My Favorite Books

Clearly my adventure didn't begin in June because I have neglected my blog since then. It was a busy summer with my Global Studies class for five hours per day. Now that the holidays are upon us and school is winding down(finals in 2 weeks:-) I am going to attempt to really begin my reading adventure.
I have been motivated by Thankfully Reading Weekend over at Jenn's Bookshelves. I have all day Friday and Saturday to read until I work on Sunday. So I plan on reading at least 4 books this weekend as my TBR pile is really big!
First, before I start reading I want to talk about a few of my favorite authors and books. Of course at the top of my list is Maud Hart Lovelace and L.M. Montgomery. However, the Anne of Green Gables books(Rilla is my favorite book in that series) are at the bottom of my list for L.M. Montgomery.
The Emily books are my favorite. I love the story of the orphan girl who goes to a farm and changes the lives of all the people around her. I love the way L.M. Montgomery writes. She paints these beautiful word pictures and brings them to life. I also love the Pat of Silver Bush series. I never fail to sob my heart out when Bets dies even at 28 years old!
My favorite "stand alone" L.M. Montgomery book is The Blue Castle. That book I have read too many times to count. I love when Valancy finally tells her family what she has been thinking all these years. What an empowering moment!


My favorite books of all time are the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace. I discovered these books "later" in life as I was about fifteen the first time I read them. It is funny how I can so vividly remember a moment like reading a book for the first time. I clearly remember the moment I first picked up a Betsy-Tacy book. It was Betsy's Wedding and I loved it. It had a pink cover and Vera Neville's wonderful drawing of Betsy with a veil swirling about her face(probably why I picked it up in the first place as I was obsessed with weddings at the time). Although I always felt it was a shame that I read the last one first! It was years before I would read Betsy and Joe or Betsy and the Great World as our library didn't carry them. My favorite book is Betsy and Joe. I love how Betsy struggles with remaining loyal to Tony even though Joe is the guy she wants. I love how the Betsy-Tacy books were written years ago and set in the early 1900's but still resonated with a teen in the 90's and even now as an adult in 2010. In fact as part of Thankfully Reading Weekend I plan to start re reading all the high school books. By the way I love that Harper Perennial Modern Classics reissued all the high school books. I absolutely hated the versions I have without Vera Neville drawings on the cover so I purchased all the new reissues. I am so happy that people still see the value of these books.
I have many other favorite books and authors but I will stop now with these two. Time to start reading!

The Adventure Begins

I have always had a great love for reading ever since I was young. My sisters and I used to astonish the library staff by checking out piles of books and bringing them back just a week later. We used to be allowed to read at the table which was shocking to other people. But our Mom loved to read too. I still love to read today although I don't read as much as I used to. There are so many distractions today: TV, Netflix, iPod, Blackberry etc. But there is still nothing like picking up a book. A physical book! Don't get me started on eReaders because I am still on the fence. This blog is my way of challenging myself to read at least 5 books a month. It makes me sad to write that because that used to be no problem. I am back in school however which does curtail my reading a little. But I am determined to start reading again. Because reading is what helped me develop my imagination and creativity. So join me on this adventure!