2011 In Review

It's hard to believe we're at the end of 2011. Back in January, I set some goals for my reading and book blogging:

• Read all book club selections ~ I managed to accomplish this one!
• Commit to only two review books per month ~ I failed miserably at this one. Between NetGally, direct requests from authors and requests from publishers or publicists, I had 42 books that I agreed to review in 2011. That's an average of 3.5 books per month, not 2! That means 62% of the books I read were for review.
• Try new genres ~ I did this a little. I ended up reading a few YA books that I enjoyed. But I didn't branch out too far in 2011.
• Use the library more often ~ I still didn't borrow as many books as I would have liked in 2011, but I used the library a lot for the kids' books again.
• Complete two challenges ~ I did complete the two challenges I mentioned in my goals, but I signed up for others as well, and didn't manage to complete them all.

Here's a recap of all the challenges I participated in throughout 2011:

• E-book Challenge ~ I signed up to read 12 e-books in 2011. I read 36 e-books instead! I actually read more e-books than paperback/hardcover in 2011.
• I Want More Challenge ~ I signed up to read 5-8 books but only read 4. I did read several others by authors I've read before, but they were parts of series, which weren't counted in this challenge.
• Where Are You Reading Challenge ~ I only managed to read books that took place in 20 different states during 2011. I didn't figure I'd make it through all 50 since I wasn't choosing my books specifically on this criteria. I also read books that took place in 12 different countries.
• Spring Reading Thing Challenge ~ I read 8 of the 9 books I had on my list.
• Fall into Reading Challenge ~ I read 11 of 15 books I had on my list.
• The Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge ~ This is still going on, but so far I've read one adult book and 16 children's books for the challenge. I had signed up to read one adult book and to read with my kids, so I've already met the challenge goal for this one.

And some statistics on the books I read in 2011:

Thrillers and mysteries were the biggest fiction genres read in 2011. About 30% of the books I read were nonfiction, and about half of those were memoirs. I'm looking forward to reading more nonfiction in 2012 through my Non-Fiction Non-Memoir Reading Challenge.

I ended up reading 71 books in 2011, which is up from 65 in 2010.

Next week, when I'm back from my New Year's celebration weekend, I'll put together some goals for 2012. Happy New Year!!!

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Book Review: The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith

In Russia in 1956, a secret speech delivered by Kuschev, which denounces the criminal acts of Stalin and his secret security officers, has been released to the public. Soon former officers are being killed and Leo Deminov finds himself fighting to save his family from a woman that will stop at nothing to get revenge for his past deeds. From the politics of Moscow to the Siberian gulags to uprisings on the streets of Budapest, Leo tries to overcome his past and redeem himself ~ particularly in the eyes of his adoptive daughter who still blames him for her parents' deaths.

In The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith, we revisit the characters of his first novel, Child 44. But you don't need to have read the first book to enjoy this one. There is plenty of action, lots of twists and turns, and tons of historical references to Russia. Smith definitely presents a harsh, cold image of the country. And he shows the diverse reactions to Kruschev's desire for change, from the guards at the gulags who refused to accept change to the students who began the Hungarian Revolution. In addition, Smith brings family to the forefront of this novel as Leo tries to hold his family together.

I really enjoyed The Secret Speech. It wasn't as disturbing as Child 44, although there was plenty of violence in this one as well. It's a engaging historical thriller that will keep you turning the pages to find out how it is all going to work out in the end.

My Rating: 4/5

For more information, visit the author's website.

This review was written based on a copy of The Secret Speech that I purchased.

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Book Review: The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka

The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka is unlike just about anything I've ever read. It's written in a lyrical, collective voice that is quite unique. And I must say that while I appreciated it in terms of its literary quality, I got a bit tired of it as time went on. Here is an example from page 14:

On the boat we carried our husbands' pictures in tiny oval lockets that hung on long chains from our necks. We carried them in silk purses and old tea tins and red lacquer boxes and in the thick brown envelopes from America in which they had originally been sent. We carried them in the sleeves of our kimonos, which we touched often, just to make sure they were still there.

