2010 Books in Review

WOW! I read 34 books. I am so proud of myself. What a big year. Anyway, a quick overview of what I read:

Teenage, 11 books (10 of which were the amazing Tomorrow series!)
Chick Lit, 6 books
Crime, 3 books
General Fiction, 6 books
Non-fiction, 8 books

Hmm, any surprises? Not really.... Disappointed that I read very few of my bookgroup ones though. But you know, I always go into the next year saying that'll change! LOL. Plus, I will be home more in 2011 (with 2 small kids mind you) but hopefully that'll help. Would love to conquer the 52 books again. Only time will tell...

Book: Skipping Christmas

Summary: Imagine a year without Christmas. No crowded malls, no corny office parties, no fruitcakes, no unwanted presents. That’s just what Luther and Nora Krank have in mind when they decide that, just this once, they’ll skip the holiday altogether. Theirs will be the only house on Hemlock Street without a rooftop Frosty; they won’t be hosting their annual Christmas Eve bash; they aren’t even going to have a tree. They won’t need one, because come December 25 they’re setting sail on a Caribbean cruise. But, as this weary couple is about to discover, skipping Christmas brings enormous consequences–and isn’t half as easy as they’d imagined.

Loved this book. Was a quick read but just perfect considering Christmas is only a week or so away. Highly recommended...

Book: The making of me

Summary: Tegan Wagner, 14, thought she was going to a party with friends. Instead, she found herself trapped in a house with a group of older boys she had never met before. She was gang raped that night by three brothers. What followed forms the basis of Tegan Wagner's riveting story as she struggled to cope with the fallout from that horrific night – the betrayal of friends, the school yard scrutiny, the psychological scars and the eventual descent into drugs and self harm as a way of dealing with the trauma of the rapes.

But eventually she found the courage and determination to pick herself up and speak out about what had happened to her. After three frustrating years her case finally came to trial and she faced the brothers in court. She withstood the anxiety and pressure of the legal process and then, in one further act of bravery, unveiled her identity to the media in order to encourage other victims of rape to report the crime and not hide away in shame.

A great quick read. So sad to hear how our legal system works at times. What a brave girl. Brilliant.

Book: Head over heels

Summary: At the age of nineteen, a young farmer, Sam Bailey, became a quadriplegic after a freak car accident. After years of struggle, he learned how to resume his life as a farmer, running a sheep and cattle property in north-west New South Wales. Then he met and fell in love with Jenny Black, an ABC Rural journalist, proposed to her on air, and the rest is history.

A great story. Both Sam and Jenny are remarkable people. really inspirational read. Loved it!

Night Bookgroup: Never Say Die

Summary: It was a cruel twist of fate: in November 2006 Chris O′Brien, one of the country′s leading head and neck cancer surgeons, was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive and almost inevitably lethal form of brain cancer. As he knew, few sufferers survive past 12 months. Nevertheless, he was determined to beat the odds.

I really enjoyed this book and got through it in a few days but it wasn't the best autobiography ever. There was too much about childhood etc. rather than focusing on the cancer which was what I was more interested in. Brilliant man though, pity he is no longer with us.