I will remember the year 2013 as the year I sat in on the trial of the first woman sentenced to die by the electric chair (The Trails of Maria Barbella: The True Story of a 19th-Century Crime of Passion by Idanna Pucci)...
...and the year I lived as a foster child in the Murphy home (One for the Murphy's by Lynda Mullaly Hunt)
...and the year I studied for the national spelling bee (Bee Season by Myla Goldberg)
...and the year I was shot down over the Pacific during WWII (Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand)
...and the year I was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's (Still Alice by Lisa Genova)
...and the year I was a pioneer in the Arizona territories (These is My Words by Nany Turner)
...and the year I fled from Saigon the day before it fell into communist hands. (Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai).

I lived many lives in 2013 – 25 different lives to be exact. Twenty-five is the number of books I read this year and while 25 is not a huge number (I have read 100 books in one year before), it was still a year full of rich reading and rewarding experiences.  

One of my favorite quotes about reading states: "Reading is not an escape from life, but an exercise in living." For me, 2013 was certainly an exercise in living.

As 2013 draws to a close, I encourage you to take a minute and think over the different lives you've lived this year, the experiences you've had, the people you met, the places you visited all from the comfort of your cozy couch, or bed, or coffee shop, or favorite Anythink library. What does your 2013 year in books look like? What was the most memorable life you lived this year?

The most memorable life I lived this year was Wonder by R.J. Polacio. Leave me a comment and tell me yours.