I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

We’re all looking for inspiration at the beginning of the New Year. We want to be healthier, richer, happier, and more loved. But for some REAL inspiration that will truly put your life into perspective, I highly recommend you pick up I am Malala by Nobel Peace Prize recipient Malala Yousafzai.

If you’re not familiar with Malala’s story, Malala is a Pakistani girl who refused to let the Taliban dictate whether or not she could go to school. Her father, who is a total rock star, supported Malala in making sure that she got the education she deserved. In fact, he voiced his opinions for a fair and just Pakistan and ensured that she was able to speak up for her rights as well. Eventually, they were both targeted by the Taliban for daring to fight against the restrictive and threatening tactics of the extreme militant group. Malala was riding a bus on the way to school for her semester exams when a member of the Taliban stormed the bus and shot her in the head. Miraculously, Malala survived and her voice has only become stronger.

Why you might like this book: Malala is the coolest, and so is her dad. She is real, she is mature, she is a teenager, and she is changing the world.

Why you might not like this book: If you aren’t up to date on the Middle East, or know little about Islam, this might be a tough read for you. It took me a bit longer to read this book than normal, because I had to remember who was on what side and what all of the Urdu words meant.

I would recommend this book to: anyone looking for a little bit of inspiration in the New Year, people interested in current and global affairs, all of you wonderful people who are hoping to make a difference in the world.

Malala’s book is a wonderful combination of the history and love of her country, connection to her family and father, and personal story of courage and fight for freedom. I am confident that this wonderful girl will enact real, lasting, and powerful change not only in Pakistan but around the world in years to come. You go, Malala!

P.S. To see one of my favorite interviews between Malala and Jon Stewart, click here!

2014 Review

Woof! I’ve been clearly slacking on booking it, but with the New Year fast approaching, it’s time to do what all other bloggers around the world do and look back on the year past and the year to come. It’s time for an end of year review, y’all!

I read 57 books this past year! WOOHOO! Here’s a breakdown:

Non-Fiction: 32

Fiction: 25

Audiobooks: 13

I’m proud of myself for trying audiobooks for the first time and for trying to branch out from reading only memoirs and non-fiction (which, to be fair, I did a lot of). Here are my top ten favorites, in no particular order.

Top 10:

1. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
2. Yes Please by Amy Poehler
3. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
4. Wild by Cheryl Strayed
5. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
6. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
7. Reading in the Wild by Donalyn Miller
8. I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
9. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
10. Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom

If you haven't read these yet, go to the library and pick them up! You will not regret it. 

Looking back to my cheesy and overly dramatic first post, my sole goal for 2014 was to find time to book it a little more than I had the year before. Being able to read 57 books this year was so awesome!

On Pinterest and Facebook recently, there have been a lot of reading challenges going around: “read a book a month” or “read a book a week” or “read a book more than 500 pages” or “read a book by a female author!” While everyone knows I love me some goals, let’s not get bogged down in weird details or making reading a chore more than a pastime. How about this for a challenge to you all: Make time to read. Read something old and something new. Read a book on your own and with friends. Enjoy booking it this year.

Happy 2015!

Fall Recap

With daylight savings time falling us back this weekend, and Target quickly shoving away their Halloween decorations to make room for fake Christmas trees, stockings, and candy canes, it’s clear that fall is on its way out the door and winter is moving in.

With only a couple of months left before 2015, I’m proud to say that I reached a fifty book milestone on Friday. That’s over twice as many books as last year! But of course, this journey for me this year has been less about quantity and more about time and reading quality books, and although I'm sure I'll talk about this as the year comes to a close, it's awesome to know that I'm making time for something I love.

Here are the books I read this fall:

August:

·         Escape from Prison 14 by Blaine Harden

·         Miss Peregrine’s School of Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

September (2):

·         Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

·         Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell à favorite fiction!

October (4):

·         Wild by Cheryl Strayed

·         Panic by Lauren Oliver

·         Unbroken by Laura Hillebrand à favorite non-fiction!

·         Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

Still leaning heavy toward non-fiction, but the teen fiction I’ve read the last few months have been decidingly disappointing (besides Miss Peregrine’s School of Peculiar Children, which was quirky and unique and excellent). Looking for something to rejuvenate that trend if anyone has suggestions!

