Hi. Kind of early for this new year's resolution but here it is before I forget. As with the previous goal, I will list the books I've read in this message.

2/20/12

Patricia Cornwell - Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper - Case Closed

Comments: I did not know much about Jack the Ripper before reading this book. I remembered watching parts of a movie and perhaps a tv special about Jack the Ripper but it was a long time ago. The only thing I can recall from those was that there was speculation that one of the royal family was involved or it was a doctor who tended the royal family. I never heard of Walter Sickert before reading this book. Cornwell makes a compelling case especially with the handwriting and art, however, there is no evidence linking him to these crimes and perhaps Sickert had a twisted sense of humor. This has made me want to read other books that either support or refute that Sickert could possibly be Jack the Ripper.

3/24/12

Lt. Col. Bob Weinstein, USAR-Ret. - Weight Loss - 20 Pounds in Ten Weeks Move It to Lose It

Comments: I finally got on the Ipod bandwagon last December and have recently been downloading free Kindle books like crazy. This book was a freebie and the reviews for this book were generally positive on Amazon so I decided to download it. A lot of useful information. Meal plans and exercises are included in the book. I do plan to try some of the exercises to see if they'll work for me.

4/10/12

Michael Pollan - In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto

Comments: I first heard of Michael Pollan when he was a guest on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. I was listening to podcasts of older Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me shows on my mp3 player at work a few years ago and made a mental note to read this book and have finally gotten around to it. Pollan has definitely made me think twice about the role of nutrition (in regards to nutritionism) in our diet.

5/10/12

Pamela J. Olson - Fast Times in Palestine

Comments: One of the best books I've read this year.

7/5/12

Ron DeLegge II - Gents With No Cents: A Closer Look at Wall Street, its customers, financial regulators, and the media

Comments: Sarcastic look at Wall St. It was funny at times but it took me about 1 1/2 months to finish due to a lack of interest at times.

7/9/12

C. Elias - Fat Burning Foods: An A-Z list of over 80 foods that burn fat for a healthy diet!

Comments: If you've read my earlier entries, you'll probably guess that I'm on a diet or changing my lifestyle, which is true. Another free ebook that I got from Amazon.

7/11/12

Sharon Moore - The Flat Belly Fix: Your Pain Free Flat Belly Solution

Comments: Another free ebook from Amazon. Still undecided if I'll try the techniques that were provided in the book.

7/15/12

Sharon Moore - The 60 Second System: Burn Fat, Lose Weight, Build Muscle in just 60 Seconds

Comments: Interesting concept that all it takes is 60 seconds to achieve the results. The system does require that you do it every hour or at least every two hours to obtain results. Moore recommends 10 hours but states that 5 hours per day will work. Maybe, I'll try this and see if it works.

7/18/12

Joshua Wylie - 30 Daily Weight Loss Tips For A Healthy Lifestyle

Comments: Some of the tips that were offered have already been implemented by me so there wasn't that much new info for me to learn. This book would have been better had I read this before I started my diet.

7/22/12

Rachel Wizenfeld - Cooking Without Measuring: Taste and Approximate Yourself to a Great Dish

Comments: Thought this book would offer more information about how to cook without using recipes or measuring utensils.

8/5/12

Thomas C. Randall - The Quick and Easy Guide to Mnemonics: Improve Your Memory Instantly with 15 Powerful Memory Aids

Comments: I hoped that this book would offer easy tips in memorizing foreign language vocabulary but it doesn't appear so.

UPDATE: There were a few more non-fiction ebooks that I read but I did not keep track of them here.

Hi. I have decided to read 12 new authors this year. Hopefully, in different genres but we'll see. I will list the books I've read in this message.

1/3/2011

Book: Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life?

Author: Spencer Johnson

Notes: Interesting book. Recommended this book to my sister.

2/4/2011

Book: The Looking Glass Wars

Author: Frank Beddor

Notes: Mixed feelings about this book. Will probably read the remaining two books in the trilogy to see how it ends.

