January
P90X creator Tony Horton is known by millions of fans for his take-no-prisoners, straight-talking approach to fitness. Now, with The Big Picture, Tony brings his energetic, no-nonsense style to bear on the rest of your life, sharing his formula for success outside of the gym.
Tony's 11 Laws are the basis for his bestselling workout programs--here he shows readers how to apply them to the rest of their lives for instant and dramatic change. Using eye-opening examples from his own journey as well as inspiring stories from people he's met along the way, Tony shows you how to identify the life you want--and walks you through the path to creating it.
This is the self-improvement book for people who want results, not hand-holding. If you're ready to commit, put in the time, and do the work, you can create the big picture of your dreams.
I chose this book because I love Tony Horton. I've used P90X3, P90, and 10 Minute Trainer. He is very inspirational and hilarious during the work outs. I have been trying to get myself back into a good routine of working out and thought this book was the perfect way to jumpstart my year.
Read the review here
February
Lizzie's family is big and crazy. Nila's best friend just moved to England. Fiona's good at school and nothing else. Alice and Vivian are two sisters who couldn't be more opposite. And Catherine reads vampire novels. What do these six girls have in common?
They all attend Pemberley Prep, where their English teacher, Ms. Elliot, has just given them a year-long assignment to write down everything that happens to them--beach trips and boys to picking out ball gowns.
Quirky and cute, this is Jane Austen with a modern makeover. Set in a Northern California prep school, it's a laugh-out-loud read that will reunite Austen's fans with their favorite characters and send the younger set straight to the classics to find out what happens next!
There are two reasons why I chose this book. First off, I personally know the author and I want to support her book! Second, because I do love Jane Austen and thought it would be fun to read about the heroines in modern times.
Read the review here
March
In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines—puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them.
But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.
So this is my husband's favorite book. At this point he's read it 5 times and is currently on round 6. He's begged me to read it about a hundred times, so here you go honey.
I should say that I am excited to read this one too. Especially since they are making into a movie.
Read the review
here
April
The anchor of The O'Reilly Factor recounts one of the most dramatic stories in American history―how one gunshot changed the country forever. In the spring of 1865, the bloody saga of America's Civil War finally comes to an end after a series of increasingly harrowing battles. President Abraham Lincoln's generous terms for Robert E. Lee's surrender are devised to fulfill Lincoln's dream of healing a divided nation, with the former Confederates allowed to reintegrate into American society. But one man and his band of murderous accomplices, perhaps reaching into the highest ranks of the U.S. government, are not appeased.
In the midst of the patriotic celebrations in Washington D.C., John Wilkes Booth―charismatic ladies' man and impenitent racist―murders Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre. A furious manhunt ensues and Booth immediately becomes the country's most wanted fugitive. Lafayette C. Baker, a smart but shifty New York detective and former Union spy, unravels the string of clues leading to Booth, while federal forces track his accomplices. The thrilling chase ends in a fiery shootout and a series of court-ordered executions―including that of the first woman ever executed by the U.S. government, Mary Surratt. Featuring some of history's most remarkable figures, vivid detail, and page-turning action, Killing Lincoln is history that reads like a thriller.
I was at my grandmother's house when I was coming up with this list and she suggested that I read this one. I like history and thought this would be really cool.
What if you got outside every day, and what if you could get your kids to come along? It sounds modest, but the effects, as dynamic outdoor spokesperson Rebecca Cohen herself can testify, are profound. This inspiring collection of activities gives families an idea for every day of the year, requiring little planning, no expertise and relatively little resources (time, cash, or patience!), no matter where they live. Simple and inspiring, this book is bursting with hundreds of easy ways to get your family out into nature a little bit every day.
I've had this book on my to-read list for awhile now. My kids are 2, 3 1/2, & 5 1/2. I have been wanting to do a better job at getting them outside and having fun. We go on hikes or to the park, but I really want to get into a daily habit.
Eliza R. Snow is one of the most revered women in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We hear stories of her faith and strength, and we sing her beloved hymns. She was fondly known as "Zion's Poetess" and also as "Presidentess," because of her leadership of Relief Society and her role in forming and directing organizations for young women and children. She has remained a legend for generations of Latter-day Saints, but we know less about her "variegated life," as she described it—the personal joys and sorrows brought about by unfolding events in the young Church of which she was a part.
This intimate look at Eliza R. Snow, by authors Karen Lynn Davidson and Jill Mulvay Derr, reveals a more private side of this extraordinary woman. She emerges as a bright young poet in Ohio, a new convert to the restored Church, a seamstress, and a sharer in the persecutions and hardships of the early Saints. We see a member of the households of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, a dedicated temple worker, and a traveling Relief Society president with a zeal for teaching the gospel.
Her delight in nature, her love for family and friends, and her outlook of hope for the cause of Zion are reflected here through selections from some of her best poems. Photographs, artifacts, and personal letters add visual beauty to this inspiring introduction to her fascinating life.
I have read about Eliza R. Snow before and let me tell you, she is my hero. If I could be like anyone it would be her. She had so much faith and was very responsible. This is a book that I have wanted to read for awhile now.
July
For decades it has been nearly universal dogma among environmentalists and health advocates that cattle and beef are public enemy number one.
But is the matter really so clear cut? Hardly, argues environmental lawyer turned rancher Nicolette Hahn Niman in her new book, Defending Beef.
The public has long been led to believe that livestock, especially cattle, erode soils, pollute air and water, damage riparian areas, and decimate wildlife populations.
