As I review the list of books I read this past year I am amazed at the sheer quantity.  And the quality, too, for that matter.  Aside from a couple of Fluffs, my brain was able to wrap itself around some pretty interesting and enlightening tomes.

I’ve placed the books into six categories, and then made a few comments on each.  If the word sayonara appears after the author it means 1) I don’t recommend it and 2) it went straight to the Goodwill pile.  I only keep books I would either read again or heartily recommend.  The italicized books are my three favorites of the year.

FICTION:

Madame Bovary   Gustave Flaubert.   There’s a reason it’s a classic… memorable characters, well-written prose.
In a Dark Wood Wandering   Hella S. Haasse.   Engrossing historical fiction, aptly depicts the time period.
Bergdorf Blondes    Plum Sykes.   This book is, of course, a waste of a perfectly good tree.  It is Fluff Defined, really.  But there are months days when that’s all my brain can handle.  If you were amused by The Devil Wears Prada, it’s tres fun, a quick read, and good for several laughs.
Kite Runner    Kahled Hosseini.  
Uncle Tom's Cabin    Harriet Beecher Stowe.

MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY:

I Loved a Girl  Walter Trobisch.    Candid and thought-provoking collection of letters between a priest and a young couple considering marriage.  Excellent.
Borrowed Time:  An AIDS Memoir   Paul Monette.     Sayonara.
Pirate Hunter:  The True Story of Captain Kidd   Richard Zaks.     Apart from being gratuitously crass in a few places – and occasionally getting the impression that some of the historical background that sets the scene throughout was added as filler - I enjoyed Pirate Hunter.  So did Jonathan.  It’s the only book he read last year.

DOCUMENTARY/HISTORY:

Fast Food Nation   Eric Schlosser.   Makes you re-think that McDonald’s burger for many, many reasons.
Vaccinated   Paul Offit.  (review)

OTHER NON-FICTION:

The Not So Big House   Sarah Susanka.    Inspiring ways to efficiently construct/design/renovate you home.
Adobe Illustrator CS3 Classroom in a Book    
Deceptively Delicious   Jessica Seinfeld.   (review)
All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes    Kenneth A. Myers and Marvin Olasky.    Sayonara.
Bible:  Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, I and II Timothy, Titus, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galations, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, James, 1, 2 & 3 John, Jude.    [Note:  In January of 2005 I set out to read the Bible through in one year.  Three years later, I’m one book away from that goal.  Out of it’s books I read in 2007, Hebrews resonated the most with me.]

ECONOMICS / MARKETING:

Freakonomics   Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.    Jonathan and I listened to this audiobook in the car en route to and from Sante Fe last spring.  Intriguing, enlightening, and entertaining.
Why We Buy:  The Science of Shopping   Paco Underhill.   Sayonara.

EDUCATION / PARENTING:

Good Kids, Bad Habits  Jennifer Trachtenberg.  (review)
Even June Cleaver Would Forget the Juice Box  Ann Dunnewold.  (review)
Girlfriend's Guide to Toddlers   Vicki Iovine.   The Girlfriend’’s Guides are always amusing and encouraging with quite a few helpful pointers throughout.
Practical Wisdom for Parents:  Demystifying the Preschool Years    Nancy Shulman and Ellen Birnbaum.   Despite the melodramatic subtitle, this book is a fairly extensive guide to both how children change during these years and how to choose an appropriate preschool environment for them.
Six Point Plan for Raising Healthy Happy Kids   John Rosemond.  Sayonara.
Tools for Teaching   Fred Jones.    Good resource for educators.
Teaching Preschoolers:  It’s Not Exactly Easy, But Here is How To Do It     Ruth Beechick.    A succinct and well-organized guide with emphasis on practical application.  I will be referring to this book often during the next few years.
The Bilingual Edge    Kendall King and Alison Mackey.  (review)

So....  what were your favorite reads of 2007?

