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2024 Bookish Books Reading Challenge (Hosted by Yours Truly)

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My Progress:


10 / 30 books. 33% done!

2024 Literary Escapes Challenge

- Alabama (1)
- Alaska
- Arizona (1)
- Arkansas
- California (3)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii
- Idaho (2)
- Illinois
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- New York (2)
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- Virginia (1)
- Washington (1)
- West Virginia
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- Washington, D.C.*

International:
- Australia (1)
- Canada (1)
- England (7)
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- Ireland (1)
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My Progress:


18 / 51 states. 35% done!

2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

My Progress:


13 / 50 books. 26% done!

2024 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge


20 / 50 books. 40% done!

Booklist Queen's 2024 Reading Challenge

My Progress:


38 / 50 books. 76% done!

2024 52 Club Reading Challenge

My Progress:


33 / 52 books. 63% done!

2024 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

My Progress:


23 / 40 books. 57% done!

2024 Pioneer Book Reading Challenge


13 / 40 books. 33% done!

2024 Craving for Cozies Reading Challenge

My Progress:


5 / 25 books. 20% done!

2024 Medical Examiner's Mystery Reading Challenge

2024 Mystery Marathon Reading Challenge

My Progress


25 / 26.2 miles. 95% done!

Mount TBR Reading Challenge

My Progress


19 / 100 books. 19% done!

2024 Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge

My Progress:


50 / 104 books. 48% done!

Around the Year in 52 Books Reading Challenge

My Progress


39 / 52 books. 75% done!

Disney Animated Movies Reading Challenge

My Progress


45 / 165 books. 27% done!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008

2008: My Year in Books

This has been an exciting reading/reviewing year for me. I discovered some excellent authors, chatted with lots of writers, hosted some awesome giveaways, and had a ball. I felt a bit guilty about dropping out of all the challenges I so optimistically joined this year, and I'm still feeling guilty about the mountains of books I still have to review. Still and all, it's been a good reading year. I'm looking forward to more fun this year on BBB. Thanks so much for all of your support in 2008 - I hope you'll stay with me for 2009 and beyond!

Here's how my reading year turned out:

I read 116 books in 2008 - 50 more than last year!

Of those, 37 were written by men, 77 were written by women and 2 were written by a man/woman combination.

15 of the books I read were non-fiction, 101 were fiction.

46 were YA/children's books.



Of the books I read this year, these were my favorites:

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger
The Rackety-Packety House by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Ida B by Katherine Hannigan
The Grace Valley trilogy by Robyn Carr
Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs
The Talented Clementine by Sara Pennypacker
Virgin River by Robyn Carr
Taken By Storm by Angela Morrison
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Will Get Under Your Skin and Stay There

(Image from Barnes & Noble)
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas began with a vision: author John Boyne saw "one single image, of two boys sitting on either side of a fence, having a conversation. And I knew where that fence was. I knew those two boys really shouldn't be there" (from author interview, p. 4). The fence forms a barrier between the Commandant's home and the Nazi concentration camp of Auschwitz. The boys are Bruno, the 9-year-old Commandant's son, and Shmuel, a 9-year-old Jewish prisoner. Though divided by nationality, culture and a strong fence, the boys form an unlikely and dangerous friendship.
Both of the boys have been brought to Auschwitz against their will. Bruno liked his life in Berlin - he had a big house, 3 best friends, and plenty of space for exploring. When the "Fury" (Fuhrer) appoints Bruno's father to take over command at "Out-With" (Bruno's word for Auschwitz), the family has little choice but to comply. Like his mother, Bruno is not pleased with the move, especially when he sees the "empty, desolate place" (11) that is to be his new home. The area feels cold and unfriendly - worse, there are no other houses nearby, and thus no other children with whom to play. Shmuel, of course, has been forcefully removed from his home and corralled in the camp like all the other Jews. Although Bruno despises his new home, he finds Shmuel's endlessly fascinating. He longs to wear his pajamas all day and play with the crowds of children on the other side of the fence. In his innocence and ignorance, Bruno is even a little insulted that Shmuel has not yet invited him over to tea.
Although Bruno knows he is not supposed to go near the fence, he really can't understand why. How can an explorer like himself resist such an adventure, anyway? Shmuel's a true friend, and Bruno enjoys bringing him food and listening to his stories. They are united in their loathing of sadistic Lieutenant Kotler, but Bruno can't fathom why Shmuel would dislike his father. After all, the Commandant is a great and powerful man. When Shmuel arrives at the fence, frantic because his father has disappeared, Bruno suggests they appeal to the Commandant for help. Even after spending long hours with his friend, Bruno does not understand why Shmuel would veto the idea. Still, he likes Shmuel's suggestion better - the Jew will smuggle an extra pair of striped pajamas through the fence, Bruno will don his costume, sneak under the fence, and help Shmuel find his father. The guileless Bruno has no idea the kind of danger he's facing as he happily digs under the fence, ready to experience his grandest adventure yet.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is an astounding story that juxtaposes childlike innocence with the worst kind of terror imaginable. Bruno's inability to believe the truth, even when he's seeing it with his own eyes, underscores the absolute horror of the Holocaust. The shocking ending hammers home the story's moral: In the end, regardless of race, color, or creed, we are all the same. Brilliant, beautiful and touching, this is a book that will get under your skin and stay there, long after you've turned the last page.
Grade: A+
(I haven't seen the movie yet, but it looks excellent. You can see the trailer here.)
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