Book #69 - Pendragon by D.J. MacHale

This is a book that I would never have picked out for myself for two main reasons. First, it is written for middle schoolers, and second, it is sci-fi. But, when I told my students at the start of this year that I was trying to read 100 books this year, one of the young ladies asked if she brought me a book, would I read it. I said of course. It is has been sitting on my desk for about a month, and I thought I'd better read it or I'd disappoint my student. I have to say that it was a great book. Very creative and really kept me interested. Although the language was simpler, I did not get the feeling I was reading something that was too juvenile for me. This is the type of book that will keep kids reading, and I'm really glad that it was recommended to me.

Book #68 - The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

This is the third and final installment of the series starring journalist Mikael Blomkvist and computer hacker Lisbeth Salander. Unlike going from book 1 to book 2 (which was a whole new story line), this was a continuation of book 2. And, I thought this was the best of the three book. It was absolutely fantastic. This book contained a very interesting look into the secret police of Sweden as well as their judicial system, and I have to say, I find the way they run their courtrooms far more efficient and logical than in an American courtroom. The third book ended with enough closure that you do not feel a need for another book, but I have to say that I'm going to miss reading the adventures of these characters. As I've said in my blogs of the other two books, these movies will be fantastic if done right. The problem will be fitting 600 page books into 2 hour movies. One colleague from school said the Swedish version of the movie was fantastic, so lets hope they take a look at it before cutting the final copy of the movie.

Book #67 - The Whole Truth by David Baldacci

I know it seems like my reading mission has slowed to a crawl, and it actually has. With the start of school, it seems like I don't have the energy to read like I was before. So, because it took me so long to read this book, do not use it as a judgement on what I thought of this book. It was a great adventure, but not one typical of David Baldacci. If you had given me this book with no cover or title page, I would have thought it was a Brad Thor novel. This book really got you thinking about whether our entire political structure and decisions are totally controlled by propaganda that can be totally made up if you have enough money to hit all media outlets. The story was a great cat and mouse chase and had a very unpredictable ending. I highly recommend if you are up for a page-turning thriller, but you have to be able to stomach a little bit of gore.