Book List 2014

1. Union Street Bakery | Mary Ellen Taylor
I wanted to love this book. It has elements that I love: adoption, family, a bit of mystery, and a bakery. And while I appreciated each of those elements, I didn't think the book was well-written. I didn't like the sentence structure. The story line was confusing. Very poor editing, in my opinion. Overall, it was a bit boring. In fact, it kind of put me off of reading for a while. Yikes.

2. The Book Thief | Marcus Zusak
If you know me well, you know that I can appreciate a sad story. Oprah's Book Club picks are some of my favorites--and always a bit heart-breaking. This book is just that. Death narrates this beautiful story of Liesel, her foster family and friend, Rudy. Set in Nazi Germany, Liesel learns to love the power of words and stories and family and love.

3. Me Before You | Jojo Moyes
This book was a good read. Set in England, Louisa is a plain girl. Her job at a cafe ends suddenly, and she finds employment as a companion for a quadriplegic man, Will. They begin their time together quiet turbulently, but develop an affection for one another. Louisa learns of his ultimate plan and hopes to convince him otherwise.

4. The Antelope in the Living Room | Melanie Shankle
I've read The Big Mama Blog for several years, and I really enjoyed Melanie's (we're on a first-name basis) first book, Sparkly Green Earrings. TAITLM was really fun, as well. It's amazing that we're practically the same person in the same marriage. Our views on finances and shopping and husbands is eerily similar. (Although mine does his hunting in a video game version. Which means I don't have an antelope in my living room.)

5. The Fault in Our Stars | John Green
I've had this on my list to read for a while. I just didn't get to it before the movie came out. It was a good read, though I likely won't see the movie. Hazel and Augustus meet at a cancer support group for teens. She has terminal cancer; he fought a battle with cancer and had part of his leg amputated. They begin a friendship over this shared experience, movies, books, philosophical discussions and video games.