Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl
by Gillian Flynn

What can I say about Gone Girl that hasn't already been said? Actually I'm not sure about the answer to that because I have done quite a good job of keeping away from all spoilery type things without even trying. I wasn't even sure I was going to read the book until this month. At some point I saw a lonely copy on my library's sale cart and picked it up for $2 (finding an inscription that made me smile). So, the movie came out and Shannon at River City Reading posted this post which I allowed myself to read the first paragraph and then tucked it away until I had finished the book. After I started the book I found myself in a conversation that went like this:

Friend 1: I don't like the way it ended.
Friend 2: I think it ended the way that it had to.

Not much said here but this tidbit...it HAUNTED ME. All through the book I was going back and forth. Analyzing and then reanalyzing. What do I want to happen? What do I not want to happen? What do I think is the only thing that CAN happen? I got to page 80 and realized I had to do something I never do in works of fiction. I wrote in the book. I wrote all over this thing. I listed my guesses on the very last page and placed hateful comments and smiley faces throughout.

So now, I am going to give you a glimpse into my mind and share with you some of those comments.

Spoilery things lurking ahead (cuz it's Halloween-time obviously)

On the Blue Book plant: Awwe, memories. 
Maybe that's the point, her intention.
Yeah! HA! no...
I'm over this disposable phone. Just tell us who it is already or stop ringing. 
WTF! I want to punch this book in the face. When did he become okay with being suspicious?
On page 193 "Hey, Nick": Just got a flash of Double Jeopardy when she "comes back from the dead" his name was Nick too right?
Shit! Is Boney on to Amy?
Why is she making us hate her now?
I hear that!
On page 338 "Something bad was going to happen. My wife was being clever again." :)
Amy and Nick both do that, maybe they were meant for each other after all. 
That's what I was thinking!
On page 399 "Nick and me (the correct grammar): This actually makes me happy. She can point it out and it's not the author being annoying because it is Amy and it fits.

And all of my speculation on the back cover:

At page 110: He hired hit man, she found out and set him up. He thinks he murdered her but she is framing him. 
Page 136: She is pregnant. (while I was correct...sort of, the reason I guessed it was because the cops kept asking about her still being a size 2 which was actually about the panties hinting at cheating)
Page 341: Is Amy going to say Desi kidnapped her? (BAM!)
Page 372: I think the only ending I'll hate is if it all goes back to normal and all is forgiven between them. 
Page 394: Now I don't know what ending I'd be happy with. Nothing sounds like a good way to go. Maybe Amy getting found out. 
End:
Dude! I like the end, as of right now. Right before the last entries for Nick and Amy I was...unsettled/irritated/bored. After Nick I was okay because it was pathetic but almost closure in a sick way. Then I read Amy and I was glad it ended with an uncertain psycho comment. It seems more...real? It just seems to fit. 

I'm making this part of my Halloween Reads

Caving to RIP IX

I haven't done a challenge in a long time...like years. But I decided that my favorite holiday was a good time to jump back into them. I love picking out books for Halloween (in fact I have a special shelf just for them) and I delayed signing up for this challenge because of my total inability to finish a single Halloween book last year. But today I am making the leap. Maybe it is the excitement of a cool cloudy day, maybe it is the pumpkin candle I am burning or the delicious soup I'm having for dinner but I'm all in for this Halloween awesomeness. 

So here's the deal:

Readers Imbibing Peril runs from September 1 - October 31 and you basically just pick books that you think fit into the creepy, mysterious, delightfully horrible theme, have some fun reading them and then link your posts to the review site which is put on by Carl from Stainless Steel Droppings. 

The good thing is that Carl has given us options. The bad thing is that some of those can overlap so I am partaking in multiple parts of the challenge...and a readalong. 

Peril the First means I will be reading four books for the challenge. I have put together the following list to chose from. 

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Dark Souls by Paula Morris

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Supernatural Enhancements by Edgar Cantero

Peril on the Screen....because I would be doing this anyway. At the very least I will be watching my annual favorites: Hocus Pocus and The Nightmare Before Christmas.

