Thanks to all the traveling I’ve been doing this year, I’ve been doing a bit more reading than I have the past few years, which is definitely a good thing. But I just realized we haven’t talked about any books around here for a while. So let’s get to it!

The Goldfinch: It’s not exactly breaking news that this book is fantastic; it won a Pulitzer this year. But while some critically acclaimed books are beautifully written but overly dense or boring, this novel has an engrossing plot that kept me turning the pages, and lots of interesting and flawed characters. Apparently there are lots of people who don’t agree with me — online reviews suggest that people either love or hate this book. It is long, it isn’t ultra-realistic, and there are many times I was frustrated with the bad decisions made by several main characters. But I thought Donna Tartt did an excellent job of propelling the story forward and making me care about (fictional) people whose lives and choices are incredibly different than my own.

Southern Cross the Dog: Speaking of critically acclaimed books that are beautifully written… Yeah. I had a hard time finishing this one. Bill Cheng is clearly a very talented writer, but I was confused and then bored by the plot, and I don’t think I ever really understood the characters or their motivations. Part of the problem may be that I started this, stopped reading for a few weeks, and then went back to it, but I could never get past feeling lost and apathetic. Still, this is his first novel — I’d bet his second is fantastic.

Sharp Objects: I picked this one up at an airport bookstore or somewhere because I needed something to read and enjoyed “Gone Girl,” which is also by Gillian Flynn. “Sharp Objects” has a lot in common with “Gone Girl” — the rural midwestern landscape, the seemingly average characters with horrifying backstories, the dark, gripping plot with plenty of twists (some you can see coming and some you can’t), the screwed-up family dynamics, and the fact that it is simultaneously all about a missing girl and yet not. You can definitely tell it’s by the same person, but it’s different enough that you don’t feel like you’re reading the same book. I really liked it, and it would be perfect to read on a plane, by the pool or on the beach.

Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore: A fun and weird read. I didn’t know anything about this one beforehand other than it had been on several “best of 2012” type lists. It’s about a geeky web designer who starts working at an old-fashioned bookstore and eventually starts asking questions about the off-beat patrons and strange books they check out (but don’t actually buy). It’s quirky and different, full of nerdy fantasy elements (without actually being a “fantasy novel”)… but I think if you liked all the cuckoo-ness of “Where’d You Go, Bernadette?” you’ll like this one, too.

Life After Life: Another long book, but another plot that kept me turning the pages. I tend to enjoy books that are set up in short stories that are interwoven to tell a bigger story, or chapters that are set up non-sequentially so that you can’t necessarily see the whole picture until the end, like the Joy Luck Club or Catch-22. This is like those in that the plot doesn’t go in a straight line — the main character is born, dies, is born again, lives for a while, dies again… and so on. It’s not like that Tom Cruise-Emily Blunt movie that’s being advertised right now, though: She doesn’t have any magical (or alien) powers, and even when she has a feeling or premonition that causes her to do something that changes an outcome, she doesn’t really know why she’s having that feeling. Really, it’s a book about an English girl born in the early 1900s, and her family, and her life… but with the unique plot device that shows how a small (or large) decision or event can alter the course of several lives. Not perfect, but definitely worth reading.

The Interestings: Annoying book about an annoying group of teenagers who grow up to be annoying adults. There are some Gossip Girl elements here — cool, beautiful rich kids who live VanDerWoodsen-esque lives in NYC, and the jealous outsider kid who become friends with them but never quite escape the feeling of outsider-ness. But while Gossip Girl is fun as ridiculous TV full of fabulous clothes and insane plot twists, this book is kind of boring Serious Literature in which nothing really happens. Plus, there’s no Chuck Bass.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?: Definitely not Serious Literature, but a quick, entertaining read — especially if you like Mindy Kaling. I actually never really watched The Office and only recently got into The Mindy Project, but Mindy is smart, hilarious and fun. Definitely one of those celebrities you can relate to (even if you are not a first-generation American who grew up chubby, graduated from Dartmouth and wrote a play in which you played Ben Affleck) and wish you could be friends with in real life.

A Game of Thrones (Book #1): I just can’t do fantasy books, y’all. My dad tried to get me to read “The Hobbit” when I was little; I think I made it three pages. I had tried to read this book a while back, after we first started watching the HBO series (because I can WATCH fantasy and sci-fi stuff, and even enjoy it), but I gave up before I finished the first chapter. I was talked into trying this one again by my darling dorky husband and other friends who LOVE it, and since I was flying to Afghanistan and figured I’d need lots to read, I tried. I did manage to read the whole thing — but the reason I made it through the book is because I already knew what happened, and the fact that I already knew what had happened made reading the book redundant. If you like reading fantasy books, you should definitely read this one. But if you don’t… I recommend sticking with the show.

So, have y’all read any of these books? Or something else you loved? Let me know in the comments, and/or be my friend on Goodreads!