I have been looking forward to doing this post for WEEKS! Yes, I know it is a lot of work to go through everything I have posted in 2011, but as of late I have been thinking “Dang. I have read some great books lately!” That leaves me wondering about all the books I have read this year that I am not even recalling right now but truly probably need a SHOUT OUT as the best of the year…. I also… may occasionally label a bad post… or an UGH. 😛
Join me now as we jump on the internet express and go back back back to…. (all pics are clickable and lead back to the posts/reviews)
January 2011
Good: Yes it was a COLD Minnesota January when I finally caved and allowed myself a listen of an audio about a dog. I had no idea that choice would leave me raving the rest of the year about it! 😀
Good: If Shiver was impressive, Linger was icing on the cake. A worthy second to this trilogy and best book of January.
Best Meandering post(s) of January:
When reading Habits Just Get Embarrassing!
Good: This is where you recommended to me GREAT audio!
February 2011
Good: This is the audio that made me very impressed with Anita Shreve. Best audio of February!
Good: A Tiger in The Kitchen was such an EXCELLENT read!
Bad: Pro? Con? Why or why not?
Morning Meanderings…. The New Classics (a list from Entertainment Weekly of what the new classics are)
March 2011
Good: I cant help it – if you are looking for good audio – look no further than the Harry Potter books narrated by Stephen Fry or Jim Dale
Good: What started out as a review to cook by for a book (coming out this March 2012!) turned out to be a pretty delicious read as well.
Good: Polar Plunge… this pic is before I hit the water….
Ugh: Morning Meanderings…. BUSTED by the snoring husband
April 2011
Good: Audio love – this one rocked and the movie did too!
Good: I heard about it… I coveted it, and then I read it. Just as good as I had hoped. BEST of April!
Good: What is your most treasured book?
Bad: I don’t care what cha all think of her…. I just don’t like her. 😛
May 2011
Good: Audio book for May…
Sadly (BAD) no book stood out for me to call best of May 2011….. (this was also probably the month I read the least)
Good: Dinner with author Beth Hoffman (CeeCee Honeycutt) while in New York
Good: Reagan (Miss Remmer’s Reviews) and I run the Info booth at BEA…..
June 2011:
Fantastic audio! I almost fell off the lawn mower laughing!
First book I read entirely on my NOOK and best read of June!
UGH: 2 weeks after I return from BEA I seriously wipe out on my bike
Good: A week after the bike injury I take a girls road trip to Chicago with my peeps 😀
Good: E Readers YAY or NAY discussion
A great book bloggers get together in New York for dinner!
Good: Dinner with Adriana Trigianni in New York
Good: Valued info I learned at the Book Blogger Con
Good and UGH: The post where I made a you tube video of me being the Crocodile Hunter 😯
July 2011
Good: Fantastic memoir audio about food and more food!
Bad: And again… no book that stood out in July
Good: Danielle wins my Harry Potter VLOG contest!
Good: Warrior Dash!!!
Good: Our book club chooses a new Queen
August 2011
Good: If you loved the book… you will love love the audio!
Good: Awesome read!
Good: A week at AIDS camp
Bookies 10 year anniversary!!!!
September 2011
Good: Awesome audio of the month!
Good: This series is so fantastic I must insist you read it!
Good: The second in the series and just as fantastic as the first!
October 2011
Good: Certainly you have heard of this one… on audio, read by Jim Dale? Fantastic!
Good: Incredible read
Bookies classic review night
Bad: We had to put our puppy of 15 years down 😦
November 2011
Good: This was so interesting!
Good: Rounding out the series nicely – I applaud Patrick Ness
This was such an amazing non fiction read!
December 2011
Good: Audio at its best!!!!
This was not the best audio of the month, but if I had listened to this any other month it would have beat out the other audio.
Fantastic dystopia read!
Great discussion post
So in recap here are the books of the year:
and the audio:
and over all.. best of the best:
Book Journey 
Wow – 1st I love how you did this post, looking back through every month. 2nd wow – the books! I’ve been meaning to get to The Chaos Walking series, and now I’m even more anxious to read it. 3rd Wow – that’s a serious wipeout on the bike – I’m a chicken, but other than riding on bike trails (luckily there are a few close by) and in duathlons/triathlons, I’m scared to ride on the road.
Tanya this was a lot of work but it was also fun to look back on the year… I had forgotten some of the things I had done and that made me smile 😀
Sheila, this is fun I am going to have to do this myself.
