I've been trying hard to read a book a week again. Some weeks I do well, and others, not as well. But reading is really important to me. It's my way of recharging, escaping, learning and growing. So I am working to feed this need. I wanted to make sure to track all the books I've read. So here's a post about my last few books that I haven't posted about.

Marley and Me was a book I'd been meaning to read for a long, long time. I finally checked it out a few months ago and was mostly disappointed. Maybe that's why I'd been putting it off for a long time. I sort of had a hunch that it wouldn't be great. I can't even put my finger on what I didn't like about it and it was heart-warming and all that. It just didn't do it for me.

Once I discovered Picault, you knew I was going to read so very much more of her, and of course, I did. I first read Vanishing Acts and wasn't nearly as impressed as I'd been with My Sister's Keeper. I wondered if that book was an anomaly, an exceptional book, a formula that can't be repeated. I wasn't sure but I so badly didn't want it to be true. This is not to say I didn't like Vanishing Acts. It was so-so. If I hadn't already read the other one, I probably would have loved it. But I'd seen what she was capable of and I wanted more. So much more.

So then I picked up Ninteeen Minutes which was fabulous. Made me feel good about Jodi Picoult again. The story was gripping and even though I knew there would be a twist at the end, I was still surprised and loved every moment of reading this story. Kudos to any writer who can take a really difficult issue like school shootings and making an amazing story out of it so it's about how hard it is to be yourself. How much we need to fit in. How much it can hurt to be teased and mercilessly made fun of. People who haven't had the abuse on that level can never understand how life-changing and soul-changing it can be. This book illustrates it wonderfully from many points of view. All interesting. Still not as good as My Sister's Keeper but quite a fantastic book.

I can't even remember where I read about Welcome to Oz but I am glad I did. The techniques shown by the author look easy here but they are not. I loved all the details about the light and the black and white techniques. Shows me that I have a long, long way to go before I can call myself a Photoshop connoisseur. I love his effects. I love his patience. I love his work. The drama, the story, the color. It's all quite wonderful. This is one book, I've checked out multiple times just to make sure I can master his skills.

The Palo Alto library has a special section reserved for new books and when I go in to checkout a hold, I always try to visit this section, just to see. That's how I discovered The Lavender Hour and while I wouldn't call it literature, it was a wonderful read. I loved the writing, the story, and the characters. Controversial topic, maybe, but mostly just a love story. If you need an easy, little book, this one isn't the worst choice.

Some Nerve was another pick from the library's new books section. It's nothing special. Easy, quick read about a gossip magazine writer who tries to write about an actor, can't and gets fired. Returns back to her hometown, only to find that the same author is checked into the hospital where she volunteers. Isn't that a lovely coincidence? Life's full of them. But books have even more. Not the worst book I've ever read but also not the best. A sweet, little book.

The Life You Longed For was creepy, scary and a blazing fast read. The worst possible subject ever: a mother hurting her kid, taken to an even more terrible level: not actually hurting the kid but accused of doing so. This is a perfect example of how good intentions can go bad and ruin lives and be the wrong thing to do. It sad, scary and very engrossing.

I read Still Life with Husband really quickly, which would normally imply that I loved it. Fact is, when I finished, I didn't know how I felt about it. It took me a couple of days to really hate the book. Now, I am pretty certain, I absolutely abhorred it. Terrible story. No plot worth mentioning. Unrealistic, stupid ending. No empathy or even sympathy towards the characters. Just could not enjoy this book.

Dark Oval was another really fast read. About loss and sadness. The idea of losing Jake is so tremendously scary to me that I wanted to be finished with this book quickly just so I didn't have to think about the possibility of his death. Life can be depressing, ironic and so very frustrated. I thought this book was realistic. Depressing but realistic and a wonderful read.

Considering the fact that The Kite Runner was my favorite book of 2005, it was predictable that I would buy his second book the second it came out. A Thousand Splendid Suns is a wonderful, wonderful story. While it can never be as good as Kite Runner, this one has its own special place since it's about women and not men. It's about the friendship of two otherwise very different women. It's touching, thought-provoking, depressing, heart-wrenching. It's amazing how much he can educate his readers about Afghanistan without any preaching or anything boring. I'm from the area, I normally dont' enjoy reading stories about the Middle East. But he is an exception. I love his books. I devour them. I can't wait until the next one.