The Empty Shelf: Month One

The first 5 weeks of this project were fantastic!  I read a total of 10 books .  Below is the list (in alphabetical order) and my star rating.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Thomas wakes up with no memory of his past, not even his last name.  He's in a place called the Glade, along with other teenage boys without pasts.  The boys have built a life for themselves using the provisions given to them by the Creators.  Within the Glade lays a maze, one no one has been able finish, one that has cost some boys their very lives.  However, the boys soon discover, with Thomas' arrival, that their way of life is about to change.
(4/5 stars)

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The story of an orphaned young woman who aged out of the foster care system without being adopted and goes to find her way on the streets of San Francisco.  She's always had trouble connecting with people, but, because of the love of one foster parent, she learned how to communicate through flowers. As the story unfolds, Victoria discovers more confidence in herself and her abilities and that, with the help of her passion for flowers, she can accept, and give, love to others.

(5/5 stars)

Love Does by Bob Goff (nonfiction)

The subtitle of this book really says it all: Discover a secretly incredible life in an ordinary world.  That's exactly what you'll do when you read Goff's stories about how he does love.  Each chapter recaps a story from Goff's life about how God was brought to him or how he brought God to someone else.  It's an inspirational guide of how someone can bring faith to life.  

(5/5 stars)

Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham (yes, THAT Lauren Graham)

Based in the mid 1990s, it's a story about chasing dreams in New York City.  Told in first person through the eyes of 20-something Franny, the story swirls around auditions, acting classes, late-night chats with roommates, dates, and phone conversations with her widowed father back home.  It's about finding yourself after you thought you'd already found yourself.

(3/5 stars)

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
This is a story about two cancer-stricken teens who fall in love and set out on a quest to find the reclusive author of their favorite book.  When things don't go as planned, they find a way to rewrite the story themselves.
(4/5 stars)

Cinder by Marissa Meyer (1st book in the Lunar Chronicles)
Cinder is a teenage cyborg with an unknown past, living among humans and androids, along with her stepmother and stepsisters.  A plague is ravaging the Earth (including one of her stepsisters and the Emperor himself) and Cinder could be the key to defeating it.  Meanwhile, she is trying to uncover her past and how it is tied to the mysterious Lunar people.
(4/5 stars)

The Death of Bees by Lisa O'Donnell

Two orphaned teenaged girls are desperate to hide family secrets in order to stay together.  They bond with their elusive older neighbor and he becomes a guardian of sorts.  A different type of coming-of-age story.

(4/5 stars)

Before I Go by Riley Weston

This story centers around a 16-year-old ice-skater, an Olympic hopeful, and her mother, father, and best friend (who might be more-than-a-friend).  It's about parent-child bonds.  It's about young love.  It's about broken dreams.  And it's about remaining strong through difficult times.

(3/5 stars)

The Why of Things by Elizabeth Hartley Winthrop

A family, dealing with a tremendous loss, returns to their summer home to find someone has died in their quarry.  As the summer unfolds, each member of the family becomes preoccupied with this death in order to put off dealing with the aftermath of the death of one of their own.  Told from the perspectives of 3 of it's characters, it's a unique insight into how people of all ages deal with grief.

(3.5/5 stars)

The Wife by Meg Wolitzer
This is a fictional 'memoir' of a woman in her 60s who is thinking of leaving her husband.  It spans over 45 years, from the day she met him until the day she's telling her story.  As she's revisiting her past, both the good and the bad, she's weighing exactly what she'd be leaving behind.
(3.5/5 stars)

I'm having a hard time choosing between Love Does and The Language of Flowers as my "favorite" for the month.  Both were intriguing page turners, for very different reason.  I think I have to go with The Language of Flowers, just because it is so beautifully written and the story really pulls at my heartstrings.  If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it!

I have a good stack of books I just picked up from the library for February reading.  Here's to that!