The entire novel, with the exception of the last chapter, is written in this collective third-person voice. Rather than following an individual woman from Japan to American to meet her husband for the first time, we hear the collective story of all the women who went on this journey. We hear of their trip across the ocean, and the anticipation and hopes and dreams of their future lives with their husbands. We hear of their first nights with their husbands, and the horror at discovering that they were not the wealthy, easy-living men they thought they were, but rather farmers and laborers ~ just like the men they could have married back home. We hear of the hard work they had to take on, the birth of their children and their interactions with Americans up through the beginning of World War II.

By providing this collective voice, Otsuka is able to give a fuller picture of the experience of "picture brides" who came to America from Japan in the early 20th century. She isn't limited to one person's experience with one husband, one job, one family. Rather, she is able to show the range of experiences among the these women. I understand her reasoning for using this voice, and I think it works very well from a literary and historical standpoint. But I will say it got old; I was definitely ready for a new voice by the time she finally switched to a different perspective in the last chapter.

Overall, this was a powerful work of literature that I would definitely recommend ~ if you like literary types of books. It gives you an amazing view of the experiences these women faced. The imagery is wonderful. But it's definitely not for everyone. In addition to the different writing style, there are also some disturbing descriptions of their first nights with their husbands, the botched births of their children and other brutal realities of their lives. Read the excerpt below to get a better idea of whether you would enjoy it.

My Rating: 4/5

Read an excerpt

Discussion questions for The Buddha in the Attic

This review was written based on an ebook copy of The Buddha in the Attic that I received from Knopf Doubleday through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Fall into Reading Challenge: Wrap-Up

This was my third year participating in the Fall Into Reading Challenge hosted by Katrina at Callapidder Days. I can't believe how fast it went by! I didn't even manage to put up my recap post in time to be eligible for the prize. But I am very glad to have joined in again this year.

I had 15 books on my list to read throughout Fall. I managed to read 11 of the 15 books, which is pretty good but not great. I did read several other books instead of the ones on my list, though. I just decided I didn't want to read all the books on my list in the end. I read:

1. Before the Last All Clear by Ray Evans (review)
2. The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen (review)
3. Commune of Women by Suzan Still (review) 
4. What Alice Forgot by Leane Moriarty (review)
5. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (review) 
6. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (for Banned Books Week) (review)
7. Beyond the Darkness by Leonard D. Hilley II (review)
8. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (review)
9. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford (review)
10. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (review) 
11. The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith (review to come)

The following books were on my list but I didn't get to them this year:

1. Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
2. All Over but the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg
3. Sweet Dates in Basra by Jessica Jiji
4. Godmother by Carolyn Turgeon

My favorite books read during the Fall into Reading Challenge were What Alice Forgot, The Book Thief and The Forgotten Garden.

Thanks so much to Katrina for hosting this challenge. I look forward to joining in her Spring Reading Thing Challenge once we get through winter!

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It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Good morning! I hope all of you who celebrate had a wonderful Christmas and are enjoying Hanukkah still. I guess today is Boxing Day and Kwanzaa too. Isn't December fun? Of course, it's also been a bit stressful for me, but these last few days have been great. We all really enjoyed Christmas this year, and we all got some great gifts. The kids are very happy with all the things they got, and I'm very happy with my new mother's ring!!!!

As far as reading goes, I read The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka. It was from NetGalley and I realized last week that it was about to expire! It was an interesting books. I still have to think about what I want to say in my review. Hopefully I'll have time to write it this week.

I did review Jacob T. Marley by R. William Bennett last week. What a great book! Click on the title to read my review.

I also shared a few of the Christmas and Hanukkah books my kids and I have been reading.

And I posted about the Book Blogger Holiday Swap, which I participated in for the second year.

Currently Reading
I'm still reading Shanghai Girls by Lisa See since I read The Buddha in the Attic last week. Funny that they're both about Asian women being married off to American men.

Up Next
I think I'll read The Ruins of Us by Keija Parssinen next. It's another NetGalley book and since we'll be traveling for New Year's, I'll want to read something that's on my Nook.

What are you reading this week? This meme is being hosted by Sheila at Book Journey, so hop over there if you'd like to see what others are reading too.

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