Katrina at Callapidder Days is hosting another reading challenge: the Spring Reading Thing. 🙂 The idea is to set a goal for yourself of the books you want to read this spring between March 21 and June 21 (the first and last days of spring). There’s no pressure — if you don’t finish your list, fine; if you want to take a book off or add one, that’s fine, too. I found when we did this last fall that the challenge provided more purpose to my reading and helped me actually read some books I had in mind to get to “some day” rather than just randomly grabbing something off the Christian bookstore shelf.

If you’d like to join the challenge, you can post what books you are planning to read link to Katrina’s, and then place the url of your post in the Mr. Linky there so others can see what you’re reading. And there are prizes involved! Click on the picture to get more information at Katrina’s site and to sign up.

Whether you join the challenge or not, you can also go there just to see what other people are reading — but have something handy to jot down the interesting books that you’ll find that you might want to read, too!

Here is my list: a little on the light side as spring is a busy season for us, but I may add more if I complete these:

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. I am in the middle of this from my winter reading list — didn’t get it finished yet.

Persuasion by Jane Austen. I’m continuing to make my way through Jane Austen’s books. I loved the film of this.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. I first heard of this on a Bugs Bunny cartoon years ago. For some reason Bugs was reading it as he walked off into the sunset. 🙂 Then a few years ago I saw an old black and white movie of it on TV. My heart went out to the little girl whose father was an alcoholic because mine was, too, and I’ve wanted to read this ever since.

The Princess Bride by William Goldman. Loved the movie but hadn’t realized it came from a book. I almost always love books better than the movies made from them, so if that holds true here, I should really love this one. I’ll let you know.

Renovating Becky Miller by Sharon Hinck. I had read her first book, The Secret Life of Becky Miller, last year and loved it. It was the first book I wrote about on my blog. I’m excited to see what Becky’s up to now.

Forever by Karen Kingsbury. I think this is the last of the Firstborn series.

The Ultimate Weight Solution by Dr. Phil McGraw. I am not a Dr. Phil fan — I’m not against him either, really — I haven’t watched or read him enough to go either way. But as I have looked around the web at different weight loss plans, what he had to say contained a lot of common sense, so I wanted to give this book a try.

To Fly Again by Gracia Burnham. I read her book In the Presence of My Enemies, about the year she and her husband spent in captivity, during last fall’s reading challenge.

Finding Your Path by Mitch Raymer, which is described as “Christ-Centered Tools To Help You Get A Job, Find Joy In Your Work And Achieve Success.” I met Mitch and his wife, DK, through the Thursday Thirteen meme and I was impressed with Mitch’s Christ-centered and common sense quotations and principles. On one TT he offered his book to the first thirteen people who signed up for it, and I was one. 🙂 I wanted it mainly for my son who is graduated from college and deciding on the next step in life. All Mitch asked for in return was an e-mail telling what we thought, and I am ashamed to say I haven’t done that yet. Sorry, Mitch! I had given it to my son, but I will sneak it off his desk and read it and get back to you.

True Light by Terri Blackstock. This one isn’t due to be released until June 15, but I might squeak it in. 🙂 It’s the third in the Restoration series in which there what appears to be a sudden global loss of power. The books focus mainly on one family’s coping with the crisis. I didn’t think I would like the storyline, but I do like Terri Blackstock, so I gave it a chance. The hard thing about it is my aversion to thinking about such a crisis — I’m afraid I like my creature comforts too much — I can see my response mirrored in that of some of the characters.

From Cannibalism to Christianity by Margaret Stringer. Margaret is a missionary our church supports, “retired” from the field but still plenty active.

I put these all on a list near the bottom of my side bar and will crossing them off there as I go complete them.

I have an ongoing list of “books I want to read” (which I am sure I will add to as I read others’ lists) from which I can choose more books to read if I get through all of these.

These are books that I will be reading through the year, as they are laid out in weekly or daily sections:

Queen of the Castle: 52 Weeks of Encouragement for the Uninspired, Domestically Challenged or Just Plain Tired Homemaker by Lynn Bowen Walker. I am enjoying this a lot so far — I had seen it recommended on a couple of blogs during the fall challenge last year. Just to give you some advance notice, I’ll be having a Q&A session with the author, Lynn Bowen Walker, here May 2.

Daily Light on the Daily Path compiled by the Samuel Bagster family. I have read this many years over — always a blessing.

Wonderful Words by Stewart Custer. “OK” so far.

And, of course, the Bible, best book ever.