I have wanted to read The Haunting of Hill House for a long time and have already started it in anticipation. 

Lastly, can we just take a moment and appreciate the beautiful banners created for this challenge. The artist is Abigail Larson and after visiting her shop I want to spend lots of money on things like this and this. Oh hey and this. 

Well, I'm already behind on this month so I better get reading. 

Read the Book, See the Movie Challenge

Read the Book, See the Movie Challenge is hosted at Ready When You Are, C.B.

I love movies, I LOVE books...this challenge is perfect for me.

Select a challenge level:

• Matinee: one book/movie
• Double Feature: two books/movies
• Saturday Movie Marathon: four books/movies
• Film Festival: eight books/movies
• Festival Jury Member: ten books/movies

I'm in for 10!!

My list so far:

1. Witches
2. Atonement
3. Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring
4. The Road
5. The Hours
6. Island of the Blue Dolphins
7.
8.
9.
10.

Chunkster Challenge - 2010

The Chunkster Challenge is going run February 1, 2010 - January 31, 2011

Check out the Chunkster Challenge website for all the rules.

I am in for level 3:

Mor-book-ly Obese - This is for the truly out of control chunkster. For this level of challenge you must commit to 6 or more chunksters OR three tomes of 750 pages or more. You know you want to.....go on and give in to your cravings.

I am going to read 3 books over 750 pages each, and I think I even have my list set already.

1. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
2. Under the Dome by Stephen King
3. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

TwentyTen Reading Challenge

The TwentyTen reading Challenge is hosted at Bart's Bookshelf and I can't seem to get away from it. It keeps popping up everywhere. I finally just had to sign up. I mean really, this is the perfect challenge...lots of variety, a year to complete it, and only 20 books!

I am so excited.

Rules:

* Read 2 books from each category, making a requirement of 20 books total.
* The categories are intended to be loose guidelines only, if you decide it fits, then it fits. (Apart from those marked **)
* Categories marked with ** have tighter rules, and these must be followed.
* Each book can only qualify for one category.
* Crossovers with other challenges are allowed.
* Books read from 01/01/2010 to 31/12/2010 are eligible.

So, on with the categories

1. Young Adult
Any book classified as young adult or featuring a teenage protagonist counts for this category.

2. T.B.R. **
Intended to help reduce the old T.B.R. pile. Books for this category must be already residents of your bookshelves as of 1/11/09.

3. Shiny & New
Bought a book NEW during 2010 from a bookstore, online, or a supermarket? Then it counts for this category. Second-hand books do not count for this one, but, for those on book-buying bans, books bought for you as gifts or won in a giveaway also count!

4. Bad Blogger’s ***
Books in this category, should be ones you’ve picked up purely on the recommendation of another blogger count for this category (any reviews you post should also link to the post that convinced you give the book ago).
*** Bad Bloggers: Is hosted by Chris of Stuff as Dreams are Made on.

5. Charity
Support your local charity shops with this category, by picking up books from one of their shops. Again, for those on book-buying bans, books bought for you as gifts also count, as long as they were bought from a charity shop.

6. New in 2010
This category is for those books newly published in 2010 (whether it be the first time it is has been released, or you had to wait for it to be published in your country, it counts for this one!)

7. Older Than You
Read two books that were published before you were born, whether that be the day before or 100 years prior!

8. Win! Win!
Have a couple of books you need to read for another challenge? Then this is the category to use, as long that is, you don’t break the rules of the other challenge by doing so! ;)

9. Who Are You Again?
This one isn’t just for authors you’ve never read before, this is for those authors you have never even heard of before!

10. Up to You! --I am going with graphic novels on this one. They are totally new to me and I decided it was about time I checked one (or two) out.
The requirements for this category are up to you! Want to challenge yourself to read some graphic novels? A genre outside your comfort zone? Something completely wild and wacky? Then this is the category to you. The only requirement is that you state it in your sign-up post.

I'm going to keep track of my progress under the Challenges post in my sidebar.

2010 100+ Reading Challenge

I am so excited to join the 100+ Reading Challenge. There are so many great books to read in 2010, it would be silly for me to NOT try to read at least 100.

