Books!

Reading and playing guitar are my two favorite hobbies, but today I will only be talking about the former.

So, (I say “so“and “like” a lot. Sorry about that.) In 2008, I started keeping record of every book I read.  I use this A Series of Unfortunate Events journal that I got for Christmas when I was like 13.

Nifty huh?

So here’s how it works:

·         I make a goal at the beginning of each year of how many books I want to read.

·         I then write down the title of the books I read and the dates I read them in.

·         I also write the books I listen to on CD but those do not count towards the goal number.

I usually make my goal 20 and in the two years I have been doing this I have yet to reach my goal number by the end of the year.

For Example:

In 2008: My original goal was to read 50 books, but by June I realized that was definitely not going to happen so I changed it to 20. Unfortunately I only managed to read 17 books altogether. I also listened to two audio books.

In 2009: I gave myself a more reasonable goal of 20 and STILL only managed to read 17 books! This year however, I managed to listen to five audio books, so that’s a plus.  I did start reading two books, however, I did not get them finished before the year ended. I did finish them earlier this month though so I have counted them as one book for each year because they were basically split in half and two halves make a whole right? So ultimately I read 18 books last year.

I want to take this time to inform you that this year is going to be a HUGE year for me! I’ll be graduating from high school in June and going away to college in August, but what was I most excited for when the clock struck midnight January 1, 2010? The fact that I get to start fresh on new book list! (What does this say about me? Anything good?)

And here is some more good news:

I already have one book down! Yeah, remember the last paragraph where I mentioned the half-read books?  Off to a great start! The goal is 20 again this year and I’m determined to reach it!

Now that I have covered the basics, here is the real blog:

I would like to review each book I have read or listened to in the last two years. (Not all in one blog of course! Gosh that would be dreadful, wouldn’t it?) So I’ll just do one book at a time. 

Jade Green: A Ghost Story By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
I started this book on January 1, 2008 and finished it on the 5^th of the same month.  I once started reading this book when I was in 6^th grade but alas I never finished it, so I decided to give it another go, and I am glad that I did!  Even though this book was written for a younger audience, it can be enjoyed by anyone! Not only is it suspenseful, but it’s well written and keeps you interested the entire time.  It is about a girl who has to move in with a distant relative, I can’t really remember why she had (hey, it’s been two years, give me a break! I suppose I could look it up but I’m too lazy. I think it’s because her mother dies.) But she had to nonetheless.  Anyways, this relative is rather wealthy and hates the color green.  The house ends up being haunted by the spirit of a young girl named Jade Green and the book is focused around solving the mystery of her death. Living with an almost invisible uncle, a not so-invisible cousin, (I don’t literally mean invisible by the way, for any of those who may have been having a blonde moment,) isn’t so easy for her, but the kind and warm maid brings a good balance to things.  Also, for those of you who can’t read a story that doesn’t have a love storyline, there is a handsome young suitor interested in the main character.  I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to anyone!

That’s all I’ve got for you today! Comment please! Tell me if it was terrible! Thanks J   ~Caitlin~