Year-end book review 2013

1.  Best book(s) I read in 2013: "Dust and Shadow" by Lyndsay Faye, "August Frost" by Monique Roffey, "Up and Down" by Terry Fallis, and "Half The Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity For Women Worldwide" by Nicholas Kristoff and Sheryl WuDunn.

2.  Most disappointing book of 2013: I would say "Vampires in the Lemon Grove" by Karen Russell except that it was so disappointing that I didn't finish it.  Of the ones I actually finished, it would be "The Museum's Secret" by Henry Chancellor.

3.  Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013: "The Rosie Project" by Graeme Simsion...I was surprised at how funny this book was.

4.  Books I recommended most to people in 2013: "Up and Down" by Terry Fallis

5.  Best series I discovered in 2013: The Coldwater Springs series by Jenn Roseton

6.  Favourite new author(s) of 2013: Jenn Roseton

7.  Most thrilling, unputdownable book of 2013: "Dust and Shadow" by Lyndsay Faye

8.  Book I most anticipated in 2013: "Tempest Reborn" by Nicole Peeler

9.  Favourite cover of a book I read in 2013: 

10. Most memorable character in 2013: It's a tie between August Frost ("August Frost") and Don Tillman ("The Rosie Project")

11. Most beautifully written book of 2013: "The Snow Child" by Eowyn Ivey

12. Best book that was out of my comfort zone or was a new genre for me in 2013: "Half The Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity For Women Worldwide" by Nicholas Kristoff and Sheryl WuDunn

13. Book that had the greatest impact on me in 2013: "The Unapologetic Fat Girl's Guide to Exercise and Other Incendiary Acts" by Hanne Blank

14. Book I can't believe I waited until 2013 to FINALLY read: "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

15. Book I read in 2013 that would most likely be reread in 2014: "August Frost" by Monique Roffey

16. Book that had a scene in it that had me reeling and dying to talk to someone about it? (A WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc.  No spoilers!): "Dust and Shadow" by Lyndsay Faye


Some fun stats:
Books completed: 127
Books by male authors: 34
Books by female authors: 93
Fiction: 95
Non-fiction: 32
Children's books: 11
YA books: 3
E-books: 57
Longest book title:
Longest book: "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
Big fat books (more than 500 pages): None, my longest book was 496 pages long.
Shortest book: any one of the BBW romance ebooks I read
Re-reads: 2

Although I didn't fully accomplish my Goodreads Reading Challenge, 127 out of 150 isn't bad (that's 10.5 books a month).  Even though I don't like that I couldn't finish it and thought I wouldn't do the challenge again this year, I've decided to put my challenge goal lower than last year.  Knowing that I have intentions to do more adventurous stuff outside of reading, I think 100 could legitimately be a challenge.  I got an iPhone in September and so I now have the Kindle and iBooks apps to take advantage of any unplanned reading time (like waiting for cabs to arrive) and it also gives me access to more e-books than before.  Having whittled down my TBR, I have high hopes for my 2014 reading.  I hope 2014 brings you much great reading too!

Read on,
Paula

Books and food

I have 6 days off for the christmas holidays and I chose two books with winter themes to enjoy during my time off.  I picked "The Snow Child" by Eowyn Ivey and "August Frost" by Monique Roffey.   I heard about "The Snow Child" from an episode of The Readers podcast and I read a brief baldness-focused synopsis of Roffey's "Sun Dog" (the original title of the book) in "The Novel Cure" by Ella Berthoud and Susan Elderkin.

In "The Snow Child", Mabel and Jack are a childless couple living in the wilderness of 1920s Alaska.  The descriptions of Mabel's life in their homestead made me feel grateful for my own skills with cooking and baking.  Reading about the pioneer experience in this book made me want so much to go off and bake my own bread.

The main character, August, in "August Frost" works in a London deli.  Descriptions of the varieties of cheese, meats, salads, and condiments in the deli and of August's forays in the local food market make me want to go discover new foods.  I had never heard of such a thing as coconut marmalade until I read it in this book.  Perhaps I will try making my own.

I like cookbooks that include a personal story.  I bought myself a copy of "The Healthy Gluten-Free Life" by Tammy Credicott, not only because I want to try almost every recipe in the book but also because of the personal notes that are included with each recipe and the story of their gluten-free home business, The Celiac Maniac.  I am thinking about also getting a copy of her "Make-Ahead Paleo".  Also on my TBR are "Life Is Meals: A Food Lover's Book of Days" by James Salter, "Odd Bits: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal" by Jennifer McLagen and "Cooking With Jamie" by Jamie Oliver.

Read (and eat) on,
Paula