I am not on Carole’s official list of participants in the Ten on Tuesday party, but since this week’s topic took a literary bent, I’m gate crashing:
10 Books on Your Summer Reading List*
- Matilda by Roald Dahl — Other people my age were fed a steady diet of Dahl growing up, but he wasn’t part of our household canon. Plus the main character really likes to read, judging by the cover.
- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum — I’ve read two of the later Oz books (and a more modern adaptation), but never the original.
- The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall — A book about summer vacation. I’m hoping for something Eageresque. (These first three are part of getting caught up on the Top 100 Children’s Books from the School Library Journal.)
- Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright — Karen rightly pointed out that you can’t very well get caught up on the 100 best kids’ books without re-reading a few favorites. This is another great summer read.
- At Home by Bill Bryson — This was on my list as soon as I heard he had a new book coming out (and has catapulted toward the top now that I have my hands on an ARC (advanced reader copy). He’s my favorite non-fiction author.
- Greenwitch by Susan Cooper — The next installment in the Dark Is Rising series. (Yes, I know in a year when people are eagerly waiting for new books to come out in favorite series that it’s funny that the sequel I’m most excited about was published the year I was born.)
- Sun in the Morning by M.M. Kaye — One of Karen’s recommendations (which are nearly always good) and one of the books I’m reading for the Nonfiction Five challenge this summer
- The Invisible Kingdom: From the Tips of Our Fingers to the Tops of Our Trash, Inside the Curious World of Microbes by Idan Ben-Barak — Another one of the nonfiction summer reads. I started this back in February as a work assignment but it actually seemed interesting!
- Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link — Already in my Goodreads queue, this got bumped up when it was recommended based on the previous five books I’d read.
- The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver — I bought this last winter when I heard her read from it just after it was published. It’s been sitting next to the computer waiting for me to feel epically inclined. Hopefully soon!
What’s on your summer reading list?
*This is all non-binding, of course.
You’ll have to let me know what you think of “The Penderwicks.” I read it a couple of years ago. I found it to be dull and derivative. I had to force myself to finish it. While I hope you have a better experience with it, I caution you not to expect too much from it.
Comment by Karen 06.30.10 @ 9:00 amI love Bill Bryson! Ooh, and how did you get an advance copy? I loved getting my mother-in-law’s cast off proof/review copies when she worked at a paper. My summer’s a bit too hectic for a list, perhaps for the back-to-school fall feeling.
Comment by MJ 06.30.10 @ 5:47 pm@Karen: Hopefully a review will go up next weekend…
@MJ: I love him too! I thought about not making a list, as list-making tends to doom me, but it was just too tempting in the end!
Comment by soe 07.07.10 @ 1:07 am[…] 11, 2010 by mikaiya Time for a quick recap of my challenge (with Sprite) to read all the Top 100 Children’s Books. I read two more recently and thought they were […]
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