It's finally here: My 2012 book list! I'm rather proud of the fact that I read forty-seven books in 2012, until I remember that most of them were children's books. No matter; I enjoyed them, and since this is my list, that's all that counts, haha!
Here are the links from my book lists in
2011 and
2010.
Here is the key again:
* fun
# favorite
+ career reading
And without further ado, in no particular order...
Jennica-Ayelet's 2012 Reading List
Middle East
The Arabs: Journey Beyond the Mirage by David Lamb
This is one of my favorite books on the Middle East so far. Maybe I liked it because I understood/agreed with most of his assessments. ;) I particularly liked his chapter on terrorist attacks. This was written pre-September 11th (1987), so it was interesting to read in light of recent events.
Gertrude Bell: Queen of the Desert, Shaper of Nations by Georgina Howell
This book was about an English woman who went on all sorts of adventures around the world and the Middle East in the late 1800s-early 1900s. The author claims that Gertrude Bell was more important than Lawrence of Arabia in the shaping of the Middle East; I'm not so sure about that. In any case, Gertrude was definitely an interesting, influential, and intimidating Person (with a capital P). I thought this book was worth reading because it showed her relationship to the Middle East as well as explained much of the history behind the modern Middle East; she was heavily involved in the formation of the state of Iraq. I was more eager to read about the Middle East than to learn about Gertrude's personal life, but the book was well-written, so I didn't get bored.
A Street in Marrakech, Elizabeth Warnock Fernea
One of my favorite authors on the Middle East (she also wrote
Guests of the Sheik about her time in Iraq), Fernea wrote about the time that she and her family spent in Marrakech, Morocco. It was interesting to see how she tried to fit in with her neighbors and how her children responded to the new culture.
In the Steps of the Master, H.V. Morton
I don't remember much about this one, but I did like it. Morton traveled to Israel and wrote about the landscape, the cultures, and the Bible. This book was written in 1934, before the State of Israel was established.
Queen Noor: American-Born Queen of Jordan, Lucia Raatman
I picked this up at one of the local schools and read it in a few hours. I had heard about Queen Noor before, but this book gave a pretty good overview of her life and some of the pressures involved in being a queen in a developing Middle Eastern nation.
Other
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
A very interesting book, with some sketchy parts. The main character Charlie is a mentally-handicapped man (how do you say that in a sensitive but accurate way?) who volunteers for a brain surgery that may - or may not - greatly enhance his mental abilities. This story is told in journal entry form and follows the rollercoaster of Charlie's life over a few months as he rises to great heights and falls to greater depths. The main idea that I took away from it was one that Charlie repeated more than once, speaking about one of his doctors: "He makes me feel that before the experiment I was not really a human being." Intriguing.
The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown
I got this highly-controversial, wildly popular (back in the day) book for free from the teachers' lounge at one of the local high schools. While I totally reject the ideas that Dan Brown wrote about in his book, they aren't original to him: People literally think that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and that His blood was carried on, that the Catholic church is trying to hide the "facts," etc. Now that I know which books espouse this blasphemous idea, I seem to see them in every used book store!
The Da Vinci Code is a mystery/thriller about finding the hiding place of the bones of Mary Magdalene; one set of characters is trying to locate them so that they can tell the world "the truth" and the other set of characters is trying to hide the location because they are supposedly sacred and shouldn't be paraded about. I thought that the book was very well written and riveting, though the ideas are false. Read with discernment and insight; use your brains, people! After reading this book, I read a little booklet coauthored by Lee Strobel and Garry Poole called "Exploring the Da Vinci Code"; it was very good. I am now going to use my copy of
The Da Vinci Code for craft projects. ;)
Washington Square, Henry James
I decided to read this classic before I went to India; it was sitting on the shelf, why not? It was an interesting story about a tough father, a simple-minded daughter, a romantic/ridiculous maiden aunt, and suitor that you aren't sure if he really loves the daughter or not. Not at all soppy or mushy. Interesting but kind of confusing in the end. That's about all that I have to say about it, haha!
