bookworm.

I'm not afraid to admit that I'm a bookworm. I absolutely love a good book. Classics. Historical Fiction. Beautiful stories. Now that I am out of college and in the midst of living in the "real world" I've decided to fill my mind up with as many books as I can muster in a lifetime. I've got a running list of what I want to read (always love suggestions!) and I've been able to cross off 8 so far this year....

Cider House Rules by John Irving: The movie does absolutely no justice to this book. The movie is decent but I was glad I read the book before watching the movie. It reads like an epic movie with a pretty heavy topic, some pretty obvious opinions (that I don't necessarily agree with), and some amazing prose. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte: I picked up this book at the Book Nook because my sister's English teacher said every woman should read it. This thought sparked my curiosity and I decided to find out for myself. She was right. This classic truly is a classic. I loved it.

The World According to Garp by John Irving: After reading Cider House Rules I wanted to read anything by John Irving that I could get my hands on. I love the style of his writing and the way he tells a story. This one wasn't quite as epic as Cider House but still a good one.
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver: I had seen this book on shelves for the last few years and heard from many people that it was great so I decided to finally give it a try. Kingsolver writes like a poet with a social conscience and I learned more about Africa and their culture from this book than I did in a whole semester of a college class I took devoted to Africa. An American missionary family dragged to Africa by their bible-beating pastor father and the ripple effect it causes within their family and within Africa as a whole. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: I've been trying to catch up on my classics as I avoided them like the plague in junior high and high school. I had always been curious about whether "Gone with the Wind" really was all it was hyped up to be. This baby is not a casual read at over 1100 pages and it took me about a month to read (a good portion of it I read while in Tennessee...fun considering it takes place in during the Civil War in Georgia & Tennessee). This has become my favorite book of all time.
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver: I enjoyed The Poisonwood Bible so I thought I would try another of Kingsolver's novels. This one is super short and took me just a couple days to read. It's not nearly as complex as the rest of the stuff I have read this year but it was a nice story and a good easy read after the enormity of Gone with the Wind.
People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks: I enjoy historical fiction so I thought this one looked interesting. It's a fictional account of a real historical Jewish artifact. It was just okay.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini: I just finished this one tonight. The way The Poisonwood Bible was enlightening about Africa, this one was very revealing about Afghanistan. This story starts out in the 1970s and runs through modern day and intertwines the story of an Afghani boy, his best friend, the prosperous days of Afghanistan, the Russian invasion and occupation, the initial joy when the Taliban overthrows the Russians, and the obvious eventual horror that the Taliban brings along with the deeper personal story of Amir & Hassan. This book was enlightening, well written, and one I won't soon forget.
A FEW OF THE BOOKS ON MY LIST TO READ NEXT IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER

Any suggestions on what I should read next?

Daughter of Fortune / Isabel AllendeThe Scarlett Letter / Nathaniel Hawthorne
Bel Canto / Ann Patchett
The Master Butchers Singing Club / Louise Erdrich

Cold Mountain / Charles Frazier
Gilead / Marilynne Robinson
The Grapes of Wrath / John Steinbeck
The House of Mirth / Edith Wharton
John Adams / David McCullough

Pope Joan / Donna Cross
The Tender Bar / J.R. Moerinder
Three Cups of Tea / Greg Mortenson
And this one, I read a few years ago and I included just because I think everyone should read it. It held the title of my favorite book until Gone with the Wind won my heart over but it is still my favorite modern book to date and completely amazing.

I Know This Much Is True / Wally Lamb