2013 Reading List

I didn’t set any specific goals for reading this year like I usually do, but reading is still one of my favorite things to do. I usually find that I’m either watching a lot of television (or television on DVD) or reading a lot of books. But I’m never doing both. I’m an “all or nothing” kind of gal.

I read about 16 books in 2012, and a good chunk of that was the Twilight saga. (Sorry, not sorry.) If you’re not on Goodreads, you should jump on board and you can follow me there. I love finding book recommendations from friends via Goodreads. And it’s a great way for me to look back and remember what I read.

This week, I’ll post the books I read in 2012 with some small reviews, but I’d like to regularly post reviews of the books I read in 2013. I think it will help hold me accountable for reading the books I’ve purchased.

For 2013, I plan to read the books I’ve purchased but haven’t read yet, and add others to the list as I hear about them and as friends recommend them.

So far on my list, I have the following books:

The Expats by Chris Pavone

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis

The Good House by Ann Leary

Grace: A Memoir by Grace Coddington

Sparkly Green Earrings by Melanie Shankle

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

Home Front by Kristin Hannah

American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld (This book has been on my “to read” list for the past three years. Eep! Maybe I’ll get it done in 2013)

Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards

I also plan to read Sophie Hudson’s new book, the Paris Wife, the new installment in the Divergent trilogy, and Nora Roberts’ Inn Boonsboro series.

As you can see, my taste in books is a little eclectic. I like some teen fiction, I like plain old fiction, I like great non-fiction and biographies – as long as I’m already interested in the subject.

What books do you plan to read in 2013? I’d love for you to leave suggestions for me and for others, too.

 

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Comments

  1. Elizabeth says

    I read The Expats last month, and I LOVED it. It was really different from anything I’d ever read. It’s on loan to a friend right now, but I intend to read it again at some point because I’m sure there are things I missed the first time through. You definitely have to pay attention. I look forward to reading some of your upcoming reviews as I’m always looking for recommendations!

    • says

      I’m so glad you liked the Expats. I just started recently (after having it in my possession for a long time), so I need to just get to a point where I can’t put it down. Sometimes that requires reading for a few hours at a time and staying up all night just because you can’t stop reading! 🙂

  2. Jennifer says

    I’ve been wanting to read Home Front for awhile. But The Good Wife was really good and so was Memory Keepers Daughter so enjoy! If you haven’t read her already, I’d recommend anything by Joshilyn Jackson. She’s my favorite southern writer. I also loved A Vintage Affair by Isabel Wolff. Also, Firefly Lane has a sequel coming out in April! Oh, and the Three Girls series is also a cute girly series. It’s by Rachel S.

  3. anonymous says

    i’ve been wanting to read both Sarah’s Key and American Wife, too! for ages now. i’m currently plowing through Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall – which i started last summer! i am holding myself accountable to finish it, so that i can get to Bringing Up The Bodies – the second book in the Wolf Hall series. i’ve also still never read the Fifty Shades series… i also bought The Love Dare in january of last year and dropped of reading and doing any of the “dares” at about this time last year. so, perhaps i should work through that one again rather than finding a new devotional.

  4. says

    Sarah’s Key is amazing! I was mesmerized by it and am still thinking about it, months later. The Paris Wife is also excellent. Happy reading!

    • says

      I agree on Sarah’s Key. I just read it last month and I still think about parts of it. I love stories that have historical facts along with fiction.

  5. says

    The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a good book. I read it a while back and liked it.

    I started The Paris Wife a few weeks ago, around the same time I started watching Downton Abbey on Hulu, but I haven’t read much of it because I’m too hooked on the Matthew + Mary romance!

  6. Shelly says

    Favorite book of 2012 was Redeeming Love. My first book for 2013 is The Book Thief. I’ve been meaning to read it for a while now.

  7. Brittany says

    I’m about half way through Sparkly Green Earrings and I LOVE IT!!! Such an easy and fun read! I laugh out loud at least one time per page and I’m usually more of a laugh in my head girl! 😉

  8. Sarah says

    American wife is excellent, it’s far and away my favorite Curtis Sittenfeld book and I’ve actually read it a few times!

  9. K says

    The Paris Wife is very good. The Secret Keeper is on my list to read, too. Other books I want to read: The Chaperone, the Forgotten Garden, Dark Places, Sharp Objects, and the Aviator’s Wife.

  10. says

    I read 100 books last year. Woop! My favorite time to read is before bed. Actually it is the only time I read. But I’ll go to bed each night and read a few pages. If it is a really good book then I’ll read a few chapters! It gives me something for myself. Reading keeps me sane!

    I recently read ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ by John Green and it is beautifully written. Worth all the hype.

    Right now I’m reading ‘Scarlet’ by Marissa Meyer. Sequel to ‘Cinder’ and probably the most creative fairytale re-telling I’ve read in a very long time.

  11. Rebecca says

    You will LOVE the Boonsboro series, soooo good. I finished Sparkly Green Earrings, LOVED! I also have enjoyed the Andy Carpenter Series (David Rosenfelt) as well as the Tara Holloway series (Diane Kelly), both are just fun, fluff reading.

