december: 31, 32, 33, & 34

christmas break gave me an opportunity to do a lot of reading - hooray!  so much sweeter since i haven't been able to just devote an afternoon to reading since...august.  NERD ALERT.

this is the longest since i started this project that i've delayed in posting the previous month's books, but early january has been full of visits with friends and not much time for blogging.  oops.

whistling vivaldi, by claude steele (this is a book that was recommended by one of my professors, and is about stereotype threat, the idea that students who are at risk of being negatively stereotyped perform worse because they know about the stereotype, not necessarily because the stereotype is true.  for example: if you tell girls before they take a math test that girls typically do worse on math tests of this kind, they will do worse than the boys.  if you don't acknowledge the stereotype - or say that the test doesn't measure math knowledge but something else - they will perform just as well as boys.  fascinating stuff, and a quick read for any teacher-types out there who are interested!)

gone girl, by gillian flynn (a quick read that's not too intellectual - and is definitely one of those books that's aimed at a female audience: the story of a woman's disappearance told from her point of view and from her husband's.  this sounds scary and bad, but is definitely not.  not the best book i've ever read, but entertaining enough.)

the fault in our stars, by john green (oh how i cried.  i've teared up when reading books before, but this was all out tears-rolling-down-my-face crying.  TIME magazine called this the best book of 2012 and they are right, as far as i'm concerned, which is even more incredible because this is a young adult book, probably aimed at a 10th or 11th grade audience.  it's the story of two teenagers with cancer, hence you can probably figure out why i cried.  i love it.  best john green book i've read.  can't wait for my book club to discuss it!  people out there: if you have any interest at all: read. this. book.)

the art of fielding, by chad harbach (a book about a college baseball team, but it's not all about baseball.    i bought it this summer when everyone was talking about it, but never got around to reading it this fall when i was so busy with school.  it was really good - i got very invested in the characters and read the book constantly in the few days right around christmas.  i'd definitely recommend it!)