For 2011 I did not take any challenges. I just wanted to read as I felt like it so I was a little surprised when I counted that I read 29 books. I was pleased to see that 11 of those were non-fiction, memoirs or biographies, all of which I would highly recommend. My favorite is the book I just finished, The Holiness of God.
Without further ado here is my list of books read in 2011...
Non-Fiction
Memoirs and Biographies
- J.R.R. Tolkien by Mark Horne
- Fanny J. Crosby: Autobiography of Fanny J. Crosby
- Shadows on the Koyukuk: An Alaskan Native's Life Along the River by Sidney Huntington
- Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxes
- Farmer Takes a Wife by John Gould
Fiction
- Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
- The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith
- The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
- The Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith
- The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith
- Farewell to Manzanar by J.W. & J.D. Houston
- The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith
- The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
- The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John Le Carré
- Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
- The Help by Katherine Stockett
- Green Dolphin Street by Elizabeth Goudge
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
- Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
- Enchantress From the Stars by Sylvia Louise Engdahl
- Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlan
- Crampton Hodnet by Barbara Pym
Bible Reading
I read a lot of my Bible this year and I plan on continuing reading with a modified version of this Bible reading program. This way suits me very well because it is very forgiving. I made one change in this plan. Instead of 10 chapters a day I only read 5 because the way I am wired I benefit from a slower reading where I am able to linger over the words and my thoughts a little longer. This really helps me in the way I think and study.
Reading Goals for 2012
The only goals I am setting for this next year are to continue increasing my quality non-fiction reading and to write more about what I am reading, at the least to post my favorite quotes.
What I have learned from about twenty-years of serious reading is this: It is sentences that change my life, not books. What changes my life is some new glimpse of truth, some powerful challenge, some resolution to a long-standing dilemma, and these usually come concentrated in a sentence or two. I do not remember 99% of what I read, but if the 1% of each book or article I do remember is a life-changing insight, then I don’t begrudge the 99%. ~John Piper
9 comments:
Ooooops! I meant to comment on THIS post, too!
I always enjoy reading through your book lists. I should start writing mine down.
What are you going to do for New Year's Eve? We're probably going to sleep at 8!
instead of preaching to the choir here, you're preaching to the sinner. i never read. haven't read fiction in about 25 yrs or so. the only books i've read at all are self-help, new-age spiritual stuff and that is rare. :) good luck to you in your goals!
I've read and enjoyed some of these same titles. I hope to read John Le Carré this year and also Harper Lee's book. Thanks for posting your list.
Great quote! Wow girl, you got a lot read this year! I need to make a better effort,my reading has really slipped the last few years.I still read a lot I guess, it has just changed to homestead related topics instead of novels.That is non fiction reading right,lol!
Thank you so much for this list and all the sharing, encouragement, inspiration you have shared over the year.
I am writing this quote down! I have been working toward reading more non-fiction, but those fiction books just call my name!
I love your book lists. I have been keeping a list for the past 6 years. I like to look back and try to remember the books. I always write a little synopsis to refresh my memory. I also write whether I liked it or not, give it stars and tell if I would recommend it or not.
Last night I was reviewing my list for this year. I read 38 books. I left my list here by the computer to send you my recommendations!
My Favorite for the year, One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp. I also liked, Saving CeeCee Honeycut,by Beth Hoffman; Inconceivable, by Carole (I didn't write her name down!) and What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty.
I also have quote book and if something jumps off the page while I am reading a book, I put it in my quote book.
Happy reading!
What a great list! I'm going to be spending so much time at the library when we return to the States :-) One of our former pastor's wives told me she always made herself alternate a non-fiction book with a fiction book, and I still think that is great advice!
What a great list!! I try to read both fiction and non-fiction too. I LOVE that quote at the end. It is so very true! This year when I read, as much as possible, I am going to have a notebook with me so I can write down the sentences and phrases that really strike me.
Blessings!
Deborah
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