12 for 2012

A non-Miles post (so feel free to stop reading), but I'm trying to keep up my blog posts!  I have been participating in Village Books's 12 for 2012 "challenge" to read 12 books -- one each month -- this year. 

Earlier this week, when I picked Miles up from the babysitter, he was READING quietly at the table (mostly looking at pictures).  This morning, he picked up a few Dr. Seuss board books and was genuinely reading to himself: "UP CUP PUP" which I'm so happy about!  Ethan & I both love(d) to read, and I'm glad that Miles is starting to enjoy it as well. 

Here are my twelve through the end of October:
January: Gabby (about Gabrielle Giffords) -- what an inspiring story!
February: True Colors by Kristin Hanna (satisfying chick lit)
March: Non-Toxic Avenger which I was reading because I required it for my Environmental Studies class for spring quarter.
April:  American Way of Eating -- also reading for possible use in my class, a fascinating read about food justice in the U.S. Rush Limbaugh pilloried the author, Tracie Macmillan, so you know it's a good book! 
May: Dreaming New Dreams -- my only "widow" book this year.  You may have heard of Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon professor who chronicled about, and later died of pancreatic cancer.  He had three young kids.  His widow, Jai Pausch wrote this book about life after loss.
June: State of Wonder -- I loved Bel Canto and though this book wasn't as good, it was a great story. 
July: Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion -- loved this book (was also reviewing it for possible course adoption).  Did you know that the average American purchases 64 new pieces of clothing each year?  And there's a huge environmental cost.  Many people think that "oh, I'll just donate or consign my clothes when I'm done," but still, the capacity is exceeded at many local Salvation Army locations. 
August: I actually read several books this month (vacation), but the two most memorable were Olive Kitteride and Monkey Mind.  The latter was a memoir of a writer with severe OCD; it was kind of interesting but just okay. 
September: Freedom -- ugh, a long slog of a book.  I love Jonathan Franzen's plot lines and drama, but he is such a "heavy" writer.  I find him really hard to read; his books could easily be 30% shorter with the same amount of drama and without the long-winded descriptions!  I found myself skimming, just to find out what happened, but not wanting to read minutiae. 
October: The Longest Race is about the JFK 50-miler.  Having completed the Portland Half Marathon, I was in a running mood.  It was interesting to read about ultra-marathoning.
November: I started Tomatoland on October 29, and just finished it.  It's kind of like a biography of the tomato, and the author spends a lot of time on social justice issues as well.  The book was borne out of an article in Gourmet Magazine, and he also blogs: http://politicsoftheplate.com/
December: Miles & I are meeting the Remmels in Maui, so I'm sure I'll pack several books!  Stay tuned...