Reading 2007 and 2008

I'm really enjoying other bloggers lists of books they've read, favorite reading from the year or books they are planning on reading in the coming year. Seems like a good sort of reflection to do as we end one year and begin another.

Here are some of my most recent books that I actually finished...

The first two are engaging, interesting, thought-provoking, but definitely adult titles.
The Kite Runner
The Glass Castle

Spe Salvi by Pope Benedict XVI (though I need to re-read this one already - I had a hard time absorbing the first half with just one read)
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (very fun read-aloud)

Here are some that are still in progress, even after quite a long time at them (some because they're for discussions that we take a little piece at a time, others because I'm just somewhat disorganized in my reading habits):

We Look for a Kingdom by Carl Sommer

Salt of the Earth by Pope Benedict XVI

The Aeneid (along with a very nice study guide by Fran Rutherford) - I started this as a read-aloud at co-op once a week, but it really didn't work out as the schedule was already a bit fragmented and I had too many group classes I was trying to keep track of. I'll go back and read it myself - probably during this semi-quiet upcoming month of January.

Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI - As I've mentioned a number of times - I LOVE this book, but it's really working out to savor a bit at a time for our discussions instead of plugging straight through it quickly.

Authenticity: A Biblical Theology of Discernment by Fr. Thomas Dubay - Nope. I still haven't finished this one yet. Yes, every time I dip back into it I find something wonderful that makes life just a little bit clearer. I do suspect I'll finish this one some day and I certainly haven't given up on it.


Here are some newly started titles:

The Order of Things by Fr. James Schall - This is a book that really makes you think, and yet it seems somehow light. I think it's Fr. Schall's manner of writing and also the fact that he doesn't tend to overwhelm with complex vocabulary. Good stuff!

I also started The Christian Resistance to Anti-Semitism by Fr. de Lubac a few weeks ago. It was fascinating, but I put it down for now because it was slow working plodding through a title with so many unfamiliar names and events. I still hope to go back to it at some point, along with (a cursorily related title) They Call Me the Bacon Priest. I'm really good at reading halves of books sometimes! :)

Books I'd Like to Read in 2008 (besides the ones I'm still in the middle of):

The Apostles by Pope Benedict XVI
St. Thomas Aquinas: the Dumb Ox by G.K. Chesterton
I'm also hoping to re-read Orthodoxy in time for next summer's conference focusing on that book
By the Great Horn Spoon (because I keep hearing it recommended from many different directions)
The Blood-Red Crescent by Henry Garnett
Come Rack, Come Rope! by Robert Hugh Benson
Manalive by G.K. Chesterton
re-read Regina Doman's Fairy Tale Novels - in order to review/update reviews on the various titles


I may actually try to write up a list of books I've read this year. Usually looking back I find that I've read a lot more than I seem to remember reading.