2018 Reading: It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

#45 A book with a fruit or vegetable in the title

Surprisingly, I have never read this book before. I know that I've seen the show, but I've never really read any of the books. It's just one of those things I missed as a kid.

This was adorable and I sometimes wish I was still like Linus.

2018 Reading: Scary Stories Treasury

#19 A book about or set on Halloween

I remember my sister reading me some of these stories as a child, but I don't really think I've ever sat down and really read them myself. Plus, I think we only had the first book so the other two were new territory for me.

2018 Reading: Triads

#28 A book by two authors

Once again, getting to a book that has been on my shelf for the longest time and never had the chance to read before. You've already heard me wax so much poetic about Poppy and his work.

There were elements of this story that reminded me of some of his other short stories. They might even be connected. I like to think that they are.

2018 Reading: The Pigeon Needs a Bath

#35 A past Goodreads Choice Award winner

This is the very first Mo Willems thing I have read ever. I see his books everywhere (it helps that I mainly work in the children's are of the library) but have never actually picked one up to read it.

It was cute.

2018 Reading: Bringing Down the House

#4 A book involving a heist

Okay, so I know it's not exactly a "heist" but I think this is close enough. It's still taking money under suspicious means and I think we can squeeze that into the category if we really tried.

I'd heard of this story before, you know you hear things and apparently there's a movie about it? I don't know. All I know is that this book was fascinating. If I were that smart with numbers though, I know that I would not be doing this every single weekend and getting recognized even if it was under fake names. I would go once, earn enough to get me by some time, and then cut out until I ran out of money and needed to go again.

But I can't count cards anyway so that's a moot point.

2018 Reading: Leah on the Offbeat

#34 A book that's published in 2018

I really enjoyed reading this book. I basically flew right through it because I wanted to see how it ended up. I was a little confused about all the hook-ups that were going on that basically contradicted the first book, but whatever. High school.

I love Leah and I'm glad that she is a badass outspoken big girl character that got her own story and her own happy ending. There were several times when I really wanted to punch several characters in the face and tell them to just be a man and grow up, including that main character, but I figured that being awkward is a part of being a teenager and that they could make their own choices. Not that my advice would have mattered anyway. Because, you know... it's a book.

2018 Reading: The Art of Fushigi Yugi

#24 A book by an author of a different ethnicity than you

I have loved this series since I saw the show. Some friends of mine introduced me to it and I knew that I had to have more so I started buying the manga as well and then just random stuff about it. Going through this book (which was more than just art) made me want to watch the show again because there is so much that I just don't remember from my first time watching it. Little details and characters that I was too caught up to notice. Such a good show. Such a good manga.

2018 Reading: The Polar Express

#41 A bestseller from the year you graduated high school

Despite this being turned into a movie several years ago and the fact that it has literally been around since I was born, I had never read this book before. It was sort of cute, but I didn't really see a plot or anything. But, I guess some children's books are just like that. Like all Van Allsburg books, the illustrations were breath-taking.

2018 Reading: Rosebush

#47 A book by an author with the same first or last name as you

This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! I was so confused about what was happening and all of these people and... Wahhh!!!

I have to admit, it did not end the way I thought it was going to. Not at all. This was a weird and different type of who-dun-it that I probably never would have picked up if it weren't for the fact that the author and I share the same first name (spelling and all).

2018 Reading: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

I have had this book on my to-read list for the longest time and when I found out that the second one in the series was published this year, I knew it was my time to read it finally. I might even watch the movie, too.

I don't know why it fascinates me so much, but I love teen coming-of-age, coming-out stories. I guess they give me some kind of hope that there are good things out there and it's not all horror stories of people getting thrown out of their homes as teenagers with no one to go.

I like the way this book was written. I felt like I could fly through it but still absorb so much of the story and get a feel for the main character.