ReadingGrrls Paper Safari

Another year has come and gone.  I didn't have as much time for reading as I had hoped this past year still struggling to reach my goal of 100 books in a year.  I used to be able to do this but life has gotten in the way.  Moving, school, kids, etc...I can't wait until 2013 - I will not be moving again, I will be finished school and summer looks to be filled with nice long days on the beach.  Sounds like a good time to me. I wish everyone a safe and happy beginning to 2013 - and many happy reads in the coming year. I am once again hosting the LGBT reading challenge so please sign up...the more the merrier...always looking for more titles to add to my list.

This is my top 10 favorite books that I've read this year.  That does not necessarily mean that they were published this past year some may have been published long ago and some may not be published until 2013 but all the books on this list were read by me in 2012. This list is in no particular order I just put them down as I remembered them. This was a tough year of reading for me.  I've been in Grad school and I moved.  Luckily I am done school in April 2013 so I'm hoping my favorite reading list for 2013 won't be as hard to create! Papillion by Henri Charriere Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein Cross in the Closet by Timothy Kurek Even Tough Girls Wear Tutus by Debra Jiang Stein The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Dicks Tyger Tyger Burning Bright by Justine Saracen Snow Angels by James Thompson The Calling by Inger Ash Wolfe Of Bees and Mist by Erick Setiawan

Title:  What He Can Expect When She's Not Expecting: How to Support Your Wife, Save Your Marriage, and Conquer Infertility! by Marc Sedaka Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing Inc 189 pages Genre: non-fiction - infertility - surrogacy, ivf, adoption Synopsis: Tips and advice from a man who’s been there, for the six million couples struggling to get pregnant. Marc Sedaka stood by while he and his wife endured endless rounds of drug therapies, sixteen artificial inseminations, ten in-vitro fertilizations, three miscarriages, and, finally, a gestational surrogate (“womb for rent”) who carried their twin girls to term. He was as supportive and loving as he could be, but he really wished he’d had a book like  What He Can Expect When She’s Not Expecting  during the process. Most books about dealing with infertility are geared toward women, leaving the man to his own devices when it comes to comfort and encouragement (never a good idea). With the help of his own infertil...

Title:   The Prophet (The Graveyard Queen) by Amanda Stevens Publisher:  Mira 352 pages Genre: paranormal/ fantasy Synopsis:   My name is Amelia Gray. I am the Graveyard Queen, a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. My father passed down four rules to keep me safe and I've broken every last one. A door has opened and evil wants me back. In order to protect myself, I've vowed to return to those rules. But the ghost of a murdered cop needs my help to find his killer. The clues lead me to the dark side of Charleston—where witchcraft, root doctors and black magic still flourish—and back to John Devlin, a haunted police detective I should only love from afar. Now I'm faced with a terrible choice: follow the rules or follow my heart. Review: This is the third book in the Graveyard Queen series.  I liked this one much better than the last book, although I think the ending was a bit rushed.  You are left hanging waiting for the next book, and while this is...

Title:   More Blood, More Sweat and Another Cup of Tea by Tom Reynolds Publisher:  The Friday Project 285 pages Genre: non-fiction Synopsis:   What happens behind closed (ambulance) doors Meet Tom, an Emergency Medical Technician for the London Ambulance service. It is Tom who shows up to pick up the drunk tramp, the heart attack victim and the pregnant woman who wants to go to hospital in an ambulance because she doesn't want to call a taxi. Tom is also a man who rails against the unfairness of it all, who bemoans the state of the NHS and who ridicules the targets that state that if the ambulance arrives within eight minutes and the patient dies it is a success and if the ambulance arrives in nine minutes and the patient's life is saved it is a fail.  Welcome to the topsy-turvy world of the emergency services. From the tragic to the hilarious, from the heart-warming to the terrifying, Blood, Sweat and Tea 2 is packed with fascinating anecdotes that veer f...