Essential Books for Teens and Inheritance by Christopher Paolini

A Tweet from @MacKidsBooks via @halseanderson led me to an Amazon list of Essential Books for Teens. What a cool list, even if there are so many I would add. :) I still haven't finished The Book Thief by Markus Zusak because it's just so sad, but it is without a doubt one of the most well-written stories I've ever seen. I loved The Giver by Lois Lowry and have always encouraged my students (and friends, and family, and complete strangers in the bookstore) to read it whenever possible. I blogged about Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green back in February, and was beyond excited to see a few of my more mature students reading it (and passing it around, recommending it to friends!!) toward the end of the school year. I read and blogged about The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman waaaaay back at the beginning of 2008 when book blogging was still sort of new and my opinions were young and unformed. I don't entirely disagree with everything I wrote, but I think I would write something entirely different today. I own Crank by Ellen Hopkins and Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (both of whom I follow on Twitter) and will be reading their books soon. All in all a convincing list.

At any rate, while I was checking out the Essential Books for Teens, I discovered a link to Inheritance by Christopher Paolini. I was deeply conflicted! My bookavore heart leapt with joy at the sight of the familiar cover layout, the pretty green color, and the idea of another book from such a talented author. Then my heart sank: I'm going to have to reread Eragon and Eldest, because it's been so long that I've forgotten them, and then I'm going to have to finally get my hands on Brisingr and read it. I'm not sure why I haven't read it yet, other than the backlog of books I mentioned here. But now, surely, I'll have to!

Reset for a New Year!

I read so much from September to December!

I discovered a wonderful series of books that's as old as I am: the Young Wizards series by Diane Duane. I devoured the first four books (So You Want to Be a Wizard, Deep Wizardy, High Wizardry, and A Wizard Abroad) and came up short just before Christmas because book five was checked out of the school library. After a fourteen year hiatus, a new book (ten, I think) is due out sometime this year.

I pored over the unusual syntax and lofty vocabulary in Cormac McCarthy's The Road. It was easily one of the most challenging books I've read in quite some time. The movie was excellent and very faithful. However, I appreciated that they left out some of most graphic images, which are easier to digest in print than on screen.

I developed a strong hatred for Darcy Rhone, the selfish, self-absorbed protagonist of Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed. Even though she redeemed herself in the eyes of her friends and family at the last possible second, I still hated her for her selfishness and complete disregard for others' feelings throughout the story!

I revisited a childhood friend in Return to Hundred Acre Wood by David Benedictus and Winnie the Pooh by A A Milne. I LOVED both, but I never realized that the Hundred Acre Wood was a socialist stronghold. Rabbit especially talks a great deal about the greater good and even proposes a census and a subsequent tax! Eek! :)

I prepared for an early-2010 movie by reading How to Train Your Dragon by Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III (and translated by Cressida Creswell). It's cute, but I don't think, from the previews, that the movie will be very faithful. Also, it's geared toward intermediate students: fourth and fifth grade boys, specifically. However, I don't think that most students in this age range will be intellectually ready to understand the linguistic jokes and puns which make this so much fun to read.

I know I read other stuff, too. I started The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, which I am struggling through. It's somewhat compelling, but extremely depressing and I can only handle it in small doses. I also started Hood by Stephen R. Lawhead and it's a struggle. I'm not really enjoying it all that much, especially considering it's about Robin Hood! :( Finally, I'm still slogging through Inkdeath, which I think I started in 2008 and definitely blogged about finishing on March 22. It's just so...drawn out. Kind of like Breaking Dawn and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, it feels like there was such pressure to publish as soon as possible that the process of cutting and slimming down the text was skipped over entirely.

For Christmas, I received Bruce Feiler's Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land Through the Five Books of Moses, which is absolutely amazing. I don't usually read nonfiction for pleasure, but this is interesting! I desperately want to visit the Holy Land myself. Someday, maybe...