Books of 2012

Hey, everybody.

So I just (re)discovered this list I had been keeping on my bedside table.
It's a list of all the books I've read since January 2011 in chronological order.
That is, all the books I've read since mid-pregnancy all the way to today.
I thought I would take this time to share it with you here, with accompanying milestones of the past year as well as impressions, etc.

Here goes!


(1) The Passage by Justin Cronin
Ugh, such a scary book for me. I was reading it while Dash was away so this must have been late last January. Wow, about a year ago on the dot! Anyway, it really got under my skin and into my head and put me in a bad space, so I quit reading it before the end. Which I have no regrets about whatsoever, so nyah!

(2) Into The Forest by Jean Hegland
Such a good book!!!!! It was the local "ResNet" (Resilience Network) that mentioned the book on one of the email newsletters I received. The lady who recommended it pointed out that it's an apocalypse scenario minus the typical "savior man who rescues the group" scenario. I, in turn, recommended it to my twin sis, Kathy, who also ate it right up and we have since shared many a memory about this remarkable story. I read it as a part of my 2012 (Doom's Day Preparation) New Year Resolution ;)

(3) The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman
I read this at the recommendation of the local ladies' Book Club that I meant to join. I was down with a cold or something because I remember many an uninterrupted hour of reading this on the sofa in the living room. Just my kind of book, where you follow the lives of many generations of people. Highly recommend it!

(4) Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
Kathy read this book waaaaaay back in high school, and I don't know how I came across it but I finally decided to read it myself. It was...an okay read. I would have probably enjoyed it and been titillated by it more in high school like Kathy was, but oh well. Not a complete waste of time.

(5) Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin
It was about this time that I was getting into mega baby-mode for the impending birth of William. So this must have been around early March or so. Great for all the accounts of births on The Farm. Everyone feeling all "high" and "groovy" all the time -- love the dated lingo :D The second half of the book is more like a manual on how to care for pregnant women and deliver babies (a real midwife's handbook!) but I was more into the story at this point, not the know-how.

(6) Husband-Coached Childbirth by Robert E. Bradley
Dash and I had read this book while pregnant with Ella Rose very early on it really shaped our philosophy on the kind of birth we wanted to have. I re-read it last March just to refresh my memory on the stages of birth and such. Every expectant mother should read this book if they want to have an empowered birth.

(7) Permission to mother: going beyond the standard-of-care to nurture our children by Denise Punger
Another baby-related book, but also about childrearing. I didn't really learn anything new here. It was just to stroke my ego that I was doing things right by going the "attachment parenting" way because this doctor-turned-mother backed up all the theories of AP with hard biological evidence. Buya.

(8) Blankets by Craig Thompson
I had read this comic back in college right after it had hit the headlines, and was so moved by it that it brought me to tears. Then I bought a copy and got it signed for my birthday a couple of years back (as seen here!) but never re-read it. Only kept it all untouched and pristine on my shelf. But then out of the blue, right before William was born (so this must be eaaaaarly April), I decided to re-read it. And sadly enough it simply didn't strike me the same way it had when I was in college. Am I getting old and cynical? I hope not...

(9) Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
This was the book I read in the days following William's birth, so mid-April. I had a lot of time on my hands with all the resting and sleeping-baby-watching I was doing. Dash had read his back during our honeymoon in '08 but I finally picked it up on my babymoon. Ha! I just noticed that "moon" coincidence. Funny~ Anyway, it's a fantastically inspirational book that made me want to start a garden right then and there. And did I? ...Well, no, but this is the year that becomes a reality!! 

(10) Infant Potty Training Basics by Laurie Boucke
I probably re-read this in William's first month of life because I pretty much started elimination communicating with him in his first week, but felt like I could use a refresher and some good advice again. I had read this back when Ella Rose was 6 months old or so, and it's definitely a good book for those interested in trying EC with their little ones.

