Spring Reading Thing 2012

So, I have been in a bit of a bloggy slump for -- checking post dates -- about the past month. It could be attributed to busy life, end-of-winter dreariness, etc. But: now spring has sprung, and it's time for the 2012 Spring Reading Thing (hosted by Katrina at CallapidderDays). That means it's time to post my personal list -- a challenge to myself, as it were -- of books to read during spring 2012.

1. Another of my goals for the year is to do a chronological read-through of the Bible, using this Bible reading plan. I'm using a study Bible for this read-through, and reading the footnotes and such as well.


2.  I'm supposed to be reading Unbroken
by Laura Hillenbrand for a book group, but considering the huge number on the library wait list -- and some of my other reading goals -- it kind of seems unlikely, especially in time for the early April meeting date. Luckily, this particular book group is mostly a gals' get-together with the book as an excuse. :)




3. On the other hand: Catching Fire
by Suzanne Collins is the second in The Hunger Games trilogy. We read the first volume for my church book group, and now I want to find out how the story ends. (I'm borrowing these from a friend, avoiding the library issue.)



4. Another friend from the church book group gave me her copy of State of Wonder
by Ann Patchett. I've got about two and a half chapters left. I've also read Bel Canto (P.S.) and Run, and am really impressed with this author's writing. Reading this is also part of my personal "off-the-shelves" goal: reading some volumes that have been on my bookshelves for a while, and likely determining that some of them are not keepers which can therefore move on to their next home (and declutter mine).


5. Another "off-the-shelves" book given to me by a friend (and yes, there's a subtheme here of "books I feel guilty for not having read yet" and/or "books from friends") is Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnleyby Alison Weir. Nonfiction history.



6. Still another "off-the-shelves" book from a friend is Food in History by Reay Tannahill. I had never heard of this book before and have no idea what it's about -- other, than you know, exactly what the title suggests. Since I generally like books that deal with the subject of food in history -- with, you know, less "in-your-face" titles about it -- both she and I are guessing and hoping that I'll like this one.


7. I also need to get "off-the-shelves" this historical fiction book that I received via the Crown Publishing Read It Forward program. I enjoy expanding my world history education -- which was quite wanting -- via historical fiction; this particular novel,  The King's Mistress: A Novel by Emma Campion, is about the mistress of England's King Edward III.


8. Next up are a couple of seasonal books (from the library). I stumbled across mid-20th century naturalist Edwin Way Teale's  Wandering Through Winter
at a used bookstore a couple of years ago, and greatly enjoyed the journal entries for his travels across the country on each day of the season. I would eventually like to read all of his seasonal books. North With the Spring somehow seems a logical choice for the Spring Reading Thing.


9. Also spring-y -- and historical; see, I've combined the two! -- Founding Gardeners by Andrea Wulf is sort of like The Federalist Papers of gardening. Kind of. Well, anyway, they both relate to historical figures of the Revolutionary War era like Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Adams, and others. Nonfiction. With plants.

10.? I feel like I should have a number 10 to round this out; however, at the moment, I have no number 10. (Not that I won't read 10 books this spring; I just don't have anything specifically planned out.) I will just have to feel incomplete. Or else, I could count some reading goals with the five-year-old as number 10: I would like to incorporate into our read-alouds some additional classic works that I feel are basics she needs to have under her belt -- things like (more) Beatrix Potter stories,  Dr. Seuss stories (in addition to those we've already read), Winnie-the-Pooh books, the Blue and/or Red Fairy books, Betsy-Tacy, Milly-Molly-Mandy...and the list goes on. This is part of the problem: it's a challenge to fit so many good books into a family schedule, while simultaneously letting her pick out some of her own reading material.

Are you going to read this spring? You can find Katrina's Spring Reading Thing guidelines here and the post with everyone's link-up here. Happy reading!

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