December's List and Bookie Awards!

[verity83]

50. The Barber Who Wanted to Pray, RC Sproul. 40pp
This was really sweet. The pictures border on being a little too cartoony for my usual taste but I still like them: very detailed, very rich colours. I like that this is a true story and that it has such a positive lesson, making a richer prayer life something to be grasped. It even got me thinking as an adult and I look forward to incorporating these lessons into my own prayer life as well.

51. William and His Twenty-Two, Mabel R Miller. 159pp
This is a small piece of Adventist history, written for children about 9-13ish. A LOT of names to try to keep straight (the 22 refers to the 22 children of this William, not a gun). Very interesting and fun stories.

52. Moses the Kitten, James Herriot. 32pp
Haven't read this for years, but Carpenters had it and so I revisited it. *squish*

53. Only One Woof, James Herriot. 32pp
I'm sure I probably read this as a child, but it sparks only very vague memories.

54. Hergé, Son of Tintin, Benoit Peeters, 424pp
A fascinating look into the life of the man behind Tintin. Not a particularly admirable man, I must say, in most regards, although his talent is undeniable. It was interesting to read Peeters' analyses of the various Tintin adventures and get some insights into what inspired them. I had no idea that so many of the earlier ones especially were triggered by real world events at the time - you kind of lose that immediacy when you don't read it when it's written, I guess. There are a number of Tintin adventures I'm just not comfortable with and never really have been, but thankfully there are still some good ones too.

55. Depression, the Way Out, Neil Nedley. 265pp
A most helpful and encouraging read, with solid science and common sense teaching one how to deal with anxiety and depression by implementing lifestyle changes. I would recommend this as a read for anybody who deals with depression either in oneself or a loved one, because it's practical and the method targets the causes of the disease rather than just masking symptoms.

<lj-cut text="And now for the Awards">
Month with most pages read:
May, with 1862 pages

Most Helpful Self-Help Book:
Depression, the Way Out

Book I Read Yet Again, Totalling 4 Times in 4 Years:
The Great Controversy

Best non-marathon reread:
A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson

Most Intriguing Non-Fiction:
Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things

Book I Was Sure I'd Hate and Ended Up Loving:
All Creatures Great and Small, James Herriot

Best Fiction:
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

Best Children's Book Previously Unread:
Cornelli, Johanna Spyri

Stupidest Book:
I Am What I Ate...and I'm Frightened!!!

Most Egotistical Piece of Egotism:
Labour of Love

Best Book About China:
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze

Best Memoir:
Arms Wide Open: A Midwife's Journey

Book Most Likely To Provoke Controversy When Read In a Public Space:
The Great Controversy? (And yes, Marie, I stole that award title from you)

Best Book Chosen Randomly Because the Title Made Me Snort:
The Good Old Days, They Were Terrible! Otto L Bettman

Most Fascinating Excursion Into the Past:
At Home, Bill Bryson

Author I Read Most:
Ellen G White (GC plus Testimonies 1-5)</lj-cut>

Year-to-date totals:
Page count for December: 952
Total page count for 2011: 13,111
Nonfiction: 29
Fiction: 5
Juvenile fiction: 13
Juvenile nonfiction: 8
Rereads: 4

Comments

[nuranar.livejournal.com]

Off topic, but I got your package! Yay! It's SO pretty. It looks lovely on one of the end tables in the den. Thank you!

[polargriff.livejournal.com]

2012 will be the year I get back into regular reading habits! It has been way too long (three years now). I think I will keep a reading list to help track my endeavors. That would be nice motivation! =)

[mattiescottage.livejournal.com]

Wow! I really enjoyed your book list. I don't know how I managed to let Johanna Spyri's other works escape my attention; I now have some on my summer reading wish list!

So glad you enjoyed the James Herriot works. Maybe I should revisit them myself. It has been a long time.

I hope you don't mind me adding you to my friends list so that I can keep up with other reading suggestions you have in the future. (Your mix of fiction and nonfiction is much closer to my interests than the mostly-contemporary selections that most of my LJ friends read.) Don't feel obligated to friend me back. I know you keep personal things for a personal audience, and that's quite appropriate.

(I would have sent this in a private message, but your private message button appears disabled for me.)

[butterbobbin.livejournal.com]

I also really like "Vinzi" by Spyri. I've only read it once, as a teenager, but I did find a copy not too long ago and it's my hope to revisit it soon.

I don't mind at all that you added me! I've considered adding you myself a few times but often I'm a bit shy of adding people lest they feel obligated :-) I always enjoy reading your comments on posts by some of our mutual friends.

I've only read 7 books so far this year... so my next book list wlil probably be in June, and I hope I'll have more to show by then! I've been so exhausted from being pregnant that by the time I have spare time my brain is too much mush to attempt much reading.

[mattiescottage.livejournal.com]

Well, shucks. Vinzi, for some strange reason, is not among the public-domain collections of Project Guteberg, Projekt Gutenberg-DE (Germany's collection), or Archive.org. Very strange, particularly since it was printed by the well-known Lippencott. I wonder if it perhaps went by another name? I can order it used, though. I don't have much time to sit and read. I may go with what I can convert to audio or get on Librivox for now.

BTW, I friended you on Ravelry--same username. I don't have any projects posted there yet, as I usually have pathetically little time for knitting and crocheting--usually only when I go visiting family and can do it while sitting and talking there. Sometimes in the winter I will make time as a stress-relieving activity, seated by the woodstove. (Ahhhh!)

Edit: Removed comment in case it had private info. You'll see it in your E-mail I think.

[butterbobbin.livejournal.com]

:-) I just checked my copy and there doesn't appear to be a subtitle/alternate title, at least in this particular one.

I haven't been on Ravelry in a long time myself (largely because all my yarn is in storage!!) I do have a half-finished scarf here I could be working on if I'd just apply myself but it hasn't happened (and it's summer, and scarves are not forefront on my list at the moment...)

We think she's pretty precious too. ;-) My husband chose her name. I was pleased with it.