Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Extreme Mini Reviews from My 2003 Top Ten

A few months ago when I was reading some huge books, therefore finishing nothing and therefore having nothing to review, I decided to do a  flash back post by way of extreme mini reviews.

Since I find myself in that very same situation again, I decided it was time again to revisit the past!

Here are my top ten favorite books that I read in 2003, with their short blurbs:

John Adams by David McCullough: I loved this book! It's long, yes, but oh so fascinating, especially the relationship between John and Abigail. The things they endured are incredible. I found myself thinking about them all the time throughout by day while reading this book. 

Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir: Ah, Henry VIII! What a crazy man! This book is so much fun and goes into wonderful detail about him and all the wives. I loved it. I think the year after I read it, I did a book review for my mom's book club and created quite a fun presentation on this book. I felt like I knew these stories inside and out!

Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens: I think this was one of those times that I wanted to watch the movie so I read the book first, or I read the book then had to find the movie... can't remember for sure, but it's another fun romp of a story such as only Charles Dickens can write. 

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling: I'm sure we bought this the day it came out and read it in a sitting or two. I can't even remember for sure, but what else could I do but love it! All the stories sort of run together in my head now though, so I can't remember what I specifically thought of this particular book. 

The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkein: This must have been during the time the movies were coming out. I think I've said before that I hadn't read these books until then, so I picked them up and then read them all between the first and second movie. I think I started this one instantly after finishing the second book because of it's insane cliff hanger. Anyway, of course, these books are awesome and classic and in a league of their own.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck: A re-read that year probably because Oprah picked it? Yes, I think so. I read it for the first time in high school. Whoa that was an eye opener of a read at that time! So when I re-read it, I knew a little more what to expect. But on a the second time around, I obviously loved it all over again.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel: I must have heard the buzz on this one and picked it up not too long after. I had no clue what it was about and when I started reading it, and there was this kid, and a boat accident, and him being stranded with a tiger I thought, what have I done? But then wow, I could not put it down, and then the end, my jaw dropped and I was blown away. Loved this book. Unlike anything I'd read up to that point. 

The Davinci Code by Dan Brown: Yes, I was caught up in all the buzz of this one too. But I did find the historical stuff and speculation all quite fascinating. And it was a page turner if nothing else. A fun read.

The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke: During this time, I wasn't reading a whole lot of YA, like I do now. Times have changed. So it's cool that one made it on my top ten list that year. I love Cornelia Funke and will read anything by her, so that's how this one came to be on my list. It's a fun story of a bunch of homeless kids and their adventures with magic and fantasy thrown in the mix. I need to re-read to remember the details!

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd: My guess is this one I read with an online book club, because otherwise I doubt I would have picked it up. It's a wonderful coming of age story with fascinating relationships and lots of sadness too. Great book. The movie they made from it a year or so ago isn't bad either.


Have you read and loved any of these books? 

4 comments:

  1. Life of Pi, East of Eden, Return of the King, anything Harry Potter (the plotlines all blur for me now, too) yes, yes!

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  2. You have got some great books on your list...Harry Potter (of course),Life of Pi, Davinci Code, Secret Life of Bees. I'm not reader of David McCullogh but I've heard good stuff about his John Adams book.

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  3. Man, I don't know if I could remember what I read in 2003! However I know that I did love the Secret Life of Bees!

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  4. I think I read Life of Pi in 2005 or 2006 and it completely blew me away! I think I need to re-read that one!

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