The Books of 2012 and the Books to Come

by Kristina Wright

I'm writing this almost a week before it will be posted because I'm scheduled to blog at Oh Get A Grip! on December 26-- and I imagine I'll still be wiped out from the Christmas merriment (and deaf from a dozen different noise-making toys) to blog. And so, I'm afraid this is going to be a short piece from me. Because, at this very moment, I'm not reading anything.

I know. It boggles the mind.

I'll spare you the woeful lament of the writer/editor/mother who has no time to read. Honestly, when I'm engrossed in a new book, I just find the time. Usually, when I should be sleeping. But lately I've been reading books for review (or playing too many games of Words With Friends) and haven't picked up a book to read for pleasure in the past month or so. That will change-- probably by the time this post goes live. 'Tis the season, after all, and the people who love me know I love books.

Despite my lack of reading so far this holiday season, I have read more for pleasure this year than I have in the past several years. I now own both a Nook (the original, non-backlit version, which I love for that almost-real-book feel) and a Nexus 7 (on which I can read across platforms, a wonderful thing when I get giftcards for Kindle and Nook) and both have gotten their share of use. I also read "real" books, and have read both paperbacks and hardcovers this year. I'm an equal opportunity reader.

Two books on my Christmas wishlist that I'm likely to be reading this week are Stephen King's 11/22/63 and Bruce, the new biography of Bruce Springsteen by Peter Ames Carlin. I'm a huge fan of King and Springsteen, so both seem like good end-of-the-year reads. (Though I imagine I'll be reading 11/22/63 well into the new year...)

I am excited about all of the books I will read in 2013-- including the books I'm already anticipating (two of the young adult trilogies I'm reading will have their third book released in the coming year) and the books that aren't even on my radar yet. I love literary surprises, don't you? I look to my reading friends to recommend their favorite reads and my writing friends to write books that I know I'm going to love. But I still enjoy discovering new authors, as I did this year with Gillian Flynn and Melanie Gideon.

Whatever you're reading this holiday season, wherever you may live, I wish you joy and peace in the coming year. Please share the books you love, both the reader and the writer will thank you.

**Addendum 12/26: I did get the Bruce Springsteen biography for Christmas, but  a couple of days ago I downloaded Cheryl Strayed's memoir Wild and I was hooked from the prologue. I've read several essays by Cheryl and excerpts of Wild and her honesty and storytelling ability blows me away. This seems like the perfect year to close out 2012.