Books are cool.

Phew, so I just noticed all my posts so far are about health and fitness. I'm glad to be focusing on all of that again, but I can imagine it's a getting a wee bit boring for you all.

Anyways, for those of you who don't know, I've got a pretty awful commute (1.5 hours each way). When people ask how I do it every day, my usual response is: "I get a lot of reading done." And it's true; so far this year I've read 8 books (my goal for 2012 is 57 books). I'm part of two book clubs, read for my magazine's book page and also love to just read for fun. So I thought I'd share a few books that I really enjoyed. [NOTE: I HATE when people add spoilers to their reviews, so I made sure to give you the bare bones. If you read one, let me know what you think!]

From goodreads.com

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Synoposis:  Yale historian Diana Bishop unknowingly unlocks a long-lost enchanted manuscript and begins to attract the attention of witches, demons and vampires around the world—including that of 1,500-year-old vampire Matthew Clairmont. Together they embark on a dangerous journey to discover the manuscript’s clues to the past, present and future.

My review: I've always been a sucker for a good paranormal story. There's something about vampires, witches and other things that go bump in the night that has always fascinated me. And this book was definitely one of the best paranormal stories I've read in a long time. It wasn't just a silly love story or one filled with gloom and doom. You could tell the author put a lot of work in the details of the story, which was thoroughly appreciated. If you do read this book though, I suggest starting closer to July, so you can immediately hop into the second book, Shadow of Night, which comes out July 10.

From goodreads.com

The One-Week Job Project by Sean Aiken

Synoposis: Unsure of what he wants to do for the rest of his life, Aiken decides to spend a year testing out different jobs to explore what he does and doesn't enjoy. He tries out 52 different jobs n 52 weeks, including a bungee operator, an NHL mascot and an aquarium host.

My review: I feel like this is the perfect read for any college senior about to enter the unknown adult world. There are still plenty of times where I feel lost (and I am not longer a recent grad), and I think there are a lot of lessons to be learned from Aiken's book. The book also explores a range of careers that you may not necessarily learn about if you're studying/majoring in a specific topic. I really enjoyed it.

From goodreads.com

 Day After Night by Anita Diamant

Synoposis: Based on the amazingly true story of the October 1945 escape/rescue of more than two hundred prisons from the British internment camp, Atlit, where they detained 'illegal' immigrants. The story is told through the eyes of four young women who help orchestrate the whole thing: Shayndel, a Polish Zionist; Leonie, a Parisian beauty; Tedi, a hidden Dutch Jew; and Zorah, a concentration camp survivor.

My review: Although I did enjoy the book, it wasn't the most amazing read of the year. What did strike me though was the historical aspect. I find the WWII era absolutely fascinating to read about (and of course, most of the times, incredibly heart-breaking), but I had never really read about what happened immediately after the war especially in regards to the Jews. This book brought all of this to light for me, which I really appreciated. If WWII is an area of interest for you, I strongly suggest picking this book up.