Books I Read in January

A couple of notes first off, then to the main event.

1) The weekend didn't quite turn out to be the best case scenario - long story but I ended up getting 4 hours with hubby on Sunday instead of 12, and even that he almost didn't get. All the time together still was amazing though!

2) This morning I am pretty darn sore from the fitness class I did yesterday. I guess that means it did something!

Alright, so I was thinking I'd copy other bloggers and post a little series of book reviews. I am always looking for new books to read and like to hear what others have enjoyed, so I thought I'd contribute to that exchange. In January, I read 5 books, which is a LOT for me. Consider that in 2010, I think I read about 11 books for pleasure (obviously not including my reading for school in the first half of 2010). I am hoping to keep up the same fast pace in February because there are just so many interesting books out there! Without further ado, the books and a short snippet of what I thought.

1.The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

I wanted to love this book more than I actually did. I hadn't read any of Philippa Gregory's work, and I do tend to enjoy historical fiction, so I thought this was right up my alley. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the particular book, but I at lots of points just felt like it was going on and on, and there'd be conflict, a resolution, and then it would repeat all over again. I think I just found myself thinking there were other books I could be reading, but I had to finish this one first. It just didn't grab me I suppose. I think I may try to read other books by Gregory in the future, but I'm taking a break for now.

2. Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

I enjoyed this book and read it very quickly. I loved the blend of economics and sociology and loved thinking about certain things from a new perspective. I know a lot of people would probably quibble with the methodology and the "popular" aspect of it, but I found it to be a good read and I will definitely be looking for Super Freakonomics to read in the future.

3. The True Story of Hansel and Gretel by Louise Murphy

I chose this one based on d.a.r.'s recommendation in her blog, and I enjoyed it as well. It was dark at times but it was set in WWII Poland, after all. I'm not sure what else to say, but the book definitely grabbed me and I thought it was well-written.

4. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

I enjoyed this book very much too (and it happened to have some connections to WWII Poland, weird theme developing!). I wanted to keep reading to see how the two strands intertwined with each other, as I knew they would. When it was over, it was over very quickly, and I found myself having to go back and make sure I got all the subtleties and was properly tracking what was going on!

5. How to Be an American Housewife by Margaret Dilloway

This was probably my favorite book that I read in January. Maybe the connection to life as a military wife was enjoyable for me, or the centrality of another country and culture in the story (Japan), but I started reading and definitely didn't want to stop. I don't want to give too much away, but the story just grabbed me, I cared about the characters, and I definitely wanted to follow the book to its conclusion.

As of now, I am working on Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks (I do love the occasional dose of Nicholas Sparks!), and after that I will be reading The Girl Who Played with Fire which should be fun as well. If there's any books you have loved lately, please feel free to comment and share, I am always in the market for new ideas for my to-read list!