[3] Water for Elephants

By Sara Gruen

Two things. No, I haven't finished Life of Pi. Yes, I suckered myself into reading this because I saw a preview for the movie.

That being said, I should point out that I have never bought a book with the "movie" cover (except for maybe ONCE at the airport). I've made it a point to let people believe I'm reading a book because of how great the novel is, or how outstanding the author writes not just because there's a movie coming out starring Rob Pattinson. (Even though I really am.)

Well, that's not really fair. I've been wanting to read this book for awhile. It was on my reading list - I just bumped it up a bit after seeing the movie previews. I know I'm going to want to see the movie, and I also know that I want to read the book before I see it. The book is always better than the movie.

Alright, enough justification.

There's something about that classic Guy Loves Girl But Can't Have Girl storyline that ropes me in every time. In a 1930's circus setting, I knew there was going to be some animal abuse that I wasn't sure I could stomach - and there was, but what got to me more was the old man/young man viewpoints of Jacob. GOD, old men make me sad.

I don't want to give too much away so I'll leave it at this. I started Life of Pi almost a month ago, and although it's a beautifully written novel (so far, I'm only on chapter 4) Water for Elephants was another one that I couldn't put down and finished in a few days.

I shouldn't even point out that I just finished book 3 when I should be on book 6.5. Thirty books in one year is turning out to be harder than I thought.

Next up: Life of Pi (for real this time)

[2] The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

By Mark Haddon

Good, but not my favorite.

This book has been on my reading list for awhile now, and I'm glad I read it. I did, however, get a small amount of bored near the middle.

Because I'm such a procrastinator as soon as I put a goal on this years reading I started to slow down. I'm not sure if it's because of the book, or because of my own lack of motivation when it comes to completing tasks I assign myself.

That's not to say The Curious Incident wasn't a good read; it was. I just didn't find myself unable to put it down.

Set out to find who killed his neighbors dog, Christopher a teenager who has the social capacity of a child begins writing a detective novel to solve the crime and along the way solves a few mysteries in his own life. A math genius who does equations in his head to stay calm, he barks at the touch of a stranger, out runs the police, and still makes it back to Swindon in time to take his level A Maths.

It's definitely a character driven book; not so much a heart-pounder, but I still recommend.

Next up: Life of Pi

[1] The Book Thief

By Markus Zusak

I know, I know.

Every book I read ends up being my favorite. This book is no exception. Set during the time of the Holocaust, this story is narrated by Death and is about a young German girl named Liesel and her life before, during and after her foster parents hide a Jew in their basement.

The narration gave so much to the story; and obviously I don't want to ruin the ending but I'll just say, I was in tears by the end. Each chapter is only a few pages long which doesn't help when you always tell yourself, "Okay, one more chapter," over and over before you go to bed.

This is one of those reads I'm proud to have on my bookshelf. You know, unlike Pretty Little Liars.

Beautifully written. I loved it.

Next up: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

12 months. 30 books.

I just did the math. That's 2.5 books a month.

Oh, christ.