11K in 2011 - A final tally

Let me add the final 2 books to the list.

The Back of the Book:
For twelve years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black.  Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort.  Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where he might be headed: Harry Potter's defeat of You-Know-Who was Black's downfall as well.  And the Azkaban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, "He's at Hogwarts... he's at Hogwarts."  Harry Potter isn't safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends.  Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst.


The Bibliography:
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.  New York, New York: Scholastic, Inc, 1999.


You can find it here.  Or at your local public library.  Support the libraries!!!!!


Total Pages: 435
Total Pages in 2011: 10,923
Total Pages Remaining: 77!!!


And the final book of 2011-

The Back of the Book: 
(Actually, it's the description from Amazon... The book cover is upstairs.)

For One More Day is the story of a mother and a son, and a relationship that covers a lifetime and beyond. It explores the question: What would you do if you could spend one more day with a lost loved one?  As a child, Charley "Chick" Benetto was told by his father, "You can be a mama's boy or a daddy's boy, but you can't be both." So he chooses his father, only to see the man disappear when Charley is on the verge of adolescence.  Decades later, Charley is a broken man. His life has been crumbled by alcohol and regret. He loses his job. He leaves his family. He hits bottom after discovering his only daughter has shut him out of her wedding. And he decides to take his own life.  He makes a midnight ride to his small hometown, with plans to do himself in. But upon failing even to do that, he staggers back to his old house, only to make an astonishing discovery. His mother--who died eight years earlier–-is still living there, and welcomes him home as if nothing ever happened.  What follows is the one "ordinary" day so many of us yearn for, a chance to make good with a lost parent, to explain the family secrets, and to seek forgiveness. Somewhere between this life and the next, Charley learns the astonishing things he never knew about his mother and her sacrifices. And he tries, with her tender guidance, to put the crumbled pieces of his life back together.

Albom, Mitch.  For One More Day.  New York, New York: Hyperion, 2006.


You can find it here.  Or at your local public library.  Support the libraries!!!!


Total Pages: 197
Total Pages for 2011 FINAL TALLY: 11,120


Goal accomplished?  Hells ya.  HELLS ya.  Sure, I re-read some of my favorites, but I read those over and over all the time, so it wasn't like it was out of the norm.  And you know what?  This total doesn't count the numerous blogs and online articles I've read.  Nor does it count the pages from the 2 books I started but never finished, nor the pages from the endless resource books I've buried myself with, looking for answers to endless pregnancy and baby questions.  I only counted the books I actually finished.  


And next year, I plan to do it all over again.  Happy New Years, everyone.

11k in 2011- Song of the Lioness Quartet

I'm getting desperate for pages.  I'm SO FAR BEHIND!!!  So I'm cheating abusing the system a little bit.  But they are still legit pages, people!


I have read this quartet probably a thousand times.  It's definitely a good set of books for any young girl to read who is coming of age.  It breaks stereotypes.  The author is fantastic at building a whole world and all the characters in it.  I can actually picture most of them as if they were real and alive.  She's wonderful.  And she has several quartets out there (and sequels, and prequels...).  I still have a few of hers I've never read before, so maybe I'll get on that too!


So I won't give you the whole "back of the book" for all 4, because it would give away the whole story!  But here's the details on the 1st book- "Alanna The First Adventure"

The Back of the Book:

"Alanna of Trebond is no ordinary girl- her dream is to become a knight.  So she disguises herself as a boy and begins training at the palace of King Roald.  Alanna quickly finds out that the road to knighthood is not an easy one, but her skills and stubbornness help her become friends with Prince Jonathan and his followers.  At the same time, Alanna makes an enemy of the prince's uncle, the overly charming Duke Roger.

Here begins Alanna's first adventure- one that will lead not only to the fulfillment of her dreams but to a magical destiny that will make her a legend."

(I'm going to add that I don't like most of the back of this book.  Way more cheesy than the book, I promise!)

The Bibliography

Pierce, Tamora.  Alanna The First Adventure.  New York, New York: Random House, Inc, 1983.

Book two's bibliography

Pierce, Tamora.  In The Hand of the Goddess.  New York, New York: Random House, Inc, 1984.

Book three's bibliography

Pierce, Tamora.  The Woman Who Rides Like a Man.  New York, New York: Random House, Inc, 1986.

Book four's bibliography

Pierce, Tamora.  Lioness Rampant.  New York, New York: Random House, Inc, 1988.