To see all the details for the challenge, check out J. Kaye's post.

1. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
2. The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
3. Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan
4. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
5. The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
6. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
7. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (audio)
8. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
9. Heresy by S.J. Parris
10. Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
11. The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien
12. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
13. Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery (audio)
14. Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert
15. Arcadia Falls by Carol Goodman
16. Frostbite by Richelle Goodman
17. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
18. The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen
19. The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien
20. Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery (audio)
21. The Stolen Crown by Susan Higginbotham
22. Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
23. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
24. Tristan and Iseult by Joseph Sedier (audio)
25. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (audio)
26. Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trifimuk (audio)
27. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (audio)
28. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer
29. The Swimming Pool by Holly LeCraw
30. The Host by Stephenie Meyer
31. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
32. Keeper by Kathi Appelt
33. Fireworks over Toccoa by Jeffrey Stipakoff
34. The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory
35. Nightlight by The Harvard Lampoon
36. Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
37. Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick
38. Still Missing by Chevy Stevens
39. Little Bee by Chris Cleave
40. Daughters of the Witching Hill by Mary Sharratt
41. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
42. Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel
43. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
44. Radiance by Alyson Noel
45. She's So Dead to Us by Kieran Scott
46. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher (audio)
47. Dirty Secret by Jessie Sholl
48. Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead
49. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan (audio)
50. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
51. Blood Promise by Richelle Mead
52. Dead Tossed Waved by Carrie Ryan (audio)
53. Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead
54. Red Hook Road by Ayelet Waldman
55. After by Amy Efaw (audio)

1010 Challenge

The 1010 Challenge is a group challenge on LibraryThing (challenge link). The challenge is to read books from 10 categories in 2010. I am going to read 10 books in each category.

This is a fantastic way for me to make sure I get through most of the books I have wanted to read for a while as well as make sure I have diversity throughout the year. I will probably switch some books up throughout the year but I have most of my categories filled already(okay some are overfilled-I'll figure that out as I go). As I read and review the books I will leave links.


Memoirs
1. The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama
2. True Compass: A Memoir by Edward M. Kennedy
3. Crazy for the Storm: A Memoir of Survival by Norman Ollestad
4. A Woman Among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice by Malalia Joya
5. I’ll Scream Later by Marlee Matlin
6. The Girl from Foreign: A Memoir by Sadia Shepard
7. Saving Sammy: Curing the Boy Who Caught OCD by Beth Alison Maloney
8. Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur by Halima Bashir
9.
10.

Historical Fiction
1. Avalon: A Novel by Anya Seton and Philippa Gregory
2. The Lady Elizabeth: A Novel by Alison Weir
3. Sarah's Daughter by Ruth Bass
4. The Virgin's Daughters by Jeane Westin
5. Cleopatra's Daughter: A Novel by Michelle Moran
6. The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick
7. Mary Boleyn by Josephine Wilkinson
8. Privilege and Scandal by Gleeson
9. Nefertiti by Michelle Moran
10.

Nonfiction
1. Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert
2. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
3. The Mom’s Guide To Growing Your Family Green: Saving The Earth Begins At Home by Terra Wellington
4. Smart Mama’s Green Guide: Simple Steps to Reduce Your Child’s Toxic Exposure by Jennifer Taggart
5. The Duchess by Amanda Foreman
6. Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean Sasson
7. Princess Sultana's Daughters by Jean Sasson
8. Princess Sultana's Circle (Princess Trilogy) by Jean Sasson
9. First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria by Eve Waite-Brown
10. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
11. Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan by Greg Mortenson
12. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

Classics
1. The Federalist by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, & John Jay
2. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
3. The Inferno by Dante Alighieri
4. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
5. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
6. The Metamorphosis and Other Stories by Franz Kafka
7. Middlemarch by George Eliot
8. My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglass
9. Narrative of Sojourner Truth
10. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
11. Utopia by Thomas More
12. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Young Adult
1. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
2. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
3. Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black
4. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
5. The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
6. What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell
7. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
8. The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
9. Go Ask Alice by Unknown
10.

