Diary of a Wimpy Kidby Jeff Kinney - Okay, so not something we'd hold in high esteem if we were judging LITERARY value, but, hey, the kids are reading it so I did, too.

I could not help but think of any one of a number of past students as well as my nephew Sam when I was reading this book. If one was to split open the head of a pre-pubescent boy, I bet something much like the contents of this book were what would come sloshing right out. Innocent and devious at the same time, the main character, Greg, lets the reader see the ins and outs of daily life as a not unpopular yet not cool middle school boy. The layout of the book is unique as well. Not quite graphic novel, the book looks like the reader is actually opening up an actual journal, complete with lots of handrawn pictures and comics throughout the text.

I can certainly see why this book has become a #1 New York Times Bestseller and why it sold like hotcakes at my recent book fair. I'd recommend this book to any middle school boy...or girl...or high school students looking for a light and fun read to fill the time.

Sweet Caroline by Rachel Hauck - Another light and inspirational book chosen especially by my Inspirational Fiction girls. The book, although eerily like many of the others they've chosen this year, ended quite unexpectedly for me.

The main character, Caroline, always seems to feel responsible for others, often sacrificing her own goals and happiness in order to help others or do what she perceives to be the "right" thing. This is what leads her to the Frogmore Cafe, whose owner's recent demise causes her to become the owner of the dilapidated cafe that has become a local icon. Turning down the opportunity to pursue her own dreams in Barcelona, Caroline stays to save the cafe and its loyal staff from disaster, while at the same time facing the return of her first love, country boy turned Nashville star Mitch. As Caroline and Mitch are reunited, she faces her insecurities about her past, love, and her faith in God. In the end, as the reader would suspect, Caroline again does the "right" thing, but the reader is pleasantly surprised with just what that "right" thing is.

I really enjoyed this book as it didn't really fit the cookie cutter form of many in this genre. The choices Caroline makes throughout the book are admirable and often self-sacrificing. However, the point the author makes with the ending is that there comes a time for everything....and everything happens according to God's time, not ours. How very, very true.

Bird By Bird by Ann Lamott - I've read this book, or at least parts of it, a long time ago. I even had my own copy. However, when I was given a new copy to read for an upcoming class, I figured I'd better re-read it. A practical guide to the craft of writing, Lamott, herself an acclaimed author, gives useful, witty, and often downright hilarious advice on everything from creating characters to getting published. She minces no words and doesn't try to sugarcoat anything. Writing is hard. It is lonely. It is an obsession. Often, it just sucks. However, everyone has a story and everyone has the ability to tell that story. Will everyone be published? No. Should everyone be published. HECK NO. But, that is not the point of writing. The point of writing is to tell the story that only you can tell. And that is worth more than anything being published could every hope to do for you.