You can purchase the box set here, or find it at your local library (support the libraries!!) - also, it might be cheaper to find them sold seperately.  $266 for 4 books?  holy wow!!!  I'm pretty sure my set was a gift years ago... probably for way less.

Book 1 pages: 216

Book 2 pages: 209

Book 3 pages: 228

Book 4 pages: 308

Total pages: 961

Total pages read in 2011: 4,476

Total pages remaining: 6,524

Up next- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (again- but the first time this year!) (yes, I'm very desperate.  But look- I'm just over a 1000 pages away from the half way mark.  In July!)

11k in 2011- The Lost Symbol

While I enjoyed the writing style and overall story of the first two more than this one, I really loved the villain!  He was... very well written.  I also must add that after reading this book I think I can now actually read the Bible and probably take something away from it with an open mind- something I've yet to accomplish.  It may be a fictional story, but the message is a good one.

The Back of the Book:
"In this stunning follow-up to the global phenomenon The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown demonstrates once again why he i the world's most popular thriller writer.


The Lost Symbol is a masterstroke of story-telling that finds famed symbologist Robert Langdon in a deadly race through a real-world labyrinth of codes, secrets, and unseen truths... all under the watchful eye of Brown's most terrifying villain to date.  Set within the hidden chambers, tunnels, and temples of Washington, D.C., The Lost Symbol is an intelligent, lightning-paced story with surprises at every turn.  This is Dan Brown's most exciting novel yet."


The bibliography:
Brown, Dan.  The Lost Symbol.  New York, New York: Anchor House, 2010.


You can find it here or at your local public library (where I bought my used copy).  Support the libraries!


Total Pages: 639
Total pages read in 2011: 3,515
Total pages remaining: 7,485

11K in 2011- Secrets of the Baby Whisperer

To be very honest, this is the type of book I normally laugh at.  I wonder why people buy such things and really think that parents who read this type of book are probably desperate for help or crazy.


I was given this book from someone at work.  I read the back and the cover and laughed thinking it was some joke, like all those self help books that really don't get you anywhere.  But then I started reading it, and holy Wow it's awesome.  It makes sense.  It's really not even that challenging.  It's flexible.  It doesn't say you should breastfeed.  It doesn't say you should bottle feed.  It doesn't say you HAVE to do anything, except... getting your baby into a routine.  I highly suggest any parent or parent to be read this book.  It's really that good.  It's not telling you what to do, honestly.  It's just a nice little common sense instruction manual on how to get on the right track for YOU.


Without further ado, here is: 

The Back of the Book:


When Tracy Hogg's Secrets of the Baby Whisperer was first published, it soared onto bestseller lists across the country.  Parents everywhere became "whisperers" to their newborns, amazed that they could actually communicate with their baby within weeks of their child's birth.  Tracy gave parents what for some amounted to a miracle: the ability to understand their baby's every coo and cry so that they could tell immediately if the baby was hungry, tired, in real distress, or just in need of a little TLC.  Tracy also dispelled the insidious myth that parents must go sleepless for the first year of a baby's life- because a happy baby sleeps through the night.  Now you too can benefit from Tracy's more than twenty years' experience.  In this groundbreaking book, she shares simple, accessible programs in which you will learn

• E.A.S.Y.- how to get your baby to eat, play, and sleep on a schedule that will make every member of the household's life easier and happier.
• S.L.O.W.- how to interpret what your baby is trying to tell you (so you don't try to feed him when he really wants a nap).
• How to identify which type of baby yours is- Angel, Textbook, Touchy, Spirited, or Grumpy- and then learn the best way to interact with that type.
• Tracy's Three-day Magic- how to change any and all bad habits (yours and the baby's) in just three days

At the heart of Tracy's simple but profound message: treat the baby as you would like to be treated yourself.  Reassuring, down-to-earth, and oten flying in the face of conventional wisom, Secrets of the Baby Whisperer promises parents not only a healthier, happier baby but a more relaxed and happy household as well.

The Bibliography

Hoggs, Tracy with M Blau. Secrets of the Baby Whisperer.  New York, New York: The Ballantine Publishing Group, 2001.

You can find it here or at your local public library (support the libraries!).

