Books I Read in 2012

This is a list of all books I read in 2012. To be eligible for the list,I merely had to finish reading the book this year. So, for example, if a book has 500 pages, and I read 490 of them back in 2011, and finished up the final ten pages in 2012, it still counts for 2012.

Additionally, I am only counting books that I have read for the first time. I recently read the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret to my son, but since I have read the book already, I am not listing it here.

A book must have a minimum of 48 pages to qualify for the list.

The column labeled “Reason” provides the reason why I read the book. There are five possible entries in this column:

1. Class. This means the book was assigned to me in a class at work or at my university, and I had to read it.

2. Editor. This indicates I was an editor for the book, and thus read it carefully several times.

3. Kids. This means I read the book to my son (and possibly) my daughter.

4. Review. This means I recieved a free copy of the book with the understanding that I read it and write a review.

5. FTHOI. This stands for “For the Hell of It,” because, let’s face it, every once in a while I do read a book simply for my own enjoyment or to learn how to improve on something in my own personal life.

The final column in the list is titled “Grade.” There, I give a one-letter synopsis of the book, with A representing a thoroughly enjoyable book. B, C, and D representing regressive gradations of enjoyment, and F indicating a completely lousy book. Of course, any book I edited automatically deserves an A.

All book titles are clickable links.

TitleAuthor(s)PagesReasonGrade
Haunted Hotel (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron88KidsB
Goose's Gold (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Invisible Island (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Kidnapped King (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Giraffe and the Pelly and Me, theDahl, Roald96KidsC
Jaguar's Jewel (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron96KidsB
Last Chapter and WorseLarson, Gary96FTHOIA
Cloaked in RedVelde, Vivian Vande128FTHOIB
Pivotal DecadesCooper, Jr., John Milton414ClassC
Yellow Yacht (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
WonderstruckSelznick, Brian640KidsB
Missing Mummy (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Ninth Nugget (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
Orange Outlaw (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Lucky Lottery (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974Patterson, James T.830ClassC
Walk in the Prairie, aJohnson, Rebecca A.48KidsB
Adventures of Benny, theShreve, Steve160KidsC
Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush v. GorePatterson, James T.450ClassC
Secret Secret Passage (Clue Books #2), theWeiner, Eric102KidsF
Case of the Invisible Cat (Clue Books #3), theWeiner, Eric104KidsF
Tale of Despereaux, theDiCamillo, Kate272KidsC
In Search of SugiharaLevine, Hillel328FTHOID
Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian WilsonCarlin, Peter Ames342FTHOIB
Quicksand Question (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
Smoking Ears and Screaming Teeth: A Celebration of Scientific Eccentricity and Self-experimentationNorton, Trevor404FTHOIA
Panda Puzzle (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
50 Popular Beliefs that People Think are TrueHarrison, Guy P.464FTHOIC
Runaway Racehorse (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
Lifeblood: How to Change the World One Dead Mosquito at a TimePerry, Alex244FTHOIB
Unwilling Umpire (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
School Skeleton (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
GlimpsesShiner, Lewis336FTHOIB
Bullhead Queen, theLeaf, Sue194ReviewB
Atheist Voices of Minnesotacompilation274EditorA
White Wolf (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie WomanPilkey, Dav176KidsC
Swerve: How the World Became Modern, theGreenblatt, Stephen356FTHOIB
Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy · Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-BoogersPilkey, Dav176KidsC
Vampire's Vacation (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
How the Dog Became the Dog: From Wolves to Our Best FriendsDerr, Mark288FTHOIC
Ready Player OneCline, Ernest384FTHOIA
Phantom Tollbooth, theJuster, Norton272KidsC
Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy • Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril NuggetsPilkey, Dav176KidsC
Universe from Nothing: Why There is Something Rather than Nothing, aKrauss, Lawrence204FTHOIC
RedshirtsScalzi, John320FTHOIA
Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty PeoplePilkey, Dav176KidsC
PalimpsestStross, Charles136FTHOIC
Writing Down the BonesGoldberg, Natalie174FTHOIC
God's ProblemEhrman, Bart294FTHOIC
X'ed Out X-Ray (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsB
Star Wars - The Clone WarsTraviss, Karen272KidsF
Where Things Come BackWhaley, John Corey248FTHOIB
Jesus, InterruptedEhrman, Bart304FTHOIC
Esio TrotDahl, Roald64KidsD
Zombie Zone (A to Z Mysteries), theRoy, Ron90KidsC
Fire and Rain: The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor, CSNY, and the Lost Story of 1970Browne, David372FTHOIC
Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood, theGleick, James544FTHOIC
Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Re-Turn of Tippy TinkletrousersPilkey, Dav304KidsB
Theory Toolbox, theNealon, Jeffrey / Searls Giroux, Susan284ClassD
Aesop's Fablescompilation208FTHOIB
Ghost HorseStanley, George Edward90KidsC
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent FaithKrakauer, Jon432FTHOIB
Detective CampRoy, Ron144KidsD
Diving Into the WreckRich, Adrienne72ClassC
Mayflower Treasure HuntRoy, Ron122KidsC
How to Build a Dinosaur: Extinction Doesn't have to be ForeverHorner, Jack / Gorman, James256FTHOIC
President and the Assassin, theMiller, Scott432FTHOIC
How to Become a Famous Writer Before You're DeadGore, Ariel270FTHOIB
Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a PresidentMillard, Candice432FTHOIB
Winnie-the-PoohMilne, A. A.148KidsA
Piano Lesson, theWilson, August110ClassD
Dog Called Kitty, aWallace, Bill158KidsC
Damned Good CompanyGranados, Luis382ReviewB
Pocket Guide to Minnesota Place Names, theFeho, Michael188FTHOIC

17 Responses to Books I Read in 2012

  1. Mike says:

    Yup, as advertized, nothing here!

  2. David says:

    In what file format do you have your list on your computer? What program did you use to create it?

  3. James says:

    XML.
    Used Microsoft Excel.

  4. David says:

    That should work, but for a quick solution (as it seems maybe there is a problem), save your list as a .csv file and upload that. It’s such a simple format that it’s hard for it to get screwed up.

  5. James says:

    Yes, thanks for your help.

    I re-uploaded the table as a .csv file. That worked, but it also gave me something like 800+ rows and columns and whenever I tried to edit it, the browser froze. Looks like the best way is to just manually enter the data, which is slow going…

  6. David says:

    Another option would be to email me the file to debug… It could be something as simple as opening it in notepad and deleting a bunch of extra trailing characters (for example).

  7. James says:

    You can try if you want! I’ve emailed you the file.

  8. David says:

    I’ve updated the file and sent it back. You should be in good shape now.

  9. David says:

    Cam Jansen! I believe my daughter has read every book from that series. She was surprised a few weeks ago when a new one showed up at the library — most of the book series we read are long over by the time we get to them.

    One idea… you could add a “link” column pointing to reviews and blog posts that cover books which you’ve written about.

  10. James says:

    We’ve only read one Cam Jansen book, primarily because Owen saw a t-rex skeleton on the cover and that piqued his interest.

    Good ideas for the list. A lot of work, though. Maybe I’ll get to it this weekend.

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