Books I Missed in School (I have no idea how)
1. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
2. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
3. The Giver by Lois Lowry
4. The Pearl by John Steinbeck
5. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
6. Tangerine by Edward Bloor
7. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
8.
9.
10.

A School Refresher Course (the ones I did read)
1. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
2. Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
3. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
4. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
5. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
6. Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
7. My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
8. The Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
9. The Witches by Roald Dahl
10. Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls

Banned Books
1. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
2. Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
3. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
4. Maurice: A Novel by E. M. Forster
5. The Education of Harriet Hatfield by Sarton May
6. Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
7. Forever… by Judy Blume
8. Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
9. Lysistrata by Aristophanes
10. The Last Mission by Harry Mazer
11. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
12. Women on Top by Nancy Friday
13. The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence by Victor Marchetti and John D. Marks

Books to Set the Halloween Mood
1. Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
2. The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
3. Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice
4. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
5. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
6. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
7. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
8. Haunting Bombay by Shilpa Agarwal
9.
10.

Books I Loved the First Time Around
1. Animal Farm by George Orwell
2. Garden Spells By Sarah Addison Allen
3. The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
4. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
5. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
6. Moths and Other by Stories by Helena Maria Viramontes
7. Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
8. The Crucible by Arthur Miller
9. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
10. We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families: Stories From Rwanda by Philip Gourevitch

Challenges

The 2010 100+ Reading Challenge.  You can see the list of all the books I read in 2010 HERE.

 I also have the 1010 Challenge, which has essentially turned into a giant list of books I want to read before I die.  The list in all its glorious categories can be found HERE.

Original Post
January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010

1. Witches
2. The Lightning Thief
3. Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring
4. Alice in Wonderland
5. The Hours
6. Out of Africa
7. Brideshead Revisited
8. Mansfield Park or Emma/Clueless
9. Coraline
10. The Golden Compass

Original Post
February 1, 2010 - January 31, 2011

I am going to read 3 books over 750 pages each.

1. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
2. Under the Dome by Stephen King
3. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Original Post
November 1, 2009 - April 30, 2010

1. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
2. Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan
3. Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
4. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
5. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
6. Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews

Original Post
January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010

1. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
2. Beloved by Toni Morrison
3. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
4. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
5. Utopia by Thomas More
6. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
7. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
8. Atonement by Ian McEwan
9. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
10. The Giver by Lois Lowry

Original Post
January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010

1. Middlesex: A Novel by Jeffrey Eugenides
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (this would be a reread for me but I loved it the first time)
3. Virginia Woolf: A Biography by Quentin Bell
4. The Hours: A Novel by Michael Cunningham
5. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe: A Novel by Fannie Flagg
6. The Persian Boy by Mary Renault
7. The Bostonians by Henry James
8.

Original Post
January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010

1. The Girl from Foreign: A Memoir by Sadia Shepard
2. Haunting Bombay by Shilpa Agarwal
3. The Sari Shop Widow by Shobhan Bantwal
4. Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah
5. A Disobedient Girl: A Novel by Ru Freeman
6.
7.
8.

Original Post
November 2009 - November 2010

Nonfiction:

1. Circle of Women: An Anthology of Contemporary Western Women Writers by Kim Barnes and Mary Clearman Blew
2. To Be Real: Telling the Truth and Changing the Face of Feminism by Rebecca Walker
3. The Bone Woman: A Forensic Anthropologist'​s Search for Truth in the Mass Graves of Rwanda, Bosnia, Croatia, and Kosovo by Clea Koff

Fiction or Nonfiction:

4. My Antonia by Willa Cather
5. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
6. Baby Catcher: Chronicles of a Modern Midwife by Peggy Vincent
7. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
8. Woman: An Intimate Geography by Natalie Angier

Original Post

Young Adult
1.
2.

T.B.R.
1.
2.

Shiny & New
1.
2.

Bad Blogger’s
1.
2.

Charity
1. The Feminine Mystique
2. Jane Eyre

New in 2010
1.  The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen
2.  The Stolen Crown by Susan Higginbotham

Older Than You
1. 
2.

