Monday, February 8, 2010

Book It 2010

So...I sometimes get into a rut where I don't read at all - for months. And then sometimes I get into a reading machine mode and I can't quit - like I'm in right now.

I started doing Book It 2010 because I wanted to get back to reading more and reading regularly (and I thought it'd give me some accountablility). Part of my goal was to also spend more time reading with LeeAnn and except for maybe two or three nights, I've been able to do that with her. And I love reading with her. We head to bed 1/2 an hour before lights out to get ready for bed and read a book or two and sing a song and then lights out. Unless the next day is her "nothing day" and she might get to leave her light on and read a book or two to herself.

And so during the last few weeks I've made a concentrated effort to get to the library biweekly (sometimes weekly) and to have a book to read at all times.

This past week I only had two books from the library, a non-fiction by Max Lucado and a how-to digital photography book (focusing on editing on the computer) and I finished them both before Friday. I knew we wouldn't hit the library until Sunday (maybe even Monday - which is how it's ended up) so I went to my "personal" library in LeeAnn's toy room on Saturday afternoon and dug out James Patterson's first Alex Cross novel.

Yeah... I finished it last night. All 500+ pages of it. I could NOT put it down. I even read through the Super Bowl and most of the commercials. And the sad thing? I've read it before (at least once!). But it was SO good! Patterson is one of those writers who leaves little clues all throughout a book and it isn't until the end that you can finally make it all come together. It kinda reminds me of how JK Rowling works in Harry Potter's stories. There are hints and clues in the very first book Harry Potter and The Scorcerer's Stone are tidied up in the last book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

So anyways, this James Patterson novel was Along Came a Spider and I started with the first Alex Cross novel because it has been so long since I've read any of them and Brian bought me a new Patterson/Alex Cross novel for Christmas. I think I might have even missed a few so I wanted to get caught up. I'm thinking if I can read one of his books every two days (like I did this one!) I should be able to read all 15 books in a month. BUT that's not going to happen because I want to read other stuff as well and I also have to work and clean house and other things (which I did none of this weekend). I'm guesing the next one I pick will will go pretty quickly still. So tonight I'm headed to the library to get Kiss the Girls because for some reason I don't have it in my library at home (and I thought I had all of his novels up until about two or three years ago). Guess not...

Along with the next Patterson novel I'll be looking for To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  I read To Kill a Mockingbird several times through middle school and high school but saw it recently on a list of must reads and decided to check it out again.

2 comments:

  1. My reading habits run the same way. I'm either on a movie-watching kick or a reading kick but rarely am I on both at once. I read one of the Alex Cross novels a while back...Mary Mary? I think. It was pretty good.
    Also, love To Kill a Mockingbird!
    :)

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  2. I have never read any Patterson, but now you have me intrigued. And TKAM is excellent!

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