The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

I first read these books when I was in the fourth grade. By the time I got to "The Silver Chair" I couldn't finish. I just couldn't follow the books. As an adult I picked up the books again. Now, I had a whole new perspective. This time around I saw all of the symbolism in the books. I understood why I wasn't able to follow along as well as a child. I enjoyed reading these books back to back and swimming in the symbolism found in the world C. S. Lewis had created.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

I really liked reading the story of how Jeanette took the lessons she learned in life to rise above her circumstances and live the American dream. It was so refreshing to learn about someone who acknowledged she had received a rotten hand in life and rather than expecting others to do something about it, she took destiny into her own hands and made her life something worthwhile. Sure, there are some disturbing things in this book, but only things mentioned in passing with only very brief details. I just laughed every time her mom said that it was time to do something for herself after everything she has done for others; all the sacrifices she had made. I wanted to say to her, "What sacrifices, what have you done?"

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

This is an easy book to read. What I really liked about this book was how you don't have to let your situation in life control you. You can become a better person for it. You can overcome your obstacles. You can rise above your past and live the American Dream. There are people today who just accept where they are and don't even try to do what it takes to live better. Francie, the main character, knows what she wants in life and she works toward her goals. Her mother does the best she can and supports Francie. Each generation helps the next become better, do better, and live better than the one before. This is what I believe is the American Dream.

Horray for Diffendoofer Day by Dr. Seuss with some help from Jack Prelutsky and Lane Smith

I love this book. It is my favorite Dr. Seuss book. At the end of the book, it gives a brief history of how the book came about. Theodor Seuss Geisel (otherwise known as Dr. Seuss) had been working on a book about a teacher, Miss Bonkers. He would often tell his editor that Miss Bonkers was driving him Bonkers. He never finished the project before he passed away. His editor found Dr. Seuss's notes and hired children's author and illustrator Jack Prelutsky and Lane Smith to finish the book. In this brief history, there are pictures of Dr. Seuss's notes. Prelutsky and Smith did a great job. There are even illustrations from Seuss's previous books and notes for this project throughout the actual book. I love the story behind the book but I also love the message this book gives. I read it every year to my students the week before standardized testing.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

I was interested in reading My Sister's Keeper when I found out it was going to be in theaters. When I saw the previews I knew I wanted to watch the movie and so first I wanted to read the book. The book is very good. I enjoyed the story. Unfortunately there was some language in the book that seemed just too unnecessary. The language made me feel uncomfortable and there were some unsacred discussions regarding sex, fortunately those scenes were far less than the ones with the language. I am grateful that the movie is PG-13 because that would mean all the "F" words in the book will be taken out (most of them anyway). At first as I read the book, I thought, I really can't recommend this book, the language just ruins it. I truly got to know these characters and by the end of the book I was crying and saying that it was a great book and I just had to recommend it. Although I strongly caution readers, the language was inexcusable and truly almost ruined the book for me. Read this book if you don't mind language or knowing that you have been warned.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

At first I had difficulty reading this book because it is written in letter format. It was kind of hard to follow. It was easy to read and after awhile I was caught up in the story. It was fun to read the different letters and by so doing, learn more pieces of the story. I really enjoyed reading this book. It is a historical fictional story based on true events. It is a very clever way to read about events that took place during World War Two. I fell in love with the characters and desired to know more about them. This book is definitely worth reading.

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

My sister let me borrow this book. Her brother-in-law is from the middle east. He read the book and he said the facts presented in the book were accurate. I learned so much from this book. There were things about Afghanistan that I never knew before. It was a great way to learn a bit of history. It gave me a better understanding of the Afghan people. Though there were some disturbing scenes, they helped to paint an accurate picture of the life some people struggle with. Some of the experiences expressed in this book are universal, people all over the world, sadly, experience similar circumstances. It was an easy book to read and I enjoyed reading about what would happen next. I think I came away from reading this book a better person than I was before. I certainly have a better understanding of some of the terrible things some people have to live through every day, in every country, in every culture, in every race. We all have our struggles and I think you can better appreciate what you have or feel you are not alone in your own struggles, depending on what kind of conditions in which you are living.