In Defending Beef, Hahn Niman argues that cattle are not inherently bad for either the Earth or our own nutritional health. In fact, properly managed livestock play an essential role in maintaining grassland ecosystems by functioning as surrogates for herds of wild ruminants that once covered the globe. Hahn Niman argues that dispersed, grass-fed, small-scale farms can and should become the basis for American food production, replacing the factory farms that harm animals and the environment.
The author―a longtime vegetarian―goes on to dispel popular myths about how eating beef is bad for our bodies. She methodically evaluates health claims made against beef, demonstrating that such claims have proven false. She shows how foods from cattle―milk and meat, particularly when raised entirely on grass―are healthful, extremely nutritious, and an irreplaceable part of the world’s food system.
Grounded in empirical scientific data and with living examples from around the world, Defending Beef builds a comprehensive argument that cattle can help to build carbon-sequestering soils to mitigate climate change, enhance biodiversity, help prevent desertification, and provide invaluable nutrition.
Defending Beef is simultaneously a book about big ideas and the author’s own personal tale―she starts out as a skeptical vegetarian and eventually becomes an enthusiastic participant in environmentally sustainable ranching.
While no single book can definitively answer the thorny question of how to feed the Earth’s growing population, Defending Beef makes the case that, whatever the world’s future food system looks like, cattle and beef can and must be part of the solution.
I was shopping at my local grocery store, New Seasons, and saw this book near the meat section. Just reading the front of it intrigued me. I've always eaten meat, but in the last few years I have tried to eat it sparingly and to buy from local farmers that use humane ways to treat their animals. So the whole concept of a vegetarian becoming a cattle rancher just grabbed my attention.
August
When ten-year-old Dinah Kirkham saw her father leave their Manchester home in the middle of the night, she asked when he would be back. "Soon," he replied. But he never came back. On that night in 1829, John Kirkham laid the foundation of his daughter's certainty that the only person Dinah could ever really trust was herself.
From that day forward, Dinah worked to support her family, remaining devoted to their welfare even in the face of despair and grinding poverty. Then one day she heard a new message, a new purpose ignited in her heart, and new life opened up before her.
My grandma recommended this book to me years ago. So it's been on my to-read list for awhile now. I kept looking at Powell's overtime I went and it wasn't there. Then one day I found it! It's a long read, over 700 pages, which is why I chose August to read it.
September
Her name is Dinah. In the Bible, her life is only hinted at in a brief and violent detour within the more familiar chapters of the Book of Genesis that tell of her father, Jacob, and his twelve sons.
Told in Dinah's voice, Anita Diamant imagines the traditions and turmoils of ancient womanhood--the world of the red tent. It begins with the story of the mothers--Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah--the four wives of Jacob. They love Dinah and give her gifts that sustain her through childhood, a calling to midwifery, and a new home in a foreign land. Dinah's story reaches out from a remarkable period of early history and creates an intimate connection with the past.
Deeply affecting, The Red Tent combines rich storytelling with a valuable achievement in modern fiction: a new view of biblical women's lives.
I've been to a couple of red tent parties and let me tell you, they are fantastic! (If you live in the Portland area, check out Moondays) Anyways, she had a bunch of books she suggested to read and this was one of them. So here it is on my list.
October
The life of a ten-year-old girl is shattered by two drunken and remorseless young men. The mostly white town of Clanton in Ford County, Mississippi, reacts with shock and horror at the inhuman crime. Until her black father acquires an assault rifle and takes justice into his own outraged hands.
For ten days, as burning crosses and the crack of sniper fire spread through the streets of Clanton, the nation sits spellbound as young defense attorney Jake Brigance struggles to save his client’s life–and then his own.
My brother suggested this book to me and after I read the synopsis, I realized that my husband read this last year. He would tell me a little about it and I was fascinated. So needless to say I added it to my list.
November
Agatha Christie’s collection of religious stories and poems, was published under her married name Agatha Christie Mallowan, to distinguish it from her crime fiction work. Her publishers were never keen on anything that strayed from her detective forte, however the book’s success surprised and pleased everyone, even its author.While they are generally considered stories for children, the themes are generally adult, particularly for the mid 1960s when it was first published, as they involves subjects including disability and abortion.
My favorite author is Agatha Christie, so of course on of her books landed on my list! I really wanted to read this last Christmas, but I couldn't find a copy of it locally. So this year I have it in November to prepare for the Christmas Season.
December
In October 1843, Charles Dickens ― heavily in debt and obligated to his publisher ― began work on a book to help supplement his family's meager income. That volume, A Christmas Carol, has long since become one of the most beloved stories in the English language. As much a part of the holiday season as holly, mistletoe, and evergreen wreaths, this perennial favorite continues to delight new readers and rekindle thoughts of charity and goodwill.
With its characters exhibiting many qualities ― as well as failures ― often ascribed to Dickens himself, the imaginative and entertaining tale relates Ebenezer Scrooge's eerie encounters with a series of spectral visitors. Journeying with them through Christmases past, present, and future, he is ultimately transformed from an arrogant, obstinate, and insensitive miser to a generous, warmhearted, and caring human being. Written by one of England's greatest and most popular novelists, A Christmas Carol has come to epitomize the true meaning of Christmas.
I'm going to admit something to you, I've never read this book! I picked it up last year after Christmas for half off and thought, "I'll have to read it this year." I know the story thanks to the many different movie versions (Muppet's Christmas Carol is the best!), but I am excited to actually read the book.
