30 in 2010

No, this isn't a post about a weight-loss resolution. I'm going to try to read 30 books this year. I'm reading A Big Little Life by Dean Koontz right now. It's basically a memoir of life with his first dog, which he didn't get until he was middle-aged. I had no idea he hadn't grown up with dogs and more specifically with Golden Retrievers because several of his books have featured dogs or had them as prominent characters with Goldens seeming to be his dog of choice. Watchers is about a highly intelligent Golden, and it's probably my favorite book of his.

Anyway, see this pile of books?













I've read two of them so far (coincidentally they were the top two). I was already a fan of Alex Kava, but I hadn't read any books by the other authors. In fact, I hadn't heard of any of them except David Sedaris.

I was in Barnes & Noble yesterday and saw a new release by Jason Pinter. I picked it up thinking I'd read something by him before, but the story's synapsis on the back didn't sound remotely familiar. Imagine my surprise when I saw this picture a few minutes ago and saw Jason Pinter's name. Ah, yes, it all makes sense now.

Guess where I got the pile of books? My grandma! Yep, she'd read them all - and more - and said I could look through her books and take any of them with me that I wanted. Like a sale rack at Marshall's, I had to wade through more than a few things I didn't want (Harlequin romance books - you go Grandma!) to find what worked for me, but it was definitely worth the effort. That stack of books adds up to a decent chunk of change, which I can put toward other books so I can reach my goal of reading at least 30 books in 2010.

I might even start doing a post about each book so maybe my fellow bookworms will have recommendations (or warnings as not all the books will be hits, I'm sure) if they're looking for something to read.

By the way, would it surprise any of you to know that I participated in Battle of the Books in seventh grade? We had to read thirty books for that competition so this'll be like my personal Battle of the Books. Minus the team members and Q & A practice sessions with Mrs. Denton.

Wish me luck!