Total pages: 276

Total pages read in 2011: 2,876

Total pages remaining: 8,124

11K in 2011- Angels and Demons

I read The Da Vinci Code a while back, and I loved it.  Barely put it down.  With that being said, when our library had their annual book sale, and had both Angels and Demons AND The Lost Symbol, I pounced.  I just hadn't had a chance to read them until now.


If you liked The Da Vinci Code, you'll like Angels and Demons.  It's very similar in the character set up, how the plot develops, the suspense, and even how shocking the ending is.  Usually, I feel that once you've read one book by an author, you can GENERALLY figure out the ending before it happens in any other books.  Not quite this time around, which was very pleasing.


Ok, enough of my opinion, because I'm certainly not an expert.  Here you go.

The Back of the Book:


"World-renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned to a Swiss research facility to analyze a cryptic symbol seared into the chest of a murdered physicist.  What he discovers is unimaginable: a deadly vendetta against the Catholic Church by a centuries-old underground organization- the Illuminati.  Desperate to save the Vatican from a powerful time bomb, Langdon joins forces in Rome with the beautiful and mysterious scientist Vittoria Vetra.  Together they embark on a frantic hunt through sealed crypts, dangerous catacombs, deserted cathedrals, and the most secretive vault on earth... the long-forgotten Illuminati lair."


The Bibliography:


Brown, Dan. Angels & Demons. New York, New York: Pocket Books, 2000.


You can find the book here, or at your public library (support the libraries!).


Total pages: 569


Total pages read in 2011: 2,600


Total pages remaining: 8,400


(I would also like to note that I am in the middle of a few other books as well.  2 are baby books and probably boring to you, but one is not.  It's just not easy to get through.  I might not finish it, but the pages STILL COUNT!)

11k in 2011- Rockabye

I love this author.  I read her blog, which is quite amazing.  I've been meaning to read this for quite a while, and after finishing it, I think every mother or mother-to-be should read it.

The back of the book:

"Rockabye is Rebecca Woolf's heartfelt and often hilarious account of what happens when an irrepressible young city girl gets pregnant by accident and decides to keep the baby and marry the boyfriend.  Forced to come of age almost overnight, Woolf charts her transformation from odd-job doing, commitment-phobic, chain-smoking party girl to wife and mother, trying to adapt to and at the same time rebel against the stereotypes and responsibilities of modern motherhood.  Woolf never relinquishes the qualities of her free-spirited, pre-baby self as she clanneges herself to grow up without outgrowing her dreams while embracing motherhood in a style wholly her own."

The bibliography:


Woolf, Rebecca.  Rockabye.  Berkeley, CA: Seal Press, 2008.


You can find the book here, or at your public library (support the libraries!).


Total pages: 283


Total pages for 2011: 1,645


Remaining pages to read:  9,355

11k in 2011- Alex and Me

I loved this book- it touched my personal interest yet was also very much an intelligent, scientific book.  It was very interesting, and as a former bird owner, very touching.  And the best part?


The author is coming to the downtown library tomorrow!  She'll sign books and answer questions (of which I have absolutely none...) and the zoo is going to provide some parrots to see!  I can't wait.


I'm still very very behind on my reading challenge.  But I'm catching up!  Yay

The back of the book:


"'You be good.  I love you.' were Alex's final words to his owner, research scientist Irene Pepperberg, before his premature death at age thirty-one on September 6, 2007.  An African Grey parrot, Alex had a brain the size of a shelled walnut, yet he could add, sound out words, understand concepts like bigger, smaller, more, fewer, and none, and he disproved the widely accepted idea that birds possess no potential for language or anything remotely comparable to human intelligence.  Alex and Me is the remarkable true account of an amazing, irascible parrot and his best friend who stayed together through thick and thin for thirty years- the astonishing, moving, and unforgettable story of a landmark scientific achievement and a beautiful relationship."


The Bibliography:


Pepperberg, Irene M.  Alex and Me.  New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 2009.


You can find the book here, or at your local library (support the libraries!).


Total Pages: 226


Total Pages for 2011: 1,362


Remaining pages to read: 9,638

Marley and Me

Why did it take me so long to finish this?

Oh, because I got to the end where he's old and dying and I didn't want to finish it... That's right.

*sigh* I'm now behind on my 11,000 page challenge.  I'll catch up though.

The back of the book:

"The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family in the making and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life."



The bibliography:


Grogan, John.  Marley and Me.  HarperCollins Publishers, 2005.


You can find it here or at your local library (support the libraries!)


