to be kinder every single day.

Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi
Wow.  I read a lot of sad books this year, I'm now realizing.  This is an autobiography written for young adults about the author's experiences in North Korea in 1945.  There's a great deal I didn't know about this time and place in history.  It is well written.  It is sad.  I liked it.

Fallen Leaves: The memoir of an unwanted chinese daughter by Adeline Yen Mah
Hmmm.  Another autobiography.  I didn't know I'd read so many of them.  Adeline is born the youngest child to her father and her mother dies as a result of giving birth to her.  This means she has bad luck.  Her father quickly remarries a half french, half chinese woman who abuses her throughout her life. It is education that saves her and brings her an escape.  It is an interesting glimpse into a culture and time I am unfamiliar with.  

Nick and Norah's Infinite playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Finally, a nice breezy read.  My co-worker bestie loaned this to me ages ago.  I started it and then never finished it (which I do a lot).  I finally picked it up again.  It's pretty short, but I liked returning to being young and all of its drama and swells of emotion.  I miss those days sometimes.  I think I could really rock them if I lived them again.  Every other chapter is told by either Nick or Norah, and I like books that play with narrator.  A fun read.   

As I just stated I have a tendency to pick up a book, start it, and then forget about it for awhile.  So these are books that I started and still have to finish.
In progress:

Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
I have been chipping away at this book for years.  I don't know why I haven't finished it yet.  I think it's beautifully written.  It's complex and it deals with all of my favorite things: reading, women's issues, and analyzing literature.  This book often feels like being in one of my literature classes from college.  But that also makes it very dense and the issues are very real.  Not a light read.  I will finish this one day.  (It also makes me want to read all the books the women in the book read.  But I'm not sure I can take Lolita.)

Love and Logic in Parenting
This was recommended by a friend.  She teaches love and logic and swears by it. It's sort of a philosophy on parenting that has been gaining momentum for years. As we were discussing some of my issues with how to be a step mom, she recommended it.  I started it, and I think I even believe it many of the things it suggests.  But I got overwhelmed and quit.  Perhaps I'll return to it some time.

Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can't stop talking by Susan Cain
While I haven't finished it this year, I most assuredly will.  It continues my foray into compelling non-fiction. Her research into introverts is real and yet easily accessible.  She makes studies about introverts translate into my reality.  My father always told me growing up that I felt things too deeply.  Many friends over the years have told me I think too much or that I should loosen up.  I have felt guilty my whole life for not enjoying parties more and never feeling like going to them.  (This is really bad when you're single and Mormon - two very socially focused things to be.)  This book has given me permission to just be me.  I hate small talk and analyze things deeply. But it also means I observe things carefully and I've carefully weighed all the risks of something before doing it.   So grateful for this book.

The Book of Mormon Girl: A memoir of an American Faith by Joanna Brooks
I saw this woman interviewed on Jon Stewart and really related with what she talked discussed: a good Mormon girl who grows up to have some liberal and feminist leanings.  I had to read the book.  I'm about halfway through it.  I thought I would read it cover to cover, but that hasn't been the case.  I honestly can't decide what I think.  It's weird to see myself reflected in some of the pages and not others.