My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok
Amos and I both read this book, after I found out that my friend Heather had read it. It was well-written, as Chaim Potok's books tend to be. Asher is the only child of an orthodox Jewish couple. He loves art, but his family and Jewish community don't understand this drive since they don't see art as valuable to Jewish faith or tradition. I think that the book really asks the question, what is the purpose and importance of art in an individual and a community? Asher has to ask himself, "how far will I go to be true to myself and my artistic abilities? What happens when my art hurts those who are closest to me?" Chaim Potok was definitely interested in psychology, specifically the psychology of Sigmund Freud; this comes out strongly in this book and others that I've read.
The Pig in the Pantry and Other Homeschool Tales, Rose Godfrey
Amos and I were both homeschooled, so we really liked these hilarious stories. Even if you weren't homeschooled, you'd still like this book.
A Tramp Abroad, Mark Twain
Mark Twain wrote several books about his travels, all of them embellished to some degree. This books covers a walking tour of Germany, Switzerland, and a few other European countries. It did take a little effort to get into the narrative at first, but I still thought it was hilarious, as are most of Twain's works.
#
The Magician's Book: A Skeptic's Adventures in Narnia, Laura Miller
This book was written by a former-Catholic-now-atheist-or-agnostic woman who is still in love with Narnia, for some reason that she spends a few hundred pages trying to explain. I thought it was very interesting, even though I didn't agree with many of her assessments about Lewis and Christianity in general. She tended to make psychological judgments about Lewis that had to do with his mother, suppressed desires, relationships that were "more," etc. Overall Miller's comments about Narnia and literature in general were very interesting.
Christian
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A Passion for the Impossible: The Life of Lillias Trotter by Miriam Huffman Rockness
One of my favorite books from 2012. Read more about it
here.
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Woman to Woman: Sharing Jesus with a Muslim Friend, Joy Loewen
This book was good because it explained some of the fears that Muslim women have, how to talk about them, and how to tie it all in with the Gospel. It was very practical and encouraging.
Nests Above the Abyss, Isobel Kuhn
My favorite missionary. :) See what I had to say about this book
here.
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By Searching: My Journey through Doubt into Faith, Isobel Kuhn
My favorite missionary's story of how God turned her from an agnostic to a Christian. I definitely want to read this again in 2013 and take some notes on some my favorite quotes. Fantastic.
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Lit! A Christian Guide to Reading Books, Tony Reinke
I read a lot of books. So why read a book about reading books? Good question. I read about this book on
Tim Challies' blog and decided it might be good. One of the most useful things I got from the book was the fact that you can only read so many books in your lifetime; why waste time on bad or even mediocre ones? I'm going to buy this one when I find it on sale somewhere.
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Atheism Remix: A Christian Confronts the New Atheists, R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
This book takes a lot of concentration, but I thought it was worth the effort. I found that I often read books, think they are great, then promptly forget their main points. I decided to take notes on this book and other books I read, and it really helped. Al Mohler talks about the "Four Horsemen of the New Atheism," where each man came from, their main ideas and theories, and the issues they have with Christianity. Mohler also talks about the liberal Christian response to atheism and makes the point that anything less than biblical theism is inadequate to answer atheism's challenges. To paraphrase, a God who is acceptable in the secular age is a God who does not appear as the Bible says and thus is a God who could not save. Great to read in light of our increasingly secular society.
Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life, C.S. Lewis
I thought this book was about how C.S. Lewis met his wife Joy Davidman and how she later died of cancer. Ooops! It is actually an autobiography of Lewis' life from childhood to conversion. I really enjoyed it. Lewis explains how he went from agnostic to atheist to Christian and the methods, that he could perceive, that God used to pull him to Himself.
