Check out this, my very first post ever on this blog! In it, I tell the story of my long lost book journal that I thought was long gone forever. Much to my surprise and thrill, I got an email last week from a librarian at the Swannanoa library branch telling me that they found a book of mine in their lost and found.

IT WAS THE BOOK LOG I’D BEEN KEEPING SINCE 2003!!!!!

I quite literally and loudly squeed.

Since I don’t live close by there anymore (but my mom does) I had her go and pick it up the very next day. A serious shout out to that librarian who reached out to me. After the fire (where my first one burned up) I went through all the books that I owned at the time (of which there were a *few*) and wrote down all that I had read. Then I started over keeping the list. Since the book log has been gone, (since around 2011) I started another one. I guess I’ll cut the pages out of this latest one and incorporate them somehow.

Here is the super dramatic inside cover of the recovered book:

(remember, I was 20 years old at the time this was written, lol)

While we are talking about books and new titles for the list, here is a pic of one of my stacks from earlier this year. Duckie is in the background contemplating turning the dang lamp off (read more about that here). I finally finished Chasing the Devil’s Tail, which Mr. Smith lent me on one of our first dates over six months ago. I am not the best at borrowing books and returning them promptly, lol. I noticed that it is the first in a series, so I totally ordered the next one. Too bad the local library discarded their copy, but now I’ll have a copy for keeps!

Memorable books lately:

If you like great plains scenery and Laura Ingalls Wilder type strong cowgirl heroine books, you will love The Poacher’s Daughter. I’d never read a western before, which is kind of crazy since I’m a huge fan of spaghetti western movies. I just thought of the genre as books for old crotchety men but Zimmer drew me in and made me think about reading more.

And speaking of poachers, I just re-read Danny Champion of the World by Roald Dahl. This was one of my favorite books as a kid. Looking back, I think this must be because Danny and his dad lived in a gypsy caravan. I’m not sure how I so thoroughly missed the whole they’re coming up with creative ways to steal and kill birds part. Honestly, it was a difficult book to get through. Goes to show not all your favorites from childhood are worth re-reading 😦 Dang tender-hearted-sonuva-gun that I am.

I have been plugging away at This Organic Life book for too long. I keep getting distracted by too many other books and I’ve been reading this just a chapter at a time. I promise it’s really worth reading and worth telling you about! First off, this book was published in 2001 which seems like a lifetime ago. The book is about the author’s urban homestead on the ***Hudson River in New York. I can’t help but wonder how  9/11 changed her life in the City. I love her humble truths and failures that she recalls as much as her wild successes. She gives the reader so much advice on plants and a lot to aspire to. I would consider this a must read for anyone who gardens, especially on a food stability level. There are also drool worthy recipes in every chapter that have definitely made my stomach growl at 11pm.

Here is everything I’ve read so far in 2016–kinda skimpy.

Forgive my excitement over using Paint on the book log!

Ransom Riggs blew me away with the first book in the Miss Peregrine series. It takes a bit of work to sneak one over on me and shock me with a character reveal, but Riggs did it with this one. I’m cautiously enthusiastic about the next two books in the trilogy. Series can really disappoint, especially in the young adult genre. One of the things that make these books so irresistible are the photos. It sort of hearkened back to my teen years when I discovered the Griffin and Sabine trilogy. Looking at photos and letters that are’t yours will always draw me in!

Have any of you started a book log? What have you been reading lately? Anyone else reading the Ransom Riggs Books?