Best of 2012 - and a Sneak Peek at 2013!

Well kiddies, it's time to say goodbye to the year 2012, if you can believe it. I can't quite, mostly because I don't really know what I spent the past 12 months doing -- oh yeah, that's right, it was pretty much nose-in-book, fingers-on-keyboard this year (and not just for the blog, dear ones).

So I thought it would be fun to have a little look at the books especially enjoyed in 2012. Not all of these are 2012 published titles, but all are ones we read and loved this past year. The lists are in no particular order, since I can't begin to rank some of these titles that finely. To keep it interesting, I asked Hubs and Sprout to include their favorites here too -- it's not all about my opinion, you see. And let's jump in!

Top 5 Books to Read at Bedtime (Mommy's version):
1. All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon
2. A House in the Woods by Inga Moore
3. Nightsong by Ari Berk
4. Lala Salama by Patricia Maclachlan
5. What Happens on Wednesdays by Emily Jenkins

Top 5 Books to Read at Bedtime: (Daddy's version):
1. Goldlilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems
2. Today I Will Fly! by Mo Willems
3. Shopping with Dad by Matt Harvey
4. Circle Dogs by Kevin Henkes
5. The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School by Laura Murray

Top 5 Books to Hear at Bedtime (Sprout's version):
1. Tiny Little Fly by Michael Rosen
2. Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds
3. Nighttime Ninja by Barbara DaCosta
4. Black Dog by Levi Pinfold
5. Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson

Top 5 Books About Vehicles:
1. Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site by Tom Lichtenheld
2. Otis and the Tornado by Loren Long
3. Machines Go to Work in the City by William Low
4. A Bus Called Heaven by Bob Graham
5. I'm Fast by Kate McMullan

Top 5 Books with Rhythm:
1. Drum City by Thea Guidone
2. Squeak, Rumble, Whomp! Whomp! Whomp! by Wynton Marsalis (review coming soon!)
3. Sing-Along Song by Joann Early Macken
4. Penny and Her Song by Kevin Henkes
5. Listen to My Trumpet by Mo Willems

Top 5 Books about Friends:
1. Boy + Bot by Ame Dyckman
2. City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems
3. Bear in Love by Daniel Pinkwater
4. Duck, Duck, Goose by Tad Hills
5. A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead

Top 5 Delicious Reads:
1. Cora Cooks Pancit by Dorina K. Lazo Gilmore
2. Minette's Feast by Susanna Reich
3. Bring Me Some Apples and I'll Make You a Pie by Robbin Gourley
4. Rah, Rah, Radishes! by April Pulley Sayre
4. Bee-Bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park

Top 5 Books to Make You Laugh:
1. It's a Tiger by David LaRochelle
2. This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen
3. Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
4. Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cake by Michael Kaplan
5. Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham

and, here are my personal lists --

Top 5 Middle Grade Reads:
1. Wonder by RJ Palacio
2. The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
3. How Lamar's Bad Prank Won a Bubba-Sized Trophy by Crystal Allen
4. Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead
5. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

Top 5 Teen Reads:
1. Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai
2. How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr
3. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie
4. Grave Mercy by Robin L. Lafevers
5. The Summer I Learned to Fly by Dana Reinhardt

Top Books I Never Blogged About (But Which are Totally Fantastic Anyway):
1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
2. The Diviners by Libba Bray
3. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
4. See You at Harry's by Jo Knowles
5. The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann
6. The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats
7. Delirium by Lauren Oliver
8. Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katharine Boo
9. October Mourning by Leslea Newman
10. Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Top 5 Books My Husband Loved:
1. Silverfin by Charlie Higson
2. The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
3. Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos
4. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
5. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (he has awesome taste - I loved this one too)

Now, no fair blaming us if your TBR lists just grew by a mile, OK?

And onto the sneak peek of 2013. This is going to be a big year for me personally, professionally, and bloggily (maybe the biggest I've had since 2010 when I became a mom and started graduate school, in that order). I don't really want to talk about the first two areas of my life, but I will give you a little look-see at what's happening here on the Bookshelf:

~ The Children's Bookshelf: Coming Soon -- I am one of the new cohosts of this weekly kidlit link-up, and I'm SO EXCITED! Come here every Monday to see a host of fantastic links from all over the blogosphere, all related to children's books. It's going to be really terrific!

~ More Nonfiction Reviews: that was my goal in 2012 and it just didn't happen. In 2013, I hope to dive into the true stuff in a bigger way. Stay tuned.

~ More Middle Grade/Teen Reviews: I really fell down on this in 2012, but not for lack of reading some amazing books. This next year I want to balance out all the terrific picture books we read with Sprout with all the other goodies that make their way home in my library bag.

~ A New Look: Working now on some design changes that I hope to have in place very very soon. And of course, you'll be the first to know.

Personally, we want to thank you for reading along with us in 2012. If you've shared our little blog with others, we thank you for that as well -- and here's to 2013, a year of books, books, and even more fabulous books!!