As always, this year I've set a goal to read more often, and last year asked for suggestions on good books. I ended up reading these three, only one of them being from the suggestions I received, but I figure at least I'm going in the right direction.
First book was "Marked" by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast. My aunt Dariece suggested it (Thank you!) It's about vampyres and people who liked Twilight would probably like this one as well. It's an easy read and entertaining, but not as squeaky clean as Twilight. I liked it. Jay really liked it and went out and bought the next 3 books, which he then read in 2 days. And the next one is coming out in March. I would say the book is a mix between Twilight and Mean Girls, and worth picking up.
The second book I read was "An Exact Replica of a Figment of my Imagination." We had gone to the library to get the second book in the Marked series, and this book caught my eye. I picked it up because I thought that the title was interesting, and when I read the back it wasn't my type of book at all. It's a memoir about a woman who gives birth to a stillborn baby, and then a year later gives birth to a healthy baby. I don't do well with sad stories about babies. But I checked it out anyway, thinking maybe I could work up the courage to read it, and after I finished Marked I read the first chapter. The author, Elizabeth McCracken, is a really funny, insightful author who writes a beautiful tribute to her experience and her first baby. Each chapter is almost like a short story in itself, and some of them made me laugh, and some made me bawl. But the book was amazing, and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone.
The last book I read was "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak. It was one Allison read and recommended to me. And what can I say about this book? Any way I try to describe it won't do it justice. When I was reading it, I could read 100 pages and it felt like only a couple minutes had gone by. The story is beautiful and the writing is genius. Once you read this book, it will own a small piece of your soul. I think everyone should read it, and at the same time, I don't think anyone should read it that wouldn't understand how amazing it is. I don't know what kind of a recommendation that is, but it's the best I can do.
Up Next: Gone with the Wind. Since the book is 1024 pages it's one I wouldn't even attempt, but my friend Abby recommended it, and Abby knows her stuff. So I'm hoping to be finish it in February.
Reagan is so fun to be around because she's really happy. She loves to laugh, and she loves her sister. I think she'll be crawling in no time, and once she figures it out, I think she's going to be zooming around this place. I love to see how fast she's learning, but I can't believe how fast it's all going by. I can't wait until I'm with her everyday.
