Sunday, August 1, 2010

Books, books, books

So I started a reader's group. During our meeting earlier this month, we voted on books for the upcoming year. I served booky cake, which was I think my first attempt to make a cake look like something other than cake, so please don't make fun of its floppy sides and uneven frosting. If you really want to mock/admire a cake, please try something here. The top book (er, I mean, cake) is Oliver Twist, my main nomination for the book list. The second book (cake--sorry!) is the Work and the Glory, a series I've recently gotten into. There was loads of this sweetness left over, so I unfortunately snacked on it daily for about a week straight before I finally threw away the rest. Hate to throw away food. But then, cake is hardly qualified as "food." More "junk" than "food" to begin with, right?

Here's what we will be reading for about the next year, if anybody is interested in joining us:
Rainwater, by Sandra Brown, The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins, The Candy Shop Wars, by Brandon Mull, Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens, The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin, Hannah’s List, by Debbie Macomber, A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, The $64.00 Tomato, by William Alexander, Fearless, by Max Lucado, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer, The Soloist, by Steve Lopez.

I'm more excited about some of the titles than others of course, but figure it is good to get outside my typical rut of reading and look at some suggestions from what others have liked. I think we have almost every major genre represented here. Cool.

6 comments:

Valerie said...

Those books look delicious --is this what is called feasting upon the word. How did you do the lettering?

Anna said...

Oliver Twist is my favorite book! And ironically, I'm re-reading it right now. About half-way through.
Man, I love Dickens.

Also, Candy Shop War is fantastic! The Fablehaven series (also by Brandon Mull) is also very good. I wouldn't say "Harry Potter" good, but still very good. I have them all in hard back. :)

I wish I had time to read more.

Anna said...

ps. and I read Work and the Glory, too. It started dragging on in the end, though. I'll have to give them another shot.

Have you read the "Come Unto Me" series by Gerald Lund? SO GOOD. And it's only 3 books long. :)

Cami said...

Thanks for posting your list of books from your book club. I have most of them on my to-read list on GoodReads. I do have to say that The Happiness Project is the best book I've read in a long time and has changed my life. I'm actually in the middle of writing a blog post about it. I will admit that I have never read Oliver Twist, but you may have just motivated me to pick it up. Also, your cake looks fantastic!

Becca said...

I LOVED reading The Soloist. The movie was pretty good too but of course, not as good as the book. I may have to read some of those now that I am at home. I look forward to your reviews on these pieces of literature.

TheTamFam said...

I did the lettering using a knife tip dipped in liquid chocolate.

Anna, I wish you could be in our group. I'm sure you would have plenty of witty thoughts and comments to share. Thanks for the warning about later episodes of W&G seriesm (I'm only on book 3), and the recommendation of Lund's other books. =)

Cami, I saw your 5 star rating of the Happiness Project, and it made me excited for this one.

Becca, you're great. (I felt like I had to comment on everybody's comment for some reason).