Win! Win!
1.
2.

Who Are You Again?
1.
2.

Up to You! --I am going with graphic novels on this one. They are totally new to me and I decided it was about time I checked one (or two) out.
1. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
2.

GLBT Challenge 2010 - The Challenge That Dare Not Speak Its Name

Okay, I found another great challenge that I just can't pass up. I recently came across the GLBT 2009 Challenge and I was so sad that it was about to be finished. When I came across the came challenge for 2010 I knew I was signing up.

Thanks to Amanda at The Zen Leaf for hosting the The Challenge That Dare Not Speak Its Name 2010 which will run January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010.

I am signing up at the Pink Triangle Level, meaning I will read 8 books. I don't have a list put together yet but I have a few ideas so far:

Middlesex: A Novel
by Jeffrey Eugenides

The Perks of Being a Wallflower
by Stephen Chbosky (this would be a reread for me but I loved it the first time)

Virginia Woolf: A Biography
by Quentin Bell

The Hours: A Novel
by Michael Cunningham

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe: A Novel
by Fannie Flagg

The Persian Boy
by Mary Renault

The Bostonians (Modern Library Classics)
by Henry James

Check out this website with a great list of GLBT Literature.

South Asian Author Challenge

There is a great new challenge being hosted by Swapna at S. Krishna's Books. The South Asian Author Challenge is a great challenge to get people reading books buy South Asian authors (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka). There were a few books that I knew I would put on a list if I participated, so I'm signing up.

I am going to read 7 books. With the books I have in mind right now I will have a few spots for extras I find along the way. The challenge is going to run January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2010 so I am going to just strew them throughout the year.

Possible books for my list so far:

Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah
Haunting Bombay by Shilpa Agarwal
The Sari Shop Widow by Shobhan Bantwal
A Disobedient Girl: A Novel by Ru Freeman
The Girl from Foreign: A Memoir by Sadia Shepard

Check it out and sign up.

Women Unbound - Start of Challenge Meme

1. What does feminism mean to you? Does it have to do with the work sphere? The social sphere? How you dress? How you act?

2. Do you consider yourself a feminist? Why or why not?

3. What do you consider the biggest obstacle women face in the world today? Has that obstacle changed over time, or does it basically remain the same?

It is difficult to describe what feminism means to me. It is a feeling, an understanding that women can do anything. We have a right to feel safe and comfortable with who we are and what we choose to do with our lives. To me, feminism is about...well, everything. It is about women having the right to choose to work inside or outside the home and to have the means to do that equally. It means that women can dress in a way that makes them feel comfortable - whether that means flip flops or heels. It is about girls knowing that smart is sexy so they don't feel like they have to dumb themselves down in order to seem cute or funny or attainable.

I consider myself a feminist but I don't think I fall under only that label. I think that labels are a huge obstacle that women...that all people face. It is too easy to label someone, to look at them and put them in a little stereotypical box. It is awful that women do this to other women so often. Everyone has the right to make their own name, to define who they are without others doing it for them.

Women Unbound Challenge

I am so excited to participate in the Women Unbound Challenge. This is a challenge that starts this month and runs until November 2010. When I started blogging, I hoped that there would be a challenge like this. I minored in Women's Studies in college and I'm ashamed to say the number of "feminist" books I have read since graduating has significantly dropped. I am so excited to see what everyone else is reading and to hear their thoughts.

I will be participating at the Suffragette level, which means I will be reading at least 8 books of which at least 3 must be nonfiction. The hardest part for me is definitely going to be narrowing down the 8 books that I will read. I am going to take some time sifting through the books on my wishlist and checking out some other lists before I finalize my reading list but I do have a list of some books I have read and really enjoyed.

I do love all of these but I am going to start with some of my favorite. Since I just started my blog and don't have reviews for any of these books, each will have a link to Amazon and some of the reviews there.

Fiction:

The Moths and Other Stories by Helena Maria Viramontes
This is an collection of stories about the struggles women are often faced with in various aspects of their lives. This quickly became one of my favorite books.