2/18/2011

Book: Otherland Volume 1: City of Golden Shadow

Author: Tad Williams

Notes: It started out slow. Not fond of any of the characters yet but the mystery of Paul Jonas intrigues me. Will read the next book in the series.

3/29/2011

Book: A Trap of Gold

Author: Alison Smith

Notes: Didn't think much of it.

4/7/2011

Book: A Wrinkle in Time

Author: Madeleine L'Engle

Notes: Interesting book. I wondered why my teachers never chose it as required reading when I was in middle school... Then I read it and it became clear as there is a hint of Christianity in the book. Will read the second book in the series next.

5/10/2011

Book: Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid

Author: Jimmy Carter

Notes: Interesting book. I like how Jimmy Carter is passionate about bring peace to the Middle East.

6/6/2011

Book: A Game of Thrones (Book One of A Song of Ice and Fire)

Author: George R.R. Martin

Notes: Ahhh! Where have I been? I've been looking for a series like LOTR and now I've found it. Thank goodness for HBO for bringing this series to my attention. Plan to read the remaining books in this series.

6/15/2011

Book: Isle of Dogs (Andy Brazil #3)

Author: Patricia Cornwall

Notes: The book had its moments but too many characters were being introduced that it was hard to keep up with what was happening. Not sure if I would read another Andy Brazil book from Cornwall. I'm still interested in reading her take on whom she believes was Jack the Ripper.

7/6/2011

Book: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Millennium #1)

Author: Steig Larsson

Notes: Finished the Swedish movie before finishing this book. The book was hard to put down but it was also very disturbing. I have never read a character quite like Lisbeth. Such a strong female yet very vulnerable at the same time. Plan to read the second book in the series.

7/10/2011

Book: Never Marry A Stranger

Author: Gayle Callen

Notes: Didn't like the characters at all. Will probably not read any of her books unless one of her story lines intrigues me.

7/20/2011

Book: Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man

Author: Fannie Flagg

Notes: Hmmm... It was interesting. Not sure if I would read another one of her books but who knows.

7/29/2011

Book: Murder Uncorked

Author: Michele Scott

Notes: I learned a little bit about wines and there are a few recipes in the book that I'll like to try out. However, I don't believe I'll be reading any more books in this series. Also noticed that Michele Scott is the 12th author! Yay! My goal was reached. Plan to read more new authors as I have some new authors in my TBR pile of books at home.

8/3/2011

Book: Under The Boardwalk

Author: Carly Phillips

Notes: I think it's official...  Romance is not my genre anymore. I've tried to read different authors but it seems like the same old story, just dressed up differently. I still have some romances on my TBR list which I will try to read eventually but it appears that if I want a romance, I'll just reread the romance keepers that I own rather than see what's out there now. This book started out promising, then quickly became cliche and I was glad to be done with it at the end. I do not plan to read any more from Carly Phillips.

8/8/2011

Book: Over Sea, Under Stone

Author: Susan Cooper

Notes: I made a mistake and started to read the second book in the series first but quickly set that book aside so I can read the books in order. It's an interesting series (I have already read the first 4 books before making this entry). This book didn't really go into detail about the Dark and the Light. A lot of it was just trusting "Great Uncle Merry." Reminded me somewhat of the Narnia books.

8/26/2011

Book: The Neverending Story

Author: Michael Ende

Notes: I like this book more than I thought I would. I read reviews where people stated that the book went downhill after Bastian entered Fantastica but I disagree. I hope that any remake of this movie does justice to the book.

9/25/2011

Book: The Dark Viscount

Author: Deborah Simmons

Notes: What's with the viscount arching his eyebrows? I cringed every time I had to read that the viscount arched his eyebrows. Have no intention to read any more books from this author.

10/3/2011

Book: The First Law

Author: John Lescroart

Notes: The stupidity of two of the cops in this book made this book almost intolerable to read. I believe this book is part of a series and hope that the cops in this book as well as the villains get what they deserved in future books. Unfortunately, I won't read any more books from this author so I won't know what will happens to them if it is addressed or alluded to.

Edited post in 2015 for misspelled words.