  12. says

    Such a great list Erin! You’ll love American Wife! I’ve got a lot of the same books on my must read list, and added some new books after checking out your list. I’ve been reading Nora Roberts Boonsboro Trilogy too, and just have the last book left!

  13. Kelly S says

    I’m a huge reader…I love books. I read 56 books last year.

    My favs from last year and this year so far:

    Dancing on Broken Glass (loved!!!!)

    Unbroken

    Sarah’s Key

    Fearless (the story of a Navy Seal- Adam Brown)

    The Glass Castle and the next book after it, Half Broken Horses

    The Book Thief (loved loved loved)

    I’m reading THE BUNGALOW now….love it so far.

  14. says

    I loved Sarah’s Key and The Memory Keepers Daughter was good. I think you’ll like both. My favorite book last year was Cold Tangerines followed by bittersweet. If you haven’t read them they are amazing! You list looks great. I haven’t read Nora Roberts in ages but now I want to read the ones your talking Bout. I love her trilogies.

  15. says

    I’ve been wanting to read expats as well so it’ll be fun to hear your review of it. A little note about American Wife…I read on another person’s blog about it being a great book, so I picked up a copy. Now, I’m a huge fan of Laura Bush, and this book is supposedly loosely based on her life. However, I feel like it did more to paint her in a negative light than anything. And truth be told, it was even raunchy at times. I couldn’t even finish it. It’s hard to hear so many people say how great it is and I just thought it was smut. I even did an extensive google search to see if maybe I had read a different American Wife than the one everyone was raving about! 🙂 One of my all time favorite books is The Swan House by Elizabeth Musser, you should check it out…

  16. says

    We seem to like a lot of the same things. I LOVED Sarah’s Key and Big Mama’s book is waiting on my nightstand, too. I’m reading The Book Thief for my book club right now.

  17. Charla says

    I read about 40 books last year and my favorites were War Brides, Gone Girl and 11/22/63. I did NOT like The Fault In Our Stars. The dialogue between the two main characters, Hazel and Gus, was completely contrived. The story was beautiful, but the implausible dialogue ruined it for me.

  18. says

    Thanks for posting the list. I always looking for a great read. I loved Sarah’s Key. I recommend The Kitchen House. It has a slow start, but it is a great book. It is now in my top three with To Kill a Mockingbird and East of Eden.

  19. Krista says

    American Wife is one of my favorites- I hope you enjoy it! The Paris Wife and third installment of Divergent trilogy are also on my “read as soon as possible” list 🙂 Check out The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern if you haven’t already read it- I couldn’t put it down! Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn was also good- it was very intriguing and definitely a page-turner… but also very twisted and dark. Happy reading!

  20. Charise says

    I just finished “Home Front” the other day and loved it! I couldn’t put it down and read it in about 5 hours.

  21. says

    You are going to love Sarah’s Key and The Memory Keeper’s Daughter (this is top 10 for me of all time). I would highly encourage you to read The Book Thief if you haven’t read that already. It’s amazing and set during WWII like Sarah’s Key. I liked it better, honestly.

    Uggg……Gone Girl just made me so mad. Yes, it was a page turner, but I got so mad at the end that I can’t even say I liked it. It makes me mad just typing this………grrrrrrr……

    The Kitchen House that another poster recommended was good. I know you liked The Help, and it’s along the same genre.

    the Twelve Tribes of Hattie was good but it was also frustrating in that there is no wrap up. It just ends each person at the end of their chapter and you wonder more about them and how things go for them. I did like it though.

    I love, love, love sagas and historical fiction, so right now I’m reading Winter of the World by Ken Follet (the second book in the series). It’s excellent and I wish I had an extra day off of work to just sit and read. I wouldn’t leave my bed 🙂 I don’t know if you have read anything by Phillipa Gregory but she writes great historical fiction. I also LOVE Harlan Coben for page turners if you haven’t tried him in the past. SO good!!

  22. says

    Gaahhhh. 100 books-in-a-year!!!! That is incredible. I struggle to get through 2-3/month. I feel so overwhelmed and excited about all these great book ideas. I’ve heard good things about almost all the ones being mentioned.

    Reading is just such a wonderful escape for me, and somehow I never feel nearly as guilty about an evening spent reading than if I spend it sprawled out watching TV.

    I just posted my thoughts on some recent reads on my little blog which included: Happier at Home, Mister Pip, Love and Logic (a parenting book), A Long Way Gone, Crazy Love (I know I’m late on that train), and the Big Disconnect. http://optimisticmusings.wordpress.com/2013/02/18/on-my-bookshelf-february-2013/

  23. says

    Someone above mentioned “The Book Thief.” I can say without hesitation that it was the best book I read last year. So moving, so well-written, so beautiful. Definitely a must-read. 🙂

  24. says

    Just posted something similar on my blog!!
    Thanks to all these great comments I’m going to have an even longer ‘to-read’ list!!
    I love it!!

  25. says

    Loved the American Wife. I read it several years ago and loved it. For some reason I always pictured Laura Bush in the book, even though it’s probably different from her life.

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