Otherwise, I have lots of excellent books I’m hoping to conquer before the end of the year, including Everything that Remains by The Minimalists (almost done!), Amy Poehler’s new memoir Yes Please, and a classic I’ve been recommended for ages- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. Here’s to embracing the cold, snuggling up with hot chocolate, popcorn, and a good book, and trying not to turn into an icicle!

From Book to Movie: 3 Adaptations

One of my favorite bits from the comedian Jim Gaffigan is about books:

“You ever talk about a movie with someone that read the book? They're always so condescending. 'Ah, the book was much better than the movie.' Oh really? What I enjoyed about the movie: no reading.”

So so true. But alas, while watching the movie requires no reading, I love having read a book and knowing that it is being made into a movie. Although I am sometimes disappointed (seriously, how could they take Peeta's leg injury totally out of the Hunger Games??), it’s exciting to see your favorite characters on the big screen and discover what interpretations directors have decided to make on setting, characters, and often, plot.

With that, here are three books I have read recently that are being made into movies still this year:

1.      Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

If you haven’t heard the hype around Gone Girl, you may be living, as the saying goes, under a rock. I read Gillian Flynn’s novel back in April, and was hooked on it for the 48 hours it took me to finish it. I literally gasped out loud every fifty pages, and at one point, I think I threw my book across the room. It’s a thrilling book with lots of twists and while I’m usually a terrible reader in the sense that I love reading the last page before I should, I did not see the ending coming.

The film adaptation of Gone Girl stars most notably Ben Affleck as Nick Dunne, whose wife Amy is discovered missing. The best performance, in my opinion, is Tyler Perry as Affleck’s lawyer, when people inevitably start to suspect that perhaps Nick is responsible for his missing wife.

The book and movie are both intense, and overall I was not disappointed (although admittedly I was disappointed by Amy's character and totally agree with this article about that same topic). See the trailer here, and know that the movie, which came out a few weeks ago, probably only has a little bit more time left in the theater.

2.      Wild by Cheryl Strayed

When Cheryl Strayed loses her mom and divorces her husband in the early twenties, she feels lost, confused, and meaningless. In order to “find herself” and figure out the purpose of her life, or at least escape from the life she has left behind, Strayed decides to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), a national trail stretching the West Coast from California to Washington.

I read this book just a couple of weeks ago, unaware that it was also being made into a movie produced by and starring one of my favorite people, Reese Witherspoon. Wild comes out on December 5, so you have plenty of time to read the book before it hits theaters! See the trailer here.

3.       Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

 If you have read earlier blog posts, you might remember that I started reading Unbroken a few months ago, but wasn’t hooked. After hearing over and over how awesome the story was, I bought the book on Amazon and went at it again. Everyone else was right and I'm glad they pushed me to pick it up again, because it was totally worth it.

Unbroken follows the truly unbelievable story of Louis Zamperini, a troubled teen turned Olympic runner turned WWII airman turned POW. His story is literally one in a billion and gives some serious perspective to the kind of problems you think may be important in your life. Zamperini demonstrates real smarts, resilience, and courage in order to overcome the many obstacles he faces during the war (which are innumerable).

The movie, starring a bunch of people that my non-movie self has never heard of, comes out on Christmas and is probably going to be awesome. See the trailer here!

Even though I’m not always a huge movie person, I love when movie adaptation are made from books I love. Be sure to check these books out- even if you have already seen the movie! They should be pretty darn good.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

I think we all need to have a heart to heart. Let’s all clasp our hands together, look each other in the eyes, take a deep breath, and admit that Rainbow Rowell is one of the best writers of our generation. Can we all agree on that?

I just finished the audio version of Fangirl, the third book I’ve read by Rowell, and it so did not disappoint. (The first book I read was Eleanor and Park- see my post here about how I cried through the last twenty pages- and the second was Attachments, which was adorable).

Cath is our awkward, depressed and nerdy heroine, and her freshman year of college is not going well. Her twin sister, Wren (Cath and Wren- get it??), chose not to room with her, her dad is loveable but manic, and her roommate is a sullen yet in-your-face junior. Her sole love and comfort in life is Simon Snow, a Harry Potter-like character from a fantasy/wizard/vampire/basically Harry Potter series. She even writes an incredibly popular fan fiction blog about Simon and his mortal enemy Baz.

So basically, Cath is the perfect kind of character to groan about, roll your eyes at, yell at and cheer for throughout her first year of college. Will she remain miserable and terrified for all nine months, or will she finally figure out who she is and what she needs to become?