If I had unlimited funds – and my family and friends had unlimited space – here’s what I’d be getting them for Christmas:

1.  A wall-mounted Hand Hook designed by Henry Allen (creepy! and cool!) for my brother.

(I found this at Elsewares, who then contributed a CUTE addition to your table setting – see below for your chance to win it!)

2.  A subscription to Blueprint magazine for my friend with the "thyroid problem."  It'll exercise your brain just enough to keep you breathing in and out.

3.  The Goodnight Moon game for my boys. Because they’re almost old enough to sit quietly and play board games, right? Right?!

4.  More inspiration for Rosie - she hasn't posted since August!

5.  An outrageously cute cell phone case (to the left) for my cousin Amy.

6.  For Jonathan - in the hopes that he would actually read a book: The United States of Arugula ( how gourmet eating in America went from obscure to pervasive) and The Omnivore’s Dilemma (how our food is grown and what we are actually eating).

7.  A case of Red Bull for Shiera.

8.  For the nice yet decidedly odd woman in my art class a few years ago who only painted dead things, this creepy yet fascinating book.

9.  Water Blocks and Sand Blocks for Jonathan and me the boys.  

10.  Chocolate-dipped figs for Jonathan – to give him an idea as to what to do with all my grandmother’s figs next year.

11.  Two of these shirts for the boys.  Because enough is enough now that they have hair.

12.  For Meredith: a Michael Sowa postcard (at right) to see if she can figure out why!

13.  For my shoe closet, these new K-Swiss shoes in blue and brown.

14.  For my Dad, the Yoga Pretzels cards, just so I can see him doing it with Benjamin and Jonah.

15.  For the kids I teach in Children’s Church, a Bible version of Namits (I wish it existed).

16.  For Heidi and Bob, an unlimited 20x200 gift certificate to adorn the walls of their new place.

17.  For my fellow twin Moms (D’Andrea, Stacie, Irene, and Goddess in Progress), a subscription to Wonder Time and/or Family Fun magazine... for all the times we wonder what to do with two babies/toddlers/preschoolers!

18.  For Amy and me, some organization tools for the church nursery.

19.  Bialetti’s Suzy espresso maker for my mother-in-law. And we’ve got a convenient place for her to store it in our kitchen when she goes home!

20.  A brain implant for Jonah so that he no longer has the ability to wake up at 5:30am, then take a measly one hour nap on the day that I am trying to finish this list!

21.  A brain implant for myself.  So that I once again have one.

22.  These ridiculously-priced yet terribly tasty gummy pandas for Jonathan.

23.  Beautiful glass lanterns for my Mom. Along with space to put them in!

24.  A contraption for our patio that kills all mosquitoes within a 100 foot radius. And the personal size of that contraption, too, so we can carry one around wherever we wander here in Miami.

25.  A helicopter ride for Bobby over one of Jim Denevan's works of art.

26.  A cool lap top case for, ahem, myself.

27.  Wonderful measuring spoons for Gran.  (and a pair of TwinkleToe shoes as well!)

28.  Swirly Bird Peace cards with tidings of great joy for all of you!

29.  For all of my female friends, a copy of the latest issue of the Mix Tape zine. Mostly because it’s cool, but also because it contains an article by me!

30.  A creative and beautiful Birdhouse Advent Calendar for Nancy & Erick.

31.  A window swing like this one for Jonathan’s office.

32. And I would wrap everything in brown kraft paper! And label with these tags!

33. To anyone not mentioned, a piece of Marcolini to covert you to the dark side. (It’s good enough to make you glad you weren’t mentioned.)

Finally, check out this Hug Salt & Pepper Shaker from Elsewares! Form meets function in this clever design:

If you’d like a chance to win this adorable porcelain duo, check out Elseware’s Space + Place section and find which stylish/well-designed/unique item you’d like to give or receive this Christmas...  leave a comment below with the link to your chosen item! (one per person, please!)   I’ll randomly choose a winner on Tuesday 11/20!