(11) Siblings Without Rivalry by Adele Faber & Elizabeth Mazlish
I also read this within William's first month of life because frankly I was not having an easy time adjusting to having a second baby. I mean it, Ella Rose was my world. So when William came along, she was not having it and I was not knowing what to do! This book is gold. Granted, it doesn't cover much about "introducing baby" but it does have great advice for raising multiple kids in general, in a way that respects each child's personhood and brings harmony to a family. Recommended to me by the fantastic Melissa & Julie. ♡

(12) Beyond the Sling by Mayim Bialik
This mus have been around June or so, when my mother-in-law came to visit. I guess I was feeling like I needed some "expert" advice to have on-hand as reference to justify my parenting approach. Mayim was the star actress on the show "Blossom" from the 90's for those who remember, but she then went on to get a PhD in neuroscience and her education also helped shape her philosophies as an attached parent. Loved it. And never really had to refer to it to justify anything. Go figure!

(13) Going Green: True Tales from Gleaners, Scavengers & Dumpster Divers edited by Laura Pritchett
Ah, yes. The most vivid memory I have regarding this book is riding in the back of the new camper on our way down to our friends' wedding in Pasadena. I randomly saw it on the "Staff Picks" table at the library and it simply called to me. Probably because it was that time of year when all the college kids bail and leave behind all this valuable stuff by the side of the road. I was in scavenging mode.

(14) Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
Some time before our trip down, I watched a documentary on OPB about the advent of Earth Day and the whole environmental movement of the 70's. And many a time, this book was mentioned, so I checked it out from the library before we made our journey, and read quite a bit of this on the way down and back up. Truth be told, I didn't read it to the very end, but really it was getting a little redundant toward the end, reiterating how bad chemicals are for wildlife and, in turn, ourselves. Still, I did learn new things and overall it felt good to be reading something that inspired such a monumental shift in the national psyche.

(15) Diaper Free! The Gentle Wisdom of Natural Infant Hygiene by Ingrid Bauer
Another EC book! Now I'm confused. I must have written this out of order on my list, because I could have sworn that I was also reading this while my mother-in-law was visiting. Or, at least, it was in the bathroom during her stay, because I remember wondering if she'd glimpsed the title and wondered what on earth we were up to. But just as with "Beyond the Sling", no comments were made. Huh.

(16) Infant Potty Training by Laurie Boucke
That's right. Another EC book. With Ella Rose, I was committed to EC, but for some reason, with William I feel down right devoted. It feels like I am explaining it and sharing it with more people than ever, so I am trying to get as much literature about it under my belt as I can. I am not quite sure when I got to reading this one -- I guess it was over the course of late summer. It's a big one. The version that I read back in number (10) was just the parred down version, roughly 1/4 its size. The full Infant Potty Training manual is mega thick. Anyway, I feel that it is worth it to look into EC and our local library has plenty of wonderful resources on it.

(17) Undressed Art: Why We Draw by Peter Steinhart
Flashforward to just after Christmas. That's when I read this book. Which means I was 100% bookless for the entirety of autumn and early winter. Eegad, what was I up to?? I'm not quite sure... Anyway, I already wrote about this book back at this post. And the reason I picked it up is because I'm passionate about figure drawing and maybe even have a future in writing something about it... More on that later I'm sure ;)

(18) People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry
Already wrote about it here.

(19) Diaper Free Baby by Christine Gross-Loh
And now for the book I am reading right now.
I'm pretty sure that once I'm done with this book I will have read not only every book on the topic of EC that our library carries, but every book on EC that is out there. Since I might be giving a talk on this at the Live & Learn With Your Baby class that I am taking with William, and I really inundating myself with all things EC (reading it, doing it more consistently, using EC wear -- more on that in tomorrow's post!!)


Phew!
And now those are all the books I have read from January 2012 to January 2013.
I can't believe it was close to 20!!!!
I guess it comes in waves. And I'm glad that most of the books are ones I would recommend. Nothing worse than reading a book and, by the end, feeling like it was not even all that worth it to read...

Well, I hope you check out some of my recommendations and until tomorrow -- Happy Reading!!