Mother Tongue by Demetria Martinez
A story about a young woman's fight to help a political refugee from El Salvador.

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
A wonderful collection of stories about the obstacles in life.

Vintage Cisneros by Sandra Cisneros
A collection of excerpts from various works by Cisneros, including The House on Mango Street (also a great book), Carmelo and various poems.

Emplumada by Lorna Dee Cervantes
This is a collection of poems based on Cervantes' Chicana heritage.

Nonfiction:

Bananas, Beaches, and Bases: Making Feminist Sense of International Politics by Cynthia Enloe
A look at how globalization and international politics effect the lives of women around the world.

Feminist Theory: From Margin To Center by bell hooks
A comprehensive look at the core issues of feminism.

Tangled Memories: The Vietnam War, the AIDS Epidemic, and the Politics of Remembering by Marita Sturken
Sturken's thoughts about how we deal with tragic events and how we remember them (movies, memorials, focus on men vs. women).

Birth: The Surprising History of How We Are Born by Tina Cassidy
I came across this book in a bookstore and really enjoyed it. I don't have kids so I don't have any personal experience but it is interesting to know how it was done back in the day.

Women, Race, and Class by Angela Y. Davis
Discusses the ties between the between the anti-slavery campaign and the struggle for women's suffrage as well as the differences that divided them.

Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog
The Autobiography of Mary Brave Bird. A look at growing up Native American in 1960s/70s America.

Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future by Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards
A look at the different types and generations of feminists as well as what that means for the fight for women's empowerment.

Feminism on the Border by Sonia Saldivar-Hull
A look at feminism by analyzing three Chicana writers: Gloria Anzaldúa, Sandra Cisneros, and Helena María Viramontes.

The Struggle of Women's Rights: Theoretical and Historical Sources by George Klosko and Margaret G. Klosko
A fantastic breakdown of the key people who fought for women's suffrage: what they did and why it matters.

Insecure at Last: A Political Memoir by Eve Ensler
Eve Ensler is the author of The Vagina Monologues. Insecure at Last touches on her personal experiences as well as the experiences of women oppressed by various political systems.

Promises Not Kept: Poverty and the Betrayal of Third World Development by John Isbister
A look at various factors affecting the increase of world poverty.

Final book of ideas:

A Bookshelf of Our Own: Must-Reads for Women by Deborah G. Felder
This is a great book that I came across one day, which highlights books that changed women's lives. This is a great book if you need ideas for books to read, explaining why they are so important and why we love them.

Books to Read Before I Die - 2010

Diane at Bibliophile By the Sea is hosting this great challenge for 2010.

Your list of 10-20 books has to be finished and posted in Mr Linky by December 31, 2009. Plus, anyone who completes the challenge will be entered to win an Amazon gift card. So check it out and sign up.

My List:

1. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
2. Beloved by Toni Morrison
3. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
4. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
5. Utopia by Thomas More
6. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
7. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
8. Atonement by Ian McEwan
9. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
10. The Giver by Lois Lowry

My First Challenge!!

I first heard about Shelf Discovery: Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading last week and immediately knew that it was something I had to read. I feel like somehow I missed so many of the books that other people read and loved when they were growing up. I have been slowly making my way through many of these, scattering them through all the other books I am reading, but it is not going as fast as I had hoped.

Then I saw that Booking Mama is hosting the Shelf Discovery Challenge. It's PERFECT! This is exactly what I am looking for to get the extra boost I need.

By checking out Amazon's handy "Look Inside" feature I see that the book is broken up into different categories. I think I am going to try to make each book from a different category.
I may change one of the books but I think this is what my list is going to look like:

1. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
2. Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan
3. Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
4. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
5. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
6. I can't decide between:
The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
or Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Any suggestions?

Here are the basics from Booking Mama, check out her blog to get all the details and sign up.

The Shelf Discovery Challenge will run for six months (November 1, 2009 - April 30, 2010). To join me in this challenge, all you need to do is grab a copy of SHELF DISCOVERY and pick out what six books you want to read (of course, you can read more than six!) Then, after you read a book, just write a "book report" to share your thoughts with others!