Happy 2015! Hard to believe that a year ago I was sitting at this very same laptop thinking about how I needed to start keeping track of all the books I have read. Amazingly enough, I stuck with that goal, and will continue with it this year.
In 2014 I read 61 books! Sounds like a lot, and then not a lot at all. If it weren’t for Jewel Saga on my phone, or HGTV (dear Scott brothers… I love you!) I probably would’ve read at least 5 more… Grumble stupid friggin game grumble.
60 – The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty
This was a recommendation from my boyfriend’s mother, and I will admit in the beginning I was judging this book by the cover a bit. I didn’t really think it was going to be my style, but I gave it a chance and I’m so glad I did! It sucked me in and I couldn’t put it down. It follows a few different characters so the book switches points of view every chapter or so, and in he beginning I was having difficulty figuring out where the story was going. If you read this one, stick with it, it’ll be worth your while!
61 – The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
One of my favorites and one of the ONLY books I will continue to read and read again. My boyfriend and I were invited to a Gatsby themed party on New Year’s Eve, and it just put me in the mood for this classic.
Now, to kick off the new year the right way (by laying in bed all day and reading books, unhappily counting down the remaining hours of winter break), here are the first two books of 2015.
1 – Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
Like the previous Moriarty book, this was also a recommendation from my boyfriend’s mother. I was more excited to read this one, however, since I liked the other. This book was even better than the last, but I think the subject matter was more relevant to me. It revolves around a primary school and some severe parent drama, where an anxious and overprotective mother is trying to get a student expelled for allegedly bullying her daughter (did I mention these kids are in kindergarten?). The book is leading up to a trivia fundraising night and all along you know the event ends with a murder, but you don’t know who… or why. Excellent story.
2 – Walk Me Home by Catherine Ryan Hyde
I love this author and this book was good. However I didn’t love it as much as all the others of hers that I have read. Maybe because most of her other books have moved me to tears, and this one didn’t. The main characters are Carly and Jen, running away to California after the death of their mother. They are afraid to ask for help because they don’t want to be separated by CPS when they are put into foster homes. Being teenagers with no money, they have little choice other than to walk from New Mexico to Cali.
Honestly throughout the first half of the book (maybe more…) I really disliked Carly. I just kept thinking, you stupid teenager! But all in all I guess that means she was very human and believable. I just couldn’t stand her. There is a reason I teach first grade and not middle/high school… I ended up reading this book in a day so I guess it held me more than I’d like to admit!
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