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26 Books in 52 Weeks

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Last year I gave myself a list of goals on my birthday to complete by the following birthday. With only 16 days left I looked back on this list yesterday and realized I had fallen short of some, surpassed others, and handful had become unfeasible. One of the lofty goals was to read 26 books in 52 weeks, a book every other week and I am happy to say, and a bit shocked to learn,  I did it!

I have to admit, the last two I listened to in the form of audio books are complete opposites but both have caused people on the subway to stare at me, first because Mindy Kaling’s autobiography was so funny and then because I may or may not cheer aloud when the good guys win. These are my seven favorite books I have read this past year:

BossyPants by Tina Fey and 
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
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These two ladies are funnnyyy, let me tell you.  I listened to both books read by the authors and it brought a whole new since of passion to the stories they were telling.  As both autobiographies are so rich with sarcasm it was nice to hear in their inflections when they were kidding, as I am not sure I would have been able to pick it up just by reading the text.  I loved these books so much I wrote a post about Bossypants when I listened to back in October and tweeted about Mindy’s book many times. 

Jeffery Archer Clifton Chronicles Books One through Three
The Clifton Chronicles by Jeffrey Archer
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Twenty pages into the first book I was absolutely hooked.  I was not too surprised as Jeffery Archer is my favorite author and I usually fall head over heels for his books. I have truly enjoyed the first three books in the series and am very much looking forward to the next two.  The author, Jeffery Archer, has called this series the biggest challenge of his life – in a 2011 statement he said, 

“I will, during the next five years, be penning The Clifton Chronicles, a series of five volumes which will cover the life of Harry Clifton, a boy born in 1920 in the backstreets, to a docker’s family, who discovers at the age of seven, God has given him a unique talent, that causes his life to change overnight….Please don’t ask me what happens in volumes four or five which span the years through to 2020, because I have no idea.  But what I can promise you, is that I am hoping to tell a tale that will rival anything I’ve written in the past.”  

The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult and  
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
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My mom always tells people, when they ask, her favorite types of books are the ones where she feels like she learns something and these two definitely fit the bill.  Part of Picoult’s protagonist Sage Singer really stuck with me as she navigated her life as a baker and unraveled the past of her favorite customer and her grandmother and learned they intertwined.  People of the Book is the freshest in my mind as I finished it only yesterday but it deserves every single accolade in the book.  Slow clap.  This book was fantastic and I am wondering how, as it is my mother’s favorite book, I did not read it earlier.  These two works of historical fiction really moved me and both shed light the background and stories of Holocaust survivors.

Here is a full list of the books I have read over the course of the last year, beating my goal of by one book (I do not count re-reading my favorite) and with 16 days to go!

The Full List of Books (arranged by author)
  1. A Prison Diary (Unabridged) – Jeffrey Archer
  2. A Prisoner of Birth Jeffrey Archer  (re-read) 
  3. Sons of Fortune – Jeffrey Archer
  4. Kane and Abel – Jeffrey Archer
  5. Only Time Will Tell: The Clifton Chronicles, Book 1 –  Jeffrey Archer  
  6. The Sins of the Father: Clifton Chronicles, Book 2 –  Jeffrey Archer  
  7. Best Kept Secret: The Clifton Chronicles, Book 3 – Jeffrey Archer  
  8. The Forgotten – David Baldacci 
  9. Hell’s Corner –  David Baldacci
  10. The Hit – David Baldacci
  11. Total Control David Baldacci
  12. Zero Day – David Baldacci
  13. People of the Book – Geraldine Brooks
  14. Catching Fire: Hunger Games, Book 2 – Suzanne Collins
  15. Mockingjay: The Final Book of The Hunger Games -Suzanne Collins
  16. Inferno: A Novel – Dan Brown
  17. BossyPants – Tina Fey 
  18. Fall of Giants: The Century Trilogy, Book 1 – Ken Follett 
  19. One Thousand White Women – Jim Furgus
  20. Water for Elephants – Sara Gruen
  21. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? – Mindy Kaling
  22. The Night Circus –  Erin Morgenstern  
  23. Alex Cross, Run – James Patterson
  24. Merry Christmas, Alex Cross – James Patterson
  25. Mistresses – James Patterson and David Ellis
  26. The Storyteller-Jodi Picoult
  27. The Kill Artist –  Daniel Silva
  28. The Attenbury Emeralds – Jill Paton Walsh 

This was a great challenge for me and I truly enjoyed reading and listening to so many books over the course of a year. If you have any books you recommend please let me know!

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Comments

  6. Kelly Ann says

    You can absolutely do it and if you read the Chronicles series then you can cross three of your list. Or, try audiobooks!

  8. Katie says

    read those first two books last summer and loved them! also love jodi picoult books!
    forlaurenandlauren.blogspot.com

  9. Allie Elliott says

    I loved Mindy’s book! I love that it almost is like as if I were sitting down for coffee with her, and she just told me about her life. I could TOTALLY hear the sarcasm and inflections too! Tina Fey’s book is on my to-read list!

  11. Sara says

    I love reading other people’s book lists since it gives me some inspiration for my own. I have a goal of 10 books this year which I am working on. I used to have so much more time to read when I commuted on the express bus.

  15. Kelly Ann says

    It really wasn’t a challenge, just a goal I set for myself! I love setting myself lofty girls – “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”

    xx
    Kelly
    Sparkles and Shoes

  19. Kelly Ann says

    I love Dan Brown and I think he is a terrific author but I was a bit let down by Inferno partially because I was holding it to the standard of his others, specifically Deception Point. Still a good read though and Nigh Circus was SO different but I really enjoyed it!

  23. Sarah J says

    What a great idea and a great list!
    I would definitely recommend The Book Thief but Markus Zusak if you haven’t read it already. They’re making a film based on it, and I am so excited! It’s a beautiful, heart-wrenching sort of story. :]

  25. Jessica says

    I have been reading more lately too. I had been wanting to read Bossypants for a while now. But after reading this post I think it might be best for me to listen to it instead.

    Tracy @ Sunny Days and Starry Nights

  27. Jill Johnson says

    Ooh…I need new books so this is great. I love James Patterson books…I can’t put them down when I start them. They make my imagination run wild but I still heart them!

    Jill
    Classy with a Kick

  32. carly says

    congrats on completing the goal! I made myself the goal of 40 books this year and I got the be very far behind but I still have 4 months left so I’m not giving up yet! I loved the language of flowers!

    sundays grace

  33. Alyssa says

    This is so awesome! I’ve been making an effort to read more, so I’ll be adding some of these to my list. Jodi is one of my favorite authors–I’ve read every book of hers!

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