I started the year with six books. Three I picked on my own, and three were for Kid Lit Exchange.

1.

It took me F O R E V E R to read this book. I thought it would put me in the holiday spirit. It had about as much holiday spirit as an execution. There were two things I liked: Dross as a reluctant but no less dedicated nanny (when do you EVER read about males taking care of kids? I loved it.) and the ending with his relationship with Clara (which did not involve marriage). Other than that I was kind of bored.

2.

I had a big problem for the first half of this book. My brain wouldn't let me forget this was Tom Hanks. Every time I started to sink into a story, it would yell, "HEY TOM HANKS WROTE THIS!" It was so weird to me and I don't even know why. But halfway through, I got used to it. Obviously Tom Hanks reads a lot of contemporary fiction, because all of these stories read exactly like typical contemporary fiction. One, however, left me disappointed, the story where these geniuses build a rocket and launch themselves into space. Since all the other stories were contemporary fiction, I thought that launching yourself to space must be, theoretically, possible. So I was really disappointed to learn it was a fantasy story.

3.

This was the first of three Kid Lit Exchange books. I've never read an I Survived book but I've always liked the concept. And some kids will literally only read graphic novels (*cough cough* the one I spend every day with) so I'm glad this is an option now.

4.

The second Kid Lit Exchange book. This was fantastic. So much research went into it, and it includes enough information to keep an adult glued. I already raved about this book on Instagram.

5.

Yes, another graphic novel for Kid Lit Exchange. I read it in half an hour. Like my motto states: QUANTITY OVER QUALITY! Actually I enjoyed it and can see it kickstarting a series. I never read graphic novels growing up so I have a whole lifetime to catch up on.

6.

The ending of A Dog's Journey is heartbreaking and beautiful and glorious. I seriously want the last few sentences hung in my future house somewhere. So to follow it up with an entire other novel felt anticlimactic. But, well, this is W. Bruce Cameron, so it's a fantastic book, and somehow manages to make the series even better. The ending confused me for a second (we know dogs in this storyverse reincarnate, but were never told people do), but then I decided that MY GOSH IS THAT EVER PERFECT.

But when does it end? I feel like there could be yet another book after that semi-cliffhanger ending.

By the way, I've had such a filling diet in W. Bruce Cameron that I catch myself actually believing in dog reincarnation and waiting for mine to find me again.