Total pages for this book:  289
Total pages for the year: 1136
Remaining pages to read: 9,864

Awakened: House of Night Book 8

This was just recently published.  Being the fan that I am of the House of Night story line I obviously rushed out to buy it.

I have read all 7 books previous to this.  Most within the same week.  I won't lie, the writing isn't the best at times, but the story!  It's a guilty pleasure of mine.  My literature friends would probably skin me for reading stuff like this, but of all the books I've read lately, I was more absorbed in this one than any of the classics.  Hands down.


The back of the book:


"Exonerated by the Vampyre High Council and returned to her position of High Priestess at Tulsa's House of Night, Neferet has sworn vengeance on Zoey.  Dominion over Kalona is only one of the weapons she plans to use against Z.  But Zoey has found sanctuary on the Isle of Skye and is being groomed by Queen Sgiach to take over for her there.  Being queen would be cool, wouldn't it?  Why should she return to Tulsa?  After losing her human consort, Heath, she will never be the same- and her relationship with her super-hot warrior, Stark, may never be the same either.


And what about Stevie Rae and Rephaim?  The Raven Mocker refuses to be used against Stevie Rae, but what choice does he have when no one in the entire world, including Zoey, would be okay with their relationship?  Does he betray his father or his heart?


In the pulse-pounding eighth book in the bestselling House of Night series, how far will the bonds of friendship stretch and how strong are the ties that bind one girl's heart?"


The bibliography:


Cast, Kristin and P. C. Cast.  Awakened.  New York: St Martin's Press, 2010


You can find it here for a lot cheaper than I paid for it, or visit your local library (support the libraries!)


Total pages for this book: 290


Plus unrelated textbook pages: 45


Total pages for 2011 so far: 686
Remaining pages: 10,314

Atonement

I decided to start the 11k challenge for 2011 with this:

It was a Christmas present from my mom.  One that I had asked for.

The back of the book:


"Ian McEwan's symphonic novel of love and war, childhood and class, guilt and forgiveness combines all the satisfaction of a superb narrative with the provocation we have come to expect from this master of English prose.


On a summer day in 1935, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis witnesses the flirtation between her older sister, Cecilia, and Robbie Turner, the son of a servant.  But Briony's incomplete grasp of adult motives and her precocious imagination bring about a crime that will change all their lives, a crime whose repercussions Atonement follows through the chaos and carnage of World War II and into the close of the twentieth century"


The bibliography:


McWean, Ian.  Atonement.  New York: Anchor Books, 2003.


You can find it here or at your local library (support the libraries!)


Total pages for this book:  351

Total pages for the year: 351
Remaining pages to read: 10,649

Oh Dear oh dear oh dear

Ladies and gentlemen!

I did it.

I signed up for a race.  And not just any race (oh no, my first can't POSSIBLY be easy!).  It's 2.91 miles of hell.

No, that's literally what the thing says.  Hell.  It's a 2.91 mile run, but that's not all.

We're talking 14 death traps.  Some are fun.  Like climbing the haybales and the junkyard.  Others are still mild- crawl through a dark tunnel, the tire run, the uphill run.  They get a little more difficult when you have to climb a wall, run through a wind storm, trudge through waist deep water.  They get scarier when they make you repel down a cliff, walk a plank, run down a river.  Some are rather difficult, like climbing the nets and crawling under barbed wire.  But the scariest of all???  That terrifying one?

You have to take a leap of faith.  Over a fire pit.

Yeah, about that.

T minus 150 days until I meet my death in a burning blaze.  And the sad part is it's at the end of the race, meaning I will have run almost 2.91 miles and conquered 12 of the other obstacles.  All that will be for naught when I go up in smoke.

But it'll be fun!  Right...?   Right?

Yeah.  Totally.

PS- if you are in the area and care to join me on my suicide mission (along with about 5 or 6 of my friends), here's the link.  We run at 9 am on June 5.

A Challenge!

I just accepted a challenge to read 11,000 pages this year.  


That's 11 bajilion thousand million pages!!!!!  I don't know if I can do this, but as a student in a MLIS program, I think I'm up for it.


I'll blog my progress.  Promise.  And maybe a picture or two.


Let's see how I do, shall we?  Any interesting reads on your list?  I have a hefty few on my list.  Atonement will be the first.  I just finished The Five People You Meet in Heaven.  Seriously, you should read it.