9. The Secret History

by Donna Tartt (503 pp.)

Both Keetha and the Awl (this month's classic trash!) mentioned The Secret History recently. I read this book close to when it came out (1992). I thought it was when I still lived in California but the dates don't line up. This is the first time I've re-read it in its entirety and it mostly holds up. It's about these college students who kill one of their classmates (not a spoiler, this is on the first page) and then goes back and explains what happened. It's a tad long and tedious in spots. Too much lounging around smoking/drinking/doing drugs/sleeping/not sleeping - this college is nothing like the one I remember. I think even Tartt made a crack about all the knocks on doors in this book. But mostly it's fun and easy to get wrapped up in. The scene at the classmate's funeral is brilliant.

And look at me. Already 9 books for this year and three of those fatties!

8. Bird Cloud

by Annie Proulx (234 pp.)

I think this is mainly a book for Annie Proulx fans. And I am one. It's a memoir about the house she built in Wyoming. Also covered: personal history, Wyoming historical tidbits, nature-y stuff. If I learned anything, I never want to build a house. But I would love to live in this house for an extended period of time and watch the birds and landscape. It sounds amazing.

I am going to add that I finished this book in the middle of the night suffering some major indigestion after a delicious Italian meal (where I ate too much). If I have terrible indigestion I prefer to sit up until it passes so I managed to do a chunk of reading that night.

7. The Wise Man's Fear

By Patrick Rothfuss (994 pp)

This is the second in a series. I finished the other one last month (book #4). Mostly I enjoyed it but I had a few problems with it. This morning I spent way too much time reading threads discussing the book and those readers pointed out some things that I hadn't considered and that address the gist of my problems. More epic fantasy story. Recommend.

6. A Conspiracy of Kings

By Megan Whalen Turner (319 pp)

This is the 4th book in a series and possibly the last. It felt like it was finished but I could see the author squeezing more stories out of this world. One of the things I love in this series is the different POV characters. I loved this one but like some of the earlier books it does have some moments where it goes a little dry. It has to do with kingdoms and power. Overall I recommend the entire series.

5. The King of Attolia

By Megan Whalen Turner (385 pp)

This is the third in a series. (Book #1 and Book #2). I loved the first one but was lukewarm on the second one. I loved this one. I can't say why without being too spoilery. Our beloved hero Eugenides gets what he wants but has to take what he doesn't want along with it. There's another book in the series which I am going to get at the bookstore tomorrow.

4. The Name of the Wind

By Patrick Rothfuss (662pp)

I have been sitting on this book forever. Partly because I knew I would like it and I wanted to wait until I had time to really get into it. Partly because I knew it was going to be a series and didn't want to be left hanging at the end. And partly because it was hardcover and I didn't want to carry it on the bus. None of those reasons makes any sense now because I never had time to really get into it and have been sneaking in a few pages here and there for the last 6 weeks. Book 2 is out but the series isn't finished so I'm still going to be left hanging. I never did take it on the bus but I'll probably end up lugging #2 to work with me. I'm warming up to the idea of an ereader mostly for tome reading on the bus. I have other reasons pro and con but not going into it here.

This book is awesome. It's a about a guy and bad stuff happens and he's the hero and he wins a little, loses a little, but it's a story within a story and nothing is what it appears. If you like big fat fantasy books, highly recommended.

3. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

By Alan Bradley (370 pp).

I really hate the title of this book, but that's the only part I don't like. My cousin Jennifer recommended the book and I loved it. The protagonist is 11-year-old Flavia de Luce and she's a total smart ass and hilarious. She finds a man dying in the garden and gets involved in solving the mystery. I wish I was in Mr. Bradley's crit group because I would have had suggestions about the ending because it didn't completely work for me. But fun book. Recommend.

2. The Last of the Live Nude Girls

By Sheila McClear (243 pp)

During the holiday break I started at least 5 different books and every time I sat down to read I'd pile them all around me and take turns reading from each one. In regular life I rarely read more than one thing at a time because my concentration is crap plus I don't have huge amounts of time to read so can't remember what's going on if I have too many books going. Now holiday break is long over and I have these books half read. The other night when I couldn't sleep I went into the living room to read and this was the book I grabbed. It's grim reading at 2am. It's a memoir about a woman who moves to NYC and ends up working peep shows to earn money. She comes unraveled before she gets it together. Interesting look peep show business.

1. It's So Easy and Other Lies

By Duff McKagan (361 pp.)

I LOVED this book. I loved it as much as you can love a book where the hero's pancreas explodes because he drinks so much. Ten bottles of wine a day — that was when he was trying to stay away from the hard stuff. Try to wrap your head around that. Ten bottles a day. Yikes. It's amazing what the human body can survive. Duff started out in bands when he was a teenager and was in Guns 'N Roses. He came back from total disaster. Recommend.

Book List for 2012 Starts Here

Only 30 books this year. Not great. I'd like to do better.

But I read 149 short stories/novellas/novelettes. And that's not everything. I don't always keep track of the shorter stuff.

I had some busy times where not much reading happened.

I'm not making any reading goals for 2012 except to read more than 30 books. Especially since I bought or was given at least 40 books in the last 6 weeks. Must keep ahead.

My favorites were The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro by Joe McGinniss, A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan and Bob Mould, See a Little Light.

30. The Necessary Beggar

By Susan Palwick (316 pp.)

Another book I was looking forward to reading that I wish I liked more. The set-up is great. A family from another world is exiled and they end up in Reno, NV. The main protagonist is a young girl who grows into a teenager during the course of the story. The characters are likable and the contrast between cultures is detailed and interesting. The first problem I had was it was too long. Every scene seemed to go on longer than it needed to. We watched the exiled family try to understand crime, Christianity, Halloween, Christmas, casinos, homeless people. It went on and on. The second half of the book turned into an implausible teen romance and family melodrama. I didn't hate it but have trouble recommending.

29. The Queen of Attolia

By Megan Whalen Turner (404 pp)

Well, I disagree with the person who reviewed this book online and wrote, "Best Book Ever." I liked it a great deal but didn't love it mostly because of an unexpected plot event I found implausible and not particularly desirable. The story is about the Thief from the previous book, who gets into serious trouble and a terrible thing happens. Then he needs to get his groove back. The backdrop is political maneuverings of three countries plus an empire from over yonder that would also like to get its grubby hands in the mix. I thought the book got a little too bogged down in that stuff and the end was about 50 pages too long. I'm still going to read the third one but not for a bit. First, I'm back to working on the nightstand odds and ends.