Roald Dahl Books
**This is a category in itself because I read so many of Dahl's books and enjoyed them so much :) **
*#
Boy: Tales of Childhood, Roald Dahl
Autobiography of his childhood. Favorite parts? The Great Mouse Plot and stories about the ancient half-sister
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Going Solo, Roald Dahl
Autobiography of his young adulthood. Favorite parts? His work in Africa for the Shell Oil Company and his adventures as a pilot in World War II
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The BFG, Roald Dahl
The Big Friendly Giant and a little orphan girl named Sophie work to get rid of child-eating giants and even enlist the queen's help
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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
Charlie and a few other children travel to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory and meet many mysteries and mishaps. Includes
this poem about books :)
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Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, Roald Dahl
The sequel to
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in which Willy Wonka, Charlie, and Charlie's family first go to outer space and later return to the chocolate factory
*# The Witches, Roald Dahl
A boy hears about witches from his grandmama, never knowing that he will meet a whole convention of them himself when the two of them go on vacation! I really liked the illustrations in this book. :)
* Matilda, Roald Dahl
Matilda is a brilliant little girl who plays pranks on her horrible parents and eventually learns to move things with her mind, which enables her to save her beloved teacher, Miss Honey, from the terrible headmistress, The Trunchbull
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More, Roald Dahl
I didn't like this collection of short stories so much; the majority of the stories were sad or dark. I did think the story "The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar" was pretty good, though.
Children's/Young Adult
* Mr. Popper's Penguins, Richard and Florence Atwater
I liked all of the antics of the penguins. :) I started reading this at Josh and Grace's house, when we were
snowed out of Yosemite.
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Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder
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Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder
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Farmer Boy, Laura Ingalls Wilder
I've read all of the Little House books before, but Amos and I found a complete boxset just like the one my family has (well, our set is yellow; my family's set is blue). I reread the first three Little House books.
Farmer Boy is my favorite of the whole series. I always remember to pierce my potatoes before I cook them so that I don't end up with an exploding potato, like Almanzo did.
*
The Moffats, Eleanor Estes
The stories of a family around the time of World War I. Great!
* Rufus M., Eleanor Estes
The youngest of the Moffats. My favorite part was when he went to the amusement park with the Cardboard Boy.
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Ginger Pye, Eleanor Estes
A story about the Pyes, who live in the same town as the Moffats. Jerry gets a dog and names him Ginger, but Ginger is kidnapped! We bought this book for my youngest brother, Gio, and he really, really liked it. Amos and I liked it, too.
* Pinky Pye, Eleanor Estes
The Pyes live on an island for a summer where they adopt a kitten named Pinky.
* The Twenty-One Balloons, William Pene du Bois
Good for boys! This book is about a former teacher who is going to sail around the world in hot air balloon, until the balloon crashes on a mysterious island.
A Long Way from Chicago, Richard Peck
I wanted to like this one because my old roommate, Katharyn, talked about it several times, but I did not. It just had this feel that I didn't like. I've met other books like this, and I'm not sure what it is...strange diction and odd comparisons, I think.
Peter Pan (Peter and Wendy), J.M. Barrie
The real story of Peter Pan, very different from the Disney version, of course. I wanted to like this one because another book lover friend, Jamie, loves this one, but alas...I did not.
The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins
Fascinating, riveting, fast-paced books about a dystopian, restive society. Not my favorite, but very interesting. Read my review
here. Looking back at that review, I think I wrote it in an effort to understand Katniss as a character; Suzanne Collins did write three very interesting books with believable characters, even though I didn't like Katniss as much as the rest of the population seems to.
* The Enormous Egg, Oliver Butterworth
A chicken lays an enormous egg, which hatches into a dinosaur!
*#
The Tale of Despereaux, Kate DiCamillo
One of my absolute favorites from 2012. :) Read about it
here.
Patty Fairfield, Carolyn Wells
This is a book that Amos said he and his sisters read when they were younger. He found the Kindle edition of the series for free! This is the first book; it relates Patty's visits with three different sets of relatives. Written in the early 1900s.
* Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J.K. Rowling (Year 2)
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J.K. Rowling (Year 3)
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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling (Year 4)
After finishing the series on January 16th, I decided that Harry Potter is one of my new favorite series. Even though I just finished it, I want to read them all again. I will write more about Harry Potter, and a little of the controversy that surrounds him in Christian circles, in another post.
Some of my goals for 2013, that I can think of off the top of my head...
- Blog more often
- Read at least four missionary biographies
- Finish The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller
- Finish Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
- Reread By Searching by Isobel Kuhn (already started!)
Happy reading!