Why you might like this book: Rainbow Rowell is a beautiful writer. She’s the kind of writer that makes me wish I could write. Her characters are perfectly imperfect and you will love them. One stylistic choice I also love about this book is that it alternates between Cath’s life at school and snippets from the Simon Snow series-  a nice change of pace (plus in the audio book, a man with a gorgeous British accent reads the Simon Snow parts- the best!)

Why you might not like this book: Let’s be honest, you probably will though.

Similar Titles: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell, Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, Harry Potter by JK Rowling, The Magicians by Lev Grossman (maybe?). Honestly, Rowell has such a refreshing take on real life situations that I just can't compare to anyone but herself!

I would recommend this book to: females, people who have had obsessions with a series like Harry Potter or Hunger Games, anyone who has lost their way at some point or another

If you don’t read Fangirl, pick up SOMETHING by Rainbow Rowell. You won’t regret it! At this point, Landline is the only Rowell book I have yet to read, and I’ll probably add it to my list before the end of the year.

P.S. I absolutely realize I have been AWOL these last two months, and I have no excuse. August and September Review (a two-for-one deal) coming soon!

July Recap

Um, is it seriously August already?

While I'm sad that I didn't get to blog about any of the books I read in July, when I look back at my July calendar, I'm ecstatic that I read as much as I did when I could. Farming season is in full swing, and I haven't read a single book since sweet corn started. Here's a look at the books I DID get to read in July:

1. Drop Dead Healthy by AJ Jacobs
2. A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer
3. Thunderstruck by Erik Larson
4. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
5. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
6. Panic by Sharon Draper

I also got halfway through Unbroken by Laura Hillebrand before I had to take it back to the library, as well as Paddle Your Own Canoe by Nick Offermann, which I haven't gotten to finish yet but really like so far.

Best Non-Fiction: Thunderstruck by Erik Larson, because Larson is awesome and always teaches me about science and history and other things I know nothing about. This book is about a murder at the turn of the century and Guglielmo Marconi, who essentially invented wireless radio transmitters. Erik Larson is basically the epitome of who I imagine a real historian is; if you like history,  I would also recommend In the Garden of Beasts about the US ambassador to Germany during the rise of Hitler, and Devil in the White City about the Chicago World Fair and a serial killer. Really enthralling stuff, I swear!

Best Fiction: Has to be a tie between Sharp Objects and Before I Fall. Sharp Objects is a great thriller about a journalist investigating a series of murders in her hometown (not as good at Flynn's other masterpiece Gone Girl, but still really good adult fiction). Before I Fall is by Lauren Oliver, a super well-known YAL author specifically for teenaged girls, and her book was surprisingly complex for me. It's about a girl who dies in a car accident (happens in the prologue- not a spoiler!) and then has to relive that same day to see if she can change the course of history. Wasn't expecting to be so into it, but I actually loved it! Cheers to you, Lauren Oliver!

My goal of reading thirty books this summer seems a little farfetched at this point, since I've only read twelve to date. Even so, I'm glad I set a lofty goal and am hoping for more reading in August (it's not like any of us are busy or anything, right?)

Happy August!

June Recap

My oh my, is summer flying by! During June, I read six books:

1. What Teachers Make by Taylor Mali
2. The Magicians by Lev Grossman
3. Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman
4. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
5. Prodigy by Marie Lu
6. Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

Best Non-Fiction Book: Orange is the New Black. I’m sure you are alllllll familiar with the Netflix Series by the same name- the series is actually based on the memoir of Piper Kerman, who went to federal prison for fifteen months because of illicit activities she was involved in ten years prior. Matt and I just started watching the series, and I, of course, like the book a little bit better because I felt like she presented herself as more self-aware and less self-pitying. Either way, if you love the show and/or love memoirs, you should definitely check it out. It’s a quick read!

Best Fiction: I’ve already talked about Cinder, but I also thought Out of the Easy was a really interesting historical fiction read this month. Like Orange is the New Black, it was recommended to me by a friend. Josie is an eighteen-year-old who desperately wants to get away from her life in 1950s New Orleans. Her biggest problem is her mother, a prostitute. Although I thought author Ruta Sepetys wrapped up the loose ends a little too neatly and abruptly, this book really hooked me. I don’t always read historical fiction, but I love how Sepetys wove New Orleans culture into the story.

A good variety of books this month: 2 non-fiction, 1 historical fiction, 1 dystopian fiction, 2 fantasy/science-fiction. Hooray! I have some great titles coming up for this month- can't wait!