I read, The Giver because I knew the movie was coming out and David had just recently read it so I wanted to make sure I read it, too.

It was a very, very quick read and I really found it fascinating. I thought it was well written and I loved the story even though it was disturbing, of course. I did wish the ending was better and it bugged me until I found out it is a quartet. So maybe if I invest in the other three, too, I might feel better.

The movie was quite good, too, in my opinion, though wildly different from the book in places.

I read about The Golem and the Jinni again and again in several different “best of” lists for last year. I was reluctant to read it despite all the lists saying it was really wonderful. The plot didn’t seem interesting enough. Actually it seemed downright weird. I’d never heard of the author. I had no reason to pick it up just because the “lists” said it was good.

But then I finally decided to listen to it on audio.

And am I glad I did!!

It was absolutely fantastic. Completely unlike any book I’ve read. I fell into its world and got wholeheartedly lost in it. I could not stop listening to the magical story that was beautifully read. And when it was done I felt really sad.

It’s not often a book surprises me. I’ve had a few over the years like The Time Traveler’s Wife or The Night Circus where I picked it up and was immediately lost in the story, the magic, the joyful uniqueness of it all. This one was one of those. I am so so glad I read it.

If you’re up for something different, I recommend it.

I picked up The Signature of All Things because of an online book club. I’ve read Eat Pray Love and as opposed to some, I loved it. And I’ve loved Elizabeth Gilbert’s TED talk. So I knew I wanted to give this book a try, especially since the reviews were good.

I, once again, decided to listen and not read. I’ve been in the car a lot lately, or doing art, and listening to a book makes me happy. Especially this one as it had one of the best readers ever. It was a British woman and I loved, loved her reading of the book. I couldn’t stop listening to it.

And even though this was the kind of book I would never have picked up on my own, I absolutely loved it. I am smiling right now thinking about it.

If historical fiction is your cup of tea, this one is recommended (especially on audio.)

I picked up Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar thanks to Andrea Scher’s book. Considering how I felt about Cheryl Strayed after Wild, I am not sure why I picked it up.

But I am so glad I did.

I loved every bit of this book.

The advice is heartfelt, kind and honest. It’s meaningful and I felt so much of it was meaningful to me even if I wasn’t experiencing the same situation. It reminded me how we can be so messed up as humans but all we seek is love and we can always do the right thing, be kind, and recover from any situation.

Also reminded me that in my heart and soul, I know what’s right and wrong (for me) and I need to listen to myself more.

I read Americanah for book club. Even though it was on many best-book-of-2013 lists, I would have never picked it up on my own. IT just wouldn’t have crossed my list.

So when I listened to it, I was really glad my book club picked it.

It’s a really interesting and enjoyable read.

I learned a lot and, more than anything, just really was glad to read something so outside my own list.

This is why I love book club.

I’ve been meaning to read Wild for a long, long time. But what finally got me to read it was the movie, of course.

I won’t see it until I read it.

So read it, it was.

I knew a lot of people liked it and I did, too. But I didn’t love it. It was interesting and I enjoyed reading all about the hiking adventures. But overall I had a hard time relating to the author and many of her choices and that did cloud my view of the book.

I am very much looking forward to the movie, of course.