January Reflections

I read 54 books in January 2012!!! True, 17 of them were picture books or board books. But I'm still happy with that number. And not just because of the number. But because of how amazing most of these books are! There were so many books I loved this month. Usually, I finish a month and there are about three to five titles that top my list, that are obvious favorites. That number is much, much higher this month.


My favorite middle grade historical: A Diamond in the Desert. Kathryn Fitzmaurice.
My favorite young adult historical:  My Family for the War. Anne C. Voorhoeve.
My favorite young adult romance:  The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. Jennifer E. Smith.
My favorite young adult science fiction novel: The Pledge. Kimberly Derting.
My favorite adult science fiction novel based on a television show: Babylon 5: Legions of Fire: The Long Night of Centauri Prime. Peter David.
My favorite adult science fiction novel with time travel: To Say Nothing of the Dog. Connie Willis.
My favorite nonfiction: Born and Bred in the Great Depression. Jonah Winter.

My favorite poetry: Every Thing On It. Shel Silverstein.
My favorite board book: You Are My Cupcake. Joyce Wan.
My favorite picture book: A Boy Called Dickens. Deborah Hopkinson.
My favorite short story from a short story collection: "Fire Watch" from Firewatch. Connie Willis.
My favorite animal fantasy:  The Cheshire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale. Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright.
My favorite book in translation:  All Our Worldly Goods. Irene Nemirovsky.
My favorite Christian nonfiction: Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church. Michael Horton.
My favorite Christian fiction: The Healer's Apprentice. Melanie Dickerson.

Board Books, Picture Books, Early Readers 

1. A Boy Called Dickens. Deborah Hopkinson. Illustrated by John Hendrix. 2012. Random House. 40 pages.
2. I Want My Hat Back. Jon Klassen. 2011. Candlewick Press. 40 pages.
3. Chilly Milly Moo. Fiona Ross. 2011. Candlewick. 32 pages.
4. My Rhinoceros by Jon Agee. 2011. Scholastic. 32 pages.
5. You Are My Cupcake. Joyce Wan. 2011. Scholastic. 14 pages.
6. Cupcake Surprise (BOB Books/Level 1) Lynn Maslen Kertell. Illustrated by Sue Hendra. 2012. (February 2012) Scholastic. 32 pages.
7. Yawn. Sally Symes. Illustrated by Nick Sharratt. 2011. (December 2011) Candlewick Press. 24 pages.
8. Noodle Loves Bedtime. Nosy Crow. Illustrated by Marion Billet. 2011. (September 2011). Candlewick Press. 10 pages.
9. Good Night, I Love You. Caroline Jayne Church. 2012. Scholastic. 20 pages.
10. The Things I Love About Bedtime. Trace Moroney. 2012. Scholastic. 16 pages.
11. Duke Ellington's Nutcracker Suite. Anna Harwell Celenza. Illustrated by Don Tate. 2011. Charlesbridge.  32 pages.
12. And The Soldiers Sang. J. Patrick Lewis. Illustrated by Gary Kelley. 2011. Creative Editions. 32 pages.
13. What Can I Hear? Annie Kubler. 2011. Child's Play. 12 pages. 
14. What Can I Taste? Annie Kubler. 2011. Child's Play. 12 pages.
15. What Can I Feel? Annie Kubler. 2011. Child's Play. 12 pages.
16. What Can I See? Annie Kubler. 2011. Child's Play. 12 pages.
17. What Can I Smell? Annie Kubler. 2011. Child's Play. 12 pages.

Middle Grade and Young Adult Novels:

1. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. Jennifer E. Smith. 2012. Little, Brown. 236 pages.
2. My Family for the War. Anne C. Voorhoeve. Translated by Tammi Reichel. 2012. February 2012. Penguin. 412 pages.   
3. A Diamond in the Desert. Kathryn Fitzmaurice. 2012. February 2012. Penguin. 256 pages.
4. The Pledge. Kimberly Derting. 2011. Simon & Schuster. 336 pages.
5. The Cheshire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale. Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright. Illustrated by Barry Moser. 2011. Peachtree Publishers. 228 pages. 
6. The Fault In Our Stars. John Green. 2012. Penguin. 336 pages.
7. How To Save a Life. Sara Zarr. 2011. Little, Brown. 342 pages.
8. A Million Suns (Across the Universe #2). Beth Revis. 2012. Penguin. 400 pages.
9. Ashfall. Mike Mullin. 2011. Tanglewood. 476 pages.  
10. The Predicteds. Christine Seifert. 2011. Sourcebooks. 352 pages.
11. Scored. Lauren McLaughlin. 2011. Random House. 230 pages.
12. My Brother's Shadow. Monika Schroder. 2011. FSG. 224 pages.

Adult Books

1. All Our Worldly Goods. Irene Nemirovsky. 1947/2008. Vintage Books. Translated from the French by Sandra Smith. (French title: Les Biens de ce Monde.) 265 pages.
2. Babylon 5: Legions of Fire: The Long Night of Centauri Prime. Peter David. 1999.
3. Babylon 5: Legions of Fire: Armies of Light and Dark. Peter David. 2000. Del Rey. 255 pages.
4. Babylon 5: Legions of Fire: Out of the Darkness. Peter David. 2000. Del Rey. 266 pages.
5. Babylon 5: In the Beginning. Peter David. 1998. Random House (Del Rey). 260 pages.
6. (Babylon 5) The Shadow Within. Jeanne Cavelos. 1997. Random House (Dell) 260 pages.
7. To Dream in the City of Sorrows. (Babylon 5: Book #9). Kathryn M. Drennan. Based on the series by J. Michael Straczynski. 1997. Random House. 352 pages.
8. Shadows in Flight. Orson Scott Card. 2012. TOR. 240 pages.
9. Firewatch. Connie Willis. 1985. Bantam Books. 271 pages.
10. To Say Nothing of the Dog. Connie Willis. 1998. Bantam (Random House). 495 pages.
11. Blackout. Connie Willis. 2010. Random House. 495 pages.
12. All Clear. Connie Willis. 2010. Random House. 645 pages.
13. Death at Wentwater Court. Carola Dunn. 1994. Kensington. 254 pages.
14. David Copperfield. Charles Dickens. 1850. 877 pages.

Nonfiction

1. Charles Dickens: England's Most Captivating Storyteller. Catherine Wells-Cole. 2011. Candlewick. 32 pages.   
2. Born and Bred in the Great Depression. Jonah Winter. Illustrated by Kimberly Bulcken Root. 2011. Random House. 40 pages.
3. In the Garden of Beasts. Erik Larson. 2011. Crown. 464 pages.

Poetry

1. Every Thing On It. Shel Silverstein. 2011. HarperCollins. 208 pages. 

Christian Fiction and Nonfiction:

1. The Healer's Apprentice. Melanie Dickerson. 2010. Zondervan. 272 pages.
2. Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church. Michael Horton. 2008. Baker Publishing. 272 pages.
3. Not a Fan: Becoming a Completely Committed Follower of Jesus. Kyle Idleman. 2011. Zondervan. 224 pages.
4. His Steadfast Love. Golden Keyes Parson. 2011. Thomas Nelson. 336 pages.
5. The Maid of Fairbourne Hall. Julie Klassen. 2012. Bethany House. 416 pages. 
6. The Accidental Bride. Denise Hunter. 2012. January 2012. Thomas Nelson. 304 pages.
7. The Gospel Story Bible: Discovering Jesus in the Old and New Testaments. Marty Machowski. 2011. Illustrated by A.E. Macha. New Growth Press. 328 pages.

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews