December 19, 2011

Top 10 Xmas Wishlist


This week, in the final countdown to Christmas, we join the gang at The Broke and The Bookish in declaring the 10 books we would most like Santa to leave in our stockings.  To be perfectly honest, this isn't so much a "hope" list as a "wish" list for me, because Christmas present buying is a rather odd arrangement in this family.  As the mommy and appointed chancellor of the exchequer, I buy the Christmas presents for everybody, including myself, so I already know which books "Santa" has in store for me, books being relatively inexpensive enough items that I tend to buy my own.  The only real surprises I get for Christmas come from my wonderful mother-in-law, who is excellent at picking out gifts for me, let me tell you, but when she asks me for a list of things from which she can choose and surprise me, I don't often put books on it.  I've asked her for a couple, but not many.

Neither is this list my ULTIMATE book wishlist, a mental list I keep with me always, as I'm sure we all do, of the books I would love to own but would never spend that much money at one time on myself.  This list includes a few Egyptology tomes that cost around $100 each, an encyclopedia of British royal history that's about $90, and a gorgeous book about ecclesiastical heraldry that costs $130.  I'd love to have all of them.  Unless we somehow win a lottery even though we don't normally play, it'll be a cold day in Hell before I actually plunk down that kind of cash to get any of them!  So, what follows is just a list of books I hope to buy for myself in the New Year, I suppose, though Santa or any other kind spirit who is listening is more than welcome to make them show up on my doorstep for Christmas.


10. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs--It just looks fascinating, if rather creepy.

9.  Cake Wrecks: When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong by Jen Yates

8.  Wreck the Halls: Cake Wrecks Gets "Festive" (also) by Jen Yates--All hail my beloved Jen Yates, Queen of the Geek Peoples!

7.  The Legend of Lao Tzu and the Tao Te Ching by Demi--I love the Tao Te Ching, and I REALLY love Demi's indescribably gorgeous picture books.  These book are not just intended for kids, in my opinion, though I hope to get her entire corpus eventually and read them to the SuperToddler regularly, once she becomes a SuperSomethingElse (still haven't figured out what I'm going to call her when she gets older).

6.  Fermat's Enigma: The Epic Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem by Simon Singh--I like Simon Singh's explanatory scientific writing.  He makes me feel like I'm learning something valid without also making me feel stupid.  And if you're a ST:TNG fan, I don't have to tell you why I'd be interested in Fermat--or what ST:TNG stands for.

5.  Half of the Human Race by Anthony Quinn--I've spotted this one on several blogs and on Goodreads, it looks interesting, and I'm still not sure whether I can lay my hands on a copy of it here in the US.

4.  Penguin By Design: A Cover Story by Phil Baines--Ooo, I've been dying to read this one for ages.  I hope it lives up to my expectations of it when I finally do!

3.  The Blue Shoe: A Tale of Thievery, Villainy, Sorcery and Shoes by Roderick Townley and Illustrated by Mary GrandPre--This book just LOOKS gorgeous!  Anything with that much blue on the cover belongs in my library.  Besides, Townley's The Great Good Thing was pretty good, so I expect this one will be, too.


2.  Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary--Late as it may be to start these now, I want to finally be able to say that I've read them.  At least, I want to give them a try.

1.  The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall--I can't BELIEVE I still haven't gotten around to this book yet, especially considering that I absolutely adore the Penderwicks, even the animals that would make my allergies go insane if they were real.  I MUST read this book!

11 comments:

  1. Cake Wrecks! You've just reminded me that's a thing that exists, and now I'm going to be on that blog alllll day! Thanks :)

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  2. Great list- lots of different books. The Blue Shoe does look great!

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  3. I like the mix of books on your list--humor, children's, classics, etc.

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  4. Must share Cake Wrecks with my niece, the cake decorator. She'd love it!

    Here's my Top Ten Books I Hope Santa Brings.

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  5. I LOVE Jeanne Birdsall! I saw her speak a couple of years ago and she is just brilliant! The Penderwicks books will go down in KidLit history like Ramona and Anne of Green Gables, I'm sure! I hope Santa brings everything on your list! Merry Christmas!

    Karis's Top Ten

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  6. Great picks! I love Beverly Cleary's books. By the way, I'm an ex-Pentecostal, too. I've never met a fellow ex-P blogger. Are you familar with the Association of Former Pentecostals? Those forums are where I realized it was possible to elave.

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  7. Spiffy list! And I didn't know most of these books so I'm grateful for the new ideas.

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  8. LOL, ya know, I bought Miss Peregrine's back in the summer and still haven't gotten around to reading it! >_< I really need to do that soon.. I hear it's fantastic!

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Michele | Top 10

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  9. A very VERY intriguing list. I, too, am interested in reading Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. If only because of the title.

    The Blue Shoe looks scrumptious. LOVE the artwork. She's the artist who did the American covers of the Harry Potter books, I believe.

    Penguin By Design is another book I'd like to get my hands on.

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  10. I really enjoyed the Penderwicks - it's a comfy happy read. Also, the Blue Shoe book looks really good - love that cover!

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