I hope you do Esme 😀
I would say the best books of 2011 for me were Divergent and The Help. I will be reading Cutting For Stone next year for my book discussion group and I need to get my hands on a copy of Bossypants.
This was a fun post and I enjoyed looking back over your 2011 highlights.
Divergent is on the kitchen table here to start off my New Year with! 😀 Make the food in the book for Cutting For Stone – Dora Wor is delicious!
🙂 What a great year in review!!!!
Thank you 🙂
Sheila, I always love reading your reviews and look forward to reading more of them in the coming year!! The books were great in the year in review!!!
Thank you Barb 🙂 I wish it would have spaced a bit better (it kept crowding…) but eventually I got the post done 🙂
Great recap! I’m planning to get the Rob Lowe book from the library, and of course I agree about the Harry Potter audios (I listen to them constantly while cleaning – almost embarrassingly much).
Alyce, until you can recite all the potions and the spells and what they do…. it is never too much Potter 😛
Awesome post. I got to check out some links I missed.
Happy New Year!
Oh good! Enjoy – some of them cracked me up… I really forgotten what I had written….
Tiger in the Kitchen looks really good – something I’d quite like I think! Ha, I watched 1 episode of True Blood (didn’t read any of the books) and I was bored lol.
Its so good Christa and the author is sooo nice!
Oh and LOL about True Blood.
I like the way you did this recap….we like different books, but I enjoy how enthused you are about them! And who knows, maybe someday, I’ll enjoy some of them, too.
Have a great 2012.
Laurel… I believe some day you will try one of my “gusher” books… AND I believe one day you will listen to audio and say “What was I waiting for? This is so AWESOME!!!” 😛
Fantastic year in review, loved it and the pictures. I even remember some like you posted yesterday eg Prom dress in snow jump.
You must go watch The Help now also. I look forward to reading MConnelly next year, that one is high on the list too. I have been putting off Hate List forever.
Will do mine tomorrow I think if I have time.
I seen The Help Tea… twice opening week 😀 Hate List is a must read and a fairly quick one too.
Thanks for the year in review Sheila! A couple of these were some of my favorites too. And a few of them are still on my must read list!
It was so fun to do Jo-Jo… some of the posts made me laugh… I had forgotten about my crocodile hunter audio…
I am going to have to think of a ‘best of’ post in the next couple of days!
I LOVED this one.
They are fun Debbie 🙂
Whew. That was quite the year, reading and otherwise.
I agree Jill…. I felt better after reviewing my year… suddenly I was like… whoa… I did more than I remembered!
Very clever and fun way to recap your year!!!
Thanks Staci… I didnt start out with this plan… but as I seen the fun things that had happened this past year I wanted to recap them too. 😀
Wow, what an amazing Best Of post, Sheila! You always do things up big! I haven’t done my best of 2011 yet…there are still a few more days! Who knows? Maybe the book I’m reading now will turn out to be the best of the year…
I gave my son the Chaos Walking trilogy for Christmas and gave my mother The Night Circus….both based in part on your recommendations, so thank you!
Sue
Wow Sue! Thank you for trusting my book opinions! I hope they enjoy the books as much as I did. 🙂
Thanks for the look back at your year. Have been with you for the whole year, but good to look back.
Wishing you health and happiness in 2012!
carol
Thanks Carol – I am hopeful that 2012 is EPIC!
What an awesome year Sheila! 🙂 Can’t wait for 2012!!
I am with you Reagan… I am ready to get active and have a lot of fun doing it 😀
I had posted my list last night and had the hardest time narrowing it down this year.
I really want to read The Art of Racing in the Rain since I read Raven Stole The Moon last year and loved it. Cutting for Stone and Devile in the White City are both on my wishlist.
I hope next year contines to bring you great books to read.
You must still make time for The Art Of Racing In The Rain Ryan – sooooo good! 🙂
Thanks for the link 🙂
Excellent recap! My favorite was your Morning Meandering: Busted By The Snoring Husband, as it made me laugh just thinking about it! 🙂
LOL – that was a good one 😉
I love your month by month recap.
Thank you Ellie!
Glad to hear there is much more good than bad here. 🙂 Looks like you had an amazing 2011! Hope 2012 is just as amazing and better. 🙂 Happy New Year.
Thanks Melissa 🙂 Happy New Year!
Thanks for the summary – I see some to add to my lists – especially Dystopias. 🙂