I owe this to Karla...just a few days behind!

1. Total number of books I've owned:
I would love to see someone actually answer this with a number. If they can, they are either, A: WAAAYYYY too obsessive-compulsive, or B: not able to read. I have no idea, but I would say somewhere in the 200-300 range. That includes books for pleasure, school books, and general reference. I could add about 100-200 already with TJ's books. Trey gets mad b/c I keep them all, and don't read them everyday!

2. Last book I bought:
Ummm, I think it was So You're Thinking about Homeschooling, by Lisa Whelchel. I love this book, and if I wasn't convinced before I read it that I wanted to homeschool, now I am.

3. Last book I read:
Well, the last one I finished was the one above. The last one I began, and am still working on, is The Five Languages of Love. Maybe one day I'll finish it, and can begin to work on making my marriage better! Or, I'll just kill Trey...whichever comes first!

4. Five books I have read and really enjoyed:
Definitely Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger. I haven't read it since ninth grade, in Mr. Kaple's class, but I loved it! I need to get it and read it again. I was going to teach it to my students at DJJ, but I was told it would be better not to. Didn't want to upset someone and risk getting fired! Oh...

Johnny Got His Gun, by Dalton Trumbo. I also read this in Mr. Kaple's class, and was so mad that he was making us read it. It was about a guy who was in the war, and the beginning was SOOOO boring. Oh man, once it was over, I was SO mad that I had to stop reading it! If you've heard the song One by Metallica, and seen the video, it's about that, sorta. The guy is just a brain in a torso. It's really freaky to read about all his thoughts and stuff. I love that book! You know what, I love Mr. Kaple! I was so mad when he married the dumb German teacher and was transferred to the opposing high school! Of course, he made us read The Odyssey, too, and I hated him for that!

Anything by John Grisham. I am currently reading The Partner. Unfortunately, I'm also currently reading about ten other books, and haven't the time for even one. So, it's on the back burner for now, along with everything else. Maybe one day I'll finish it. My favorite by him, though, is and always will be The Firm. I think it's just b/c I still see Tom Cruise in it in my mind.

Sullivan's Island, by Dorothy Benton Frank. I was born and raised in South Carolina, and I hated it. I never found what there was to love about it, and why so many people did. I didn't lead the wonderful life that I heard so much about, or treasure things like southern culture and the like. However, upon reading this book, it made me want to, and gave me a better appreciation for the state I live in. Sure, I was white trash growing up, but I saw just how cool it was to live in SC, and that even those with the perfect lives had their problems. My state still sucks for many reasons, but I'm much more proud to be a southerner now. Oh, and the story was just great! I got Plantation after that, and it didn't get me like SI, but I do want to read some of her other books.

Monster, by Walter Dean Myers. He writes books about young black boys growing up in the ghetto and stuff like that. This book has a lot of meaning to me, b/c, A: I read it, and it told me a lot about how my students felt about incarceration and how scared they really were, B: Before I even started teaching it, I let them hear a tape of the author talking about the book. The tape got stolen (so it could be taped over with awful rap music in the dorms), and I ended up having to pay $20 to replace it to the public library, and C: The day I began to teach it, I got fired, just a couple days after I had to pay to replace the damn tape! I was in the middle of reading the first page to my class when I was asked to come to the office....I'll never forget that book!

I also like Stephen King books. However, I think his endings SUCK! They are so great throughout, then at the end he botches them all up! Oh, and I didn't mention the books I've read about behavior and babies and teaching that I've enjoyed, but I figured there was very little chance you'd run out and check those out!

Anyway, that was my tag. I won't pick people to do this, as I think they've all been tagged already. So, if you want, please do, and if you don't, thanks for reading! Have a great day! Later!