Reading Round-Up: Spring Edition

I've had a post about my reading from the first quarter of 2008 sitting in draft for ages. Well past time to actually post it!

I didn't mean to wait so long to post a reading list. I've actually been better about tracking my reading this calendar year, primarily through the website Shelfari. Although I've not been as good at keeping track of what I read month by month, and I haven't tracked everything, I've still got a better list than usual to pull from as I reflect here on some of the books I've read. And it certainly beats relying on my memory...my pre-40th birthday method!

I'll try to categorize a bit. Here's a not-quite comprehensive list of my reading from the first quarter of 2008. Links are to my Epinions reviews:

Non-Fiction:

America, 1908: The Dawn of Flight, The Race to the Pole, the Invention of the Model T, and the Making of a Modern Nation by Jim Rasenberger

I'm getting more interested in reading good non-fiction with each passing year, and this book did not disappoint. Among other things, having read yet another excellent non-fiction book on American history has inspired me to consider the possibility of trying my hand at this kind of writing. My husband has been encouraging me to consider writing a story about my paternal grandparents' lives and work, and I'm finding myself quite drawn to the idea.

Middle-Grade/YA Fiction:

I've read some very rich books in this category in recent months, partly because I've been trying to catch up on Newbery winners from this year and last, and partly because I visit blogs that make excellent recommendations. All of these books are good, and some of them are extraordinary. At least three of them (Penderwicks, Wednesday Wars, and Crooked Kind of Perfect) are books that I think will find a permanent place on my shelves of "books to go back to" and books that I will not hesitate to give to the sweet girl several years down the road.

The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
Looking forward to doing this as a read-aloud with S. a couple of years or so from now. And very much looking forward to reading the sequel, which has just been published...I've got a hold on the next available copy in the library system, but it's in high demand and may take a while!

Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst

The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
An absolutely marvelous read: poignant and funny. It's a coming of age novel set in the late 1960s, and it took all sorts of odd and wonderful turns I wasn't expecting.

A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban
I loved this so much that I read it aloud to Dana once I'd finished reading it through myself. Always a mark of a book that finds its way to my heart: my desire to read it aloud so I can "hear" the characters anew. I hope Urban's hard at work on a second novel.

The Lacemaker and the Princess by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley


General Fiction (for "Adults"):

The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble

Inklings (The Oxford Chronicles) by Melanie M. Jeschke

Both of these had lots of potential and some good moments, but ultimately disappointed.

Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien
Beautiful, tragic tale of the elder days. Christopher Tolkien has done us all a great service in pulling together this manuscript from his father's papers, with a minimum of editorial interference. A must-read for any Tolkien fan.

Drama/Poetry:
Crossing Delancey by Susan Sandler

I hadn't read a play in ages, so this was fun for that reason alone! But it was delightful. If you know the terrific film based on the play, you'll enjoy this even more.

I'm in the midst of reading several other books right now, including a few I am really enjoying and getting a lot out of...but I'll save my current reading list for another time!